SAN DIEGO — When Hal Tilbury, CEO of credit union software provider Bluepoint Solutions, learned that in addition to great beaches San Diego played host to some 2,200 homeless children he decided to get involved.
"When you hear about the homeless you don't realize that the average age of a homeless person in the United States is seven to eight years old and they are living in shelters or on the streets with one parent or often no parent," said Tilbury.
While the problem is not exclusive to San Diego, nationwide homeless children number over 300,000, the city does offer these kids hope in The Monarch School.
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Funded in part by the San Diego County Office of Education and run by former United States Teacher of the Year Sandra McBrayer, the Monarch School is dedicated to providing homeless and at-risk children with an accredited education while caring for their basic needs. With a goal of helping the children achieve their dreams of normal, productive lives in addition to educational classes, programs are offered that cover everything from family assistance, job training and counseling, to medical support, and personal enrichment through one-on-one mentoring.
Today, there are more than 100 kids between the ages of seven and 18 enrolled at the school.
"Interestingly enough I was in a toy store collecting bags of toys for children in Tijuana as part of an annual church event one year and someone asked me if I heard about the school," said Tilbury. "I thought that in addition to a donation it would be a great opportunity to get the company and the employees more personally involved." Since the San Diego County Office of Education provides about 50% of Monarch's funding by covering basic education elements of the school such as teachers, aides, and instruction materials, the school relies heavily on community support. Bluepoint Solutions not only donates 5% of all company profits to the Monarch School, but has adopted the school and Tilbury also committed his employees to 50 days of volunteer time at the school. A committee of four employees meets with school representatives to determine how Bluepoint staffers can help and coordinate activities. Employees that are interested in volunteering during working hours are compensated so they don't have to use any personal or vacation time. Projects range from creating Mother's Day and Father's Day crafts or teaching classes to taking their individual class photos, which many of the students never had before. In addition, the firm is gearing up for a charity golf fundraiser to benefit the school.
"This has been such a morale boost for all of us," said Tilbury. "You should see how empowered and happy our employees are when they get done volunteering at the school. And what makes this even more special is the dedication of these kids–no one is getting them up and ready for school, no one checks their homework or sends them to bed. They show up everyday for classes because they want a better life and if you read some of the essays they write it is heart wrenching."
Since school funding can be dicey, Tilbury is hoping to encourage 10 local companies to adopt and pledge funds and people to the school to ensure a steady flow of donations that can be used for everything from scholarships and school uniforms to purchasing vans to transport kids to afterschool activities. Bluepoint itself has a five-year commitment to Monarch School.
"The school has a myriad of needs and if more companies adopt the school they can work on their own projects that can benefit these kids," said Tilbury. "It is one thing to just write a check but entirely another to build a relationship and feel that emotional attachment in really making a difference in the lives of these children." –[email protected]
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