2 minute read
Alums devote support and service to South Central LAMP, a Holy Child ministry
Mayfield women of faith reach out to empower women in need
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— Cesar Chavez
These words are the opening message on the website for South Central LAMP and speak to the mission of this nonprofit organization founded more than 20 years ago by eight communities of Catholic Sisters, including the Society of the Holy Child Jesus.
The group’s campus on East 48th Street in Los Angeles bustles with programs that empower and build the self-esteem of economically poor women. LAMP, which stands for Los Angeles Ministry Project, offers parenting classes, English lessons, preschool and childcare programs.
A new service partnership is launched
This year our Alumnae Council decided to devote their service work to LAMP, a partnership that strengthens Mayfield’s ties to an impactful Holy Child ministry. The move also enables our alums to share the gift of action-based love with women and children who live on the margins of society in Los Angeles.
“This is a very, very appropriate partnership,” said Mary Fitzpatrick ’72, who serves on the LAMP board as a representative for the Society of the Holy Child Jesus. “It allows Mayfield women...to travel with the women of LAMP.”
South Central LAMP emerged in the wake of the 1992 Los Angeles Riots after a group of Sisters canvassed devastated neighborhoods asking families how they could help with the rebuilding process. The Sisters heard a strong desire from mothers to enhance their parenting and other skills to help make a better life for their families.
Educating women boosts their self-esteem
Located in a leased school complex owned by Victory Baptist Church, one core LAMP program enrolls neighborhood mothers in a three-year family literacy program. LAMP provides infant and child care so the mothers can attend class. Doramaria, a recent graduate, explained the group’s impact on her life.
“South Central LAMP taught me to be an empowered woman, a better mother and a better wife and especially to be a better person for everyone around me,” she said, adding that LAMP teachers took care of her daughter as if she were one of their own.
“Now I am proud of myself because I learned to be a woman with goals and dreams,” Doramaria said. “I am leaving here knowing that now I am not afraid to face new challenges.”
Alums donate and serve from the heart
In their first year of work with LAMP, Mayfield alums provided much needed resources to the women and their children. They held two book drives, distributing scores of children’s books to the preschool and donating additional textbooks to the women.
When a particularly cold and rainy winter season hit the region, the Mayfield community rallied their forces and donated 75 gently used and new coats to women who had none.
In the spring, alums were joined by current students in organizing an Easter celebration for the women and their families, complete with crafts, egg dyeing, Easter baskets, an egg hunt and a fun reptile show for the children.
Maritess Lacuesta Kinderman ’93 and Alex Eisele ’14 at the Easter Service Day at South Central LAMP
“This wonderful partnership with Mayfield means so, so much for us,” said Ninette Ayala, LAMP development director. “When our families see people from outside their community helping them, they know they have value. They know that they are worthy of extras and they feel the welcome of others.”
Maritess Lacuesta Kinderman ’93, co-chair of the Alumnae Council service commission, described their work with LAMP as a “natural fit” with Mayfield and envisions a growing relationship between the two.
For Ms. Fitzpatrick, working with LAMP is an extension of her Mayfield education. “The Sisters taught us that being Catholic means caring for those who don’t have a voice,” she said. “We learned about empathy and compassion.”
In supporting the women and families of LAMP, Mayfield has found a true call to “Actions Not Words” service.
