Back to School Supplies Donations Thank You

Our “Back to School” campaign was a huge success, thanks to our generous donors!

Back to School time is always one of the most important times of the year for the “I Have A Dream” Foundation – Los Angeles (IHADLA). As an education charity organization, we strive to ensure our students (whom we call “Dreamers”) have the school supplies and resources they need to succeed in school. Every year we hold a “Back to School” campaign, during which we ask individuals and companies in the L.A. community to help support our Dreamers so they have the supplies they need for the year and are able to get to and from school.

We are so thrilled and grateful that this year’s “Back to School” campaign was a huge success, thanks to the many kind donors who took the time to coordinate drives and gather school supplies for our Dreamers within their respective companies! Thank you to all our school supply donors:

  • Cannella Response Television
  • Career Group Companies
  • Cedars-Sinai Medical Group
  • Brittany Fikre
  • Danielle Fournier of dffwine.com
  • FYF Fest (music festival)
  • Global Access
  • Granada Charter School
  • Guild Mortgage
  • InMotion Hosting
  • Christine Madsen
  • Sarah McCann
  • MEC Global
  • Motif/Avenue 5
  • Smuggler Los Angeles
  • Sugarfina
  • TechStyle Fashion Group
  • Janet Tscha
  • UBS Financial Services
  • UCLA Pediatrics
  • University of Southern California
  • Rio Uribe of Gypsy Sport
  • NBCUniversal

And thank you to all others who contributed monetary donations! We truly value your support.

Please scroll down the page to view some photos (more to follow) of Dreamers accepting backpacks and various school supplies from our donors!

Thank you to The Sound LA 100.3 FM for bringing our CEO, Debra Fine, on their “5900 Wilshire” show on September 3rd to talk about our foundation and our Back to School Drive.

Our Dreamers are now fully stocked with school supplies and ready to achieve great things this school year!

P.S. We are still in need of monthly bus passes,

so if you’re interested in donating, please email Karla Ilarde (karla@ihadla.org) or Debra Fine (debra@ihadla.org), or call our office at 213.572.0175.

Or

Please use the following form to donate by credit card.

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Send a Check or Company’s Matching Gift Form by Mail

You may send a contribution by mail with a check payable to the “I Have A Dream” Foundation – Los Angeles, using the downloadable IHADLA Donation Form which allows you to indicate if you wish it to be a tribute gift.

Our mailing address is:
“I Have A Dream” Foundation – Los Angeles
3580 Wilshire Blvd.
Suite 720
Los Angeles, CA 90010

UBS Financial Services Donated Backpacks and School Supplies and Taught Dreamers About Financial Literacy

We are so grateful to Isabel Oropeza and Lisa Monica, administrative managers for the UBS Financial Services Encino and Westlake branches, who coordinated the Back to School fundraising drives at their respective offices.

Our Dreamers enjoyed a presentation from Isabel and Lisa about UBS Financial Services, followed by a Q&A section where our 5th grade Dreamers inquired and learned about the academic requirements for financial careers, the differences between banks and investment services, the ways to invest effectively, and the importance of saving and investing for the future.

Later, Isabel, Monica, and the IHADLA staff distributed backpacks filled with school supplies to the Dreamers. UBS Financial Services also donated many extra school supplies, which our Dreamers will have access to for the rest of the school year.

Isabel Oropeza and Lisa Monica, administrative managers from UBS Financial Services Encino and Westlake branches presenting to our 5th grade Dreamers about financial careers.
Isabel Oropeza and Lisa Monica, administrative managers from UBS Financial Services Encino and Westlake branches, presenting to our 5th grade Dreamers about financial careers
UBS Financial Back to School back packs donation. IHADLA Dreamers and staff: Giselle Burciaga, Joshua Vega, Mayra Virgen, Laria Breland, Raquel Alvarado, with Isabel Oropeza and Lisa Monica administrative managers from UBS Financial Encino and Westlake branches
UBS Financial Back to School backpacks donation. IHADLA Dreamers and staff: Giselle Burciaga, Joshua Vega, Mayra Virgen, Laria Breland, Raquel Alvarado, with Isabel Oropeza and Lisa Monica administrative managers from UBS Financial Services Encino and Westlake branches
UBS donated Back to School Items to IHADLA
UBS Financial donated Back to School items
UBS Financial and IHADLA staff passing out donated Back to School items to Dreamers
UBS Financial and IHADLA staff passing out donated Back to School backpacks filled with supplies to Dreamers

The Global Access Team Held a School Supply Drive in their Offices

Thank you to the staff members at Global Access for their generous donation of various much-needed school supplies, including composition books, pencils, and paper. The team coordinated a school supply drive in the Global Access offices, and all the staff members in the photo below contributed. Our gratitude goes out to all of them!

IHADLA Global Access Staff with Back to School Drive Donations
The Global Access staff contributed various school supplies for our Dreamers

Thanks to Our Friends at InMotion Hosting for Their Back to School Donations

The InMotion Hosting team showed their support to IHADLA this school year by donating backpacks and school supplies to our elementary and middle school Dreamers. Thanks to their coordinated fundraising efforts, we have enough supplies to carry us through the rest of the school year!

Happy InMotion Hosting team surrounded by their Back to School donations for IHADLA
Happy InMotion Hosting team surrounded by their Back to School donations for IHADLA
8th grade Dreamers with InMotion Hosting donations
Middle School Dreamers with InMotion Hosting donations
8th grade Dreamers posing with InMotion Hosting donations

Smuggler Donated School Supplies to our Dreamers

Our elementary, middle school, and high school Dreamers were thrilled to accept Back to School supplies, which included pencil cases, from Smuggler (smugglersite.com) this school year!

Smuggler Donates Back to School Pencil Cases to IHADLA
Middle school Watts Dreamers holding pencil cases from Smuggler

TechStyle Fashion Group Showed Social Responsibility by Distributing Back to School Supplies to Our Boyle Heights Elementary Dreamers and Teaching Them About Design and Technology

TechStyle Fashion Group, which owns the Fabletics, JustFab, Shoe Dazzle, and FabKids companies, recently spent time with our 5th grade Dreamers. The team shared with our Dreamers the various STEAM careers available at a design, technology, and innovation-driven company like TechStyle. Following a Q&A session, the team led a fun activity during which the Dreamers had the opportunity to use their creative skills to design their own shoe!

A special thanks to Lilli Weiner for coordinating this event with the TechStyle team! And thank you to everyone who participated and donated!

TechStyle STEAM Activity Workshop for IHADLA Boyle Heights Dreamers

TechStyle STEAM Presentation for Boyle Heights IHADLA Dreamers

TechStyle Team at STEAM Presentation for Boyle Heights IHADLA Dreamers

TechStyle STEAM Activity for Boyle Heights Dreamers

TechStyle Back to School Donation for IHADLA Boyle Heights Dreamers

TechStyle Team Handing Out Donations for IHADLA Boyle Heights Dreamers

TechStyle Team during presentation for Boyle Heights IHADLA Dreamers

TechStyle Earbud Donation and Example of STEAM Activity for IHADLA Dreamers

Boyle Heights IHADLA Dreamers with Back to School Donations from TechStyle

TechStyle Team with Boyle Heights Dreamers During STEAM Activity

TechStyle Presentation for Boyle Heights IHADLA Students

TechStyle IHADLA Back to School Donation and Dream Speaker Workshop

TechStyle Team Handing Out Donations to Boyle Heights Dreamers Students

Dreamers Working On STEAM Activity During TechStyle STEAM Workshop in Boyle Heights

The Cedars-Sinai Medical Group Assembled Hygiene Kits for Our Dreamers

The Cedars-Sinai Medical Group in Beverly Hills had their annual Pat Henson Picnic at Playa Vista, CA. Physicians and staff used part of the day to assemble almost 100 hygiene kits for our Dreamers boys and girls. Each kit included a deodorant, lotion, sanitary pad (for the girls), lip balm, body spray, dental floss, toothbrush, mouthwash and hand sanitizer. They also donated over 100 earbuds and dictionaries!

These hygiene kits came at a perfect time! Our Boyle Heights Elementary students has a boys and girls club where they will learn about proper hygiene.

Special thanks to Frances Paredes for coordinating this with the team…and thank you to all their physicians and staff who contributed to this drive and assembled hygiene kits for our Dreamers!

Cedars-Sinai Medical Group Community Service for Boyle Heights IHADLA Students
Members of the Cedars-Sinai Medical Group putting together hygiene kits during their annual picnic
Cedars-Sinai Medical Group Community Service for Boyle Heights IHADLA Dreamers
Members of Cedars-Sinai Medical Group putting together hygiene kits for our Boyle Heights Dreamers during their annual picnic
Cedars-Sinai Medical Group Community Service for IHADLA Boyle Heights Dreamers
Members of the Cedars-Sinai Medical Group putting together hygiene kits for our Program 19 Dreamers

Dreamers Are Ready for School, Thanks to the Many Donations We Received

Thanks to the many generous donations we received, our Dreamers are now prepared for the school year! We received many supplies this year, so we were happy to be able to share some with Dreamer siblings who were in need and teachers who needed supplies for their students. We also have supplies in stock that the Dreamers will be able to use for the rest of the school year. The pictures below show some of the happy and grateful Dreamers with the donated items.

IHADLA Education Charity Dreamer with Back to School Drive Supplies
Dreamer Taujahnee is now prepared for the school year thanks to much-needed supplies from the Back to School Drive
Smiling P18 Watts Dreamers with Webster Dictionaries Donated by Cedars-Sinai Medical Group
Watts Dreamers holding donated Merriam-Webster dictionaries they will use in their English classes
IHADLA Watts Dreamers with Scientific Calculators Donated during Back to School Drive
These Dreamers are ready for their math classes thanks to the scientific calculators donated during the Back to School Drive
IHADLA Watts Dreamers with Donated Earbuds from Cedars-Sinai Medial Group
Smiling Dreamers holding earbuds donated by Cedars-Sinai Medical Group
IHADLA Watts Dreamer with Donated Back to School Drive School Supplies
Smiling Program 18 Dreamer holding donated supplies
IHADLA Watts Dreamers and Program Coordinator Kylia Lewis with Donated FYF Fest Musical Festival Bags
Watts Dreamers and Program Coordinator Kylia Lewis adding patches and designs to the backpacks donated by the FYF Fest musical festival
IHADLA Watts Dreamer Decorating FYF Fest Backpack from 2017 Back to School Drive
A Dreamer decorating and personalizing one of the backpacks donated by the FYF Fest music festival
IHADLA Watts Program 18 Dreamer with FYF Bag Decorated with Dove and Paintbrush
Gladis from Program 18 used her artistic skills to add a dove and paintbrush design to her bag