In this issue:
	LISC national Learning Forum held in San Diego
	Neighborhoods First Youth Summit in Colina Park
	LISC AmeriCorps to expand in 2008
	Wakeland Housing opens Del Sol Apartments in Otay Mesa
	New staff join LISC
	Recent Donors
	Donor Spotlight: Wells Fargo

Executive Director's Message Dear Friends, In my five years at San Diego LISC, we have never seen a year start with so much promise — and activity. It's an exciting time at LISC. Earlier this year, San Diego hosted the LISC Sustainable Communities Learning Forum, the first national LISC meeting in our city in more than 10 years. Many thanks to San Diego City Councilmember Tony Young for his warm welcome at the forum's community reception, and to Art Rivera, our engaging emcee who stepped in for our board chair, Gordon Boerner, in his absence. And many thanks, too, to our partners in the Neighborhoods First initiative, San Diego's local version of the Sustainable Communities strategy, whose participation was one of the highlights of the forum. City Heights CDC and MAAC Project hosted neighborhood tours that put a local face on community development in San Diego. Meanwhile, as you'll read below, LISC has two new staff additions: Mariano Diaz has joined us as the Western Region Vice President, and Daisy Gordon Crompton is our new Assistant Program Officer. Their arrival is an important milestone for San Diego LISC. Daisy's position is a new one in preparation for the additional work we're doing in the community through Neighborhoods First. Mariano, meanwhile, is the first San Diegan to join LISC's national leadership team in a senior management role. Back here in San Diego, I'm also pleased to announce that Kerry Sheldon has been promoted to Program Officer — yet more proof that San Diego LISC's capacity is growing by leaps and bounds. Here at LISC, we come to work each day deeply committed to improving the quality of life of all San Diegans by expanding access to economic opportunities, affordable housing, accessible healthcare and excellent schools. More than ever, this year holds the possibility to do just that. Sincerely, Joe Horiye Executive Director, San Diego LISC

LISC national Learning Forum held in San Diego

LISC President Michael Rubinger chats with San Diego City Councilman Tony Young at the Sustainable Communities Learning Forum

Staff from LISC's New York headquarters and 32 local offices met in San Diego February 27-29 for an internal Learning Forum on LISC's Sustainable Communities initiative. The Sustainable Communities Learning Forum provides LISC staff with an opportunity to share best practices with colleagues in the field. Staff compared notes on topics from encouraging resident engagement to facilitating the preparation and implementation of neighborhood strategic plans.

Known locally in San Diego as Neighborhoods First, Sustainable Communities is LISC's neighborhood-based strategy for spurring community revitalization. Sustainable Communities/Neighborhoods First is anchored by five core goals: greater investment in housing and real estate, increased family income and wealth, improved local economic activity, access to high-quality education, and healthier environments and lifestyles.

The Learning Forum provided a rare opportunity to showcase Neighborhoods First and the work of our community partners before a national audience. Our two Neighborhoods First convening agencies, City Heights CDC and MAAC Project, led tours of the Neighborhoods First pilot projects underway in Logan Heights/Memorial and the Colina Park neighborhood of City Heights. The tours closed with a roundtable discussion on ways to tailor the initiative to the needs and assets of these two unique neighborhoods.

Neighborhoods First Youth Summit in Colina Park

Nearly 100 neighborhood children and teenagers gathered in Colina Park to discuss improvements they'd like to see in their community. Seated in groups at Colina del Sol Park's basketball courts, the teens discussed topics like safety, violence and drug use. They brainstormed ways they could address these issues, from improving park lighting to organizing sports leagues.

The Youth Summit was the first event of its kind to engage youth in the Neighborhoods First planning process in the Colina Park area. "Young people are a vital part of any neighborhood and can play a critical role in confronting issues that face their community," said Ellee Igoe of the International Rescue Committee. "The Youth Summit was our attempt to create space for their unique perspectives and invite them to the table as equal participants in visualizing a neighborhood they want to live in." Other LISC Neighborhoods First partners like City Heights Community Development Corporation, Pro Kids Golf, and STAR/PAL were co-planners of the summit.

LISC AmeriCorps to expand in 2008

Do you know civic-minded future leaders who might be interested in providing a year of service to the community?
LISC AmeriCorps — the "domestic Peace Corps" — is about to open recruitment for the 2008-09 class, who will start their service year in September. San Diego's program is growing, and our goal this year is to expand recruitment and find the diverse unsung, untapped community leaders of tomorrow.

LISC AmeriCorps members provide a year of service in community organizations while gaining valuable job and life skills, along with a stipend and credit toward their education. The current class of San Diego LISC AmeriCorps members serve seven local community development organizations, building their capacity to carry out community-building programs and initiatives in underserved San Diego neighborhoods. One of our members, Katy Shanahan, is helping to run the tax clinic at South Bay Community Services. Her team has helped more than 400 families fill out tax returns that will bring $704,000 in refunds, Earned Income Tax Credits, and Child Tax Credits back to the community.

LISC AmeriCorps members also come together for monthly training sessions and the occasional group service project. In January, eight San Diego LISC AmeriCorps members spent Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. Day in Escondido helping Community HousingWorks rehabilitate Las Casitas, six historical bungalows that are home to disabled, formerly homeless families.

We are looking for more community heroes. If you know anyone who is interested in learning more about becoming a LISC Americorps member or placing a LISC Americorps member in their organization, please contact Emily Kohl at ekohl@lisc.org or (619) 239-6691, or visit our website at www.lisc.org/san_diego.

Wakeland Housing opens Del Sol Apartments in Otay Mesa

The families who live at Del Sol now have freshly-renovated, low-rent apartments, thanks to Wakeland Housing and Development Corporation, one of LISC's HUD Section 4 grantees. Del Sol, a multi-family complex in the Otay Mesa-Nestor neighborhood of San Diego, shelters 91 families whose incomes range from 30-60% of area median income.

Wakeland was able to convert the 35-year old complex into affordable housing with the help of a $780,000 acquisition loan from San Diego LISC. After conducting major repairs of the exterior, interior, and grounds of the complex, Wakeland also added a basketball court, tot lot, and community center with computers and meeting space for the large number of families who live there.

LISC has provided Wakeland with $88,000 in capacity-building funding since 2006.

New staff join LISC

In a coup for LISC, the San Diego Foundation's Mariano Diaz has joined us as Vice President for the Western Region, a senior staff role with oversight of LISC's programs in San Diego, Los Angeles, Bay Area, Phoenix, Houston, and the Pacific Northwest. For the past five years, Mariano has been well known and respected throughout the region for his work as the Senior Vice President for Community Partnerships at the foundation. Mariano brings an extensive track record in community development and philanthropy that includes senior positions with Nike, The California Endowment, and the James Irvine Foundation. San Diego LISC is tremendously fortunate to have a senior LISC manager who brings a wealth of local knowledge, contacts and relationships.

Our new Assistant Program Officer, Daisy Gordon Crompton, is a trained economist who has a background in microfinance, evaluation, and program management. She has started programs for the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development in Washington, D.C., and managed the launch of 211 San Diego, the region's free hotline for community, health, and disaster information. Daisy also brings extensive experience in public policy and communications, and served as Deputy Press Secretary for Acting Mayor Toni Atkins. At LISC, Daisy is managing special projects for the Neighborhoods First initiative and developing a new communications and resource development strategy. She holds a BA from UC Berkeley and an MBA from Stanford University.

Recent Donors

San Diego LISC wishes to recognize and thank recent donors:

Donor Spotlight: Wells Fargo

Wells Fargo Bank is one of San Diego LISC's strongest supporters, providing more than $316,000 in sustaining funding over the years. "Wells Fargo is a financial services company, but when you look deeper into our organization you see that we are committed to a larger goal," says Sally Lang, Wells Fargo's representative on San Diego LISC's board. "We are an active community leader in economic development, services that promote economic self-sufficiency, education, social services and the arts." In 2006, Wells Fargo contributed $2.4 million to San Diego causes and organizations.

Wells Fargo is one of the top home mortgage lenders in California, and is the nation's largest Small Business Administration lender. In 2005, Wells Fargo made $690 million in CRA qualified community development loans and investments, financing affordable housing, community services, economic development and revitalization/stabilization projects throughout California.

Contact us!

To update your contact information or to unsubscribe from eNews, please send an email to Emily Kohl at ekohl@liscnet.org.

LISC helps underinvested neighborhoods become neighborhoods of choice and opportunity, so that every child has a chance to succeed, and where they're from doesn't limit where they go. Since 1991, San Diego LISC and its affiliates have invested more than $150 million in equity, grants, and loans to support neighborhoods throughout our region. These efforts have financed the development of more than 5,000 multi-family and single-family homes and more than 650,000 square feet of commercial and community space.

For more information about San Diego LISC, please visit our website: www.lisc.org/san_diego.

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