Dear Friends,

You’ve written a tale of two brothers; meet twins Isaac and David. Their home was bursting

at the seams as their family of seven was packed into a small two-bedroom apartment at the cross

streets of the center of gang activity in Orange County. At age twelve, their mom and dad separated

and mom left the home, leaving them and their three siblings with their aging father. Two brothers,

polar opposite in personality but the same in circumstance, assumed the role of stand-in parents.

Under the pressure of this broken home life, David started getting into fights and

ditching school. His behavior was

isolating him from everyone, but

KidWorks volunteers, donors, and

staff refused to give up on him. At

KidWorks, supporters mentored

him, invested in him, and taught

him to play the guitar. He began to

play music at the local church and

started to learn how to express his

anger in more constructive ways.

Isaac, on the other hand,

always had a smile on his face and

never talked about his suffering.

However, after six months of trying

to deal with the pain and pressure on his own, Isaac ran away from home and began to live on

the streets and in homeless shelters. Isaac didn’t want anyone to know where he was, but David

wrote emails to him every single day. David realized that they were two brothers, bound together against

all odds and supported by a community of KidWorks supporters. Losing hope was not an

option.

After nine months of trying to convince Isaac to come home, David and his friends at

KidWorks told Isaac that they wanted to have a picnic at the local park and see him again, like old

times. To everyone’s happiness and surprise, Isaac came to the park! He spent a few hours with

his friends and went back to the shelter. One week later, he came back for good. He told us that

when he went back to the shelter after seeing his friends, he realized that he had so many people

who loved him at KidWorks and it was time to come home.

KidWorks Community Development Corporation is a 501(c)3 non-profit organization, tax ID # 74-3081569.

1902. W. Chestnut Ave., Santa Ana, CA 92703

714-834-9400 www.kidworksonline.org

Isaac was welcomed back at KidWorks and received help to re-enroll at school and catch up

on credits. Isaac started doing well in school and he became involved with KidWorks’ youth

leadership for civic engagement. This November he was appointed to a civic board position for the

City of Santa Ana. Through his training, he has also presented on topics of health and the

environment in Sacramento.

David has also stayed highly involved with KidWorks through these trials. He is a strong

member on KidWorks’ youth leadership team and active in the local church. This year, both Isaac

and David trained with KidWorks’ running team and completed two half-marathons!

Today, Isaac and David are almost 18 years old

and waiting to hear back from the universities they

have applied to— their first choices are UC Berkeley

and Biola University, respectively. Thank you for

fighting for Isaac and David through your financial

support and involvement with KidWorks. Please keep

them in your thoughts and prayers as we know that

this “tale of two brothers” is still being written.

Because of you, Isaac and David are on the Bridge

to Hope.

Isaac and David are two of the many children

here in the at-risk neighborhoods of Santa Ana who

are desperately searching for hope and direction.

Provide hope through your giving to support the programs at KidWorks. $50 will pay for

one child’s college preparation activities this month and $250 will pay for the recruitment,

training, and ongoing support of a mentor for one child this year. Click here to give online

now. If you have any questions or would like to discuss your involvement further, please feel free to

contact me at 714-834-9400 ext. 103.

Your support today builds the Bridge to Hope.

Please accept my sincere thanks,

Ava Steaffens

President/CEO

P.S. - If you cannot give a donation of $50 or $250 at this time, would you consider giving

$25 today?

Click here to give online now.