The Assistance League of Huntington Beach is a longtime supporter of Golden West College
Going through nursing school at Golden West College, Mary Ann Gaedig, R.N., can recall several examples of how the Assistance League of Huntington Beach supported her.
Books and study guides to help her get better test scores.
Paper and toner so she could print out her lectures and assignments.
Gas in her car so she could drive to school and clinical sites.
And lots of highlighter pens for the important concepts she was learning.
Gaedig graduated from the GWC Nursing Program in May 2013, thanks to a scholarship provided by the Assistance League.
“An Assistance League scholarship means all of the above,” Gaedig says. “But more than that, it means someone cares, someone shares your passion, and someone has faith in you and your career goal to serve others, both at home and in the community.”
Providing scholarships to Nursing students is just one of several ways the Assistance League generously supports GWC, year after year. The non-profit also provides scholarships to veterans who enroll in the six-month police academy at the Criminal Justice Training Center at GWC, as well as veterans pursuing studies in other fields.
“This last year, we awarded almost $132,000 in scholarships to Golden West College students,” says Doris Kennedy, 2019-2020 president of the Assistance League of Huntington Beach, whose mission is to transform the lives of children and adults through community programs.
In addition to scholarships, the Assistance League provides supplies, equipment, food and gas cards to the Veteran’s Resource Center, and — working with administrators with Cooperative Agencies Resources for Education (CARE) and Extended Opportunity Program and Services (EOPS) — provides clothing, books, Target and Del Taco gift cards to families and students.
“It’s very rewarding to have an outstanding college in our community and to help struggling students reach their goals of education, building successful lives for themselves and their families,” Kennedy says.
‘They really are angels’
Bruce Berman, director of the Golden West College Foundation, says monetary support from the Assistance League to the college has increased since he started six years ago.
“They really are angels,” Berman says.
The Assistance League’s support of GWC stretches back some years before Berman’s tenure began, initially with scholarships for cadets entering the Criminal Justice Training Center. The six-month academy costs several thousand dollars, and unless sponsored by a police agency, cadets have to foot the bill themselves.
That’s where the Assistance League came in. Its support then expanded to the Nursing Program.
“Every year, they give about $25,000 in total to our police cadets and $75,000 in scholarships to our nursing students,” says Berman, who sits on the Assistance League’s advisory committee.
“What they do for us is phenomenal,” he adds, “but what they do for the rest of the community is even more phenomenal.”
Berman notes that the Assistance League, which raises its money primarily from operating a thrift shop on Slater Avenue and hosting an annual gala, purchases back-to-school clothes for about 2,500 economically-challenged children each fall. The non-profit also donates thousands of books to area schools.
Since graduating from the Nursing Program, Gaedig, who has worked part time at the GWC Student Health Center since March 2014, has served as a community volunteer at the Assistance League of Huntington Beach. She sorts donations at the organization’s thrift shop, helping to convert the donated items into support for the community through its many programs.
“The volunteers at the Assistance League are the nicest, most dedicated, and hardest-working group of people I have ever met,” Gaedig says. “I’m proud to count myself as one of these fabulous folks.”
