The Kid’s Café program was first established in 1994 in The Salvation
Army in Salinas that is operated as a youth drop-in center. With its location around the Alisal area at the corner of Market and Williams Avenues, the purpose of this program is for the safety of the children and is the main reason why it still exist. This program is committed to providing a safe environment to the children and the community. Originally, the Kid’s Café was conceived as a soup kitchen for children that fed them 4 times a week during meal time which at least 130 kids would be present a night. Today, this After School Program is now held in the Santa Rita School District which is in the north end of Salinas. This program offers positive activities to children of all races, backgrounds, and grades opportunities to become successful in their education, home, and community. Caring parents, adults and older teenagers volunteer in this program to make a positive impact on a child and brighten their day. Kid’s Café success derives from its numerous programs like: organized recreation, games, individual and team sports, and educational and entertainment field trips. The recreational games consist of pool, air hockey tables, foosball, video games, and Play Stations and X Box but with no violent games. Programs offered by Kid's Cafe such as educational services like tutoring and basic computer skills promote all volunteers and children to socialize and make new friends. |
Children from different races and ethnicities contribute to this program, which is why this program has been a big success. The goal of the Salvation Army has been reached simply because they create an enjoyable welcoming facility that children come to, to interact with others. Social skills are highly important to this program and you can see it as you walk in a notice all of the children interacting with one another. Not only are these children socializing but also making new friendships with kids from different schools. This provides them to expand their knowledge of others. As they interact they also do their homework with their age groups. This is positive for the children because they are able to help one another. To learn from each other and not just by the volunteers, they are offered the opportunity to interact. The volunteers are there for complete support and help the children in different occasions. At times they intervene in any situations that the children might encounter. But most importantly they are there to provide support and encourage each of the children to do well in school. Going into this program as a volunteer they are required to complete an orientation which teaches them how to work well with the children. This orientation becomes a guide to them because most of them are not parents, given that they are mostly in high school. Getting the help from young individual’s works positively because the children can relate to them and they do not feel intimidated by an adult authority. The Salvation Army has made great efforts to create a humble environment where children can come and feel at home. They have made a great effort and have achieved their goals. As you look through this website we hope it encourages you to either volunteer or support programs like these to keep our children off the street and in the right path in life.
Two special grants were awarded to the Kid’s Café in order to expand its staff in 2009 from the Dunspough-Dalton Foundation and the Lucille Packard Foundation. Also, the Packard Foundation gave an additional grant to the program around the 2010-2011 school year. It was in great timing because that was the time the school district was cutting back on after school services; however, the Kid’s Café is here to provide the children of the Monterey Bay Area will after school services that the government has cut back on. Your support provides these children with busy parents a safe, fun, and intellectually stimulating learning environment for both the youth and volunteers.
The Kid’s Café currently operates Mondays thru Fridays at a facility that is located on 2460 North Main Street in Salinas that varies 7,000 square feet of space that holds many activities for all the youths. All youth of the age bettween 5 (kindergarten) to 13 (eighth grade) are welcomed to attend these festivities. The registration for each child every day is two dollars that includes a meal at 4:30 p.m. on Tuesdays thru Fridays; however, on Mondays, a healthy snack is given to the children.
Two special grants were awarded to the Kid’s Café in order to expand its staff in 2009 from the Dunspough-Dalton Foundation and the Lucille Packard Foundation. Also, the Packard Foundation gave an additional grant to the program around the 2010-2011 school year. It was in great timing because that was the time the school district was cutting back on after school services; however, the Kid’s Café is here to provide the children of the Monterey Bay Area will after school services that the government has cut back on. Your support provides these children with busy parents a safe, fun, and intellectually stimulating learning environment for both the youth and volunteers.
The Kid’s Café currently operates Mondays thru Fridays at a facility that is located on 2460 North Main Street in Salinas that varies 7,000 square feet of space that holds many activities for all the youths. All youth of the age bettween 5 (kindergarten) to 13 (eighth grade) are welcomed to attend these festivities. The registration for each child every day is two dollars that includes a meal at 4:30 p.m. on Tuesdays thru Fridays; however, on Mondays, a healthy snack is given to the children.