Celebrating the 4th With A Better LA

A Better LA Volunteer Patrick Dodge high fiving a little boy. Kids played carnival games to win prizes and gain lots of smiles.

A Better LA Volunteers with Coach Pete Carroll and Mark Chow from A Foundation for Kids.

The number of people touched by the work of A Better LA grew substantially on Saturday, when an estimated crowd of 20,000 showed up at the Coliseum for live music and a fireworks show. They enjoyed a day of food, carnival games and inflatable attractions provided by A Better LA and partners A Foundation For Kids and Unity One. The yellow shirted volunteers for A Better LA (many helping out for the first time) had smiles to match the guests, young and old, who participated in the events from the day.

In the evening Pete Carroll spoke briefly to the crowd, and then joined councilman Bernard Parks and others on stage as they counted down the beginning of the fireworks show that was to last over an hour, with the Coliseum framed majestically under the exploding display. The show was so spectacular that people driving in the area stopping in the middle of the street to watch the show, causing the intersection of 39th and Figueroa to come to a total stand still for the duration of the fireworks.

It was a day of peace and family enjoyment, just the way it should be, as the dream of A Better LA continues on.

Summer Night Lights Press Conference

A Better LA's Pete Carroll addressing the media about the Summer Night Lights program where 16 parks will have extended hours to help curb violence in our inner-cities.

Mayor Villaraigosa poses with the Youth Squad - 160 teenage paid interns who will work at the parks this summer.

Coach Carroll meeting the Youth Squad.

Coach Carroll with ABLA/SNL Intern Danielle Tate.

For more information on the Summer Night Lights program please read this article in the LA Times. 

Dodger's Andre Ethier hosts Best Buy Shopping Spree for youth from ABLA/CURE

How many of us have walked through a Best Buy and wished that you could go on a shopping spree on someone else's dime? Well, on Friday, for 14 special West Athens kids, that was exactly what happened. Andre Ethier of the LA Dodgers took the kids on a shopping spree to the West Hollywood Best Buy. What an exciting morning! There were smiles and laughs all around as kids loaded up on Nintendo's, Ipod's, DVD's and more. Of course, kids weren't just loading up for themselves, they were also buying presents for their moms, dads, sisters and brothers as well. Andre was a great sport too, offering the kids advice and feedback on what they should buy, as well as taking the time to sign every autograph and pose for every picture requested of him. While Andre has taken kids on shopping sprees before, it's his first time doing so with A Better LA and CURE and we're so glad he decided to help out. The kids who got to go on the shopping spree have worked very hard in school to earn this trip and it was terrific to see them rewarded for their efforts. We're trying to reinforce to these kids that hard work can produce postiive rewards, and it was so great of Andre, the Dodgers, and Best Buy to help us hammer home that message. Thanks to everyone who made this morning possible. - Josh White, A Better LA Intern

July 4th FREE COMMUNITY CONCERT & FIREWORKS EXTRAVAGANZA

Presented By Councilmember Bernard C. Parks, District 8, KJLH 102.3 FM

A BETTER LA, A Foundation for Kids, Unity One

On the Lawn outside the LA Coliseum located at

3911 South Figueroa Street, Los Angeles, CA 90037

Radio Broadcast and Live Music begin at 3pm

Food and snacks for sale, carnival games with prizes and bounce houses

FIREWORKS at 9pm

To volunteer with A Better LA at this event contact volunteer@abetterla.org

A Better LA in the LA Times

"With crime in decline, a fragile sense of hope"
By: Scott Gold - June 7, 2009

A Better LA Executive Director Brian Center: "There is a sense of possibility here," said Brian Center, executive director of A Better LA, a nonprofit that combats violence in South L.A., funding gang intervention, "moonlight" basketball teams and other programs. "There is an opportunity right now to change things, to not repeat the mistakes of the past, to not screw it up this time."

A Better LA Board Member Mark Olvera: "It's all about respect," said Capt. Mark Olvera, who oversees Newton and is widely credited with helping to implement a more sophisticated and responsive style of policing there. "That dignity you give them is going to pay you back in the long run."

For full article click here.

Mourning a Loss

This is why A Better LA exists, and why it will not relent in its pursuit for peace on the streets of inner-city Los Angeles.

Coach Carroll spent the morning at the memorial service for Dannie Farber Jr., the Narbonne High School football player who was gunned down at a Compton restaurant two weeks ago.

Farber, who police have determined has no gang connections, was shot and killed in an apparent gang-related attack in South Los Angeles on May 24 while eating dinner with a date. Set to graduate June 19 and potentially play football collegiately, Farber was an All-City wide receiver on the Los Angeles City co-champion Narbonne High squad.

Instead of acting as a discouragement for the positive work in the inner-city by groups such as A Better LA, the service was uplifting and hopeful, Carroll said.

"All the speakers talked about how we'll grow from this -- it's an illustration of why we need to do something," Carroll said this afternoon. "It's continuing to echo throughout Los Angeles that people are really ready to go. Dannie's passing was another call to arms for everyone."

Legendary musician Stevie Wonder was a surprise performer at the ceremony in Gardena, bringing the mourners both to joy and tears.

"Holy mackerel, he was spectacular," Carroll said of Wonder. "He started playing and then broke out in the Lord's Prayer, and everyone was cheering and crying. It was emotional, amazing, incredible."

By: Ben Malcomson, USC Rips It Blog

Marshall Madness

The Marshall Graduate School of Business held their 3rd annual“Marshall Madness” on Saturday, May 22nd at the North Gym on the USCcampus. The “Madness” is a 3 on 3 basketball tournament for studentsin the graduate program, and there was great competition amongst the 4teams that battled in the double elimination format.

The real winner of the day didn’t make one basket. That’s because thenet proceeds in excess of $1,000, contributed by the tournamentplayers and friends, were donated to A Better LA.

There were some great raffle prizes for the donors, including PeteCarroll autographed t-shirts and footballs, football game tickets forthe USC opener against San Jose State, and food certificates from someof the local area restaurants. Even after 3 hours of basketball, theplayers were still enthusiastic about the prizes and interested inlearning how A Better LA functions as an organization and finds success in its work.


It is exciting to receive support and understanding from the greatbusiness leaders of the near future, and think about how they cancontinue to make a difference in their efforts with A Better LA.