51 FAMILIES IN NEED GET HELP, HOPE FOR THE HOLIDAYS.

Byline: Lisa M. Sodders Staff Writer

PACOIMA - Out of work and with no immediate job prospects, Maria Molina and her four children faced a dismal Christmas until a group of good Samaritans stepped in Thursday to provide a helping hand.

Thanks to the Valley Economic Development Center and a host of public and private donors, the Pacoima family will have presents under the tree and food on the table.

``We're going to celebrate Jesus' birth, and the most important thing is that all of the family will be together,'' said Molina, who is studying for her high school equivalency diploma and hopes to find a full-time job as a school office clerk.

The Molinas were among 51 families who were treated Thursday to toys, food and $100 grocery store gift certificates at the Pacoima Community Center operated by the nonprofit group, which provides training, consulting and financing services to local businesses.

During Thursday's event, Santa's helper handed out beautifully wrapped packages to wide-eyed children, many of whom opted to save the precious presents for opening on Christmas morning.

Thanks to a $15,000 donation from the Prudential Foundation and contributions from other agencies, the children were able to submit ``wish lists'' of up to three toys they wanted most, instead of receiving generic gifts, said Gloria Lazalde, program manager of the Economic Development Center's Pacoima Workforce Development Initiative, which organized Thursday's event.

One Pacoima mother, fleeing domestic violence, will at least spend Christmas knowing her four children won't have to sleep on the floor: Their present was two sets of bunk beds. Other children asked for bicycles or video game cartridges.

The initiative is a community-based program that works to improve the economic status of area residents by breaking down barriers to meaningful employment and helping them gain permanent, living-wage jobs. Based in the parent center at Pacoima Middle School, the initiative has worked with more than 800 people and placed more than 450 in jobs since its creation in 1998.

Carolyn Brooks, manager of local initiatives for the Prudential Foundation, said the most striking thing about the Pacoima area was its residents' hunger for training and education.

``All we have to do is come in and say, 'What can we do to help you?''' she said. ``They already have a vision for their future.''

Nicole Schramm, program director, said the initiative has about 160 active cases. Finding - and helping participants retain - jobs has been particularly difficult in the past quarter.

The 51 families chosen for the event were families whose parents have been unable to find work or, like Marina Cruz, 34, of Pacoima, were placed but then lost their jobs. Cruz was fired from a warehouse job in September when she became pregnant.

``I see her always stressed,'' said her son, Michael, 17, who was at the center with siblings Samantha, 2, and Robert, 7. ``I don't like to see my mom like that and worrying about all the money problems.''

Now six months into her pregnancy, Marina Cruz is working on her high school equivalency diploma with the initiative's help and hopes to become a police officer.

``It does make it easier,'' Michael said of the Christmas program. ``You feel better because there's someone there to help you.''

``You're alive, and your kids are healthy and we're receiving help, so thank God for everything,'' his mother said, smiling.

CAPTION(S):

2 photos

Photo:

(1 -- color) Cesar Gonzales, 4, shows off the Spider-Man cap he got for Christmas at an event on Thursday sponsored by the Valley Economic Development Corp. and other nonprofit groups.

(2) At the Pacoima Community Center on Thursday, Santa's helper gives Lidia Balda a hug while her mother, Lilliana, watches.

Tina Burch/Staff Photographer