When a child is exposed to a prolonged amount of stress—like caregiver neglect, substance abuse, mental illness, exposure to violence, or emotional abuse—it can affect their mental health and well-being in the long run, said Cottage Health Population Health Program Manager Ama Atiedu.
The constant adversity in their lives can lead to toxic stress, a type of stress that can impact a child’s nervous system and mental health, and can have other physiological impacts, Atiedu explained.
“We wanted to offer services to mediate the impact of toxic stress so it doesn’t impact their health later on. It’s our goal to try to prevent or mitigate those things by connecting [children] to different types of services,” she said.
By partnering with the California Department of Public Health, Cottage Health was able to award one-time, six-month grants to several Santa Barbara County community organizations to help fund mitigation programs that follow guidelines provided by the California Surgeon General’s Office.
“The office of the Surgeon General created a trauma-informed network of care roadmap to regulate the stress response, and categorized evidence-based strategies including mental health care, supportive relationships, quality sleep, balanced nutrition, mindfulness practices, access to nature, and physical activity,” she said.
Cottage Health sent out requests to potential grant recipients to identify which area in the “stress buster wheel” they would address. Community nonprofit Fighting Back Santa Maria Valley focused on physical activity and supportive relationships in its new sports program, said Executive Director Edwin Weaver.
“The adverse childhood experience research shows that children who have positive relationships in their lives with adults is a buffer, and children who exercise and go outside are buffers,” Weaver said. “I’ve lived in Santa Maria for 11 years now and the Santa Maria Valley has a lot of teams, but what ends up happening is a lot of our [families] don’t know how to sign up for the teams or don’t have access to sports.”
Fighting Back Santa Maria Valley created A Team for Every Child, which helps children participate in athletics. Fighting Back received $50,000 in one-time funding to give coaches training and to give kids sports scholarships that will cover equipment and team costs. To help in this effort, the Santa Maria Swim Club donated an extra $15,000 to Fighting Back Santa Maria for swim team scholarships to grow the sports program, he added.
For coach training, Fighting Back partnered with a group out of Notre Dame called Play Like a Champion to bring LA Rams psychologist Carrie Hastings in for an April 23 clinic about a whole-person approach, Weaver said.
“We also have a referral process for doctors, psychologists, counselors, or social workers to refer children to our program,” he explained. “I would imagine everybody would like a little help with paying for our kids’ sports, but this grant was to address the adverse childhood experiences’ impact on the nervous system. By asking for a referral from a professional, we are hoping to target those children who need it the most.”
Weaver said the funds will be available to any sport throughout the year but didn’t know how many children would receive scholarships.
“It depends on what [sport] they want to do or get involved in. I remember before this program, we sponsored a foster child for water polo and it costs $250 for the swimsuit. Sports are expensive and that’s why a lot of families don’t participate,” he said.
He hopes more children will join and that the program will continue after the funding ends in June. Weaver’s team is currently looking for more funding sources to make this a long-term program, he said.
“Our hope is that children will be able to be on a team where they are nurtured and valued and treated with kindness. That they get a lot of exercise and have a lot of fun; to make new friends and have another adult in their life that cares about them. Those are excellent outcomes we’d like to see,” Weaver said.
Highlights
• Coinciding with National Child Abuse Awareness Month, Angels Foster Care is hosting its Sip and Support Fundraiser on April 7 from 4:30 to 6:30 p.m. The event will take place at Old Town Orcutt’s Trattoria Uliveto restaurant where guests can enjoy local wines paired with Italian appetizers while learning more about the organization. Guests will be invited back to the Angels Foster Care office to take a tour, ask questions, and speak with Angels staff. For more information, call (805) 884-0012.
• Leadership Santa Maria Valley—an 11-month leadership program—is accepting applications for the class of 2023. The program is in its 28th year, and more than 400 people have graduated. The program allows participants to increase their understanding of local issues, challenges, and solutions while expanding their personal and professional network. Each class gives back to the community with their own unique Legacy Project. Interviews will be held in July. The orientation and kick-off retreat is scheduled for August 2022. Contact Program Director Terri Oneschuck at terrio@santamaria.com, or (805) 925-2403, Ext. 824, for more information.
Reach Staff Writer Taylor O’Connor at toconnor@santamariasun.com.
This article appears in Mar 31 – Apr 7, 2022.