“The line wrapped around several blocks,” Watson said. “Despite the massive crowd, no one was turned away.”
LA CSSD began participating in the annual event two years ago, after a friend of Watson’s invited her to provide outreach and education about child support services to the attendees. The event is held every first Sunday in December.
Watson and staff provided pamphlets, handouts and case review requests to both English- and Spanish-speaking families, even walking the long line of waiting families, meeting people and encouraging them to take advantage of the child support services available to them.
In addition to getting to know the attendees, Watson said the event allows LA CSSD to develop relationships with stakeholders and other organizations who can coordinate their services with LA CSSD to help even more families. For instance, connecting with job skills organizations can help LA CSSD assist parents who are struggling to pay their child support because they cannot find a job. “We look at case numbers all day,” Watson said. “These events give us the opportunity to really see the people behind the case numbers and why we work hard to help families.”
This year, the Clothing and Resource Fair gave away more than 125,000 pieces of clothing. Families are allowed one bag per family member and may take whatever they can fit in that bag. Watson recalled one little boy who introduced himself to all of the workers at the resource tables.“He would say ‘Hi! I’m Patrick!’ and he held onto his brand-new teddy bear so tight,” Watson said. “It was bigger than he was!”
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Dana SimasCA Dept of Child Support Services
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