Riverside, CA ­ As Riverside’s Community Settlement Association (CSA) celebrates the occasion of its Centennial this month, the organization continues its service to residents in the Eastside community, but is seeking new ways to assist those residents.  Board members note that programming, which has most often focused on the issues of poverty and substance abuse, has expanded in order to meet the needs of a changing community.

During the coming year, we will present theme-based programming that emphasizes specific issue each month, explained Board Chair Rosalind Calhoun.  ?We will continue much of our long-running programming, but this gives us the opportunity to explore a breadth of issues with our clientele.

CSA will kick off its second century of service on September 16, 4 to 6 pm, at its Bermuda Avenue facility. Volunteers, donors, clients, community members and community leaders are all invited to attend.  Monthly themes for the upcoming year include a harvest theme in October, youth leadership in February, a community clean-up in March, alcohol awareness in April, and a health fair in May. This November and December, the organization will focus on doubling the number of holiday gift baskets for families in need.  Plans are underway for an anniversary luncheon in January.

CSA was born as part of the anti-poverty Settlement House movement that began in Chicago around the turn of the 20th century.  In its early years, CSA (then called Community Settlement House) served immigrants as they learned to adapt to their new country.    Later, CSA became one of the first local agencies to offer substance abuse counseling and added other mental health services, as well as afterschool, fitness, and nutrition programs.  Currently, the organization provides food for more than 100 family units three times weekly.

Calhoun credits volunteers, service clubs, and other partners for helping CSA serve many generations of Eastside neighbors.  For many years, the Lions, Kiwanis, and Rotary organizations have invested in CSA’s work.  Recent partners also include the Riverside Unified School District, Riverside County Diabetes Collaborative, and Community Action Partnership.  This past spring, CSA partnered with the Mission Inn Foundation and Museum in an historic afterschool effort that helped neighborhood children learn to conduct and document oral history interviews and create walking tours featuring areas of interest on Riverside?s Eastside.

The Community Settlement Association is located at 4366 Bermuda Avenue in Riverside.  For more information, please contact Monica Huertas at 951-686-6266.