A Group That Warrants Your Support : ACTION Bridges a Gap to Provide Counseling for Troubled Students and Their Parents

Budget problems have forced the Los Angeles Unified School District to curtail its counseling programs for students who need someone to talk to. And anyone who has sought private counseling knows that it can be prohibitively expensive, especially for people who lack such coverage in their health plans or have no insurance at all.

Since 1990, this gap in services has been bridged locally by ACTION, a nonprofit support group where parents meet in one room and their children in another to talk about family problems. ACTION counselors are trained adults provided by the Avalon Treatment Program, an in-patient facility in Alhambra.

Through ACTION, the members of troubled families often establish contracts with each other. One such contract involved a juvenile whose drug problem also caused her mother to suffer from alienation and low self-esteem. The child agreed to allow herself to be placed in a hospital treatment program the next time she tested positive for drug use, which helped keep her sober. Her mother was required to attend ACTION meetings and a separate self-help group, or else she would have to do her daughter’s weekly chores.

ACTION meetings are open to anyone willing to talk about their problems and listen to others. Many participants say that the free meetings are the only place they have in which to air their feelings. Parents give vent to their frustrations and talk about failed hopes for themselves and their children. Teen-agers can talk about their parents and their troubles and know that they are not alone, and that other juveniles have similar problems.

Now, however, it is ACTION that needs assistance. Its services have never been in greater demand and it would like to expand, in our region, beyond its North Hollywood, Canoga Park, and Burbank groups, and move into Reseda, Encino, Sherman Oaks, and Woodland Hills.

ACTION officials say that they have the requisite number of people to run such groups, but no money to pay them. Those who run these weekly groups and who field emergency telephone calls from parents and teen-agers during the week are paid $50 for every counseling group that they lead.

Donations are also needed to help fund various events such as cookouts, camping trips, dances, and field trips. Those interested in helping out can call (818) 285-7500. Even if you can’t lend an ear to someone who needs to be heard, you can still ensure that someone else will be able to listen.