HUNTINGTON BEACH : Ceremony to Laud Project ‘Graduates’

Three months after Gina Webber gave birth to a son in the summer of 1989, her marriage ended suddenly and she became a single parent.

Webber left Tulsa, Okla., where she was living, and moved back here, where she grew up and graduated from high school.

Unable to find work, she sank deeper into debt. But Webber didn’t want any government handouts. She refused to go on welfare.

“It was a pride thing,” she said. “I felt I needed to work as hard as I could to beat the system.”

The former Huntington Beach High School cheerleader put her skills to work and opened a small dance studio to help pay the bills.

It wasn’t enough.

She needed help--just like many other single parents who find themselves in need of housing, employment, child care, job training and higher education.

Webber turned to Project Self-Sufficiency, a city-sponsored program that began in 1985--the only one of its kind in Orange County.

Through public and private support, the program gives low-income single parents the chance to become financially independent--to get off the welfare payroll and other government assistance.

Webber received housing assistance so she could use her money for college expenses. She also received food, clothing and counseling.

Today, Webber, 28, whose son, Brett, is now almost 5, is proud of her accomplishments.

In May, she earned a bachelor’s degree from Chapman University and plans to teach history.

Because of her achievements, Webber, along with 30 other women who have been involved in the program and have become self-sufficient, will be recognized in a ceremony from 5 to 7 tonight at the Civic Center.

Susan M. Edwards, director of the program, said the “graduates” have received registered nursing degrees, two- and four-year college degrees and certificates in vocational programs.

Edwards said 95 women and their children currently are in the program.

Julie Shortt, 28, the mother of two sons, Joshua, 12, and James, 6, believed she had no other choice but to go on welfare after her divorce.

Because she wanted to make something of herself, Shortt became involved in the program, which helped her get an apartment and gave her the financial and emotional support she needed to go to college.

Last month, she graduated from Golden West College and has been accepted into the college’s nursing program, starting in the fall.

Cheryl C. Yrigoyen, 41, a 1990 Project Self-Sufficiency graduate and the mother of 10-year-old Lorie Ann, has cleaned up her credit, has received a nursing degree, works at a local hospital and has bought a home.

After leaving her husband when her daughter was an infant and going on welfare, “I was bound and determined to do something to support us,” she recalled.

The program gave her back her self-esteem and “showed me that I could do it. . . . I never thought I’d be a property owner--ever.”

The other women also said that they couldn’t have achieved their goals without the program.

“It’s been a blessing for me and my son. . . . I have my life back,” Webber said. “I’m educated, and I can give back to my community by teaching children.”

Shortt added that the program has changed her outlook on life.

“Before, I never thought about making goals,” she said. “But I’ve been able to be a role model for my children and show them that when you set a goal, you can achieve it. Now both of my sons want to go to college.”