Trikathon to Raise Funds for Child Center

Last month, Vangie Ruiz and Lori Bolin stopped teaching for a minute and looked at each other. They realized the 30 children under their care at Mission College’s child development center needed more than paper, markers and glue to exercise their young minds while parents attended classes down the hall.

But the Sylmar college didn’t have money for more than the basics. And though Ruiz and Bolin have paid out of their own pockets for extra materials in the past, they could not do so forever.

So, the teachers decided to return to the well that once supplied the center annually with supplemental funds: On April 19, the Trikathon, a fund-raising tricycle race, returns to Mission College.

Ruiz conceived the idea for the race in 1984, when the development center was supported by a strong parents’ group that helped organize the event. The fund-raiser was an annual tradition for several years, but as the parents’ group shrunk and the center lost staff members due to budget cuts, Ruiz discontinued it.

Faced with the need to purchase a variety of new educational materials, the Trikathon--in which children ages 3 through 5 seek pledges for each lap completed on a tricycle course--is back.

Money raised will help purchase items including books, music, blank audio cassettes, photograph albums and film, so students can compile portfolios of their artwork and other projects to show their parents.

“It helps parents see the educational growth of their children, so parents know how to help their kids in the future,” Ruiz said.

The event is part of the national Month of the Young Child, which promotes child growth and development. To sponsor a child at the center or for information about an upcoming reunion of employees, volunteers and parents, contact Ruiz at (818) 364-7862.