LADERA HEIGHTS : Child Services Group Celebrates Anniversary, but Faces Fund Cuts

The child development organization Crystal Stairs Inc. marks its 15-year anniversary with an open house and health fair Saturday at a time when it is trying to raise its profile under the threat of government funding cutbacks.

Co-founded in 1980 by physicians Karen Hill-Scott and Alice Walker Duff, Crystal Stairs serves more than 20,000 children and adults in Los Angeles, Orange and Riverside counties. It has several components that aim to strengthen families: the Alternative Payment Program, which helps low-income families with child care; the Child Care Food Program, which provides about 24,000 meals to 12,000 children daily; and the Child Care Resource and Referral Service, which refers South-Central and southwest Los Angeles parents to quality child-care providers.

Spokeswoman Regina Jones said that boosting the profile of Crystal Stairs, normally a low-key operation, is critical in the climate of waning government funds; the organization administers several government programs and relies heavily on federal and state funding.

But Crystal Stairs’ services would be more needed than ever if proposed welfare modifications--some of which mandate that parents work, but which provide no child-care arrangements--are approved.

“The reality is, we’ve got to become more visible,” Jones said. “We’ve never really had an anniversary before. But now is the time. . . . Like the poem said, you can’t give up.”

The anniversary celebration includes free immunizations and clown entertainment for children, as well as blood pressure checks, cholesterol screening and eye exams for adults.

It will be at the organization’s headquarters, 5105 W. Goldleaf Circle, 1 to 4 p.m.

Information: (213) 299-8998