Walkathon Benefits Mentally Disabled

Under a blazing sun, nearly 30 men and women walked a two-mile course Wednesday to raise money for Victory Clubhouse, a nonprofit drop-in center that provides educational and recreational programs for adults who are mentally disabled.

Though parched and perspiring, the walkers said the urban hike from club headquarters on Victory Boulevard along Hazeltine Avenue to Van Nuys-Sherman Oaks Park was worth the discomfort if it meant new equipment or field trips for club members.

“I did it because it would help the clubhouse,” said Ron Thurber of North Hollywood as he sipped water under a shade tree at the park. “For one day, I could survive the heat.”

For Thurber, the clubhouse is not only a place to play pool and pingpong, but also a place where he is learning to build self-esteem and control his anger through group counseling.

“It’s a place where I can go and feel comfortable,” he said.

“If it weren’t for the clubhouse, I’d be isolating myself. The clubhouse has helped me to meet people.”

Other walkers, like Edgar DeLafuente of Granada Hills, said the walkathon was a way for him to support the clubhouse that has helped him learn more about how to operate a small retail store.

“I shop for the Bargain Barn,” he said, explaining that the clubhouse’s client-run store sells small appliances, household supplies and toiletries.

“It’s something that I can put on a resume.”

Randy Cave, a former client and current recreational associate, said the clubhouse is a haven for the mentally disabled who come daily from across the San Fernando Valley.

“It’s a place where people feel safe,” he said. “A lot of these people don’t fit into normal society, and this gives them a place to fit in.”

Victory Clubhouse is mainly funded through federal, state and county allocations, officials said. The money raised through the walkathon will be used by the clients to purchase additional recreational items or trips for club members.

Members expected Wednesday’s event to raise $1,200 to $1,500, said clubhouse coordinator Greg Walston.

Last year, clients used the $1,500 they raised to take a trip to Disneyland and buy computer and photography equipment, among other items.

Deciding what to buy is all part of teaching clients life lessons, such as budgeting, setting priorities and achieving goals, Walston said.

“The club is a multifaceted program . . . that breaks the isolation of the mentally ill,” he said.

“Once a person with mental illness becomes stable on medications and learns to cope with their symptoms, they are able to do anything that a person without a disability can do.”