Non Profit Supporting Single Mothers Celebrates First Graduating Class on Sunday, March 13, 2011

PALO ALTO, Calif., March 7, 2011 /PRNewswire-USNewswire/ -- WANDA, The Women's Achievement Network and Development Alliance, a non-profit supporting single mothers in San Mateo County, will host a graduation ceremony to honor the first class of 15 women who have completed a 3-year program targeted to boost their economic self sufficiency.  

The luncheon will be held on Sunday, March 13, 2011 from 10:45 a.m. to 1 p.m. at The 3rd Door, 131 Lytton Avenue, Palo Alto.  The 3rd Door is a newly open fitness and social club that donates 100% of its profits to WANDA.  Invited attendees include the 56 mothers currently enrolled in WANDA as well as WANDA partners, Opportunity Fund and The Women's Foundation of California.

WANDA was created in 2007 to help break the poverty cycle for single mothers and their families in San Mateo County.  Of the more than 13,000 single mothers with children under the age of five, thirty-six percent live below the poverty line.  As was reported in a December 2009 United Way study, many California families earn too much income to qualify for social service programs but struggle to meet their most basic needs, especially as the cost of living continues to increase.

WANDA offers enrolled mothers financial literacy classes, case management services, and a 2:1 financial match program supporting specific, asset-oriented savings goals such as a college education or home purchase.  To date, WANDA mothers have saved a total of over $100,000 – which includes matching gifts from WANDA's 25 donors as well as a generous grant from the Sand Hill Foundation.

"WANDA gives you the tools to organize your life and finances in order to achieve your goals," said Anita Cuella, a current WANDA mother who is saving to buy a home for her and her two-year old daughter.  "WANDA will help me move beyond being one of the working poor."  

For more information about WANDA and The 3rd Door, please visit www.wandasiliconvalley.org, www.the3rddoor.com, or contact Dianne Giancarlo at 650.218.762

SOURCE WANDA (Women's Achievement Network and Development Alliance)