A Regional Report on
Welfare Reform From a
Community Perspective
Community: Davenport
Host Agency: Davenport Resource Service Center of the Community Action Board of Santa Cruz County Community Profile: The Davenport Resource Service Center is available to the approximately 1,000 people of the greater North Coast of Santa Cruz County. It serves the communities of Davenport, Swanton, Last Chance, and Bonny Doon, as well as agricultural ranches. This North Coast community is located in a rural, isolated setting with pockets of poverty and limited access to services.
Community: Greenfield
Host Agency: Greenfield Unified School District & Community Human Services Community Profile: Greenfield is in the heart of the Salinas Valley, with a population of just under 10,000. The majority of residents are first and second generation Mexican families, many are farm workers. The family-based community has a significant number of children.
Hollister
Host Agency: Community Services & Workforce Development
Community Profile: Hollister is a 48,000 person, rural, agricultural and manufacturing community. The primary economic activities of the county are agriculture, manufacturing, and visitor services. Although it was listed in the top 50 for "hottest little boomtowns (Money Magazine, April 1996)," persons with limited or no job skills find it difficult at best to secure employment.
Pajaro
Host Agency: Pajaro Valley Housing Corporation
Community Profile: This community of less than 4,000 persons situated at the northernmost end of Monterey County is a rural community that is essentially surrounded by strawberry fields with one end connected by bridge to Watsonville in Santa Cruz County. Ninety percent of the population is Latino; 70% of the total population is low-income.