Mission

Save Our Youth (SOY) is a youth violence prevention center serving the low income Westside community of Costa Mesa. SOY was founded in 1993 by concerned mothers who were losing sons and daughters to a growing culture of gang violence. We operate in the after school hours and serve youths in grades 7 – 12 in the Newport Mesa School District.  Our programming includes a community health and fitness program, a female empowerment program (SOY Girls), sports teams, recreational and educational field trips, social activities, and our scholarship program. Our overall mission is to prevent youth violence and nurture our teen community to make positive decisions in life.

Board of Directors

  • Cesar Cappellini, Chair              CEO, Bell Foundry
  • Joe Forbath, Vice Chair             Attorney, Woodruff-Spradlin and Smart
  • Don Maher, Secretary                Retired Aerospace Engineer
  • Jean Forbath, Treasurer            Retired Exec. Director, Share Our Selves
  • Diana Hensley                           Retired Educator
  • Ivan Calderon                            Business Owner, Taco Mesa
  • Adriana Suarez                          Skikos Crawford
  • Richard Biaz                              Educator, Coastline Community College
  • Bobby Lovell                             Clinical Psychologist
  • Gerry Demarsico                       Retired Engineer
  • Jose Sanchez                             SOY Alumni, Graduate Student, CSULB
  • Karolina Soriano                        SOY Alumni, Social Worker, UC Irvine
  • Janet Gutierrez                          Spec. Ed.-Language Speech Specialist

Staff

➢ Thomas Trevor Murphy            Executive Director
➢ Carmen Barrios                       Program Assistant (Co-Founder)
➢ Silvia Rosales                          Academic Program Coordinator
➢ Lucia Martin                           Academic Program Assistant
➢ Ivis Torres                               SOY Girls Coordinator
➢ Eddie Iniestra                         Arts & Music Coordinator
➢ Karla Andrade                         Health & Fitness Coordinator