NMI Spotlight: Toberman Neighborhood Center 

by Catey Miller

Toberman Neighborhood Center in San Pedro, California, is a true lifeline to the underserved. This National Mission Institution offers both general resources and immigration-specific services to its community, and serves more than 10,000 people each year — more than 90 percent of whom live below the federal poverty line. The center’s programs reach an ethnically and culturally diverse population, reflecting the Harbor Area’s rich mosaic of Hispanic/Latinx, African American, Asian, and immigrant families. 

Afterschool Program

United Women in Faith funding helps support Toberman’s Afterschool Program, which provides underserved K-5 students with a wide range of services tailored to both academic and personal growth. These include tutoring, study skills training, mentorship, structured recreational activities, and guidance on the transition to secondary school. Toberman CEO Dr. Lupe Rivera writes, “Youth in the Harbor Area face systemic barriers, including pervasive poverty, exposure to gang activity, limited parental supervision, and underperforming schools. These conditions contribute to high dropout rates — one in five students in our service area does not graduate from high school — severely impacting future employment opportunities.” Thanks in part to support from UWFaith, Toberman Neighborhood Center is making a real difference in these students’ lives, making sure they feel supported and stay on track with educational milestones.  

Deepening Poverty

The community Toberman serves is facing increasing pressure amid deepening poverty and rising housing instability. Additionally, the immigrant population that relies on Toberman’s programming is anxious about the ongoing presence of ICE in their neighborhoods. Despite losing $70,000 in federal funding earlier this year, the Center has stayed true to its mission, providing critical services from food and housing assistance to financial coaching and mental health support to youth programming and gang intervention for thousands of people this year. 

Prayers Welcome

Toberman Neighborhood Center welcomes prayers and advocacy efforts from UWFaith members as it seeks to continue supporting children and families with programming that remains “responsive, inclusive, and grounded in dignity for all.” 

We invite UWFaith members to support the work of our National Mission Institutions by giving online here or by writing a check to your local treasurer with memo “National Missions #3001152.” To hear more from Dr. Lupe Rivera, watch our recent Voices From the Field webinar, “Turning Uncertainty into Hope: How National Mission Institutions Rise to Meet Federal Policy Impacts.” To learn more about National Mission Institutions, contact NMI@uwfaith.org.