Exploring Life & Business with Tony Brown of Heart of Los Angeles

Today we’d like to introduce you to Tony Brown.

Hi Tony, please kick things off for us with an introduction to yourself and your story. 
I was raised in Sierra Madre by an elementary school teacher, a doctor, and three older siblings. We moved there in part because I almost drowned in our old home in Altadena. It was a very safe new neighborhood, but we were the only Black family in that town in the early seventies and being so, had great opportunities but also many social challenges. I ended up becoming a Junior Olympian swimmer and NCAA Division 1 Water Polo player at LMU while also growing up in the Pasadena Boys Choir and receiving a singing scholarship in college. 

We all face challenges, but looking back, would you describe it as a relatively smooth road?
Growing up in this small town during those years meant I also carried a lot of stress as a Black person of having to do a lot of “code-switching.” I would get teased a lot by my classmates who often said hurtful things about Black people without them realizing how hurtful and oftentimes ignorant they were. So, I would rely upon out-of-town places like the Boys and Girls Club and YMCA, where I would have the opportunity to interact with more Black people. I would get pulled over by police for driving while Black. I would take the bus through various predominantly neighborhoods of color to get to my high school, and I would often witness the economic disparity and educational inequity between neighborhoods daily. While these were tough obstacles, there was also a tremendous amount of guilt that I would feel because I knew that I was still growing up in a safe neighborhood with highly educated parents, which was not the norm in those days, and with access to quality enrichment opportunities, whereas so many of my peers taking the bus to their schools likely did not. 

Appreciate you sharing that. What should we know about Heart of Los Angeles?
HOLA is a nonprofit with a mission to help young people overcome barriers through exceptional, free, integrated programs that has for 35 years been based in the Westlake area of Los Angeles and now also serves South LA and Watts neighborhoods. HOLA provides after-school programming with exceptional academic support and visual arts, music, athletics, and STEAM enrichment programs, serving kids from elementary through high school and into college and career success… I am the CEO, and I am so proud to lead a fantastic and dynamic group of leaders and staff who are extremely dedicated and passionate about empowering all students that come through our doors to learn, dream, and explore their interests in a supportive environment. We even have an essential Family Services department who provide counseling and support for basic needs. What sets HOLA apart from other after school providers is that all of our services and programs are completely free to the students and families, and we have our amazing community partners, foundation partners, donors, and Board to thank for that. What also sets us apart is that we really look at our students, at every student in LA, as a whole person, and we believe every child has the potential to reach their dreams, whether that’s attending college or vocational training. Over the past 8 years, Heart of Los Angeles has provided over $6 million dollars in scholarships to primarily first-generation students to help make college more attainable. 

Where do you see things going in the next 5-10 years?
For us here at HOLA, our future is looking brighter and bigger than ever. We are expanding access to our programs to help support youth living in South Central LA and Watts and we continue to seek ways to help ensure that all youth have access to quality youth centers like Heart of Los Angeles. Right now, the education system has received some much-needed, long-overdue, unprecedented levels of funding intended for after-school programs; however, our school systems alone might be too taxed to receive and deploy all of those funds as they were intended. I think there should be and will be some big changes where public funds, especially those available through the state, will become more directly accessible to community programs who are serving youth living in vulnerable communities outside of our public schools. 

Contact Info:

• Website: https://www.heartofla.org/
• Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/heartoflosangeles/
• Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/heartoflosangeles
• Linkedin: https://www.linkedin.com/company/heart-of-los-angeles-hola

Image Credits
Aaron Rapoport