Hello, hello, Bomber fam! We've got an exciting announcement for you today. This year, we've been hard at work behind the scenes developing a new program that we're just WAY too excited about. 

Introducing... Back To The Community!

Starting this April, Bomber Eyewear is delighted to introduce our Back To The Community program, a charity initiative made to highlight some of the incredible changemakers in our community.

Each month, a portion of our proceeds will go directly to a selected charity serving our community and causes that we love at Bomber Eyewear. We'll spend the month shouting out our partner in emails, social media, and more. You can help by shopping your Bomber faves, highlighting the charities on your own social media platforms, or donating directly to these amazing nonprofits. 

Meet Our April Partner: The Lost Angels Children's Project!

This month, we're so excited to introduce the Lost Angels Children's Project, an organization near and dear to our hearts -- and right in our backyard! We've had the honor of partnering with LACP for past initiatives and programs, and we're so happy to kick off our charity program with such a fantastic partner. 

The Lost Angels Children's Project serves disadvantaged youth, young adults, families, and distressed communities in Los Angeles and beyond. They offer innovative vocational training, social enterprise, and traditional outreach programs.

"Lost Angels started as an after school program working with a lot of kids in our
community doing classic car restoration and art," says Aaron Valencia, CEO of LACP. "Since then, we’ve grown."

LACP has expanded past their afterschool programs and grew to include a print shop where students get the vocational training needed to work in industrial areas like tee shirt printing, restoration, and more. Student-made items are then sold to support LACP's programming and fund apprenticeships. 

With such rapid growth, LACP has had to make changes. Right now, they are in the process of funding and opening a secondary building to fit their expanded programming. In addition, they're looking for new ways to support students who have aged out of the afterschool programs. 

"We realized that a lot of our kids had graduated high school, turned 18, and were struggling to get that first job," Aaron explained. "So, we expanded into a vocational training program for 18 to 20-year-olds. It’s hard to land a job when you don’t have experience, but you need a job to get experience, [so] that’s the problem we set out to solve."

The solution became a 12-week intensive course in classic car restoration, a level up from the afterschool courses with a focus on hands-on experiences. Students join the program as paid apprentices, where they receive paid training and real-world experience in the things you can't learn from research -- like how to show up on time, how to stay on task and stay motivated, and how to find jobs. Most importantly, apprentices get on-the-job training and build employable skills to help find a job after graduation.

"At the end of the 12-week program, [our students] have real work history, money in their pocket, and their resume is being sent out to the workforce," Aaron says. "A lot of our students are graduating and getting right to work, it’s amazing and we couldn’t be more proud."

We LOVE the work that LACP is doing, and we're honored to be partnering with them again. There's something so special about bringing our friends back to kick off our brand-new charity program, especially friends from our home state of California! 

How can I help?

The best part of Bomber's Back To The Community program is that YOU can get involved, too. A portion of our April proceeds will be going directly to LACP, so you can support the cause by shopping your Bomber favorites, sharing the LACP story on social media, or donating directly to the Lost Angels Children's Project. (You can do that on their website here -- we highly recommend taking a look around at some of their past and current projects!) 

Shopping Bomber Eyewear is just one way you can show your support. Head over to social media to spread the word about LACP, and keep an eye out for upcoming charity partnerships!

Know an amazing organization that deserves some Bomber love? Suggest your favorites to us by emailing contact@bombereyewear.com. We'd love to hear your suggestions! 

Where to Find LACP

Website: Lost Angels Children's Project

Facebook: LostAngelsCP

Instagram: Lost_Angels_Childrens_Project

YouTube: Lost Angels Children's Project

Donate Here: LACP Donations