How did STANDUP FOR KIDS start?
STANDUP FOR KIDS is a 501(c) (3) national non-profit charitable organization founded in 1990 by Richard L. Koca. For retired U.S. Navy Officer Koca, STANDUP FOR KIDS was a natural extension of his ongoing outreach efforts. Koca was inspired to begin outreach in 1987 when he saw a CBS broadcast of 48 Hours that documented street kids in San Diego, California. He was so disturbed by the news report that when he arrived in San Diego he immediately began walking the streets to identify homeless teens and help them in anyway possible. Koca helped kids into shelters, gave them someone to confide in, and eventually turned his personal mission to help street kids into a nationwide organization.
