Mustard Seed School: Where Magic Grows

September marks the end of summer but at Sacramento Loaves & Fishes it’s the beginning of the new school year at Mustard Seed, where hope takes root every day despite the immense challenges faced by the children and families who walk through its doors.  Lucia Vega, the Program Director, and Stacy Johnson, the Education Director, are at the heart of this work. Together with their staff, they’ve created a space where children experiencing homelessness can find not only safety but a sense of normalcy amidst the chaos of their lives. Lucia works tirelessly to provide families with basic necessities—transportation, food, laundry, and connections to resources and housing—while also making sure that, at least for a few hours, the children at Mustard Seed can leave their worries behind.

The school itself is a sanctuary of beauty and wonder, a place where children can feel a sense of ownership and pride in their work. Stacy Johnson ensures that every corner of the classrooms reflects this care. Under her leadership, the school combines a Montessori and Mustard Seed philosophy with a strong social-emotional curriculum that gives students more than just academic knowledge—it gives them the tools to navigate the complexities of their own emotions. Stacy recalls recently when a six-year-old student asked her, “Is the school ready?” She confidently answered yes, knowing her team had prepared a welcoming space with the joy of anticipation in mind that each child experiences every day in this interactive and fun learning environment.

But the challenges are real and ever-present. Lucia and her team often face heartbreaking moments when there are simply no shelters available, “One of the biggest challenges that I face when helping a family is that there are no emergency shelters for them, leaving families to sleep in their cars or outside.” Yet, even in the face of these obstacles, they continue to build an environment of resilience and hope.

Through the reintroduction of the “TOOLBOX” curriculum (that was started by former staff in 2017, but interrupted during the pandemic), children are learning to manage their emotions and are beginning to realize the agency they have over their own lives. “Toolbox enables us to use the inner ‘tools’ that already exist inside us. It helps build resilience, self-mastery, and empathy for ourselves and others,” says Stacy. 

At Mustard Seed, the victories may seem small—a child feeling the joy of laughter with friends, a family finding support that allows them the mental space to have hope—but they are powerful steps toward a better future. Every day, the kids at Mustard Seed leave their difficult living environments and step into a place that truly belongs to them, giving them something solid to hold onto. It’s in these small, daily triumphs that the real magic of Mustard Seed is found.

Mustard Seed has an ongoing wishlist if you would like to see how you can help this Fall.