Ms. Wooten is a life-long resident of Watts. Married for 25 years to Patrick
Wooten, she is the mother of 6 children: Branden, Kejuan, Ricky, Tarrence,
Patrick and Bridgette; and 14 grandkids. In 2008, two of Kathy’s sons were
killed as the result of gang violence, she turned her grief into action and
healing, sparking a commitment to serving other mothers and families
whose loved ones have experienced the death of a child or sibling. She is
invested in gang prevention and intervention throughout Watts and
currently works as a victim’s advocate for the Los Angeles Mayor’s Office of
Gang Reduction Youth Development (GRYD) program and Soledad
Enrichment Action (SEA).

Eager to initiate efforts on her own and honor the memory of her sons
Branden and Kejuan Bullard, in 2008 Ms. Wooten founded the Bullard
Foundation, which is now known as Loving Hands Community Care (LHCC).
The mission of Loving Hands is to engage all people from all communities to
bridge the gap between fear and forgiveness. We do this by developing
relationships that open the lines of communication to address grief, create
safety, and bring us all together. Kathy’s work includes serving as the
hostess of the annual, community-wide Mother’s Day Brunch Celebration,
along with year-round programming that focuses on the surviving family
members of murder victims – specifically the children and siblings impacted
by the death. The goal of this programming is to remind the children and
families that the community, as a whole, cares for them and is there to
provide support. As the grief and healing process of siblings is often
overlooked, Loving Hands provides year‐round programs focused
on their needs and well‐being.

Ms. Wooten is committed to collaboration with other organizations, leaders
and thought partners not only throughout Los Angeles, but across the
country. She is proud to be an inaugural cohort member of the UCLA Watts
Leadership Institute, a capacity-building and sustainability initiative for the
leaders in Watts, California.