Judith Goetsch Brandlin

BS Modern Language '64
Los Angeles, Calif.

When Judith Goetsch Brandlin arrived in Los Angeles in 1978, she was ready to make a difference. Today, the before- and after-school program she developed for children in low-income communities stands as a representative of the legacy of caring she has created and nurtured for generations of children.

Brandlin founded Stone Soup Child Care Programs in Encino, Calif., in 1986. The not-for-profit organization provides safe, affordable, and dependable care for more than 4,000 children daily in some of southern and central California’s lowest income neighborhoods. Stone Soup has made school fun and interesting for children by providing a healthy contrast to the drugs and gang violence many of its participants encounter on a daily basis.

Vice President Al Gore cited Stone Soup as a model program in 1998, and Brandlin was the 2000 recipient of the Silver Achievement Award in Education from the YWCA of Greater Los Angeles. A recipient of numerous volunteer leadership awards in the Los Angeles community, Brandlin served on the board of directors for the United Way of Greater Los Angeles for 20 years and served 28 years with MUSES, the auxiliary for L.A.’s Museum of Science and Industry.

The niece of legendary ISU baseball coach Cap Timm, Brandlin is a lifetime member of the ISU Alumni Association. She is married to J.J. Brandlin and has eight stepchildren and 11 grandchildren.