Sacramento News & Review
Support Local Independent Journalism Sign up for our newsletter!
  • News
    • Crime Beat
    • COVID-19
    • police reform
  • Voices
    • Greenlight
    • Fifteen Minutes
    • Essay
    • Ask Joey
    • Ask 420
  • Arts+Culture
    • Dish
    • Music
    • Home & Garden
    • Rebooting the Arts
  • Calendar
  • Solving Sacramento
    • Rebooting the Arts
    • Housing
    • ABOUT SOLVING SACRAMENTO
  • Newsletter
  • Become a supporter
  • More…
    • Local Dining
    • SN&R Archive
    • Best of Sac
    • SAMMIES
    • Sponsored Content
    • Independent Journalism Fund
    • Letter to the Editor
    • Contact Us
Hot Topics
  • March 9, 2021 | In light of recent deaths, Sacramento City Hall faces reckoning on warming centers
  • June 24, 2022 | ‘Operation Bear Trap’ highlights Sacramento’s place in the Nevada gun-trafficking problem 
  • June 22, 2022 | Dr. BJ Miller is the keynote speaker at an end-of-life conference this Friday in Sacramento
  • June 22, 2022 | Essay: Our meta-gaze and the dawn of ‘Duocracy,’ where Sacramento’s culture, politics and community get ruptured by a digital divide
  • June 20, 2022 | Inside the fight to force makers of plastic trash to clean up their mess
  • June 20, 2022 | Lens on history: the new documentary about a Russian rebel’s poisoning
Spotlight Community

Stepping Up

By: Corey Rodda July 16, 2020

David Svanda never anticipated that at 48 years old he would be caring for a 4-year-old. But a child was something he’d never had and always wanted.

“It was one of those things that nobody plans for, so I accepted full responsibility,” Svanda says.

When his son Dave was born, Svanda had to go through the child support process to ensure that Dave had full medical coverage. At the time, Svanda worked for a small dental lab that did not offer an employee health insurance plan and Dave’s mother was on Social Security.

“I went to court and told the judge that this was my kid and I am proud of that and I will do whatever I need to be responsible, and he said that he was so glad to hear that,” Svanda recalls.

Svanda has shared custody and cherishes the stability that his child support payments provide for his family.

“I appreciate that my kid is covered with my financial aid and that I don’t have any kinds of worries about his health, and know that he can go to a hospital and have his bills covered,” he says.

For Svanda, working with Sacramento County Department of Child Support Services has been easy.

“I am still very old school—I don’t do a lot of computer stuff and they were able to work with me on the monthly payment over the phone because they understand that not a lot of people are computer savvy,” he says. “So that really helped me out in that situation.”

Svanda advises others in his shoes to stay involved in their children’s lives and also to not miss any payments, which can result in arrears, driver’s license suspensions and liens.

“Just roll with the punches,” he says. “It is not something that anyone wants to sign up for, but I am just grateful that I get along with Dave’s mother and that we have a beautiful kid. We didn’t have to hire any lawyers or fight. It’s been a beautiful experience and I am staying involved and spending as much of my time raising him as possible, and we are doing good as far as that goes.”

TOPICS:child supportdadsrelationshipsSacramento County Department of Child Support Services

Our content is free, but not free to produce

If you value our local news, arts and entertainment coverage, become an SN&R supporter with a one-time or recurring donation. Help us keep our reporters at work, bringing you the stories that need to be told.

Become a supporter
Newsletter

Stay Updated

For the latest local news, arts and entertainment, sign up for our newsletter.
We'll tell you the story behind the story.

    • Previous post
    • Next post

    About the Sponsor

    Sacramento County Department of Child Support Services
    Sacramento County Department of Child Support Services' mission is to enhance the lives of families. SCDCSS does this by helping parents stay involved in the support and development of their children. Studies show that having each parent involved in a child’s life improves overall well-being—they are likely to do better in school, have lower dropout and incarceration rates, go on to college, and lead happier and healthier adult lives. https://childsupportservices.saccounty.net/Pages/default.aspx

    Related Articles

    No Picture

    Ask Joey

    Love in the time of COVID-19


    COVID-19, News

    Divorces have actually dropped during the COVID-19 crisis


    Meet the sponsors

    • Berkeley Strategy Advisors
      Berkeley Strategy Advisors

      published 1 article

    • BRIDGE Housing
      BRIDGE Housing

      published 3 articles

    • California Workforce Association
      California Workforce Association

      published 4 articles

    • Del Paso Boulevard Partnership
      Del Paso Boulevard Partnership

      published 28 articles

    • Exotic Plants
      Exotic Plants

      published 6 articles

    • Midtown
      Midtown

      published 11 articles

    • N&R Publications
      N&R Publications

      published 5 articles

    • Northern California Research
      Northern California Research

      published 5 articles

    • Sacramento County Department of Child Support Services
      Sacramento County Department of Child Support Services

      published 5 articles

    • Sacramento Regional Transit District
      Sacramento Regional Transit District

      published 28 articles

    • SEIU
      SEIU

      published 30 articles

    • Sierra Nevada Brewing Co.
      Sierra Nevada Brewing Co.

      published 1 article

    • The California Endowment
      The California Endowment

      published 65 articles

    • Volunteers of America
      Volunteers of America

      published 8 articles

    • Workforce Development Board of Solano County
      Workforce Development Board of Solano County

      published 4 articles

    Our Sponsors

    Berkeley Strategy Advisors BRIDGE Housing California Workforce Association Del Paso Boulevard Partnership Exotic Plants Midtown N&R Publications Northern California Research Sacramento County Department of Child Support Services Sacramento Regional Transit District SEIU Sierra Nevada Brewing Co. The California Endowment Volunteers of America Workforce Development Board of Solano County

    Categories

    Community

    Tags

    2020 affordable housing art astrology Black Lives Matter board of supervisors California cannabis cartoonist City Council city hall climate change coronavirus COVID-19 COVID-19 in Sacramento Donald Trump editorial cartoons election gardening gavin newsom George Floyd homeless homelessness horoscopes jobs Joe Biden letters Mayor Darrell Steinberg music november election pandemic police reform police shootings president donald trump presidential election protests public health sacramento sacramento county Sacramento police Sacramento Regional Transit District SacRT SEIU Stephon Clark taxes
    Newsletter

    Stay Updated

    For the latest local news, arts and entertainment, sign up for our newsletter.
    We'll tell you the story behind the story.

      Recent Posts
      • ‘Operation Bear Trap’ highlights Sacramento’s place in the Nevada gun-trafficking problem 
      • Dr. BJ Miller is the keynote speaker at an end-of-life conference this Friday in Sacramento
      • Essay: Our meta-gaze and the dawn of ‘Duocracy,’ where Sacramento’s culture, politics and community get ruptured by a digital divide
      • Inside the fight to force makers of plastic trash to clean up their mess
      • Lens on history: the new documentary about a Russian rebel’s poisoning
      Links
      • Newsletter Signup
      • Follow us on Twitter
      • Find us on Facebook
      • SN&R Archives
      • Best of Sac
      • SAMMIES
      • RSS
      • Privacy Policy
      • Terms of Service
      • Contact Us
      Become a supporter
      Categories
      • 2020 election (156)
      • Arts & Culture (42)
      • Arts+Culture (403)
      • Ask Joey (1,017)
      • Behind the Issues (1)
      • Cannabis (39)
      • COVID-19 (360)
      • Crime Beat (77)
      • Dish (73)
      • Food (11)
      • Greenlight (492)
      • Home & Garden (76)
      • Housing (6)
      • Music (66)
      • News (967)
      • Rebooting the Arts (33)
      • Solving Sacramento (6)
      • Stage (8)
      • The arts (4)
      • Voices (471)

      © 2019+ Sacramento News & Review