Summer Food Provides Over 120,000 Meals, Head Start Parents Complete Apprenticeship, and More!

The Summer Food Service Program provided over 120,000 meals (breakfast and lunch) during June to Oakland children from low-income households. More than 20 sites throughout Oakland, including community-based organizations, Oakland Housing Authority sites, and City of Oakland recreation centers have participated in weekly food distributions during the Shelter-in-Place order. Children enrolled in the daily camps through a limited number of community sites and Oakland Parks, Recreation & Youth Development Town Camp are receiving hot meals in July. For more information about how to access food this summer visit us online.

This past June, nineteen Head Start parents completed the first City of Oakland Early Childhood Education Apprenticeship program, a partnership between Merritt College, Head Start, and the City of Oakland Workforce Development Board. The students enrolled in two Early Childhood Education classes, and received books, laptops, and a stipend for other resources. The students and teachers were both determined and flexible, adapting quickly to an online learning platform during the Shelter-in-Place. With this new qualification, these new class graduates can apply for work as assistants in our Head Start classrooms, a win-win for families and the program. These parents are on a career path to becoming teachers and helping address the critical need for early childhood educators.

The Arts and Crafts room at the North Oakland Senior Center is now a food distribution center for seniors citywide. On Tuesday's and Thursday's, volunteers and staff wheel boxed groceries in and out of the courtyard, creating family-sized food boxes to deliver to seniors at home. We are so grateful for all of our partners: LIFE ElderCare, Senior Companions, Associated Coffee, Hope4theHeart, Alameda County Community Food Bank, and the Daily Bowl. With the remaining produce, the North Oakland Senior Center has set up a new fresh produce stand at the center. The produce varies weekly, encouraging folks to try new recipes with different ingredients and reducing the number of trips for seniors to the grocery store. Call (510) 597-5085 for more information or visit us online.

Simple recipe for daikon radishes from one of our seniors: "Slice them up and put them in vinegar, sugar and salt and a chili pepper for some extra zing!" Enjoy.

The Alameda County – Oakland Community Action Partnership (AC-OCAP) wants you to get counted! Please remind clients, program participants and community members to fill out their census forms. Share the online census through social media at www.my2020census.gov. Visit www.CensusCounts.org for additional tools, resources, and info on the census.

For every person missed on the Census, our community loses an average of $2,000+ every year for 10 years. Check out the interactive map of response rates to find out how our community is doing. And spread the word! Let's get out the count for the 2020 Census!

Over the past few months, ROCK (Resilient Oakland Communities and Kids) led a free six-part Community Training series on trauma-informed practices. The most recent webinar focused on helping children and their parents manage big and overwhelming emotions, especially relevant during COVID-19. Visit oaklandsmartandstrong.org to find out more about the resources they offer for children and families in Oakland.

Please fill out this brief survey to help us understand how residential rent increases and the eviction moratorium have affected tenants and property owners in Oakland. On March 27, 2020, the Oakland City Council voted to stop all residential evictions, rent increases, and late fees during the Local Emergency. On May 19, 2020 City Council extended the eviction moratorium to August 31, 2020, or at the end of the Local Emergency.

During the COVID-19 Shelter-in-Place, East Oakland Senior Center (EOSC) staff continue to provide services to members of the center using virtual support, reaching out to members to make sure they are healthy and well. Over the phone, our staff conduct daily wellness checks, and offer exercise and cooking classes via Zoom in partnership with UC Davis.

EOSC offers weekly food distribution on Wednesdays from 8 AM – 10:30 AM, providing food to over 600 people in the community each week. We are also delivering food to 35 seniors who are not able to pick-up food. Our team is also working on a partnership with Amazon to deliver food bags with meat, fruit, and vegetables to our seniors— big thanks to Wanda Redic, City of Oakland Public Works for leading this initiative! We are extraordinarily proud of our staff and our community for continuing to stay connected and supported throughout the Shelter-in-Place, so we can make sure each member of our community is healthy and well. Call (510) 615-5731 or email luwuseba@oaklandca.gov to find out more, or visit us online.

Community based organizations funded by Oakland Fund for Children & Youth (OFCY) are addressing the critical needs of Oakland families during the COVID-19 crisis. Evaluator Social Policy Research Associates (SPR) interviewed staff from 25 agencies to learn about how these agencies have connected youth and families to crisis support, including access to food, increased case management, raising money, providing virtual programming, and sharing information and resources related to COVID-19. Click here to download SPR’s Memo on OFCY Programs Response to COVID-19 in Spring 2020.