Entertainment, vendors, and special honors for Sankofa Lifetime Achievement awardees

Special to The Post

Celebrating Ujima, the principle of ‘Collective Work and Responsibility,’ Fayeth Gardens’ 3^rd Annual Kwanzaa Celebration will be held on Dec. 28, from 12 noon to 5 p.m.

Kwanzaa celebrates seven principles – Nguzu Saba – that support an ideal of community, beginning from Dec. 26 to Jan. 1.

Those principles, in Swahili, are: Umoja (Unity), Kujichagulia (Self-Determination), Ujima (Collective Work & Responsibility), Ujamaa (Collective Economics), Nia (Purpose), Kuumba (Creativity) and Imani (Faith).

The free event at Hayward City Hall at 777 B St. will feature live entertainment, a guest speaker, awards for community activists whose work reflects the principle of Ujima, vendors and an honoring of the ancestors by Awon Ohun Omnira (Voices of Freedom).

On stage will be the Touch of Class Band, a New Orleans Second-Line Band, and the California Griot Storytellers. Bring the children to have fun in the Kids Korner.

Velda Goe, who has been celebrating Kwanzaa since it started in the 1960s, noticed there was no public celebration of the holiday in Hayward when she moved to the city in 2008.

“I started it a couple of years ago,” she said, “and hopefully it will continue just like the cultural events by other nationalities (in Hayward). The Afro-descendent people of Hayward deserve cultural recognition as well.”

Goe also believes it’s important that Kwanzaa gets its due because “there are so many misconceptions,” particularly by people of other nationalities, who are under the impression “that Kwanzaa is a cult, a religion, or replaces Christmas.”

The celebration, which is open to all, can have the effect of helping guests see that Kwanzaa’a principles and purpose are common to all

This year’s Sankofa Lifetime Awardees are:

• Mrs. Freddye M. Davis: President of the South Hayward NAACP
  •Baba Arnold X.C. Perkins: Co-founder of the Brotherhood of Elders
  •Frederick Jordan,: Legendary founder of F.E. Jordan & Associates and the Design Engineer for the Charles P. Howard Container Terminal at the Port of Oakland + 1,000 Projects

Come dressed up in your best African wear to enter a raffle for a prize for best-dressed Afrocentric King and Queen.A free, healthy soul food lunch is available with an Eventbrite ticket, which can be found at for free lunch is available from for 11:30 to 12 p.m.

In its third year, the event is the brainchild of Velda Goe, founder of Fayeth Gardens, a community planting site to educate and provide a means for urban dwellers to grow healthy food for their families and develop life-sustaining eating habits.

Interested in being a vendor, volunteer, or sponsor? Reach out to FayethGardens@gmail.com

For tickets, go to: https://www.eventbrite.com/e/fayeth-gardens-3rd-annual-kwanzaa-celebration-at-hayward-city-hall-tickets-1974966953322

Oakland Post

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By Post Staff

The Oakland Post Salon will host a community meeting with District 3 City Councilmember Carroll Fife and city staff to discuss a proposal for building a Costco in Oakland.

The public meeting will be held Thursday, Dec. 18, from 6 p.m.-7:30 p.m. in City Council Chambers, Oakland City Hall, 3^rd Floor at 1 Frank H. Ogawa Plaza in Oakland.

At the meeting, residents will have the opportunity to:

• Hear about a proposed resolution from Fife for Costco in Oakland
• Find out details from the City Administrator and Oakland’s Real Estate Division
• Ask questions, share ideas about benefits residents are looking for
• Make sure decision-makers know what residents need.

The proposed resolution would give authority to the City Administrator to negotiate terms for an exclusive negotiating agreement (ENA) with Deca Companies and Costco Wholesale Corporation to pursue a potential Costco development at 2008 Wake Ave. in the North Gateway Development Area of the former Oakland Army Base, adjacent to the Port of Oakland.

“As the D3 Council representative, my primary objective is to improve the lives of my constituents, who have endured generations of disinvestment and neglect,” said Fife. “For too long, our West Oakland community has lacked access to essential services, often forcing residents to leave Oakland to find quality options – including groceries. Our families deserve access to affordable groceries, and we want to keep those dollars and tax revenues within our city. This proposed ENA is an important step toward bringing a world-class retailer to Oakland and creating hundreds of good-paying jobs right here in District 3.”

Deca Companies, a San Francisco-based real estate investment and development firm, is leading the development project. Deca has extensive experience with major projects across California, including the redevelopment of the Phillips 66 Refinery in Southern California, large mixed-use California projects in Perris, Bakersfield, and Mead Valley; along with electric vehicle charging lots and industrial projects across the Bay Area and Southern California.

“We’re thrilled to be working with Councilmember Fife to bring a major grocery retailer to West Oakland,” said Travis Duncan, vice president of Deca Companies. “This project sends a clear message: Oakland is open for business. We’re proud to be part of the team working to help alleviate the food desert and bring affordable, high-quality groceries that can serve folks in Oakland and people from across the East Bay.”

Tony Beatty, longtime broker for Costco in the Bay Area noted, “While I cannot comment on the specifics of potential opportunities that are currently being evaluated, existing Costco locations in the Bay Area perform very well, and we have been looking at potential expansion opportunities where they can best serve their members.”

If approved by the full City Council, the City Administrator would be authorized to negotiate terms for an exclusive negotiating agreement with Deca Companies and Costco Wholesale Corporation, a critical first step. If negotiations are fruitful, the resulting ENA would come before the City Council for approval.

In the interim, community outreach and engagement will continue to ensure residents are included in the decision-making process in a meaningful way, according to a statement from Fife’s office.

Oakland Post

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