Community

Church, Health Groups Providing COVID-19 Vaccines in San Francisco

Published

4 years ago

March 25, 2021

Kiki

Third Baptist members waiting to get vaccinated. Photo courtesy of Dr. Jonathan Butler. Left to right: Dr. Malcolm John (Black Health Initiative), Rev. Dr. Amos C. Brown (Senior Pastor, Third Baptist) Jane Brown (First Lady, Third Baptist Church), Veronica Shepard (San Francisco African American Faith-Based Coalition, founder), Betty Jones (Third Baptist member) Dr. Jonathan Butler (San Francisco African American Faith-Based Coalition, executive director)

One size, we know, does not fit all.

So, while, the Moscone Center is vaccinating thousands in the battle against COVID-19, a coalition of health and faith-based organizations is saving lives by the hundreds: and it’s working.

UCSF’s Black Health Initiative and San Francisco African American Faith-Based Coalition will offer Moderna vaccinations on Sunday, March 28, at Third Baptist Church at 1399 McAllister Street from 12 noon to 6:00 p.m. register for an appointment at www.thirdbaptist.org.

Those eligible to be vaccinated include individuals 18 years of age and older, who are:

healthcare workers
food/restaurant workers
grocery store workers
education and childcare workers
long-term care facility workers
emergency services workers

Also, those with certain chronic health conditions, the disabled, those living or working in congregate living spaces, and anyone who is homeless, or at risk of being homeless, can be vaccinated at this event.

Last Saturday, 150 people made appointments to get the Johnson & Johnson vaccine at Third Baptist Church. The week before, the vaccination site was Cornerstone Baptist Church. Future sites are the San Francisco Christian Center, New Providence Baptist Church, Double Rock Baptist Church and St. Paul of the Shipwreck just a few of the 21 congregations that are part of the coalition.

So far, each time the vaccine has been available – in a partnership with Walgreens- all of the vials have been used in inoculations. About 75% of the people who have come for the inoculation were Black; the remaining 25% were Latino and Asian.

It is well-documented that Black people are three times as likely to die from COVID-19 than whites. This effort, deliberately small and intimate, is aimed at closing that gap, little by little.

Jonathan Butler, a medical sociologist, spoke for the coalition, which is now also partnering with the San Francisco Dept. of Health and Walgreens. The coalition had been providing services since the onset of the pandemic: 250,000 meals have been served to 1,400 families, 10,000 from Third Baptist Church.

It is because of that previous service and the trust community members seem to have for the Black church, Butler said, that the coalition has been successful.

The vaccinators, physicians and administrators are mostly Black and people of color, Butler said. About 20 physicians or residents from UCSF are on hand throughout the course of the day answering questions and providing advice.

There is also value in intimacy of the small operation and the attention given to individuals, Butler said.

At most vaccination sites, people are required to wait 15 minutes to make sure you don’t have an adverse reaction.

The coalition personnel go even further: vaccine recipients will get a check-in call the next day and another one four days later. During those calls, recipients will also be asked what else they may need. Food? Counseling?

“We try to take care of the whole person,” Butler said.

Kiki

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Oakland Post: Week of December 25 – 31, 2024

The printed Weekly Edition of the Oakland Post: Week of December 25 – 31, 2024

Published

10 hours ago

December 26, 2024

Oakland Post

To enlarge your view of this issue, use the slider, magnifying glass icon or full page icon in the lower right corner of the browser window.

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Bay Area

Glydways Breaking Ground on 14-Acre Demonstration Facility at Hilltop Mall

Glydways has been testing its technology at CCTA’s GoMentum Station in Concord for several years. The company plans to install an ambitious 28-mile Autonomous Transit Network in East Contra Costa County. The new Richmond facility will be strategically positioned near that project, according to Glydways.

Published

3 days ago

December 24, 2024

Oakland Post

Image of planned Richmond facility courtesy of Glydways.

The Richmond Standard

Glydways, developer of microtransit systems using autonomous, small-scale vehicles, is breaking ground on a 14-acre Development and Demonstration Facility at the former Hilltop Mall property in Richmond, the Contra Costa Transportation Authority (CCTA) reported on social media.

Glydways, which released a statement announcing the project Monday, is using the site while the mall property undergoes a larger redevelopment.

“In the interim, Glydways will use a portion of the property to showcase its technology and conduct safety and reliability testing,” the company said.

The new Richmond development hub will include “over a mile of dedicated test track, enabling Glydways to refine its solutions in a controlled environment while simulating real-world conditions,” the company said.

Visitors to the facility will be able to experience on-demand travel, explore the control center and visit a showroom featuring virtual reality demonstrations of Glydways projects worldwide.

The hub will also house a 13,000-square-foot maintenance and storage facility to service the growing fleet of Glydcars.

“With this new facility [at the former Hilltop Mall property], we’re giving the public a glimpse of the future, where people can experience ultra-quiet, on-demand transit—just like hailing a rideshare, but with the reliability and affordability of public transit,” said Tim Haile, executive director of CCTA.

Janet Galvez, vice president and investment officer at Prologis, owner of the Hilltop Mall property, said her company is “thrilled” to provide space for Glydways and is continuing to work with the city on future redevelopment plans for the broader mall property.

Richmond City Manager Shasa Curl added that Glydways’ presence “will not only help test new transit solutions but also activate the former Mall site while preparation and finalization of the Hilltop Horizon Specific Plan is underway.

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Alameda County

Last City Council Meeting of the Year Ends on Sour Note with Big Budget Cuts

In a five to one vote, with Councilmembers Carroll Fife and Janani Ramachandran excused, the council passed a plan aimed at balancing the $130 million deficit the city is facing. Noel Gallo voted against the plan, previously citing concerns over public safety cuts, while Nikki Fortunato-Bas, Treva Reid, Rebecca Kaplan, Kevin Jenkins, and Dan Kalb voted in agreement with the plan.

Published

3 days ago

December 24, 2024

Oakland Post

Oakland City Council voted on a plan to balance the $130 million deficit at their last regular meeting of 2024. The plan reduces police spending by $25 million, temporarily closes two fire stations, and guts the cultural arts programs. iStock photo.

By Magaly Muñoz

In the last lengthy Tuesday meeting of the Oakland City Council for 2024, residents expressed strong opposition to the much needed budget cuts before a change in leadership was finalized with the certification of election results.

Oakland police and fire departments, the ambassador program, and city arts and culture will all see significant cuts over the course of two phases.

Phase 1 will eliminate two police academies, brown out two fire stations, eliminate the ambassador program, and reduce police overtime by nearly $25 million. These, with several other cuts across departments, aim to save the city $60 million. In addition, the council simultaneously approved to transfer restricted funds into its general purpose fund, amounting to over $40 million.

Phase 2 includes additional fire station brownouts and the elimination of 91 jobs, aiming to recover almost $16 million in order to balance the rest of the budget.

Several organizations and residents spoke out at the meeting in hopes of swaying the council to not make cuts to their programs.

East Oakland Senior Center volunteers and members, and homeless advocates, filled the plaza just outside of City Hall with rallies to show their disapproval of the new budget plan. Senior residents told the council to “remember that you’ll get old too” and that disturbing their resources will only bring problems for an already struggling community.

While city staff announced that there would not be complete cuts to senior center facilities, there would be significant reductions to staff and possibly inter-program services down the line.

Exiting council member and interim mayor Bas told the public that she is still hopeful that the one-time $125 million Coliseum sale deal will proceed in the near future so that the city would not have to continue with drastic cuts. The deal was intended to save the city for fiscal year 2024-25, but a hold up at the county level has paused any progress and therefore millions of dollars in funds Oakland desperately needs.

The Coliseum sale has been a contentious one. Residents and city leaders were originally against using the deal as a way to balance the budget, citing doubts about the sellers, the African American Sports and Entertainment Group’s (AASEG), ability to complete the deal. Council members Reid, Ramachandran, and Gallo have called several emergency meetings to understand where the first installments of the sale are, with little to no answers.

Bas added that as the new Alameda County Supervisor for D5, a position she starts in a few weeks, she will do everything in her power to push the Coliseum sale along.

The city is also considering a sales tax measure to put on the special election ballot on April 15, 2025, which will also serve as an election to fill the now vacant D2 and mayor positions. The tax increase would raise approximately $29 million annually for Oakland, allowing the city to gain much-needed revenue for the next two-year budget.

The council will discuss the possible sales tax measure on January 9.