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Oakland’s Mount Zion Missionary Baptist Church Receives Grant to Increase Immunity in Communities of Color

Conference of National Black Churches selects Mount Zion M.B.C., Oakland, CA., Pastor Michael W. Wallace, Senior Pastor, to participate in the CNBC’s and CVS “The Black Church Mobilizing African Americans to Reduce Vaccine Hesitancy project” as one of six churches in six cities across the nation.

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Cross on Top of a Church; Photo courtesy of Akira Hojo via Unsplash

Dr. W. Franklyn Richardson, Chairman (Photo Courtesy CNBC)

Mrs. Jacqueline L. Burton, President (Photo Courtesy CNBC)

Pastor Michael W. Wallace, Mount Zion (Photo Courtesy MZMBC)

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Atlanta, Ga

Conference of National Black Churches (CNBC) Chairman Dr. W. Franklyn Richardson joins President Jacqueline L. Burton in conveying their appreciation for Pastor Michael W. Wallace and the historic Mount Zion Missionary Baptist Church of Oakland, California, for their willingness to participate in CNBC’s “The Black Church Mobilizing African Americans to Reduce Vaccine Hesitancy project.”

The announcement was made last week in Atlanta, Ga.

As a part of this program, Mount Zion has been selected as a grantee for the CVS, Direct Relief Increasing Immunity in Communities of Color Grants program.   CVS, Direct Relief has identified six cities in the nation and is partnering with CNBC to provide funding to their affiliated churches in those cities to support immunization efforts.

Funding will support existing, expanded, and new efforts related to COVID-19 testing/immunization and flu immunizations among Black and other racial and ethnic minority groups and education.

Pastor Wallace stated “ We are honored to be a recipient of this national grant and the partner with our national leaders Chairman Dr. W. Franklyn  Richardson and President Burton of the CNBC in conjunction with CVS in this tremendous nationwide effort to reach the most vulnerable and marginalized Black and Brown communities. As a congregation on the forefront in addressing the myriad of social issues plaguing our community including health disparities this opportunity will have a real measurable impact that is desperately needed.”

Mount Zion has been on a very purposeful mission of addressing social justice, public policy, public safety, criminal justice reform, gun violence, housing, health inequities and employment opportunities for people of Color.

Wallace further stated, “It is opportunities like this that help keep our mission of meeting the needs of our community who continually look to us for leadership, resources and support. This award and partnership will make a huge difference. The CNBC leadership and CVS are heroes for the Community, making sure that vital services and much needed resources are continually being made available”.

Mount Zion has recently hosted two vaccination clinics since the Delta variant began ravaging the unvaccinated to ensure the vaccine is more accessible to the community. Mount Zion has committed to hosting vaccine clinics every two weeks with the next clinic scheduled for September 11. “It is imperative that we continue to consistently make the vaccines available because the infection rate is soaring among the young people in our zip codes” said Wallace.

Mount Zion will be hosting virtual gatherings to address the hesitancy among Black People and doing a documentary addressing the Rationalization of The Hesitancy among Black People. “…Because education and the right information is critical for people to make informed decisions,” said Wallace.

Representing More Than 80% of African American Christians – 30,000 Congregations and 20,000,000 people nationwide, the CNBC comprises the national leadership of the eight largest historically Black denominations in America with a focus on four key areas: social justice/public policy, criminal justice reform, health (including supporting hunger initiatives) and education, especially the advancement of academic excellence for children in marginalized communities.

Its mission is to speak with a unified voice of Black religious bodies that seeks to improve the quality of life for African Americans as they seek to reach their full potential in American society.

This program recognize that Partnerships between local churches and health centers and free and charitable clinics that were developed or expanded through efforts related to COVID-19 and flu vaccination education can assist in building trust and education on the importance of receiving both COVID-19 and flu vaccines.

CVS Health is a diversified health services company with nearly 300,000 employees united around a common purpose of helping people on their path to better health. In an increasingly connected and digital world, they are meeting people wherever they are and changing health care to meet their needs.

For more information regarding upcoming clinics and forums please call Mount Zion Missionary Baptist Church at 510-893-2932.

The Oakland Post’s coverage of local news in Alameda County is supported by the Ethnic Media Sustainability Initiative, a program created by California Black Media and Ethnic Media Services to support community newspapers across California.

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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

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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.

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Image of planned Richmond facility courtesy of Glydways.
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.

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.

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.

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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.
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.

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.

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.

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