Events

Former NBA Player Adonal Foyle Hosts Hi Caribbean White Reunion

Published

11 years ago

September 18, 2014

Former NBA player Adonal Foyle hosted the 10^th annual Hi Caribbean in White Reunion last Saturday at the Snow Building in Oakland.

The fundraiser benefitted Foyle’s Kerosene Lamp Foundation, founded in 2005 to empower youth and revitalize communities. Guests dressed in white enjoyed performances by Sistas-Wit-Style, Zina Escovedo and the Crew and the Culture Shock and Shock Family.

Foyle, a native of St. Vincent and the Grenadines, began the organization to use free basketball clinics to promote education, health awareness, and build and refurbish basketball courts.

“I just like to bring the community and our supporters together for a great time to help children. My foundation has helped hundreds of children in my home of St. Vincent and the Grenadines and the US,” he said. “We want to continue on and expand our services to youth.”

Foyleplayed 10 seasons for the Golden State Warriors, from 1997 to 2007, the longest-tenured player at the time. He then played two seasons with the Orlando Magic and part of the 2008–09 season with the Memphis Grizzlies until he had knee surgery and retired.

Foyle graduated from Colgate magna cum laude with a history degree. Politically motivated, he founded the organization Democracy Matters, a non-partisan student organization active at over 50 college campuses providing educational seminars, and voter registration drives.

“It is always my vision to see youth excel on and off the court,” said Foyle.

In his NBA career, Foyle averaged 4.1 points and 1.6 blocks per game. He was amongst the 10 highest players in blocks per game three times during his career. He has also served on the National Basketball Players Association Executive Committee.

From 2010 to 2012, Foyle served as Orlando Magic’s director of player development. Foyle became an American citizen in 2007 and was inducted into the World Sports Humanitarian Hall of Fame in 2009. In 2013, he released his first children’s book, called “Too Tall Foyle Finds His Game.”

For more information visit www.kerosenelampfoundation.org

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Oakland Post: Week of February 25 – March 3, 2026

The printed Weekly Edition of the Oakland Post: Week of – February 25 – March 3, 2026

Published

5 days ago

March 1, 2026

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Chase Oakland Community Center Hosts Alley-Oop Accelerator Building Community and Opportunity for Bay Area Entrepreneurs

Over the past three years, the Alley-Oop Accelerator has helped more than 20 Bay Area businesses grow, connect, and gain meaningful exposure. The program combines hands-on training, mentorship, and community-building to help participants navigate the legal, financial, and marketing challenges of small business ownership.

Published

2 weeks ago

February 21, 2026

Oakland Post

Bay Area entrepreneurs attend the Alley-Oop Accelerator, a small business incubation program at Chase Oakland Community Center. Photo by Carla Thomas.

By Carla Thomas

The Golden State Warriors and Chase bank hosted the third annual Alley-Oop Accelerator this month, an empowering eight-week program designed to help Bay Area entrepreneurs bring their visions for business to life.

The initiative kicked off on Feb. 12 at Chase’s Oakland Community Center on Broadway Street, welcoming 15 small business owners who joined a growing network of local innovators working to strengthen the region’s entrepreneurial ecosystem.

At its core, the accelerator is designed to create an ecosystem of collaboration, where local entrepreneurs can learn from one another while accessing the resources of a global financial institution.

“This is our third year in a row working with the Golden State Warriors on the Alley-Oop Accelerator,” said Jaime Garcia, executive director of Chase’s Coaching for Impact team for the West Division. “We’ve already had 20-plus businesses graduate from the program, and we have 15 enrolled this year. The biggest thing about the program is really the community that’s built amongst the business owners — plus the exposure they’re able to get through Chase and the Golden State Warriors.”

According to Garcia, several graduates have gone on to receive vendor contracts with the Warriors and have gained broader recognition through collaborations with JPMorgan Chase.

“A lot of what Chase is trying to do,” Garcia added, “is bring businesses together because what they’ve asked for is an ecosystem, a network where they can connect, grow, and thrive organically.”

This year’s Alley-Oop Accelerator reflects that vision through its comprehensive curriculum and emphasis on practical learning. Participants explore the full spectrum of business essentials including financial management, marketing strategy, and legal compliance, while also preparing for real-world experiences such as pop-up market events.

Each entrepreneur benefits from one-on-one mentoring sessions through Chase’s Coaching for Impact program, which provides complimentary, personalized business consulting.

Garcia described the impact this hands-on approach has had on local small business owners. He recalled one candlemaker, who, after participating in the program, was invited to provide candles as gifts at Chase events.

“We were able to help give that business exposure,” he explained. “But then our team also worked with them on how to access capital to buy inventory and manage operations once those orders started coming in. It’s about preparation. When a hiccup happens, are you ready to handle it?”

The Coaching for Impact initiative, which launched in 2020 in just four cities, has since expanded to 46 nationwide.

“Every business is different,” Garcia said. “That’s why personal coaching matters so much. It’s life-changing.”

Participants in the 2026 program will each receive a $2,500 stipend, funding that Garcia said can make an outsized difference. “It’s amazing what some people can do with just $2,500,” he noted. “It sounds small, but it goes a long way when you have a plan for how to use it.”

For Chase and the Warriors, the Alley-Oop Accelerator represents more than an educational initiative, it’s a pathway to empowerment and economic inclusion. The program continues to foster lasting relationships among the entrepreneurs who, as Garcia put it, “build each other up” through shared growth and opportunity.

“Starting a business is never easy, but with the right support, it becomes possible, and even exhilarating,” said Oscar Lopez, the senior business consultant for Chase in Oakland.