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Pastors of Oakland, Chief LeRonne Armstrong Work Together Seeking Peace on the Streets

After Rev. Phyllis Scott appeared as the keynote speaker at a rally and march around Lake Merritt with Oakland Police Department Chief LeRonne Armstrong last year, she offered to help organize an academy to recruit and train 30 chaplains to help families, police and the Oakland community heal from the acts of violence.

Published

4 years ago

March 31, 2022

Oakland Post

Front left: evangelist Madlynn Johnson, Minister Willdeena White, Dr. Kathy Logan, Chief Leronne Armstrong, Pastor Gerald Agee, Evangelist Gwendolyn Perry, Rev. Yolanda McClarity, Rev. Antone Hicks, Rev. Ora Hicks. Back row left: Evangelist Bea Williams, Bishop Terrence L Millican, Rev. B.K. Woodson, Christin Dale esq., Pastor Phyllis Scott, Bishop Bob Jackson. Photo by Paul Cobb.

By Post Staff

After witnessing and grieving more than 130 homicides in Oakland, Rev. Phyllis Scott, president of the Pastors of Oakland, presented the class of 11 graduates from the Community Chaplain Program on March 19 at the All Nations Pentecostal Church.

After Pastor Scott appeared as the keynote speaker at a rally and march around Lake Merritt with Oakland Police Department Chief LeRonne Armstrong last year, she offered to help organize an academy to recruit and train 30 chaplains to help families, police and the Oakland community heal from the acts of violence.

The chaplaincy program was proposed in a meeting with Armstrong, the Post News Group, the Oakland Private Industry Council, the African American Sports and Entertainment Group and a formerly incarcerated leader and writer.

At the graduation on March 19, Armstrong thanked Scott for working to keep her promise to help the police.

“Community policing requires us all to work together to solve problems and to prevent violence from occurring,” Armstrong said.

Two previous presidents of the Pastors of Oakland — Bishop Bob Jackson and Rev. Gerald Agee — were in attendance and they pledged to work with Scott, the graduating chaplains and the Oakland Post to help OPD do their part to fight crime.

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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

1 week ago

March 1, 2026

Oakland Post

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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.