Inner Sounds Meditations ~ Sound Bath Benefit Event Supports BACS!

January 13, 2020

Inner Sounds Meditation is celebrating its 5 year anniversary! This sound bath meditation event is honoring Melissa’s father, who suffered and tragically died from severe mental illness, and experienced homelessness and other challenges throughout his life.

This Tribute event is a special sound bath with 100% of the proceeds supporting Bay Area Community Services (BACS) in our mission to address mental health and homelessness in our community. This workshop will include a beautiful soundscape, community gathering, and a silent auction.

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BACS Connections June 2017

June 29, 2017

Non-Profit Survival Guide

In the last 5 years, “BACS has transformed itself from an $8 million organization… to a $22 million organization with a clear path to strategic growth and a new partnership with the healthcare sector.”

Jamie Almanza, MBA, Executive Director, wants to help other non-profits do the same, and transform into an organization that thrives in the managed care world.

In the Spring 2017 issue of American Society on Aging‘s Generations magazine, she lays out BACS’ strategy. Ms. Almanza has good news for all non-profits considering this transformation – “it is not only possible, but is also a reinvigorating process for an agency, its staff, its consumers, and its funders.” You can read the full story here,

Wellness Center Summer

Valley Wellness Center and South County Wellness Center combined to host their 2^nd annual “Hello Summer” BBQ at Shadow Lakes. We had a great turnout, and the participation by all was amazing! People who had not been swimming in years had a blast in the water, and the highlight was a football that we brought. The participants played catch for over an hour while in the water.

Our centers have been working together for quite some time, helping participants socialize with each other. It was a successful outing, one we will have again for our “End of Summer BBQ” around Labor Day, with the possibility of inviting the other centers.

Rosewood Crisis Residential Center Opens!

Everyone at BACS is delighted to announce that our new Crisis Residential Treatment Center, Rosewood Place, is open for business!

Renovations are complete and clients who are in need of heightened support are getting the help they need.

We would like to thank the City of Vallejo, who helped fund the purchase of Rosewood Place, and without whom, this program would not be possible. Additionally, thank you to Steinberg Bill 82 for funding renovations, and the County of Solano for funding operations of this critical program for our community.

We would like to thank the City of Vallejo, who helped fund the purchase of Rosewood Place, and without whom, this program would not be possible.

We could not have opened Rosewood Crisis Residential if it were not for the four decades of experience we have operating Woodroe, so we would like to give big thanks to our whole Woodroe Place team for their foundational work.

Homeless Outreach Program Anniversary

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BACS is pleased to celebrate the 10 year anniversary of BACS’ North County Senior Homeless Program (NCSHP).

BACS opened NCSHP, a full service partnership program, in 2007 to fill a crucial need in the community: outreach, housing and financial support, mental health and case management, substance use, and primary care to individuals who are homeless and have mental health issues.

Our NCSHP team has made a difference for hundreds of people over the last 10 years. Learn more about our Full Service Partnerships here.

Employee of the Month

According to his colleagues, “Jazzel constantly shows a commitment to carry-out job duties, and always willingly goes above and beyond for not only clients…but also with his fellow co-workers. He stands as a role model for those around him, always giving a willing hand, as well as integrates our core values in all he does- he is innovative, he is respecting/ understanding of diversity, beholds integrity, as well as promotes wellness/ prevention daily.”

Congratulations, Jazzel, and thank you for all your hard work!

Welcoming Rashieda Mumin-Jordan to BACS’ Finance Team

Rashieda Mumin-Jordan 2

Please provide a very warm welcome to Rashieda Mumin-Jordan, BACS’ new Accounting Manager!

Rashieda joins us with over 17 years of financial management and accounting experience working with major organizations including the SF Chronicle and Catholic Management Services where she held titles of Financial and Operations Manager and Accounting Manager/Supervisor and has vast experience supporting business operations for profit and non-profit entities.

Rashieda holds a Master of Science in Criminal Justice and Security and a Bachelor of Science in Business Administration, both from University of Phoenix.

Join Our Cause

Do you want to join BACS in our mission to uplift under-served individuals and their families by doing whatever it takes?

Donate

Donate to BACS online by clicking here, or via mail to 629 Oakland Ave, Oakland, CA 94612. Make an ongoing impact by donating monthly!

Or, donate gently used blankets, canned goods, and other items to our housing programs. Email us to learn more.

Work Here

BACS services are always expanding, and we are currently recruiting! Check out our job opportunities. Learn more on our website or by calling 510.613.0330.

Planned Giving

Many people leave a charitable gift in their will. Do you want to make a lifetime of impact in the community you care about? Email us to learn more!

BACS Connections July 2016

July 25, 2016

Program Anniversaries

BACS is pleased to celebrate the two program anniversaries this month: the 5 year anniversary of Oakland Project Connect, and the 3 year anniversary of IPS Supported Employment!

Oakland Project Connect opened in 2011 to fill a crucial need in the community: outreach, housing and financial support, mental health and case management, substance use, and primary care to individuals who are homeless and have mental health issues.

BACS’ IPS program opened in 2013, providing job placement services to help individuals with complex needs find competitive, satisfying, and sustainable employment to uplift them from poverty.

To learn more about either of these programs, visit our website.

Ursula Sears Promoted

Ursula Sears, previously a BACS Peer Counselor, has been promoted internally to Program Supervisor at BACS’ Hedco Wellness Co-Op in Hayward. For more of her story, see our special feature here.

Many congratulations to Ursula, whose promotion is well deserved. She is exemplary of the high caliber BACS staff, many of whom go on to become supervisors and managers!

Longest Day – Memory Care event

On June 21st, Fremont ADC hosted a ‘Longest Day’ event in participation with the Alzheimer’s Association. The Alzheimer’s Association is the leader in Alzheimer’s research and valuable resources for caregivers. The idea to do an event was brought to us by one of our client’s family member who is a volunteer with the Alzheimer’s association.

Our Longest Day event was a popular Pancake Breakfast! Caregivers and clients came out for this special event. Many thanks to Craig from the Alzheimer’s Association, who spoke about caregiver stress and resources they have available to them. Our goal was to raise $500 and we exceeded that goal with online, check and cash donations.

Congratulations to Fremont Adult Day Program staff for hosting this amazing event!

BACS is Hosting a Job Fair

BACS is hosting a job fair! Join us for delicious food, job opportunities, and same day job offers to work for BACS!

Positions available*: Peer Counselor, Personal Services Coordinator, Program Manager, Peer Supervisor, and more!

Join us at 629 Oakland Ave, Oakland CA 94611 on August 12th, from 1:30 to 6:00 p.m.

*Clear background check and driver’s license required.

Rise and Shine at Hedco

BACS’ Hedco Wellness Center is hosting Rise and Shine, a Narcotics Anonymous (NA) every Thursday morning from 10 to 11 a.m..

In community, many of our participants live with addiction or are in recovery, which can complicate or intensify behavioral health symptoms. All BACS services are offered within the framework of ‘harm reduction’, and we are glad to partner with Mission Peaks to provide this support.

Rise and Shine is taking place at 590 B Street, Hayward, every Thursday morning. Rise and Shine is a space for participants to work on their recovery and engage in wellness.

Employee of the Month

Congratulations to our July Employee of the Month – the entire Hope Intervention Program (HIP) team!

This is a rare award, and the whole team really deserves it. The HIP team has grown tremendously in the last two years, evolving into an inspired, youth-centered, and dynamic team. The team is collaborative, culturally-responsive, diverse, and innovative, and models collective integrity.

The work the HIP team is doing has been restorative, centered in humility for our participants and one another, and has really created a program culture that is inclusive and FUN – all while working with some of the hardest-to-reach young people who are experiencing confusion and lack of belonging – coupled with challenges with family and friends, not having a home, substance use, self-harm, LGBTQI issues, and more.

Congratulations to each of the recipients, and to the whole team!

Yvonne Ying, Entrepreneur

After more than 15 years with Bay Area Community Services, Yvonne Ying has left BACS to run her own business.

Yvonne started with BACS as a temp in our Finance Department, and quickly became an integral part of our team. Her entrepreneurial spirit served her well at BACS, as we expanded our program services dramatically during her tenure, and now it will serve her well in her next step.

Yvonne’s business is California Quality Printing, whose dedication to high quality printing services help them stand out. Congratulations, Yvonne, and we will miss you!

Hope Intervention Program Hosts BBQ

This month BACS’ Hope Intervention Program (HIP) hosted a BBQ for TAY (transition aged youth) at Towne House wellness center. Our HIP team wanted to host a community-building event where TAY in Alameda County could come together and build fun relationships. Our staff facilitated activities to help the TAY step out of their comfort zones, with everything from icebreakers to a water balloon fight!

We are glad we could host such a fun and positive event, and we look forward to hosting many more, so that TAY have a safe space in the community to hang out, eat, and chill.

Join Our Cause

Do you want to join BACS in our mission to uplift under-served individuals and their families by doing whatever it takes? The community has asked us to provide more services than ever, based on need. In 2016, help us make this possible!

Donate

Donate to BACS online by clicking here, or via mail to 629 Oakland Ave, Oakland, CA 94612.

Or, donate gently used blankets, canned goods, and other items to our housing programs. Email us to learn more.

Work Here

BACS services are always expanding, and we are currently recruiting! Check out our job opportunities.

Learn more on our website or by calling 510.613.0330.

BACS Connections May 2016

May 18, 2016

BACS Opens New Supported Independent Living Site in Oakland

BACS is delighted to announce our new Supported Independent Living site in East Oakland!

Our SIL sites provide stable and permanent housing, at very low cost, for individuals with complex needs. Each resident is paired with a care coordinator to help them attain independent living skills in a supportive environment, including job support and mental health support. Residents learn skills by sharing responsibilities for cleaning, paying bills, and running their household.

We opened this location in pursuit of our mission to uplift under-served individuals and their families by doing whatever it takes. We also, this month, celebrate the 43 year anniversary of BACS’ Supported Independent Living (SIL) sites!

BACS opened our first Supported Independent Living site in 1973 to fill a crucial need in the community. Our Supported Independent Living sites have made a difference for thousands of people over the last 47 years. Learn more about our SILs here.

Welcoming Porsche Gordon: New BACS Board Member

Porsche Gordon was raised in the Bay Area and graduated from Skyline High School in Oakland before moving across country to attend Howard University in Washington, D.C. At Howard Porsche received her Bachelor of Arts in Management and later, her Master in Business Administration.

Porsche has since returned to the Bay Area to raise her two children and work as a development officer at Stanford University. Porsche has always had a sense of civic duty and is excited to continue her commitment to improve her community by joining the BACS Board of Directors. She brings with her over fourteen years of experience in non-profit fundraising and donor engagement.

Welcome, Porsche!

Making a Difference: Winter Shelter

As part of Oakland’s new model to address the homeless crisis, this winter BACS provided case management to the Winter Shelter (which runs from Nov 15^th to April 15^th) with a focus on targeting services to the most vulnerable and supporting individuals with accessing housing. Over the course of the winter we supported 15 individuals with securing permanent housing, a higher number than ever achieved in previous shelter models. In addition 25 moved in to our Housing Fast Support Network (HFSN) in downtown Oakland, to receive more robust support to achieve their housing goals.

Emily Harris from HFSN stepped in to lead this effort and did a tremendous job, working nightly to achieve these outcomes for our community!

5th Annual We Move for Health Event

We Move for Health Event 2015 — Staff and participants at 2015 We Move for Health

BACS is excited to come out and celebrate the 5th annual We Move for Health event, hosted by 10×10 Wellness. The event is Friday, May 20, 2016 10:00am – 3:00pm at Lake Merrit Bandstand Oakland.

Come out and celebrate Mental Health Awareness Month with us at the 5th Annual We Move for Health Event where we’ll be moving for healthy bodies and minds! This free event is open to all ages and will include a 1.5 mile walk around the beautiful Lake Merrit, Zumba, Chair Yoga, Line Dancing, a Kid’s Zone and many more activities to get our bodies moving.

For more information, visit Alameda County 10×10 Wellness Campaign’s website.

PEERS Partnership

Recently, the Valley Wellness Center Community partnered with PEERS (Peers Envisioning and Engaging in Recovery Services) for a ‘Reflections and Expressions’ art workshop.

Reflections & Expressions is an art and writing exercise with the purpose of inspiring participants to explore different ways of creating self-empowering messages. The creative process involved in expressing one’s self artistically helps people understand and manage certain behaviors and feelings, reduce stress, improve self-esteem and awareness, and enhance overall wellness.

Thank you PEERS for bringing this wonderful and intentional workshop to the BACS Community. We look forward to continuing this awesome partnership with you!

Employee of the Month

Linda Ngyuen, Personal Services Coordinator at our Valley Wellness Co-Op, is our May Employee of the Month!

Linda was nominated by her co-workers because she always goes above and beyond in her work. She represents BACS’ mission and values in the community, and always does whatever it takes to help.

Linda goes out of her way to attend community events on the weekend, to spread information and help connect people to BACS resources. She is constantly working to improve her work and our services, and attends external trainings whenever she gets the opportunity. Linda does her job with enthusiasm and radiates the ‘whatever it takes’ philosophy.

Linda says, “The most important work I get to do at BACS is being able to connect with all the participants on case management and those coming into the wellness co-op and being able to provide the support and linkage to community services. Plus side is all the amazing and supportive BACS employees I get to interact with on a daily basis.”

Congratulations, Linda!

Welcome to Samuel Merritt College Occupational Therapists!

Occupational Therapists from Samuel Merritt College have worked with BACS at our Memory Care adult day programs in Oakland and Fremont for years. Now, they are starting for the first time at the South County Wellness Center. Thank you for joining us, and welcome!

Join Our Cause

Donate

Donate to BACS online by clicking here, or via mail to 629 Oakland Ave, Oakland, CA 94612.

Or, donate gently used blankets, canned goods, and other items to our housing programs. Email us to learn more.

Work Here

BACS services are always expanding, and we are currently recruiting! Check out our job opportunities.

Learn more on our website or by calling 510.613.0330.

BACS Connections February 2016

February 22, 2016

BACS launches new website!

BACS is delighted to announce the official launch of our new website.

Visit bayareacs.org for a fresh new look and user-friendly navigation, new features, and all the latest information about our crucial community services.

Learn more about how Bay Area Community Services is providing Housing Solutions to the homeless crisis, helping elders in Aging with Independence, and Modernizing Mental Health for individuals of all ages.

Happy Anniversary to Woodroe!

BACS is pleased to celebrate the 20 year anniversary of Woodroe Place as a Crisis Residential Program.

BACS opened Woodroe Place in 1996 to fill a crucial need in the community: a place to provide short-term residential services for individuals in active psychiatric distress who need support to cope and heal.

Woodroe Place is a place of refuge, and has made a difference for hundreds of people over the last 20 years. Learn more about our Crisis Residential Programs here.

Thank you to everyone who makes Woodroe Place special!

African American History Month

February is African American History Month and BACS celebrates our community and African American communities everywhere.

We honor the individuals, views, and ideas working to achieve greater racial and ethnic equality. In celebrating African American History Month, we feel it is critical to acknowledge problems that still exist.

In BACS’ homeless programs, over 80% of the population is African American, demonstrating there is still a major disparity in our nation when it comes to poverty, access to healthcare, housing, education, and more.

Executive Director Jamie Almanza says, “We need to do more — much, much more until the numbers of homeless are representative of the demographics of the general population, and ultimately eradicated entirely.” A foundational belief of our agency is to not accept homelessness as an inevitability, and to work to the ultimate betterment of our community.

Danielle Clark, BACS Peer Specialist, Speaks in Sacramento

Danielle Clark, Peer Specialist for BACS, spoke at the Commissioner’s meeting in Sacramento. Danielle was invited to speak about the barriers Transition-Aged Youth (TAY) experience when trying to actually access services that are theoretically “available” to them.I n her speech, she advocated for service providers to bring their programs to under-served communities, and spoke about how hiring more peers could decrease mental health disparities in communities of color or LGBT communities.

Danielle is passionate and knowledgeable about this topic, because she is a direct representation of the communities that certain providers refuse to serve. She says, “I have been doing this work for 5 years, and my passion lies within the TAY community and making sure that they receive and have access to the care they rightfully deserve.”

BACS is honored to have Danielle on our team, as she is a crucial part to our deep understanding of the communities we serve. Thank you, Danielle, for bringing your knowledge to BACS and to the community.

St. Andrews Tabling

St. Andrews Connect hosted a resource fair this month to provide services to the homeless living at St. Andrews Park. BACS’ Housing Fast Support Network was able to secure 6 homeless people a bed in our program today. The Housing Fast Support Network provides interim housing and rehabilitation while helping participants locate permanent homes. St. Andrews Connect and the City of Oakland thanked us for our “whatever it takes” approach today, and going out to assist those feeling ashamed to come inside the fair.

Employee of the Month

Brandy Terry, Peer Specialist, personifies the ideal employee at Bay Area Community Services. She is motivated, interested, smart, self-directed, and willing to help anybody who needs it. She is very positive, and always looks for a solution instead of a problem.

Brandy is a new employee, who has taken on many responsibilities without question. Brandy is pursuing further education in pursuit of future growth opportunities and to have a long career within the BACS family for years to come. She has the energy, the creativity, and the personality to make BACS a better place for everybody. It is a pleasure to have her as part of our agency, and we look forward to her accomplishments at BACS for a long time!

Additions to Leadership Team

Aimee Armata has joined Bay Area Community Services as our new Chief Program Officer. Benjamin Blake, who made a deep impact at BACS during his time as Chief Program Officer, has made a professional career change to BACS’ Chief Clinical Strategy Officer.

Aimee has worked in community mental health, housing, harm reduction, acute crisis and advocacy service settings in the Bay Area for over 15 years. Aimee situates clinical work as social justice intervention and prioritizes community-led, culturally responsive practices that specially address mental health, health, access and resource related cultural disparity and socially sanctioned disparities. Aimee is an advocate for youth and communities that have persistently under and inappropriately served and has worked to integrate recovery services into non-traditional mental health settings where folks are more likely to already be connected through the transformational power of choice, values and relationships.

Welcome, Aimee, and congratulations Benjamin!

Aimee Armata Speaks on Homelessness Panel

Aimee Armata, Chief Program Officer at Bay Area Community Services, joined several other nationwide experts on a Family and Youth Homelessness panel in February.

HandUp.org hosted this event to bring attention to one of the biggest challenges facing our communities. BACS was honored by the opportunity to send Aimee as our representative to speak about such a crucial issue.

Join Our Cause

Donate

Donate to BACS online by clicking here, or via mail to 629 Oakland Ave, Oakland, CA 94612.

Or, donate gently used blankets, canned goods, and other items to our housing programs. Email us to learn more.

Work Here

BACS services are always expanding, and we are currently recruiting! Check out our job opportunities.

Learn more on our website or by calling 510.613.0330.

Non-Profit Survival Guide

Wellness Center Summer

Rosewood Crisis Residential Center Opens!

Homeless Outreach Program Anniversary

Employee of the Month

Welcoming Rashieda Mumin-Jordan to BACS’ Finance Team

Join Our Cause

Program Anniversaries

Ursula Sears Promoted

Longest Day – Memory Care event

BACS is Hosting a Job Fair

Rise and Shine at Hedco

Employee of the Month

Yvonne Ying, Entrepreneur

Hope Intervention Program Hosts BBQ

Join Our Cause

BACS Opens New Supported Independent Living Site in Oakland

Welcoming Porsche Gordon: New BACS Board Member

Making a Difference: Winter Shelter

5th Annual We Move for Health Event

PEERS Partnership

Employee of the Month

Welcome to Samuel Merritt College Occupational Therapists!

Join Our Cause

BACS launches new website!

Happy Anniversary to Woodroe!

African American History Month

Danielle Clark, BACS Peer Specialist, Speaks in Sacramento

St. Andrews Tabling

Employee of the Month

Additions to Leadership Team

Aimee Armata Speaks on Homelessness Panel

Join Our Cause

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Follow Us

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