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Second
Annual BHC Convening Considered "life-changing"
On October 16, the California Endowment held its
second Annual Statewide Convening, where staff, partners, residents,
and youth of the 14 BHC communities across the state came together.
Coachella had the opportunity to take seven partners to the
convening that took place at the California Endowment offices in Los
Angeles. Ray Amador, a unit director with the Boys & Girls Club,
said he enjoyed the ability to "build relationships with partners
doing similar work statewide." He attended the breakout sessions
on restorative justice work and would like to be a champion of
reforming school discipline policies. " I don't think
students and parents understand their rights when it comes to school
suspension and expulsion practices," said Amador. Miguel
Vazquez, a planner with the Riverside County Department of Public
Health, also attended and was equally ecstatic. "Am I a
healer?" asked Miguel. "I would like to see a Boys
and Men of Color Camp hosted in the Eastern Coachella Valley for our
partners at the Central Table. Miguel enjoyed Dr. Iton's story
of being an immigrant and his determination to transform communities
of color for the better. The statewide convening gives everyone
the opportunity to learn about work that is happening in the 14
BHC Communities and the California Endowment's statewide
efforts. Rudy Gutierrez a Steering Committee member shared that
he "believe[s] every member of the committee should have the
opportunity to attend this convening because if it was life changing
for me, I can only imagine what it can do for others." BHC
Eastern Coachella Valley would like to thank Margarita Luna, Program
Manager and all The California Endowment staff that made this event
possible.
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East Valley Youth participate in
the national elections
As election
season draws to a close, many East Valley residents are not only
excited with the results; many are feeling a sense of satisfaction
that their hard work and dedication has paid off. Youth especially
put many hours of work into various campaigns for the East Valley,
the Coachella Valley, and California at large. Karen Borja from
Inland Congregations United for Change (ICUC) states "we had
over 75 young people and 300 shifts filled in the last three months
leading up to the election. The young people made phone calls,
knocked on doors and built relationships in the community." ICUC
has worked on strengthening relationships with young people and has
been intentional about collaborating with other non-profits and
organizations in the area. Carla Flores, Coachella Valley High
School junior said "I am volunteering my time because
Proposition 30 is important to me and my family. Moreover, for
a "dreamer like me Proposition 30 is going to ensure my and my
family's education.
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Synergy
Music and Arts Festival Highlights East Valley Cultural
Treasures
On
Saturday, November 17, The Alliance for California Traditional Arts
(ACTA) and Building Healthy Communities (BHC) Eastern Coachella
Valley (ECV) partnered with Culturas Music and Arts for the unveiling
of the Shady Lane mural in Coachella. The event served a dual purpose
as it was the unveiling of the mural and a Cultural Treasures
Celebration led by ACTA. Cultura's Founder, Claudia
"Yaya" Brocamante, says she looks forward to partnering
with other organizations/agencies to make this an annual event. Furthermore, Brocamante
believes that arts and culture, and projects like community murals,
can help create opportunities for young people to contribute to their
community and be a part of something.
In addition to the
unveiling of the mural that traces thousands of years of Chicano
history of on Shady Lane in Coachella, the event's secondary
component highlighted the stories of Cultural Treasures that exist in
the Eastern Coachella Valley. Cultural Treasures can be defined as
people, places, and events that are special and pertinent to the ECV.
In addition to craft workshops put on
by Maria Salazar, Maria Pozar, Natividad Gonzales and Silvia
Santiago, and a culinary exposition, there were also
performances by various Cultural Treasures,one of them Pedrito, a young
boy from the Pure'pecha community who can sing the entire Mexican
anthem in his native language of Pure'pecha. Maria, Domitila,
Griselda and Gladys cooked food from various regions across Mexico.
Overall, the Synergy
Music & Arts Festival and the Celebration of Cultural Treasures
brought the communities in the Eastern Coachella Valley and their
artistic talents together. Thank you to all the people that made this
event possible.
For
a complete list of all the Cultural Treasures that were identified,
click here.
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Synergy Fest-Coachella
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Coachella
Uninc.
Video by, Alejandra Alarcon
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Upcoming
Meetings & Community Events
BHC Central
Table
Wednesday, Dec 20
10a.m-1p.m.
51521 Douma St, Coachella
BHC Collaborative Meeting
Wednesday, Jan 9
5p.m-7:p.m.
99-155 Sea View Driveoth Shore
Certified
Farmer's Market
Every Saturday
9a.m.-1p.m.
Downtown Coachella
Click here to visit our event
calendar on CalConnect
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TCE Funding Alerts
"TCE
Funding Alerts", is an online catalog of public and private
funding opportunities linked to the priority outcomes of the 14 BHC
sites. The catalog contains timely and relevant
information that can lead to new partnerships and resource development
in your sites. If you have any questions or suggestions, please
send an email to Elaine Peacock epeacock@calendow.org
or Josephine Chee jchee@calendow.org.
"California Endowment Board Member Offers Words
of Wisdom to young people of the East Valley"
We
would like to thank California Endowment Board Member Hugo Morales
for visiting the Eastern Coachella Valley.
Morales
spent the day meeting with young people at the Building Healthy
Communities office.
Coachella
Unincorporated reporter, Ivan Delgado, spoke about the need to tell
the community's untold stories, citing one of his first assignments
as a reporter - that of uncovering the story of a homeless man named
"Ronnie". Delgado believes we need to understand people's
pasts to understand the struggles they face in everyday life. He
acknowledges that the opportunity to report on an unconventional
media platform is rare, has been enlightening, and has helped
determine his career path. Karen-len, a youth researcher for Raices
Cultura and a member of the BHC Youth Council, spoke to the need for
community spaces and organizations like Raices that inspire youth to
share their artistic talent.
Morales encouraged
the young people at the table to continue working hard and take
opportunities that will help them further their passion and career
choices.
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Health
Happens Here has Arrived!
by Robert K.
Ross, M.D.
President and CEO
Oct 15, 2012
We're
pretty excited here at The California Endowment. Our partnership with
The California Museum in Sacramento has turned out a
state-of-the-art, interactive exhibit that challenges our notions of
where health really happens. Complete with seven high-tech games and
two interactive stations, the exhibit is sure to get folks
talking.
Developed
over a two-year period, the "Health Happens Here" exhibit
reflects what our 14 Building Healthy Communities sites across the
state are working to achieve: that every family, regardless of where
they live or their income level, has access to affordable healthy
foods and clean water, safe places to play and exercise, and schools
that encourage students to be physically active throughout the day,
are free of junk foods and junk drinks, and support common-sense
discipline policies.
(read more here)
Can't
make it Sacramento? Check out the exhibit's website at
www.healthhappensinca.org
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Want
to See Your Events/Information in the BHC Newsletter?
To
announce an event, meeting or resource, please email announcement
information and attachments to: tarredondo@regionalaccessproject.o
rg
two
weeks before your event.
**We
cannot guarantee everything will make it in the newsletter, but we
will do our best to
announce
via Twitter and Facebook.
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