george koster

"The Tiny Homes project was going on during the Trump administration and and during and COVID and, it was really a means of people, expressing and keeping hope alive at a time when they were not feeling so much hope" - Sally

In this episode the featured voices are the Executive Director of the Youth Spirit Artworks Sally Hindman and the Social Media Manager Reginald Gentry. We wanted to host Youth Spirits Artworks on the show because they have developed both the first tiny homes village for our unhoused youth in the east bay along with using arts and journalism skills training to provide pathways for our youths to share their voices and experiences to our region.  To find out more about the youth spirit artworks arts and journalism skills training programs, their tiny home village, how to volunteer and donate please go to youth spirit art works dot org To find out more about the Youth Spirit Artworks youth lead newspaper Street Spirit go to the street spirit dot org 

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Please consider donating to Voices of the Community - Voices of the Community is now fiscally sponsored by Intersection for the Arts, a 501(c)(3) nonprofit organization, which allows us to offer you tax deductions for your contributions. Please consider making a donation to help us provide future shows just like this one.

To find out more about other nonprofits supporting our artists in the San Francisco Bay Area, please listen to interview with Susan Mernit along with Janey Hayes at The Crucible in Episode 31 and Justin Hoover and Karim Zelenka at Project Artivism in Episode 49

Dive Into More Information on Each Episode, Speakers, Organizations and Resources at our Voices of the Community’s Special Arts & Culture Series Web Landing Page 

"I think we all realize from the pandemic we all belong. We all matter. Human connection is very important and we all have to look out for each other"- Mahogany Roland

In this episode our featured voice is the Executive Director of Rebuilding Together San Francisco Mahogany Roland. In this week’s show we continue our focus and theme on housing and share voices and solutions to our long-term housing issues. Mahogany shares with us their ongoing work to support our seniors and the disabled community members to stay in their homes. To find out more about rebuilding together san francisco’s programs, to help our seniors and disabled populations, donate and volunteer please go to rebuilding together sf  dot org

To find out more about other nonprofits supporting our seniors please listen to our interview with Jim Oswald with Meals on Wheels San Francisco in episode 14.  As you listen to the interviews and explore the special series we started in April 2020 on Covid 19's impact on nonprofits, small businesses and local governments please check out all the episode web pages We hope that you enjoy the insights, points of view, and personal stories from the voices of these change-makers and their nonprofits.

We really want to hear from you in our short listener survey. Please provide us your feedback and insights

Please consider donating to Voices of the Community - Voices of the Community is now fiscally sponsored by Intersection for the Arts, a 501(c)(3) nonprofit organization, which allows us to offer you tax deductions for your contributions. Please consider making a donation to help us provide future shows just like this one.

Dive Into More Information on Each Episode, Speakers, Organizations and Resources at our Voices of the Community’s Special Arts & Culture Series Web Landing Page 

“I think just due to pervasive sexism, racism, classism in our society, the needs of under-resourced women of color are often overlooked”- Anu Menon

In this episode, our featured voice is the Executive Director of Oasis for Girls Anu, Menon who shares about Oasis for Girls programs which are really modeled on youth development, best practices that show that girls really thrive when they have multifaceted programming that is safe. It's in a safe environment, culturally relevant, and girl-focused with strong adult allies

A poll from C.S. Mott Children’s Hospital shows that one in three teen girls and one in five teen boys have experienced new or worsening anxiety from the pandemic. The poll shows that 46 percent of parents say their teen has shown signs of new or worsening mental health conditions since the beginning of the pandemic in march of 2020.

Given the backdrop of Covid-19’s impact on our mental health and especially the health of our youth and teenagers we wanted to share the wonderful work of Oasis for Girls. To find out more about Oasis for Girls’s Rise, Create and Envision programs as well as getting engaged as a supporter, mentor and employer please go to oasis for girls dot org

Anu mentioned that girls from Oasis participate in Women’s Audio Mission to develop their storytelling skills. You can find out more about Women’s Audio Mission in our interview with Elena BotKin–Levy and Leah King in Episode 55

Dive Into More Information on Each Episode, Speakers, Organizations and Resources at our Voices of the Community’s Special Arts & Culture Series Web Landing Page 

“My joy is seeing the families as they first walked through the door and that support that they feel and that relief that they feel that, finally they have a place that for now they can call home until their real next home is achieved”- Marc Slater

Our featured voices in this episode are Cecilia Ferber the Director of Family Services and Marc Slater the Executive Director, of Raphael House. With over 15 months into the pandemic our most vulnerable families are continuing to face housing problems and securing support services. The City of San Francisco has extended the rent moratorium for another 60 days to the end of August but the end of the State of California’s rent mortium ending June 30th. With the potential of more families becoming homeless we wanted to bring you the voices of Raphael House to share their work on being a bridge out of homeless and poverty for families over these past 50 years. To find out more about Raphael House’s residential shelter and bridge program as well as support their children programs please go to raphael house dot org

After listening to how Raphael House is helping our families stay in housing we hope that you will get engaged in advocating for our state legislators to both extend the rent moratorium, and provide more funding payments to help families, to reduce their back rent as well as support other programs.

Over the 14 months of this series we wanted to bring voices from wonderfully powerful organizations supporting our families, youth and adults while being unhoused as well as providing the necessary wrap-around services to help stabilize them. We hope that you will take the time to listen back to incredibly insightful interviews with Kevin from Miracle Messages in Episode 1, Doniece and Kris of LavaMaeX in Episode 3, Meghan from Simply the Basics in Episode 16, Doug from Huckleberry Youth Programs in Episode 19, Charles and Demaree from At the Crossroads in Episode 29 along with our conversation with Lyslynn of BMAGIC and Sakeenah from Third Street Youth Center and Clinic in Episode 51 as well as conversation with George and Kenneth of GLIDE in Episode 42 and our conversation with one of the oldest family services agency in San Francisco Edgewood Center for Children and Families with Justine and Gregg Biggs in Episode 54 

 

Dive Into More Information on Each Episode, Speakers, Organizations and Resources at our Voices of the Community’s Special Arts & Culture Series Web Landing Page 

"There's become a recognition again, internally that artists are seeing themselves as laborers and essential workers and that it is okay to proclaim that doesn't take away of the integrity of your work and your creation" - Julie Baker

In this episode we feature the voice of the Executive Director of Californians for the Arts Julie Baker. Julie shares with us how the covid-19 pandemic is impacting our creative economy and its workforce as well as how Californians for the Arts is working with the state legislation to support the recovery of the creative economy. Please dig into the findings from the Californians for the Arts and Otis College's annual study on the Creative Economy in California 

For more insights into the impact of the Covid-19 pandemic on the arts, culture and creative economy please listen to our interviews with Meg and David on their Return to the Stage Study and our interview with Allison and Randy of Intersection for the Arts and Brad from Theatre Bay Area. Also please go to our series page to listen to all of the wonderful interviews with dozens of arts and culture organizations in the SF Bay Area 

Dive Into More Information on Each Episode, Speakers, Organizations and Resources at our Voices of the Community’s Special Arts & Culture Series Web Landing Page 

"Small businesses, obviously the life blood of a town like San Francisco, we give so much in taxes and so much to schools and so much in donations. Because it's maybe not that much money as an individual, it's not recognized, but it's a huge thing. And San Francisco wouldn't be the same without all of those places." - Lisa Sherratt

 

In this episode our featured voice is Lisa Sherratt the owner of serendipity, a specialty gift and card store. Over this past year of producing this series, we have been looking for data on the impact on small businesses from the combination of the COVID-19 pandemic and subsequent economic collapse. Since San Francisco’s first shelter-in-place order on March 17 of 2020 to February 9 2021 open small businesses have dropped by over 50 percent according to new data compiled by the San Francisco Chamber of Commerce. Between March to July of 2020 the Hamilton Project estimates that four hundred thousand small businesses nationwide closed their door permanently.

Dive Into More Information on Each Episode, Speakers, Organizations and Resources at our Voices of the Community’s Special Arts & Culture Series Web Landing Page 

“How can we  support these businesses that are still here, help new businesses emerge and keep our small business community thriving” - Julie Clowes

In this episode, we feature the voice of Julie Clowes, the District Director of the Small Business. Administration's San Francisco District Office

Over these ten plus months we have been sharing the voices of small businesses and COVID-19’s devastating impact on their survival. With the latest round of federal funds now being deployed we wanted to host Julie to help guide our listeners through the funding opportunities available to both nonprofits and small businesses

Dive Into More Information on Each Episode, Speakers, Organizations and Resources at our Voices of the Community’s Special Arts & Culture Series Web Landing Page 

We have to be hyper-aware of social justice and environmental justice”- Dan Flanagan

In this episode our featured voice is that of long time Executive Director of Friends of the Urban Forest Dan Flanagan.

This past summer and fall we experienced the triple threat of a global pandemic, economic meltdown, and catastrophic wildfires that blanketed the San Francisco Bay Area in deadly smoke and toxic air. Our urban forests are one of the most important green infrastructures we can have to help us deal with climate change and the hottest years on record.

Trees in our city help us address the social and environmental justice issues facing our fellow community members in low-income neighborhoods. The city trees help filter the air pollution, retain rainwater, provide shade and their very presence helps reduce our stress levels, blood pressure and increases our mental engagement and happiness. And trees may help lower  property and violent crime. In a 2010 USDA Forest Service Study research forester Geoffrey Donovan found that “large street trees can reduce crime by signaling to a potential criminal that a neighborhood is better cared for and therefore, a criminal is more likely to be caught”

To find out more information about how our Urban Forest helps us mitigate environmental injustice, about Friends of the Urban Forest, along with requesting a free tree to plant near your home or business and to support more trees for our city please go to FUF dot net  

Dive Into More Information on Each Episode, Speakers, Organizations and Resources at our Voices of the Community’s Special Arts & Culture Series Web Landing Page 

“ If you want to end homelessness, you give people homes.” - Demaree Miller

In this episode, our featured voices are Charles Lerner the Executive Director and Demaree Miller the Program Manager of At the Crossroads. During the Covid-19 pandemic At the Crossroads staff continues to meet youth where they are - living on the streets of san francisco. At the Crossroads humanistic one on one approach is all about building long-term relationships with youth to help them move off the street and secure the long term wrap around services they want.

In San Francisco's 2019 homeless residents count there were an estimated 8,000 people experiencing homelessness. Of the 8,000, 1,200 are Transitional Age Youth ages 18 to 24. One in ten people aged 12 to 25 will experience homelessness in a given year. The City of San Francisco has set a goal to reduce homeless youth by as much as 50% by 2023. Half of the homeless people in San Francisco first experienced homelessness before the age of 25.

At the Crossroads is working with the City of San Francisco’s Rising Up Initiative program in partnership with the department of homelessness and supportive housing to ensure at the crossroads clients will have in-depth unconditional support. The Rising Up Initiative plans to serve 500 transitional age youth who are unhoused and to prevent another 450 young people who are at risk of becoming homeless. To find out more about at the crossroads go to at the cross roads dot org

Dive Into More Information on Each Episode, Speakers, Organizations and Resources at our Voices of the Community’s Special Arts & Culture Series Web Landing Page 

In this episode, our featured voice is Meghan Freebeck, the CEO and founder of Simply the Basics. Simply the Basics is focused on providing access to hygiene for our fellow community members who cannot provide this most basic need for themselves and their families. Simply the Basics has created a unique National Hygiene Bank Model as well as piloting an Open Marketplace for people to list in-kind donations. These services are designed to make it easier for both individuals and other nonprofit organizations to better utilize the in-kind product donations to provide hygiene products for our unhoused and low-income community members and in turn, support their most basic core health needs.

The combination of the Covid-19 pandemic and its health and economic impacts on both our unhoused and low income community members has exacerbated the need for basic hygiene products and services. To find out more about how you can help provide hygiene products to our unhoused and low income community members go to Simply the Basics.  

In the interview mention Project Homeless Connect which Meghan has been until recently the CEO of and is one of the partners of Simply the Basics. You can find out more about Project Homeless Connect by listening to Episode Nine of our series on Covid-19's impact on nonprofits and small businesses in the San Francisco Bay Area.

Dive Into More Information on Each Episode, Speakers, Organizations and Resources at our Voices of the Community’s Special Arts & Culture Series Web Landing Page 

In this unedited interview, for episode 12 we feature the voice of Michael Tubbs. The interview was conducted in August of 2016 when Michael Tubbs was running for MayorDive Into More Information on Each Episode, Speakers, Organizations and Resources at our Voices of the Community’s Special Arts & Culture Series Web Landing Page

Multiple generations of South, East, and downtown Stockton residents have suffered the impacts of the City's policies of economic apartheid and corruption. This, in turn, created the deadly outcomes of abject poverty, crime, institutionalized racism, and the community narrative that residents do not feel like they belong in Stockton and are not welcome in the city in which they live.

Through Hector’s work in empowering community members to have both a choice and voice, he identified that there are many different organizations providing services in the community but that they were not working together to maximize their impacts.
Hector came together with then-Councilmember Michael Tubbs to form the Reinvent South Stockton Coalition to provide a vehicle to bring together 40 organizations and align their efforts, resources, and services to better address the multitude of issues facing the South Stockton community.

Dive Into More Information on Each Episode, Speakers, Organizations and Resources at our Voices of the Community’s Special Arts & Culture Series Web Landing Page 

In this unedited episode, we feature the voice of Lange Luntao a third-generation teacher who has taught at Aspire Langston Hughes Academy and is a self-proclaimed education nerd. Lange shares his passion, insights and organizational work with youth, parents and the school system. Dive Into More Information on Each Episode, Speakers, Organizations and Resources at our Voices of the Community’s Special Arts & Culture Series Web Landing Page