Search Results for:
Welcome new board members!
Vesper Society is delighted to welcome two leaders who join our board of directors this year: Hydeh Ghaffari and Lindsay Nako. They share Vesper’s belief in the simple idea that a just society begins when everyone is well and respected as a human being. We look forward to working with them to uplift through service, break down barriers, and elevate community voices. Hydeh Ghaffari is a retired partner at Squar Milner (now Baker Tilly), a nonprofit practice in Oakland, California. She has over 35 years of experience as a financial manager and 30 years as a CPA, 27 of which were with nonprofit organizations. In 1991, she started her business serving nonprofit organizations exclusively. Hydeh taught at the University of San Francisco as an adjunct faculty and conducted workshops in California and nationally for AICPA, California CPA Society, Compass Point and United States Department of Housing and Urban Development. Lindsay Nako is the Director of Litigation and Training for the Impact Fund, a Berkeley-based non-profit legal organization that provides grants to support impact litigation, represents individuals and groups in strategic civil rights litigation, and trains public interest attorneys in litigation skills and collective action strategies. Before joining the Impact Fund in 2015, Lindsay spent a decade as an attorney and shareholder at a private plaintiff-side employment law firm and taught as an adjunct professor at UC Berkeley School of Law. Lindsay graduated Phi Beta Kappa and Highest Honors from UC Berkeley and received her law degree from UC Berkeley School of Law. These remarkable women bring deep experience and gifts that reflect our commitment to our values of service, justice, and partnership. With their compassion and expertise on our board, we are one step closer to our vision of a world that protects human dignity and enhances human potential.... Read More
Welcome the New Year with Kid City Breezeway Project!
Vesper Society believes a just society begins when everyone is well and respected as a human being. Every day we link arms with leaders and communities to uplift through service, break down barriers, and elevate community voices. We are delighted to introduce the Kid City Breezeway Project to begin our new year. Located between two multi-family affordable residential buildings, Kid City transformed a stark concrete walkway into a beautiful oasis for the students and community. During the height of the pandemic, grief was palpable for many of the Kid City students and their families living in South Central Los Angeles. In a community with such immense loss, radical love was the only salve. Kid City, a youth leadership and college access program, offered welcome, respite, and friendship. The students dreamt of a place that would be tranquil and focused on the natural healing environment. They needed a space that was uncluttered, where students could let go of the stress of the day and bring that feeling of peace and equanimity to their lives. Kid City students were at the center of the design and production process to reinvent the concrete walkway. They were surrounded by a community of people who helped make their dream come true. A volunteer, Jeremy Irvine captured the vision in sketches. Professor Marcela Oliva, director of Los Angeles Trade Tech College’s Green Design and Architecture program was an inspiring catalyst. She enrolled Kid City high school students in her course and their summer class assignment included the Kid City Breezeway project. The students did their research, brainstormed, and designed; they met with landscapers, builders, and muralists. And they decided on a 140 footlong mural as the visual centerpiece of the walkway. With the design complete, over 70 volunteers from Lowe’s stores provided painting supplies and... Read More
Our Holiday Wish
As we wind down the year, we give thanks for our blessings. We remember those who have passed on. We look forward to the possibilities of the coming year. A simple and heartfelt wish for the holidays: Peace on earth, Kindness abounds, Healing and health for all. May 2023 be filled with light and love, Miyoko Oshima... Read More
Inaugural Summit on Missing and Murdered Indigenous People
Vesper Society believes a just society begins when everyone is well and respected as a human being. Every day we link arms with leaders and communities to uplift through service, break down barriers, and elevate community voices. Earlier this month in Arcata, the Yurok Tribe hosted the inaugural Northern California Policy Summit on Missing and Murdered Indigenous People. It was a powerful event that brought together Tribal leaders, survivors, families, policy makers, and community members to address this crisis and find solutions. California ranks fifth in the nation for incidents of missing and murdered indigenous people (MMIP) and far northern California accounts for most of the cases. Homicide is the third leading cause of death for Indigenous women and girls. In some Tribal communities, Indigenous women face murder rates that are more than 10 times the national average. At the beginning of the summit, Yurok Tribal Council Member Phillip Williams spoke. “In 2017, October 31, my daughter went missing. The next day she was found and she was passed. And I went through a lot of pain.…That’s how I became a Tribal leader. Once I made it through that pain, I knew there was nothing that could knock me down. The Creator made this path for me to be here. I was a little reluctant to share my pain, but I believe this is the right forum. You know, I look at all the women in my family – my mother, my mother-in-law, my sisters, my aunties, my nieces – they have all been affected by violence. So, I’ve done a lot of soul-searching and the conclusion I’ve come to is we need to raise the value of an Indigenous life.” When a Tribal member is reported missing, families are often caught in a jurisdictional dispute about which law... Read More
School-Based Health Centers Are Essential
Every day Vesper Society links arms with leaders and communities to uplift through service, break down barriers, and elevate community voices. This month we highlight the importance of school-based health centers. The California School-Based Health Alliance reports that “most of California’s more than 10,000 schools do not have the resources to meet their students’ physical and mental health care needs. Only 43 percent of public school districts in California have a nurse, and only two percent of schools have a school-based health center. And yet, students are six times more likely to receive evidence-based services in a school compared to other community settings. School-based services are therefore essential to ensuring students have access to timely and quality mental health.” For over two decades, La Clinica de la Raza has provided health care services and education at its eight School-Based Health Centers (SBHCs). La Clinica has worked closely with school partners to expand the reach and scope of school health services in Oakland, San Lorenzo, and San Leandro. In collaboration with the Alameda Health Care Services Agency, La Clinica delivered primary medical, dental, vision, behavioral health, and health education services to over 3,000 youth in 2021. As schools begin the new year, clinics are leading outreach efforts to ensure linkage to care, especially behavioral health services. Staff are seeing unprecedented behavioral health needs across all school sites, and an increase in suicidality and depression as youth adjust to the loss of loved ones. Behavioral health clinicians are helping students deal with grief and anxiety. Youth are experiencing social anxiety as they transition back to in-person learning, with many attending a new school for the first time. Clinics are seeing more students who report thoughts of self-harm, and there is an increase in fights and student conflicts on campus. Given the... Read More
Vesper Board Visits Humboldt County
Vesper Society believes a just society begins when everyone is well and respected as a human being. Every day we link arms with leaders and communities to uplift through service, break down barriers, and elevate community voices. Last month, Vesper board members immersed themselves in Humboldt – Del Norte Counties to listen and learn from community leaders. Board members gathered in the Bay Area on a Wednesday, carpooled five hours north to Humboldt County, and over the next two days learned about a part of the state that many had never visited before. We are deeply grateful to our partners for welcoming us to the land of the Wiyot, Yurok, and Hoopa Valley Tribes. Ancestral Guard, United Indian Health Services, K’ima:w Medical Center, and Two Feathers Native American Family Services told stories, introduced their staff, board members, family members, and youth, leaving an indelible mark on the Vesper board members. During three evening dinners, we met with Wiyot Cultural Center, Mayor of Eureka, First Five Humboldt, Yurok Tribe, Humboldt Area Foundation, Cal Poly Humboldt, and Blue Lake Rancheria. At its Saturday meeting, board members reflected on the purpose of the visit: to listen, learn, and understand the people, place, and possibilities. The power and beauty of Native peoples and culture, the connection between the health of the people and the land, and the profound sense of community-based leadership transformed how Vesper board members see the region. The coming years will bring major developments to this northwestern part of California. The largest dam removal in US history will begin on the mighty Klamath River next year. Cal Poly Humboldt will be doubling their student population in the next seven years. The first west coast offshore wind farm is being planned in Humboldt. Vesper is honored to walk alongside our partners... Read More