Family

Take charge of your health today. Be informed. Be involved….Fatherhood

NEW PITTSBURGH COURIER — This month, the “Take Charge of Your Health Today” page focuses on the health benefits associated with fatherhood.

Published

5 years ago

June 15, 2019

Oakland Post

By Esther Bush

This month, the “Take Charge of Your Health Today” page focuses on the health benefits associated with fatherhood. Erricka Hager, health advocate at the Urban League of Greater Pittsburgh, and Esther L. Bush, president and CEO of the Urban League of Greater Pittsburgh, spoke about this topic.

EH: Good afternoon, Ms. Bush. Today’s topic is quite timely with Father’s Day quickly approaching on June 16. I’m excited to have this conversation with you. Today we’re discussing the health benefits that are associated with the responsibilities of becoming a father. Research has shown that involved fathers positively impact their children’s health. Rarely discussed, however, are the impact and health perks that fatherhood can have on the man’s life.

EB: Yes, Erricka. I’m glad that we are discussing the health benefits of being a family man. As you mentioned, a growing body of research has identified the positive correlation between involved fathers and their children’s health. A study at the University of Maryland School of Medicine in Baltimore, Md., concluded that children who have active fathers learn better, have higher self-esteem and are less prone to depression than those who don’t. But research also shows that becoming a dad has a profound impact on the man’s physical and mental well-being. A long-term study by the National Institute of Mental Health in Bethesda, Md., found that men with healthy family relationships are less prone to stress-related health problems. And right here at the University of Pittsburgh, pediatric fellow Alicia Boykin, MD, is expanding her research to understand how support affects young fathers under the age of 26.

EH: It is great to see that researchers like Dr. Boykin are expanding their focus. Younger fathers are an understudied and underrepresented population, despite them having similar needs as adolescent and young-adult mothers. However, Dr. Boykin is addressing the research gap with the Young Fathers Study. The purpose of the study is to help researchers learn more about the role that young fathers play in their children’s lives and better understand how health care providers may affect young fathers’ ideas about parenting. Researchers hope their findings will lead to better ways to support young fathers in the future.

EB: Dr. Boykin’s study is very important to mention; thank you, Erricka. However, researchers should be mindful that young fathers may be hard to engage for a variety of reasons. The Urban League can also aid in connecting fathers with support that is available for them.

EH: You’re right, Ms. Bush. And it is so important that our readers continue to volunteer for such research studies so their voices and opinions are included!

EB: This conversation is important, Erricka. Thank you for bringing this topic to the forefront. I hope all of our fathers have a great Father’s Day. I look forward to chatting with you next month about stroke research.

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Bay Area

Emiliano Zapata Street Academy Celebrates 40 Years Serving Oakland Families

The Oakland Emiliano Zapata Street Academy, a public alternative high school, celebrated its 50th anniversary this year with a community party and festival last Saturday with live music, good food, vendors’ booths, and activities for adults and children.

Published

11 hours ago

May 4, 2024

Oakland Post

Live music was part of the 50th anniversary celebration of the Emiliano Zapata Street Academy, a public alternative high school, on April 27, at St. Augustine’s Episcopal Church on Telegraph Avenue and 29th Street. Photo by Ken Epstein.

By Ken Epstein

The Oakland Emiliano Zapata Street Academy, a public alternative high school, celebrated its 50^th anniversary this year with a community party and festival last Saturday with live music, good food, vendors’ booths, and activities for adults and children.

Attending the Saturday, April 27 celebration were current and past students, families, faculty, and supporters of the school. The school is located at 417 29^th St., and the celebration was held nearby at St. Augustine’s Episcopal Church on Telegraph Avenue in Oakland.

For more information, go to www.streetacademy.online or call 510) 874-3630 or (510) 879-2313.

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Alameda County

A Safe Place, Bay Area Domestic Violence Community Organization, Opens New Service Center in Oakland

Oakland-Bay Area non-profit, A Safe Place, announces the grand opening of its newly purchased building in Oakland that will be a service center for families that have suffered from domestic violence. The new, two-story building has over six new service rooms for counseling, mental health support groups, legal services, children’s treatment, safe space for community engagement, and partnership activities.

Published

12 hours ago

May 4, 2024

Oakland Post

Façade of the new community center for A Safe Place opening on May 10 in Oakland. Courtesy photo.

By Courtney Slocum Riley

Special to The Post

Oakland-Bay Area non-profit, A Safe Place, announces the grand opening of its newly purchased building in Oakland that will be a service center for families that have suffered from domestic violence.

The new, two-story building has over six new service rooms for counseling, mental health support groups, legal services, children’s treatment, safe space for community engagement, and partnership activities.

Domestic violence occurrences and offenses account for a considerable amount of all violent crimes in Alameda County. A Safe Place is attempting to provide a safe place for families to heal. A Safe Place is the only comprehensive domestic violence assistance program including a safehouse, in Oakland.

The grand opening celebration will also serve as a fundraiser to build out healing, therapeutic spaces for children and adult victims and survivors and survivors of domestic violence (male and female).

The new service center will expand the work of the organization, founded in 1976 when a group of women working in San Francisco came together to address the urgent need for a shelter in the East Bay. A year later, they founded A Safe Place (ASP) in Oakland. Run solely by volunteers, they set up a crisis line to offer crisis counseling and information to battered women and their children.

The organization serves over 500 adults and children annually through a host of services including crisis counseling via 24-hour crisis line, emergency motel and safehouse sheltering, mental health services (counseling and support groups).

Under the leadership of Executive Director, Carolyn Russell, the organization has grown from a single program into the comprehensive domestic violence and assistance program. ASP strives to meet the growing and diverse needs of our growing community.

The organization hopes to complete all the upgrades and therapeutic room improvements by August 2024. The public is invited to donate to the effort by using the website at www.asafeplace.org/donate. The organization also accepts in-kind gifts as well as items from the organization’s Amazon Wishlist.

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Bay Area

Obituary: Former California Education Superintendent Delaine Eastin Passes at 76

Delaine Eastin, who served as a former state Assemblymember representing parts of Santa Clara and Alameda County — and the first woman elected as State Superintendent of Public Instruction — died at age 76 on April 23. Eastin passed away from complications caused by a stroke.

Published

1 day ago

May 3, 2024

Oakland Post

Former California Education Superintendent Delaine Eastin.

By California Black Media

Eastin passed away from complications caused by a stroke.

Known for her power of persuasion, Eastin used her influence to be a champion for bipartisan issues that helped raise academic standards, lower class sizes, and emphasize the importance of conserving nature and the environment in schools.

Former Assembly Speaker Willie Brown and fellow legislative colleagues said that Eastin was in demand on the speech circuit while serving as a legislator.

“Few could engender the kind of emotion and passion she delivered in every speech,” Brown said.

State superintendent Tony Thurmond called Eastin a trailblazer who inspired fellow public servants.

“California lost an icon in our school system today. Delaine Eastin’s legacy as a trailblazer in public education will forever inspire us. Her unwavering dedication to California students — from championing Universal Preschool and the “A Garden in Every School” program to honoring our educators by establishing the California Teachers of the Year Awards — has left an indelible mark on our state’s educational landscape,” said Thurmond.