City Government

Chief French to Cohost RCF Connect Fundraiser Gala Benefiting Black Women, and Girls

RCF Connects (formerly Richmond Community Foundation) will host a fundraiser gala on March 1 that will serve to support the nonprofit’s Equity for Black Women and Girls Initiative, which works to uplift and empower Black women and girls in the local community, including entrepreneurs and leaders.

Published

2 months ago

February 24, 2024

Oakland Post

Richmond Police Chief Bisa French. City of Richmond photo

The Richmond Standard

Richmond Police Chief Bisa French and Tanise Smith of the Equity for Black Women and Girls Task Force will serve as co-hosts for the event, which will take place from 7-10 p.m. at the Hilton in Concord.

Entrepreneur Jennifer Hammock will provide the keynote speech.

All of the contributions to the gala will support the program’s efforts.

The final day to purchase tickets and to sponsor the event is Feb. 23. Click here to do either or both or go to https://give.richmondcf.org/ge/ebwggala?fbclid=IwAR3dDkzRVtwxeui4_Dgk2MxY-1VcZYzkU5wRJ7NmqL9SD_xmgQJH27Fdq3s

RCF Connects is a long-running charitable foundation that works to uplift marginalized, impoverished, and disenfranchised members of the Richmond community.

The organization accomplishes this through a number of programs, including Housing First, the Electric Car program and through financial education via SparkPoint Contra Costa.

In 2020, RCF Connect launched Equity for Black Women and Girls because its members noticed that no local organization was focusing support for them in the community, according to Taylor Sims, director of the program. In fact, less than 1% of community dollars in Contra Costa go to black women and girls, a point the program wants to make known and to remedy.

As part of the Equity for Black Women and Girls, RCF Connects holds Sister Circle countywide, providing a safe space for women and girls to connect, have discussions and to learn to become trained facilitators, Sims said.

The program also operates Sistas SOAR (Success Opportunities Apprenticeship Resilience), an intensive, 24-week incubator program for Black women entrepreneurs in collaboration with Chase Minority Business and Renaissance Entrepreneurship Center, according to Sims. The program provides feedback on their business and also a Shark Tank-style pitch competition.

In its first year, 14 participants graduated from the program and received subgrants to uplift their businesses. This year, Equity for Black Women and Girls is also set to incorporate digital marketing/branding training courtesy of Christina Kenney, who operates out of CoBiz Richmond, the coworking and business incubator in downtown Richmond.

All program efforts aim to ensure a greater share of community dollars are used to fund and train Black women entrepreneurs and leaders to build generational wealth and financial freedom. For more information, visit RCF Connects’ website here: https://rcfconnects.org.

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Oakland Post: Week of April 24 – 30, 2024

The printed Weekly Edition of the Oakland Post: Week of April 24 – 30, 2024

Published

2 days ago

April 26, 2024

Oakland Post

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Alameda County

DA Pamela Price Stands by Mom Who Lost Son to Gun Violence in Oakland

Last week, The Post published a photo showing Alameda County District Attorney Pamela Price with Carol Jones, whose son, Patrick DeMarco Scott, was gunned down by an unknown assailant in 2018.

Published

5 days ago

April 22, 2024

Oakland Post

District Attorney Pamela Price with Carol Jones

Publisher’s note: Last week, The Post published a photo showing Alameda County District Attorney Pamela Price with Carol Jones, whose son, Patrick DeMarco Scott, was gunned down by an unknown assailant in 2018. The photo was too small for readers to see where the women were and what they were doing. Here we show Price and Jones as they complete a walk in memory of Scott. For more information and to contribute, please contact Carol Jones at 510-978-5517 at morefoundation.help@gmail.com. Courtesy photo.

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City Government

Vallejo Welcomes Interim City Manager Beverli Marshall

At Tuesday night’s Council meeting, the Vallejo City Council appointed Beverli Marshall as the interim city manager. Her tenure in the City Manager’s Office began today, Wednesday, April 10. Mayor Robert McConnell praised Marshall’s extensive background, noting her “wide breadth of experience in many areas that will assist the City and its citizens in understanding the complexity of the many issues that must be solved” in Vallejo.

Published

5 days ago

April 22, 2024

Oakland Post

Beverli Marshall began her first day with the City on April 10. ICMA image.

Special to The Post

At Tuesday night’s Council meeting, the Vallejo City Council appointed Beverli Marshall as the interim city manager. Her tenure in the City Manager’s Office began today, Wednesday, April 10.

Mayor Robert McConnell praised Marshall’s extensive background, noting her “wide breadth of experience in many areas that will assist the City and its citizens in understanding the complexity of the many issues that must be solved” in Vallejo.

Current City Manager Michael Malone, whose official departure is slated for April 18, expressed his well wishes. “I wish the City of Vallejo and Interim City Manager Marshall all the best in moving forward on the progress we’ve made to improve service to residents.” Malone expressed his hope that the staff and Council will work closely with ICM Marshall to “ensure success and prosperity for the City.”

According to the Vallejo Sun, Malone stepped into the role of interim city manager in 2021 and became permanent in 2022. Previously, Malone served as the city’s water director and decided to retire from city service e at the end of his contract which is April 18.

“I hope the excellent work of City staff will continue for years to come in Vallejo,” he said. “However, recent developments have led me to this decision to announce my retirement.”

When Malone was appointed, Vallejo was awash in scandals involving the housing division and the police department. A third of the city’s jobs went unfilled during most of his tenure, making for a rocky road for getting things done, the Vallejo Sun reported.

At last night’s council meeting, McConnell explained the selection process, highlighting the council’s confidence in achieving positive outcomes through a collaborative effort, and said this afternoon, “The Council is confident that by working closely together, positive results will be obtained.”

While the search for a permanent city manager is ongoing, an announcement is expected in the coming months.

On behalf of the City Council, Mayor McConnell extended gratitude to the staff, citizen groups, and recruitment firm.

“The Council wishes to thank the staff, the citizens’ group, and the recruitment firm for their diligent work and careful consideration for the selection of what is possibly the most important decision a Council can make on behalf of the betterment of our City,” McConnell said.

The Vallejo Sun contributed to this report.