Oakland
Oakland Grown AB&I Foundry Celebrated its 113th Year
The AB&I Foundry observed its 113th year in business by inviting their neighbors to join in a celebration of their century long tenure in Oakland on Aug. 17.
The open house was attended by elected officials, union representatives and a variety of community members, like Pastor LJ Jennings of Kingdom Builders Christian Fellowship.
“One hundred thirteen years! That is an amazing legacy, of great working-class jobs that pay a family supporting wage,” said Oakland Mayor Libby Schaaf.
“I am very excited to work alongside of you to make sure that you are here for many centuries to come,” Schaaf said.
Michael Lowe, the general manager of the foundry said the foundry employs 225 people with high-paying, blue-and green-collar union jobs. This includes 80 families that live in east Oakland and many more that live in other parts of the city.
AB&I, located at 7825 San Leandro St., Oakland, takes auto scraps and other metal products destined for landfill and turns them into pipe and plumbing fittings, supplying the plumbing systems for many of Oakland’s largest buildings, explained Lowe.
Established in Oakland in 1906, the foundry specialized in small iron and brass castings. Today, the company is one of the country’s largest manufacturers of cast iron drain waste and vent plumbing products.
“We want to be part of Oakland for generations to come,” Lowe said.
“To provide high-paying. union jobs that build the fabric of Oakland society. And in order to do so, we recognize that we need to provide even more value to the city,” said Lowe.
The company is actively involved in clean-up efforts to mitigate illegal dumping with community-based organizations, according to Oakland Vice Mayor Larry Reid and Council President Rebecca Kaplan.
The company also works hard to promote employment opportunities for East Oakland residents, who live in an area where unemployment rates are persistently more than double those in other parts of the city.
By promoting employment for East Oakland residents through such groups as the Men of Valor foundation, which was founded by Bishop Bob Jackson of Acts-Full Gospel Church, they are able to support job training, life skills and re-entry services for formerly incarcerated Oakland residents
AB&I’s team members have also provided countless volunteer hours at local schools, libraries, and the Alameda County Food Bank.
“You know what an important role AB&I plays in making sure that we recover the metals we use… We don’t want to waste anything,” said State Senator Nancy Skinner. “Anything that is a valuable resource, we want to use it again, again, and again. That’s how we protect our planet. That’s how we protect our people. That’s what AB&I Foundry does.”
California’s air quality and environmental regulatory requirements are among the toughest in the country, said an AB&I spokesperson. He cited their use of state-of-the-art pollution control technology as a basis for the foundry to meet and, in most cases, exceed California’s strict standards.
“Here at AB&I, we are able to provide growth and development opportunities through jobs where engaged, motivated, and ambitious people have the ability to learn and develop strong trade skills in manufacturing right here in Oakland,” said Kurt Winter, Executive Vice President of the McWane Plumbing Group, parent company of AB&I Foundry.
Activism
Oakland Post: Week of May 8 – 14, 2024
The printed Weekly Edition of the Oakland Post: Week of May May 8 – 14, 2024
To enlarge your view of this issue, use the slider, magnifying glass icon or full page icon in the lower right corner of the browser window.
Bay Area
Faces Around the Bay: Sidney Carey
Sidney Carey was born in Dallas, Texas. He moved with his family to West Oakland as a baby. His sister is deceased; one brother lives in Oakland. Carey was the Choir Director at Trinity Missionary Baptist Church for 18 years.
By Barbara Fluhrer
Sidney Carey was born in Dallas, Texas. He moved with his family to West Oakland as a baby. His sister is deceased; one brother lives in Oakland.
Carey was the Choir Director at Trinity Missionary Baptist Church for 18 years.
He graduated from McClymonds High with a scholarship in cosmetology and was the first African American to complete a nine-month course at the first Black Beauty School in Oakland: Charm Beauty College.
He earned his License, and then attended U.C., earning a secondary teaching credential. With his Instructors License, he went on to teach at Laney College, San Mateo College, Skyline and Universal Beauty College in Pinole, among others.
Carey was the first African American hair stylist at Joseph and I. Magnin department store in Oakland and in San Francisco, where he managed the hair stylist department, Shear Heaven.
In 2009, he quit teaching and was diagnosed with Congestive Heart Failure. He was 60 and “too old for a heart transplant”. His doctors at California Pacific Medical Center (CPMC) went to court and fought successfully for his right to receive a transplant. One day, he received a call from CPMC, “Be here in one hour.” He underwent a transplant with a heart from a 25-year- old man in Vienna, Austria
Two years later, Carey resumed teaching at Laney College, finally retiring in 2012.
Now, he’s slowed down and comfortable in a Senior Residence in Berkeley, but still manages to fit his 6/4” frame in his 2002 Toyota and drive to family gatherings in Oakland and San Leandro and an occasional Four Seasons Arts concert.
He does his own shopping and cooking and uses Para Transit to keep constant doctor appointments while keeping up with anti-rejection meds. He often travels with doctors as a model of a successful heart-transplant plant recipient: 14 years.
Carey says, “I’m blessed” and, to the youth, “Don’t give up on your dreams!”
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.
By Ken Epstein
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.
Attending the Saturday, April 27 celebration were current and past students, families, faculty, and supporters of the school. The school is located at 417 29th 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.
-
City Government1 week ago
Court Throws Out Law That Allowed Californians to Build Duplexes, Triplexes and RDUs on Their Properties
-
Community4 weeks ago
Financial Assistance Bill for Descendants of Enslaved Persons to Help Them Purchase, Own, or Maintain a Home
-
Activism3 weeks ago
Oakland Post: Week of April 24 – 30, 2024
-
Business4 weeks ago
V.P. Kamala Harris: Americans With Criminal Records Will Soon Be Eligible for SBA Loans
-
Community3 weeks ago
Oakland WNBA Player to be Inducted Into Hall of Fame
-
Community4 weeks ago
AG Bonta Says Oakland School Leaders Should Comply with State Laws to Avoid ‘Disparate Harm’ When Closing or Merging Schools
-
Community3 weeks ago
Richmond Nonprofit Helps Ex-Felons Get Back on Their Feet
-
Community3 weeks ago
RPAL to Rename Technology Center for Retired Police Captain Arthur Lee Johnson