January 2024 Newsletter

Apr 3

Letter from the Executive Director

Dear Community:

January is a perfect time to reflect on accomplishments & lessons from the previous year and set goals & intentions for the year ahead.

Let’s start with celebrating 3 wins from 2023:

[1] The CoCo Doulas graduated two cohorts of doula trainees increasing the number of Black women doula in our community.

[Watch Erica’s Story]

42 Black women have graduated from the CoCo Doulas training program. CoCo Doulas achieved a major milestone with the birth of its 100th baby in the program. 113 babies and counting have been born in the program.

We look forward to expanding our staff doula team and bringing on new graduates to join our 2-year fellowship and serve Black birthing people throughout Contra Costa County.

[2] We became an independent organization, operating with a new name, FIERCE Advocates!

[3] We expanded our life coaching program for Black men and Latinx women by our life coaching team.

We look forward to serving more Latinx women and men of color in 2024 who want accessible and culturally competent support for emotional well-being and mapping out their life goals.

[Watch Maria’s Story]

As we look ahead, you can expect this from the FIERCE team:

Elevating our parent-led advocacy projects that center parents and caregivers being at the forefront of community change in education for youth and individual and family well-being.

Our Policy and Advocacy Team is actively working on projects this year that include parent education through training new parent fellowships, hosting community workshops on a range of topics and relaunching our Community Educational Leadership Institute (CELI) to train emerging leaders on how to lead on education, health and youth boards, commissions and committees.

Expanding care to meet the needs of more pregnant moms and Black birthing people who deserve and need community-based doula care to have a safe and caring pregnancy and birthing experience and journey.

And connect our community-based doula work to providing accessible mental health care for pregnant people because 20% of new moms experience a maternal mental health condition, but this number is doubled for 40% of Black moms, and nearly half of these women do not receive support or treatment.

Connecting to more people in our communities to participate in our no-cost health and healing services that support family wellness and well-being including life coaching, peer sanctuaries and monthly wellness events.

[Learn More]

Thank you for being a part of our story and helping us make this possible! I invite you to read on as we continue building upon our mission to advance equitable access and opportunities for all youth to have quality education and all families to achieve emotional and physical well-being.

In Community,

Sheryl Lane

Executive Director

Dr. MLK JR Reflections

While this year’s Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. Day has come and gone, we want to continue amplifying his voice, along with the voices of activists who continue their work today and serve as a catalyst for change, while advocating for justice and equity in our communities.

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Today, we are sharing some lesser-known quotes to uplift MLK Jr.’s mission and instill hope as we march forward:

"Power at its best is love implementing the demands of justice, and justice at its best is power correcting everything that stands against love. And this is what we must see as we move on."

- Where Do We Go From Here? (1967)

“The time has come for an all-out world war against poverty. The rich nations must use their vast resources of wealth to develop the underdeveloped, school the unschooled, and feed the unfed. Ultimately a great nation is a compassionate nation.”

- The Quest for Peace and Justice, December 11, 1964.

“The function of education is to teach one to think intensively and to think critically. Intelligence plus character — that is the goal of true education.” — The Purpose of Education, 1947

To learn more about Dr. Martin Luther King Jr., check out these engaging resources for you and your family:

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A Spotlight on Mentoring

January is Mentoring Awareness Month, and we wanted to take a moment to highlight the impact mentoring can have on you and the youth in your life.

Mentoring aligns with our values of Community, Leadership, Equity, Love, Accountability, and Innovation. As a collective, we can empower one another, especially our youth, through mentoring relationships.

According to MENTOR National, “Mentoring provides meaningful connections that impact the people involved and influence their lives at home, at work, and in their communities. For those who are being mentored, it is linked to improved academic, social and economic prospects.

For those who are mentoring, the relationship can build leadership and management skills, expand a mentor’s professional network, and provide an empowering opportunity to give back to the community.”

Big Brothers Big Sisters of the Bay Area does great work for our community’s youth with a mission to “create and support one-on-one relationships that ignite power and promise of youth”. To learn more about their organization, visit their website: www.bbbsba.org/

To explore more about finding a mentor or becoming a mentor, check out these helpful resources: Mentoring.org & NPR | The right mentor can change your career. Here's how to find one.

FIERCE Welcomes New Staff!

Our staff continues to grow and we want to introduce you to the newest person on our team who will be bringing the FIERCE mission to life!

Dulce Galicia: Policy and Advocacy Organizing Manager

Dulce will be leading advocacy initiatives to amplify important new policies and empower members of our community to do the same.

“My commitment is to the community and when things don’t feel or look right, equitable policies and organizing has been my antidote to counteract the problems faced across the Bay Area.” -Dulce

To learn more about what Dulce brings to our organization, check out her bio here!

Welcome to the FIERCE Team, Dulce!

Celebrating Black History Month

With Black History Month commencing on February 1st, we wanted to share ways that you can intentionally celebrate and implement it within your community and home. While Black History Month is recognized in February, we believe that its history should be recognized and celebrated throughout the year.

Black History Month’s origin story dates back to 1915 with many developments that bring us to where we are today. We encourage you to learn about how this month came to be by visiting Association for the Study of African American Life & History | Origins of Black History Month.

Here are some ideas to get you thinking about how you want to celebrate this month:

Learn:

Watch a documentary about the Black experience
Add some new Black hosted podcasts to your queue
Read books written by Black authors
Pick a handful of Black leaders throughout history and learn more about them
Visit a Black or African history museum in person or virtually

Take Action:

Support Black-owned businesses and eat at a Black-owned restaurant
Donate to Black-led organizations and nonprofits in your community
Find ways to be a more active member of your community and eradicate anti-Black racism in systems, processes and practices. FIERCE Advocates is a member of the California Black Power Network.

Celebrate:

Attend a Black History Month event or parade
Create a playlist of music by Black artists to share and enjoy
Enjoy a TV show made by Black creators
Participate in a Black Movie Day made by Black creators

For Kids/Students at School:

Talk to your kids or students about race and racial justice
Read books and poems by Black writers — and then discuss them
Give presentations about Black historical figures and current events
Plan a meaningful field trip or excursion to spaces that exemplify Black pride

Check out these great resources for even more ideas!

Get Involved!

Looking for ways to get involved this month? You’re invited to explore the following opportunities!

Health & Wellness Valentine's Family Craft Night!

Learn valuable information about questions to ask your children’s teachers and how to show up with excellent questions.

Date: Friday, February 9th
Time: 5:30-7pm
Location: FIERCE Advocates’ Health and Healing Center #310 9th st, Richmond CA 94801
For more information, contact Karen Alvarado kalvarado@fierceadvocates.org

PAO Workshop:

Preparing for your School's Open House