L E T T E R S f ro m H O M E

Winter 2016

Hope for the future

Housing Consortium of the East Bay celebrated its double

decade anniversary event “HOME is where HCEB is’’ this

past spring at the Ed Roberts Campus in Berkeley. HCEB’s

community gathered to reflect on our historic milestones,

discuss plans for a strong future, and honor some of our

partners who have played a large part in our continued

success.

HCEB presented four awards named for our core values:

H ope for the Future award – The San Francisco Foundation

O pportunities for Everyone award – Lincoln Oaks Apartments Community

M aking a Difference award – Linda Gardner (Alameda County HCD) & Robert Ratner

(BHCS)

E ngaged in Community award – BBI Construction

As we reflected on HCEB’s long history of providing quality

housing and services for our community’s most vulnerable

members, we were joined by over 120 community leaders,

industry partners, clients and residents to share an evening

of entertainment hosted by KALW Radio Personality Rose

Aguilar, Aisha Brown of Supervisor Keith Carson’s office, and

Oakland Mayor Libby Schaaf. Guests mingled, savored

delicious treats and sweets, enjoyed live music, played jumbo

indoor games and competed for a wide range of raffle prizes.

HCEB is grateful for all the community support and

engagement we’ve received over the past twenty years. So,

here’s to the next 20!

Please like new Facebook page for more photos and future

updates: www.facebook.com/HOMEatHCEB

Board of Directors

Kristy Feck, President

Cheyenne Purrington, Vice President

Suguna Vepa, Treasurer

Bill Bonville, Secretary

Uta Swiatecki, Member

Daniel Perl, Member

Main Office Staff

Sonja Brooks Project Manager

Cynthia Chen Resident Manager

Lisa Hopkins

Operations Manager

Darin Lounds Executive Director

Jamela Pepin Jack Capon Villa, Service Coordinator

Jeremy Roberts Program Support

Farzan Sharifzada Resident Manager

Claire Thomas Finance Director

Jovan Thomas

Operations Coordinator

Alex Uhlig Program Support

Joan Uhlig

Business Administrator

Housing Fast Support Network (HFSN) Staff

Marichelle Alcantara Senior Site Coordinator

Mark Chang On-site Staff

Nathan Chuong Janitor

Kai Martin Maintenance Tech

Jacee Santos Senior Housing Specialist/External

Relations

Katerina Semaia Site Coordinator

Anjelina Walker Site Coordinator

Home Is Where HCEB Is—

20th Anniversary Celebration

2

Special Thanks to HCEB Contributors

Abigail Mariam Ahmed Al-Kubaisi

Aisha Brown Alain McLaughlin Amina Hopkins

Amy Hiestand Consulting Andra Straight in memory of Arthur

& Beverly Pelow Andrei Wallace

Andy Kruse Ann Smith

Anonymous Athena Sjoberg Barbara Capon Becky Wright Bill Bonville

Brianne Steinhauser Carlos Castellanos

Carole Norris Charu Shah

Cheyenne Purrington Chris Pope Chriss Hess Cindy Freid

Crystal Young Dan McLoughlin

Dan Sawislak Daniel Francis

Daniel Perl Darin Lounds Devin Lounds Deb Batterson Denis Beaman

Dick Bass Dionne Short Earlene Hass

Elizabeth Yost Elke Glendenning

Ener Chiu Erin Wengrofsky

Esti Rogan Eva Liebermann

Eve Stewart Farzan Sharifzada Fathia Macauley

Gangashree Somayajula Gary Sjoberg

Gerald Westheimer Gil Reynoso Gloria Bruce

Henrietta Stanford Herbert Steiner

Hon. Abel Guillen Hon. Dan Kalb

Hon. Libby Schaaf Inge Horton Jack Gardner

Jacqueline Perl Jade Lounds Jagy Pattur

Jamela Pepin James Anthony Jamie Almanza

Jansen Lum Jean Dickinson Jeff Halperin

Jeff Peck Jennifer Mangel

Jennifer Pechacek Jillian Gibbons

Joan Uhlig Jodi Nishimura John Rodriguez Jonah Lounds

Kathleen Sikora Kathy Kohlweck

Kim Shives Kristy Feck

La’a Anthony

Opportunities for everyone

Jack Capon Villa—National Night Out

On Tuesday, August 2, 2016, Jack Capon Villa

participated in our first ever annual National

Night Out. Beyond just being a chance for

residents to get to know each other better,

this was a great opportunity for neighbors,

community members and the police to work

together to discourage unlawful activities in

the area by showcasing the strength of a

close-knit community.

JCV residents, a few community members,

and neighbors enjoyed great company, a

summer barbeque, and even a mini dance

party. It is safe to say

that everyone had a

great time. Later in

the evening, two

officers from the

Alameda Police

Department dropped

by with McGruff the

Crime Dog and his

handler. Everyone was excited to interact

with familiar Officers Leibnitz and Munoz

and happily took pictures with McGruff.

The event was a great success for residents,

neighbors and local crime enforcement,

meeting National Night Out’s objective of

bringing communities together. By holding

these events, we’re able to foster

neighborhood camaraderie and safer

communities. We look forward to doing it

again next year!

HCEB continues to increase our activities in

Contra Costa County. We currently have

affordable, supportive housing properties in

Walnut Creek and Pleasant Hill and have

assisted Anka Behavioral Health with

construction of shared housing for homeless

adults with serious mental illnesses.

This year, HCEB began acquiring homes for

people exiting Sonoma Developmental

Center. HCEB's properties, 4 of which are in

central Contra Costa County, will provide

quality, community-based group home

settings for 20 previously institutionalized

adults.

In addition, we are also negotiating the

acquisition of 4 existing supportive housing

properties in Richmond in 2017. HCEB will

manage these properties, and will work with

community partners to increase

neighborhood integration opportunities for

our senior and formerly homeless residents

with serious mental illnesses.

In preparation for HCEB's increased presence

in Contra Costa County, our staff has

engaged in Mental Health Services Act

Stakeholder meetings throughout the

County. Through these meetings, HCEB has

engaged with service providers, advocates,

and consumers. We are excited to take this

big step forward in Richmond, adding these

properties to HCEB's portfolio while bringing

new households into our growing tenant

community.

Increasing our Impact in Contra Costa County

Lauline Mitchell Laurie Earp Lee Bevis

Lillian Lew-Hailer Linda Gardner Lisa Hopkins Lisa Mungin

Luis Rodriguez Maria Ritter/Hans Georg Ritter

Marisa Piovarcsik Mark D. Shahbazian

Marshall Snow Martha Knobler

Mary Nicely Matthew Myers/Natalie Bonnewit

Meher Dhaliwal Michael Chao Mike Beaman

Mildred Frederick Mirna Remson

MJ Flores Moe Wright Nathan Ho

Nelson Dabasa Nesreen Kawar Nick Enzweiler

Nicole Sandoval Nique Santos Harris

Norman Gelndenning/Laura Louis Pati Boyle

Polo Munoz Regina Wong

Rev. Sandhya Jha Rhonda McGlashan

Rick Williams Robert Mills Ron Postrel Rose Aguilar

RoseShall Jackson Ross Culverwell Santhi Raja, MD

Sarah Amboy Sarah Brett

Sarah Burgett Sasha Bainer Scott Mullins

Scott, Marn, Millie Looney Selena Lew

Sharon Cornu Shelley Halperin Sree Kolavennu Sriram Vemuri Stephan Beard

Stephen Shotland Steve Crabiel Suguna Vepa

Susan Friedland Susanne Sjoberg

Tom McCoy Tommie Moreau Tonyya Shculer

Trina Walker Tyaria Wilson Tze-Yan Szeto Uma Vemuri Usha Vajpay

Uta Swiatecki Valerie G. Vivona

Wendy Seider Will Rogan

Wilma Chan

In-Kind Support Linden Street Brewery—Charles

Houston Peet’s Coffee & Tea—Gina Taing

Sweet Adeline Bakeshop—Jennifer Millar

Cate de Heer Jennifer Farinha

3 Making a difference

The Compassionate Communities Pilot

addresses the recent, sharp increase of

street homelessness and encampments in

Oakland. The City initiated the pilot in

October to address short term health

concerns and long term housing needs for

the campers at 35th and Magnolia.

Compassionate Communities strives to

lessen the negative health impacts to

encampment residents by providing basic

services, such as outreach, case

management, portable bathrooms, garbage

pick-up, and health care.

Jacee Santos (HCEB Sr Housing Specialist and

External Relations) and partners from Bay

Area Community Services, Operation Dignity

and the City of Oakland Housing Services

Department are the face and point of

contact for the encampment residents.

Jacee and the team visit the site daily and

provide and coordinate resources, housing

opportunities, and referrals into the Henry

Robinson Multi-Service Center for interim

housing. The pilot is scheduled to end on or

before March 2017, when the last

encampment resident moves inside.

Compassionate Communities—Oakland

In 2011, MHCO and its beautiful, affordable

properties for people with developmental

disabilities joined HCEB. One of those

properties, the Luella Fuller Home, recently

received HUD approval to switch from a

licensed group home to shared, independent

housing.

Luella Fuller Home will welcome its first

independent living residents in

2016. Residents pay 30% of their income

towards rent. The home is 100% accessible

and residents will enjoy spacious units and

beautiful common areas inside and

out. They will be supported by HCEB's

newest Resident Manager, Cynthia Chen,

and service providers vendored by Regional

Center of the East Bay.

Luella Fuller Home: Inspiring Independence

Luella Fuller

In 1943, two decades before the Lanterman Act, Luella Fuller

began tutoring 2 children with intellectual disabilities in her

Oakland home. Once the total number of children rose to

25, MHCO was formed to raise money and fund a brick and

mortar school in San Leandro. The Fuller School rose to

national prominence in a time when people with

developmental disabilities did not have access to traditional education. MHCO's mission later

shifted to providing affordable housing for people with developmental disabilities, and the

Luella Fuller Home was created.

410 7th Street, Suite 203 Oakland, CA 94607

510-832-1382 (p) 510-832-1743 (f) info@hceb.org www.hceb.org

www.facebook.com/

HOMEatHCEB

www.hceb.org/support/

Engaged in community

STAY CONNECTED

and GET INVOLVED!

‘Like’ us on Facebook through

the QR code

OR

Subscribe to our listserv with a

quick email to “info@hceb.org”

AND

Join our Board of Directors, vol-

unteer at one of our com-

munity events, donate house-

hold items to our residents, or

give to our general fund. Be

a part of our HOME!

Letter from Our Board President

Dear Friends,

It’s a happy new year at HCEB! HCEB had a great 20th

birthday party and we

had a lot to celebrate. HCEB is doing more than ever to create inclusive

communities for people with disabilities and special needs through affordable,

accessible housing. We have 236 units housing over 300 individuals

throughout Alameda and Contra Costa counties. And we’re not stopping! We

have 50 units coming on line in 2017, and with the passage of local

affordable housing bonds, we hope there’s even more to come. We’re

strengthening our capacity to better serve our communities by going through

the process of becoming a certified property management organization.

Unfortunately, this election season has given us mixed messages. Locally, our

community voiced their commitment to support affordable housing, to end

homelessness and to make sure people with disabilities have full access to

their communities. Nationally, we did not fare as well. There are threats

against all entitlement programs needed by the people we serve - threats to

Medicaid, threats to Section 8. Local non-profits will be called upon more than

ever and HCEB stands ready. Won’t you support us and the people we serve

with a tax deductible donation and make sure everyone has a place to call

home?