Throw Down for the Town this Saturday

There’s been a lot of bad news in Oakland lately, and I know sometimes it’s easy to feel down about the City and to feel like there’s nothing you can do about it. But this Saturday, August 13th you can, at the Ella Baker Center’s Throw Down for the Town: The Oakland Service Festival.

The concept of this day is pretty awesome. Ella Baker Center put out a call for projects, and groups and individuals organized their own service projects as part of this day. That means that not only are there service projects spread out throughout the city – unless you live in the hills, chances are there’s a project a walk or a quick bus ride away from you – but there are many different types of projects you can participate in. You can beautify a park, set up a book room, garden, build with Habitat for Humanity (hmm, might you find another Oakland blogger there?), create a dog park, help with a community market, and so much more.

Here’s a map of all the locations:

Party with Ella Baker Center & Oakland Grown next Tuesday

Next Tuesday, April 26th, there are two great opportunities to get out and meet community members, leaders, business owners, and artists at the Ella Baker Center Change-Maker Party and the Oakland Grown Party. The best part is that they’re nearby and not at the same time so it will be easy to stop by both.

I hope you’ve checked out the Ella Baker Center blog since I featured it on Monday, but if not, check it out now to find out about the great work they’re doing and why you should attend their event. As for Oakland Grown, I’ve written about the organization extensively before (and if you’ve ever run into me shopping, you’ve seen me carrying their bags). Oakland Grown is a member driven non-profit program that encourages people to consciously support those unique locally-owned independent businesses and artistis that have their roots in Oakland.

I’m proud to say that this week I became the first blogger member of Oakland Grown so I’m extra excited about next week’s event. (Disclosure: As part of my membership, I’ve agreed to write a few blog posts about Oakland Grown events and Oakland Grown members, though this really won’t be a change from what I’ve already been doing here.)

Here’s some info on the events. I hope to see you at one or both of them on Tuesday night!

Blogs worth reading from Oakland organizations

I was so excited last week to find out that TransForm had started a blog, and it got me thinking about the other great Oakland based organizations that have blogs. I link to some of them in my blogroll but felt it was worth a post to spread the word about these great blogs:

TransForm – TransForming the Bay Area: The blog is new so it’s hard to know the scope, but judging by its name and TransForm’s mission, it is likely to cover transportation and land use issues in the Bay Area.

Ella Baker Center – Ella’s Voice: Ella’s Voice covers a wide range of issues that the Ella Baker Center works on – the environment, criminal justice, civil rights, and much more. I’ve been following the blog for a while and have enjoyed the mix of story telling, action alerts, and policy updates.

My thoughts on the Oakland marathon

I had such an amazing Sunday at the Oakland Running Festival! I had hoped to write a lengthy post about it that evening because it was so inspiring and made me proud to be an Oaklander, but alas, life got in the way. I decided to share a few thoughts and photos today, even though you’ve no doubt heard or read much about the marathon already.

On Sunday morning I woke up much later than usual, as I had been traveling and not sleeping enough. I rapidly got ready and rushed out the door. When I reached Broadway, I could already tell it was not a usual Sunday. It was quieter, with less traffic. I stopped at 27th and Broadway and cheered some of the runners on, but soon moved on further into downtown.