DISTRICT 4 NEIGHBORHOOD NEWS #95

October 7, 2004  - Health, Jazz & Wine, LGBT Festivals, Bird Count, J.Miller & Aging Surveys, Youth Commissioner, and Tai-chi, Music and Lunar Eclipse at Chabot Space Center

1. Move for Health, Lake Merritt, Saturday, October 9, 8 am

2. More Dragon Skies Events at Chabot Science Center: Tai Chi, Harps with Moonlight Concert , & a Lunar Eclipse

3. Birding Opportunities during Fall Migration, Sunday, October 10, Chabot Space & Science Center, 8:30 am

4. Meet Me at the Montclair Jazz & Wine Festival, Sunday, October 10, Noon-6pm

5. Out In Oakland, Sunday, October 10, 3pm-7pm

6. Domestic Violence Forum, Wednesday, October 20, 11:30 am-1:30 pm, City Hall Chambers

7. Complete a Survey from Alameda Area Agency on Aging

8. Joaquin Miller Park Survey

9. High School Student Job: Help Decide How to Fund Youth Programs

10. Halloween Events: Annual Harvest Festival at Sequoia Elementary, Saturday, October 30

11. Thank You Sequoia Elementary School, Slow Down & Keep Kids Alive

1. Move for Health at Lake Merritt on Saturday, October 9: Get out your walkin’ shoes or your dancing slippers on Saturday, October 9 when 100 Black Men of the Bay Area partner with the Healthy Living for Life Campaign for a health celebration and walk around Lake Merritt. The free event features nutrition demonstrations and information, physical activity programs, and health screenings. Bring in a Passport to Healthy Living tracking form to be eligible to win two free tickets to any place Southwest Airlines flies in the United States. For information about Passports to Health Living, call (510) 595-6454.

Healthy Living for Life is a nutrition and physical activity program sponsored by Nutrition Services/Alameda County Public Health Department. Registration begins at 8 am at the Bandstand at Lake Merritt, and the walk itself begins at 9 am. Following the walk there will be fitness demonstrations, salsa dancing, aerobic exercises as well as several health screenings and Body Mass Index (BMI) assessments. For more information.

2. Chabot Events: Tai Chi Saturday, Harps in the Moonlight & a Lunar Eclipse The Dragon Skies Exhibit continues at Chabot Science Center with its beautiful display of ancient Chinese Emperor’s Astronomical instruments. I am working with local businesses to help send Oakland classes to see the exhibit. Sending one class of students ranges from $120 to $180. If you can help, please contact me.

· This Saturday Laurel’s Zhi Dao Guan Taoist Center, 3824 MacArthur Blvd, will be performing Tai Chi at the Chabot Rotunda at noon and at 2 pm.

· East meets West on Saturday, October 16, 8 pm when you can hear some of the world's most beautiful harp music while a specially created planetarium show swirls above you. Features master harpist Cui Junzhi on the Chinese "Konghou" harp and "Twin Harps" duo Diana Stork and Cheryl Ann Fulton playing on pairs of matching medieval and Celtic harps. For ticket information: www.chabotspace.org or 510/336-7373.

· Join a Lunar Eclipse Party, Wednesday, October 27, 7:45 - 10:45 pm. Admission includes access to all of the exhibits, hands-on activities and telescope viewing. You can also learn about the history and lore of lunar eclipses in a lecture given by our resident expert, Ryan Diduck.

Moon over Chabot

3. Bird Count & the Fall Migration: This Sunday, October 10, the birding contingent of Friends of Sausal Creek will do their fall migration census of birds in the watershed. The wintering birds have returned and some migrants are still passing through so it should be a good time to view our neighbors. The group will meet at Sequoia Arena parking area right near the Chabot Space and Science Center entrance at 8:30 am, bring binoculars if you have them. New observers are always welcome.

4. Wine & Jazz Festival in Montclair, Sunday, October 10, Noon- 6 pm: Richard Cowan and I will be staffing a booth at the festival. Come by and pick up a survey for Joaquin Miller Park or other city information. Come taste the wine, listen to live jazz, see cooking demonstrations, stroll and shop the Montclair Village Association’s street fair, and entertain the kids. For details, go to www.montclairvillage.com

Jean, Sue & Richard at last year’s festival

5. Out in Oakland, Sunday, October 10, 3 pm- 7 pm: This Sunday I will also join my colleague Danny Wan who is hosting a Coming Out in Oakland festival, at the Lake Merritt Parkway District, Athol Plaza, 18th Street at Lakeshore Avenue. Free Admission and Free Event Parking at the Henry J. Kaiser Events Center (10 Tenth Street) with convenient shuttle service to the Out In Oakland! event site. For map and more information on performers and parking locations. Bring a chair or blanket to sit on and enjoy the music.

6. Join Us for a Lunch Time Forum on Domestic Violence & Sexual Exploitation of Teens in Oakland: Break the Silence, October 20, 11:30 am-1:30 pm, City Hall

I will be hosting a panel of extraordinary women who are working at all levels to end domestic violence and the sexual exploitation of youth in this city. Leaflet. This month is Domestic Violence month and even though I have worked on this issue for some time, these statistics still made me pause:

• Domestic Violence Affects 31% of the nation’s female population
• Domestic violence is the single largest cause of injury to women aged 15 to 44 in the U.S., more than muggings, car accidents, and rapes combined
• 2,328 cases of Domestic Violence were reported to the Oakland Police in 2003, nationally only a small percentage of cases are reported
• Violent offenders are 4 x more likely to grow up in homes where they have seen violence, most runaways are from violent homes
• In Oakland alone, there are 218 sexually exploited youth known to Police
• 1 out of 3 teens on the street will be lured toward prostitution within 48 hours

7. County-wide Needs Assessment from Alameda County Area Agency on Aging: The Alameda County Area Agency on Aging is in the midst of conducting its county-wide needs assessment.  The assessment process is made up of three parts; Senior Needs Survey, Focus Groups and Key Informant Interviews. If you are over 55 years of age or know of someone who is, you can download a copy of the Survey from our website. The Area Agency on Aging wants to hear from as many seniors as possible.  The results of the survey help the Area Agency on Aging make funding determinations in their upcoming RFP process.  The more they know about Senior's needs, the better able they are to target funding and service. The survey is also available in Spanish, Chinese, Tagalog and Farsi. Let us know if you need these languages or call (510) 577-1970.

8. Local Input Needed as We Launch Joaquin Miller Park Master Planning Process: We hope that anyone who has used the park will consider filling out the survey to help us gather information about what people would like to see in the park, and some of the issues that need to be addressed. If you log on to my web site (www.jeanquan.org) you can download the document, or you can stop by during our office hours to pick up a copy. We plan to hold several workshops in January to digest this information, develop a vision for the park and set priorities. Please let Sue Piper in my office know if you would like to attend the workshops. She may be reached at spiper@oaklandnet.com at 238-7042.

9. High School Student Sought for Commissioner Position: We are looking for a high school student to serve on the Oakland Fund for Children and Youth Programs Commission. This student will join a panel of adults and students from each Council District to decide which youth programs the City of Oakland should fund. This requires 4-6 hours per month. Interested students should send a letter explaining why they want to serve and why they would do a good job to me by Thursday of next week, October 14^th. A student scholarship up to $900 may be available based on participation.

10. School holds its Annual Harvest Festival on Saturday, October 30 from 9 a.m. to 2 p.m. You can purchase pumpkins from the Dad’s Club, or have the 5^th graders wash your car. There will be face painting, pumpkin carving contest, PTO Bake Sale and more. Sequoia Elementary is located at 3730 Lincoln Avenue.

11. Thank You Sequoia: Many thanks to 5^th grade Sequoia Elementary teacher Sonny Kim and the staff, students and parents at Sequoia Elementary School for making this past Tuesday’s Walk Your Child to School Day so memorable. The kids—all decked out with their signs and hats—definitely made an impression on the hundreds of commuters driving up and down Lincoln Avenue. Our office co-sponsored the event with Supervisor Nate Miley. Motorcycle officers from the Oakland Police Department were on hand to hand-out more memorable reminders to any one speeding—we hope all drivers got the message and will remember the kids!

FOR ADDITIONAL INFORMATION PLEASE VISIT

JEAN QUAN

Council Member, District 4

City Hall, 1 Frank Ogawa Plaza

Oakland, CA 94612

510 238-7004, 986-2765 fax

www.jeanquan.org