Faith Presbyterian Celebrates 63rdAnniversary

Guest Preacher Cecil Williams, Jr. with his wife April and daughter Yanna.

By Barbara Fluhrer

Following a Saturday Prayer Breakfast with “food so good it made you want to holler,” according to Pastor Rev. Frank Jackson, the congregation at Faith Presbyterian Church gathered last Sunday morning for 63rd Anniversary worship celebration, “As God’s Light Shines, Let’s Refine in ‘09”.
“Faith was the first Black   Presbyterian church in Northern California,” Pianist Torrey Hill told members.
Faith Presbyterian is located at 430 49th St. in Oakland.
Musical offerings included “Give Me a Clean Heart” by Soprano Peggy Shearron and a liturgical dance by Rachel Jackson and Remi Rucker, owners of “Destined 2 Dance.” Professional Bass player Terry Hilliard gave strong accompaniment to the morning worship service joined by guitarist Darnell Pipkin and James Willoughby on drums.

Mary Franklin, elder and usher at Faith for 24 years.

Guest preacher Rev. Cecil Williams Jr., associate minister at F.A.M.E. Oakland, delivered the word, “I’m Not Tired Yet.”  He compared Jericho to the “war in Oakland, right outside your front door.”
“Tragedies happen every day on some level here in Oakland,” he said, pointing out that  “between 73rd and 98th, along MacArthur, there must be 15 churches.”
Referring to the recent killing of Oakland police officers, he questioned how a young man could have slipped through the cracks.
“He began dying 13 years before the bullets, when he dropped out of school,” Williams said, asking, “What has happened to Sunday morning?”
He remembered what a different morning it used to, how everything used to stop on Sunday. and the Black church was the place you could go to get relief from the week’s pressures.
Williams took the church to task. “Who are we to reject people?  Jesus took them in!” He stated.

Youth Radio Photographer Ayesha Walker : UCLA and Egypt Bound

From left to Right: Trina Barton - Mayor Staff, Ceirra Williams - KEDS Organization, Ayesha Walker, Patti Trainer - Community Charities, Marisol Lopez - Mayor Staff.

By Tasion
Kwamilele

For Ayesha Walker, a native of Richmond, CA, this is starting out to be a very good year.
Walker, 21, was recently accepted at UCLA, where she start in the  fall as a major in world arts and cultures.  Could there be anything greater?
How about a trip to Egypt?
On May 28, Walker will embark on a 19-day excursion to Egypt. She will fly to JFK airport in New York and then board an 18-hour flight that will take her to the motherland.
“I am very excited, but I don’t believe it will hit me until I am actually there,” she said.
A graduate of El Cerrito High School in 2006, she has been attending Contra Costa College and last year took a picture with  Barack Obama at the San Francisco’s Women’s Building.
The trip to Egypt began when her passion for photography brought her attention to an advertisement for individuals interested in traveling to the country on a photojournalism assignment.
Taken aback by the cost, $5,000, she hesitated but was not discouraged. She made up in her mind that she was going to go and began to do everything possible to raise the funds.
“My mother is my biggest support. My father passed away when I was younger, and my grandmother died last year. So only able to depend on my mother, I’ve always felt like my support system was minimal,” she said.
“But with the outpouring of supporters, I now know I have a huge support system,” Walker explained.
Her favorite number is nine, and this is  2009; maybe this trip was destined, she said. And with all the great opportunities coming her way, Generation neXt agrees and wishes Walker the best.

Celebrating Malcolm X

In honor of the 84th birthday of Malcolm X, May 19, Sylvie Bayeaux and The Malcolm X Theater Project present Michael Lange in a one-man performance re-enacting Malcolm’s “The Ballot or the Bullet” speech.
Michael Lange has made hundreds of appearances nationwide performing speeches of Malcolm X over the last two decades. Lange, an Oakland native, teaches at San Jose State.  He is an accomplished actor, playwright, director, and musician. He is also the son of author and former television personality, Jerri Lange, and brother of actor Ted Lange.
An Oakland performance will take place on Sunday, May 24, 2 p.m., at the Oakland Public Conservatory of Music, 1616 Franklin St.  The cost is $15 or $10 for students and seniors at the door.  Advance tickets are available for $10 at brownpapertickets.com.
A San Francisco performance will take place on Saturday, May 30, 2 p.m., at the Museum of the African Diaspora (MoAD) at 685 Mission St.  The cost is included in the $10 general or $5 student and senior admission to the museum.
For information contact (510) 485-6338.

Black Law Enforcement Honors Muranishi, Grinage and PUEBLO Cited For Leadership

During the National Association of Black Law Enforcement’s (NOBLE) Convention in Oakland last week Alameda County Executive Director Susan Muranishi and Rashidah Grinage representing PUEBLO (People United for a Better Oakland) among others were honored for advancing the betterment of police community relations. Left to right, Susan Muranishi; Ernest Green, First National Vice President , NOBLE, Grover Dye, Chairman of PUEBLO; Rashidah Grinage; and Joseph A. McMillan, National President, NOBLE. Photo by Gene Hazzard.

Schools Receive Federal “Solar Showcase” Grant

Berkeley, Oakland, and West Contra Costa Unified School Districts are receiving up to $500,000 in assistance from the U.S. Department of Energy (DOE) to adopt solar generation technology and develop master plans to speed the installation of solar power in schools across California and the nation.
The DOE Solar America Showcase award is intended to support companies and local government entities that are “highly committed” to adopt solar technology and to accelerate the installation of photovoltaic (PV) panels across the country.
The Sequoia Foundation’s application on behalf of the three school districts detailed a specific effort to evaluate the energy consumption and solar electricity generation potential on all schools and facilities within the districts.
School districts stand to save millions of dollars in energy costs – the result of energy conservation, better energy efficiencies, and renewable energy systems.
During the 18-month grant period, the districts will select one or more schools to become a “showcase” where the most efficient and effective solar arrays will be installed.
“Oakland Unified School District is excited to be a participant in this innovative coalition of school districts,” said OUSD Assistant Superintendent for Facilities Planning and Management Timothy White.
“This grant will provide the type of high level assessment necessary to pave the way for renewable energy systems and energy efficiency improvements throughout the district. We can’t wait to get started,” he said.

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