Dear Friends
December 2021

From the EBALDC Family to Yours

What excites you about working at EBALDC? The EBALDC Family came together recently for the first time in over two years. With nearly 50 new employees, the excitement to see each other again or meet for the first time was palpable. We are a family, and above all, we are community members who, every day, work towards our vision of an East Bay where everyone has the opportunity to thrive. As we close out 2021, we want to thank each of you for sharing in our vision. We have much work... Read more
Dear Friends
December 2021

How SparkPoint Oakland Changes Lives

Let’s talk money! Fun fact #1: EBALDC has been providing financial services to our residents and community members for nearly 20 years! Fun fact #2: EBALDC, through our volunteer network, has distributed $25 MILLION back to the community since 2003, when we opened our first Volunteer Income Tax Assistance (VITA) program. In 2018, EBALDC was named a National VITA Savings Champion Site for promoting savings at tax time. Fun fact #3:  Along with the United Way Bay Area, EBALDC opened its first financial services center – SparkPoint – in 2009. There are now... Read more
Dear Friends
November 2021

EBALDC’s 2020 – 2021 Impact Report

Dear Friends, We are proud to present the East Bay Asian Local Development Corporation’s 2020 – 2021 Impact Report – in a new, dynamic online format. The year 2020 was extremely traumatic for our community, our country, and the world as we faced multiple crises – an attempted insurrection that shook our belief in a shared institutional democracy; the continuing impacts of a pandemic caused by the COVID-19 virus; a racial reckoning – sparked by the murder of George Floyd and so many other Black Americans under the color of law; and... Read more
Dear Friends
November 2021

Preserving Affordable Housing. Keeping Families Housed.

As part of our vision for an East Bay where everyone has a place to call home, EBALDC launched the Housing Acquisition Fund (HAF) in 2015. HAF is designed to preserve and expand quality affordable housing for low- and moderate-income families and individuals in the East Bay. One of those properties is Highland Palms. Highland Palms was purchased in 2017 with support from The San Francisco Foundation, NeighborWorks Capital and Community Housing Capital, and later refinanced with Enterprise Community Loan Fund, the City of Oakland, and First Republic Bank. In June,... Read more
Dear Friends
January 2021

EBALDC Announces New CEO Andy Madeira

Dear Friends, We are pleased to announce the appointment of Andre “Andy” H. Madeira as our new Chief Executive Officer. Andy’s selection concludes a months-long and nationwide search for a leader to take the helm of EBALDC and guide the next phase of the organization’s work in shaping healthy neighborhoods through our innovative approach to community development. He will assume the position of CEO on March 1, 2021. Andy brings to EBALDC a range of personal and professional experiences that, along with our existing leadership team, and the dedication and creativity of our staff, residents, and other community partners,... Read more
Dear Friends
September 2020

Announcing Charise Fong as EBALDC Interim CEO

Dear Friends, As we reflect on the extraordinary challenges our communities and our staff have faced this year, we are humbled by the impact that we have been able to achieve together.  During this critical time for our organization and our communities, we have spoken at length about the strength, creativity and perseverance of EBALDC’s team at all levels. From our office staff and building maintenance teams, to the Board and the Executive Leadership Team and beyond, it is our people that make this impact possible.  Charise Fong, COO and executive... Read more
Dear Friends
August 2020

It Takes A Village

Dear Friends, This Monday, August 10 is the first day of school for Oakland Unified School District students. For over 6 months now, school administrators, educators, parents, and caregivers have been struggling with how to balance our children’s need for quality education and socialization with the risks of COVID-19. For low-income, immigrant, and other underserved communities, these decisions are further exacerbated by the lack of access to technology, healthcare, food, and other resources, as well as language barriers. At EBALDC, we understand that providing quality affordable housing is just a start. Programs... Read more
Dear Friends
July 2020

We keep each other safe and healthy

Dear Friends, Out of respect for our neighbors, please wear a mask. It’s been over 110 days since Alameda County Public Health Officials ordered the Bay Area to shelter-in-place. With warmer weather, a holiday weekend coming up, and some businesses starting to reopen, many of us are eager to return to some semblance of normal. However, the pandemic is not over. In fact, the numbers in California are growing rapidly. The most devastating effects of the pandemic are on the low-income communities of color that we serve– Many are hourly workers for essential businesses that we... Read more
Dear Friends
June 2020

We are all part of one another

Dear Friends, Last Friday was Juneteenth, the celebration of African American emancipation from slavery. Next week, the 4th of July will be another national celebration of freedom — our country’s independence from Great Britain. But with the looming asterisk of freedom for whom? In fact, Independence Day in 1776 was limited to white males. As Frederick Douglas described it, “What, to the American slave, is your Fourth of July? I answer: a day that reveals to him, more than all other days in the year, the gross injustice and cruelty to... Read more
Press Releases
June 2020

East Bay Asian Local Development Corporation’s CEO Joshua Simon to Step Down from Organization After Nearly 20 Years in Leadership

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE June 10, 2020 Press Contacts:  Layla Crater, layla@change-llc.com, 310-804-3107 Jill Kunishima, jkunishima@ebaldc.org, 510-606-1823 OAKLAND, CA — As part of a defined succession plan, East Bay Asian Local Development Corporation (EBALDC) today announced that Joshua Simon will step down from the position of Chief Executive Officer in October 2020 after spending nearly two decades as a champion for EBALDC’s unique approach to community development. EBALDC’s Board of Directors will launch a selection committee to identify EBALDC’s next CEO. “Joshua Simon’s innovative and bold leadership has propelled EBALDC’s vision of... Read more
News
June 2020

Mickey’s Story: From Laney College to Financial Wellness

I was recently laid off due to COVID-19, which has made me doubly grateful that I happened to stumble across the Sparkpointprogram through one of my classes at Laney College. Prior to participating in SparkPoint Oakland, I knew that financial coaching programs existed. However, I never knew how to find them, or whether or not I would qualify or be able to afford them, and I never thought they would be as extensive as the help I’ve received through SparkPoint Oakland. I initially thought the SparkPoint Oakland matched savings account program,... Read more