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On April 15, KRCB TV 22 will present Invisible Bars , about new California programs that take into account the damage done to families in the age of runaway incarceration. Filmmaker John Beck came to our studios with Fred Stillman, who served more than two decades in California prisons for murder. and his daughter Jessica – one of his seven children – who works in Santa Rosa. Jessica started visiting her dad in prison at age 9 – she’s now in her early 30s. Her visits used to be behind glass...

Association of Social Adversity with Comorbid Diabetes and Depression Symptoms in the Hispanic Community Health Study/Study of Latinos Sociocultural Ancillary Study: A Syndemic Framework. McCurley JL, Gutierrez AP, Bravin JI, Schneiderman N, Reina SA, Khambaty T, Castañeda SF, Smoller S, Daviglus ML, O'Brien MJ, Carnethon MR, Isasi CR, Perreira KM, Talavera GA, Yang M, Gallo LC. Ann Behav Med . 2019 Apr 5. pii: kaz009. doi: 10.1093/abm/kaz009. [Epub ahead of print] PMID:30951585 Similar...

Many of you were probably very intrigued by ACEs Connection member Roger Kluck's posts about a successful answer to ACEs. (Take a look at his posts, linked below.) I just got back from an amazing Alternatives to Violence Project workshop in Folsom Prison. The inmate participants found the workshop to be life changing. You can join a community AVP basic workshop this coming weekend in Santa Rosa and experience the changes in your life. Register soon! This opportunity might not come around...

I recently read that, “According to a [2007] report by the A.C. Nielsen Company, parents spend only 39 minutes per week in meaningful conversation with their children.” Yikes. That’s less time than it takes me to watch one meaningful episode of This Is Us. Although the report is over 10 years old, I wouldn’t be surprised if this statistic were worse now, given the exponential growth in use of smartphones and social media within the last decade. It makes me wonder how many minutes of...

First District Supervisor Susan Gorin invites community members to apply for positions on local policy making bodies. Applications and a list of all boards, commissions and committees to which the Sonoma County Board of Supervisors appoints members is available online at sonomacounty.ca.gov/Board-of-Supervisors/Boards--Commissions--Committees/Boards-Commissions-Committees-and-Task-Forces/. Click HERE to access website. The “vacancy” list on the site shows available opportunities for...

This workshop includes DACA Renewals and Citizenship Applications. Appointments are required. Please call (415) 534-5878 to set up an appointment. WEDNESDAY, MARCH 27, 2019 FROM 3:00 PM - 7:00 PM ROHNERT PARK (*LOCATION WILL BE GIVEN WHEN APPOINTMENT IS MADE) To learn more, click HERE Or visit sonomacountysecurefamilies.org/ See attached for printable flyers in English and Spanish.

The Sonoma chapter of Speedway Children’s Charities is accepting grant applications from Sonoma County nonprofit youth groups for its 2019 grant cycle. According to a press announcement from Speedway, qualified grant applicants must be youth-focused nonprofit groups serving Sonoma County. To focus efforts on Sonoma County youth in need, say Speedway officials, priority will be given to programs that concentrate on education, financial hardship, literacy, medical needs, nutrition, social...

At a Spanish language poetry reading that Emilie Thomas organized in Petaluma recently, a woman proudly read a work by Pablo Neruda, who is from her native Chile. Afterward, the woman told Thomas that she has lived in Petaluma for 25 years, and no one has ever shown interest in her homeland. “She said, ‘This is what I have been craving,’” Thomas said. “Our Latino friends, they light up when you value them for who they are.” The exchange encapsulated the purpose of Cafe Puente, a new...

For the first time, a California governor has created a position in his office focused on early education. Gov. Gavin Newsom appointed Giannina Pérez as his Senior Policy Advisor for Early Childhood. Peréz previously worked for Early Edge California and Children Now, both well-known children’s advocacy organizations. As an advocate, she worked to expand training for preschool teachers and child care providers to better support children who speak languages other than English at home. She also...

We're back!! Join us for Policymaker Education Day 2019 on MAY 1!

Shortly after Jessica Stillman celebrated her ninth birthday in the mid-’90s, her father went to prison. She has spent much of her life after that just trying to get close to him. Her story is at the center of “Invisible Bars,” a new documentary by Benicia filmmaker John Beck about the children of incarcerated parents, airing Tuesday through Thursda y on KQED-TV in San Francisco and April 15 on KRCB-TV in Rohnert Park. The film follows Jessica behind bars for a rare sit-down interview with...

Now that the floodwaters have receded, a new challenge faces one of the largest providers of health care services along the Russian River. West County Health Centers, which operates clinics in Guerneville, Occidental, Sebastopol and Forestville, is helping its patients recover from the physical and mental toll left by the region’s worst flood in two decades. The clinic in Guerneville suffered $200,000 in missed appointments, a damaged furnace and cleanup costs, said Jennifer Neeley,...