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RIVERSIDE, CA- (EMPIRE NEWS NETWORK (ENN)- Balancing school, work and personal issues is a struggle for many of the participants of CCAEJ’s Emerging Young Leaders program.

This is why several participants underwent several presentations from community leaders regarding the importance of mental health on Saturday, May 5.

“Finding stability in your life can be difficult, but it’s essential to have boundaries of what you can and can’t do,” explained Italia Garcia, CCAEJ’s director of Civic Engagement.

“Be forgiving of yourself and create a work environment that aligns with your needs,” she said. “All of this gets real. It’s important to learn to succeed, despite having some dark clouds in your life.”

On Friday, May 11, the Young Emerging Leaders met with Congressman Mark Takano (D-Riverside), Assemblymembers Sabrina Cervantes (D-Eastvale) and Jose Medina (D-Riverside) and Riverside Councilman Jim Perry to discuss local issues and receive insight on college and career readiness. 

The Emerging Young Leaders program will conclude with a graduation ceremony on Saturday, May 19. The ceremony will begin at 12 p.m. and will be held at their headquarters located at 3840 Sunnyhill Drive in Jurupa Valley.

Daz Patterson

SAN BERNARDINO, CA- (EMPIRE NEWS NETWORK (ENN)- On Saturday, May 12 at 6 p.m., the Patterson Non-Profit Organization (PNP) is premièring the movie, “Look, I’M Still Here”. This is a red-carpet affair at the Sturges Theatre located at 780 N. E Street in San Bernardino.

The movie is based on a true story of a young girl who had to fight for everything and those fights have continued into her adult life. She learned early in life to depend on God’s grace and mercy.

Daz Patterson shares her story of determination, tenaciousness, surviving cancer four times all without ever considering giving up.

The movie has a tremendous and multitalented cast which include: Sid Burston, Nei-Ce Knight, Susan Lewis, Sebrenia Burt, Bobby Bryant, Linda Davis, Raheem Mitchell, Erica Brown, Anita McZeal, Sharon Hardin, Myron Hester, Michelle Patterson-Peters, Daz Patterson, and a host of supporting cast.

For more information please call (909) 874-3411 or (909) 418-7619. You can also go to Eventbrite.com and search for “Look, I’M Still Here.”

Child Care Provider Explains the Importance of Healthy Environments in Early Child Care

By Ronneisha Davis-Lewis

Ronneisha Davis-Lewis

(EMPIRE NEWS NETWORK (ENN)- In South Los Angeles, healthy food options are scarce and fast food is far more accessible than fresh fruits and vegetables. As a child care provider at South Los Angeles’ Moore’s Daycare Preparatory School, Inc., I have an opportunity to make a positive impact on the lives of the children who are in my care. It’s important for me that they have an environment complete with healthy foods, opportunity for physical activity and limited time in front of a screen. Parents, who often times work long hours, trust me to provide the healthiest environment available for their children.

And they are not alone.

In Los Angeles County, 50 percent of children 0 to 5-years old spend at least part of their day in child care. They will carry some of the habits they develop in child care throughout life. It is critical to invest in our children’s health via introducing and reinforcing healthy lifestyle choices when they are young. This will reverse some of the poor health trends current youth and adults are experiencing, such as higher obesity rates, increased incidence of diabetes and dental disease.

And meal time is a great opportunity to start.  Many childcare providers like to use meals and snacks to incorporate healthy eating habits, as well as introduce kids to new foods, learn new words, and discover how to share with others. By introducing kids to healthier options, they learn to eat nutritious meals and snacks at a young age, which provides a platform for healthier eating as they mature. Food can be a source to strengthen a community’s health and wellness. By providing and introducing healthier food options, I know it will increase the likelihood these kids will become healthier adults.

Yet, there is more to building a healthier lifestyle than healthier food.  We also need to provide opportunities and space for kids to be more active.  

This investment will allow early childcare providers to purchase items such as tricycles and safe climbing equipment for age appropriate physical activities. We would also invest in resources that allow parents to know how much time their children spend engaged in these healthy habits. For example, a checklist board that shows how many vegetables the children ate that day, how much time they spent playing outside, and how much time they spent watching TV.  This is a tool that would allow the children to help track their engagement, while allowing the parents to see the improvements this investment helped create.

Our community has an opportunity to invest in our children’s future, which in the end is an investment back into our community.  Supporting an increase in funding for family child care homes would allow me and other providers to better incorporate nutrition standards and provide even healthier food options to the young children we look after. These resources would also allow those in low-income communities the opportunity to implement and provide even healthier standards and more access to fresher, healthy food.

Get involved in our campaign to increase state funding that will help child care providers such as me create even healthier environments for our children – yours and mine.  To participate in this campaign, go to http://www.heart.org/HealthyECE. You can also use the hashtags #EarlyCareHealthyHabits and #ECE on social media posts.

SAN BERNARDINO, CA- (EMPIRE NEWS NETWORK (ENN)- The San Bernardino County Department of Behavioral Health (DBH) is partnering with faith-based organizations and community groups to provide no-cost mental health training designed to equip participants on how to identify, understand and respond to signs of mental illnesses and substance use disorders.

Since July 2015, DBH has conducted over 27 Mental Health First Aid (MHFA) trainings for over 500 individuals ranging in age from 16 to 81. The 8-hour training provides participants with the skills to reach out and provide initial help and support to someone who may be developing a mental health or substance use problem or experiencing a crisis. According to the National Council for Behavioral Health, as of May 21, 2017, 1 million people nationwide have been trained in MHFA including former First Lady Michelle Obama, Patrick Kennedy, Dr. Oz and Lady Gaga.

Throughout San Bernardino County, DBH has provided MHFA trainings for the San Bernardino County Unified School District, the University of Redlands and students from Bloomington High School, California State University San Bernardino and Copper Mountain College. DBH has also trained county partners from the Housing Authority, Aging and Adult Services and the Transitional Assistance Department.

Churches who have hosted a MHFA Training include: Way World Outreach, First Baptist Church of Redlands, Congregation Emanu El, The Gate, First Assembly of God-Victorville and Mt. Zion Church of Ontario.

Jeffery and and LaDonya Milner began a mental health ministry at Mt. Zion Church of Ontario three years ago and to date, have held six MHFA trainings for over 100 people.

“Our goal is to educate people, reduce stigma and serve the community,” LaDonya stated. “The training is so helpful and has been well received by the attendees. We have an 87-year old church member who has never missed a training! The Lord has blessed this ministry!” 

“DBH applauds the hundreds of individuals throughout the County who’ve completed MHFA training,” DBH Director, Veronica Kelley, said. “DBH is proud to offer this training at no-cost to the community, made possible through funding provided by the Mental Health Services Act (MHSA).” 

The MHSA was passed by California voters in November 2014 and is funded by a 1 percent tax surcharge on personal income over $1 million per year. 

For more information on MHFA training, call (909) 388-0884 (7-1-1- for TTY users) or visit www.sbcounty.gov/dbh. 

YUCAPIA, CA- (EMPIRE NEWS NETWORK (ENN)- Inland Leaders Charter School in Yucaipa, California is taking a proactive approach to creating a positive school culture and preventing bullying behavior. For the second year now, teachers and staff members have organized an event they call “GOLD night,” the acronym stands for, ‘Girls Overnight for Leadership and Discovery’. The event provides an intensive and fun overnight workshop for the 6th-grade students who will be transitioning to the school’s middle school program in the fall.

The program was inspired by a need to equip the students with the skills to overcome social and emotional challenges which girls tend to face as they enter their teen years; the kinds of challenges, the teachers observed, that often breed negativity among peers. The event was fully funded and sponsored by the Inland Leaders Charter School Board. Products and services were sponsored by community partners: Parakaleo Crossfit, Jazzercise, Bic Bands, Ocampo’s Mexican Restaurant, Hair stylist, Shannon McVey and Registered Dietitian Nutritionist, Alyson Foote.

Workshops addressed relevant issues such as body image, conflict resolution, social media pitfalls, personal empowerment, and kindness. The students were also treated to nutritious late-night snacks and valuable information about health and nutrition. Wearing T-shirts which proclaimed, “Strong women LIFT each other up,” the student’s expressed appreciation for the event; one stating, “It is really amazing how we learned to connect with ourselves.I feel better prepared for middle school. I loved GOLD night; you should do this every year!”

A middle school teacher reflects, “It’s extraordinarily valuable for us teachers to be establishing a dialogue and connection with our girls regarding the social issues that impact our students and our school culture. I’m extremely grateful to be working with the caring and dedicated women on our faculty who came up with the idea for this event, and for the commitment of many others which brought it to fruition.”

The “GOLD night” program has been so successful that a “BOLD night” has been created for the school’s 6th-grade boys this year as well. The public charter school’s administration and staff are excited to see how these events will foster stronger leadership through empathy and positivity on the ILCS campus.

What is Inland Leaders?

We are a kindergarten (including TK) through 8th-grade public charter school dedicated to creating leaders for the 21st century. Learn more at www.InlandLeaders.com.

Dr. Margaret Pleasant Douroux

SAN BERNARDINO, CA- (EMPIRE NEWS NETWORK (ENN)- Dr. Margaret Pleasant Douroux, an internationally acclaimed and award-winning Gospel songwriter, will be the guest speaker at Temple MB Church for their Mother’s Day Service.  Dr. Douroux’s songs include “Give Me a Clean Heart” and “If It Has Not Been for the Lord on My Side.” Our service will begin at 10:30am, Sunday May 13, 2018. Come out and be blessed! Please invite your family and friends. Temple’s address is 1583 W. Union St. San Bernardino, CA. The church office number is (909) 888-2038. Raymond W. Turner, Senior Pastor

Donisha Prendergast, Granddaughter of the late Bob Marley, is taking legal action against Rialto Police Department for Burglary Accusation

RIALTO, CA- (EMPIRE NEWS NETWORK (ENN)- Just weeks ago was the Kaya Reggae Fest, which took place at the National Orange Show Events Center in San Bernardino. Donisha Prendergast, 33, was in attendance. She is the granddaughter of the late Bob Marley and daughter of the Melody Makers’ member/dancer, Sharon Marley. Prendergast is suing the Rialto Police Department after false burglary accusation.

Prendergast has secured an Air BnB for herself and three friends, who were also Black, but while they were leaving the property for check-out, Prendergast says that they were greeted by four officers who were responding to a call from a neighbor on Neighborhood Watch about a burglary.

Prendergast captured the event that took place on film, which was posted to her Instagram page. She also called the property owner to explain what was going on.

Film director Kells Fyffe-Marshall who was also present detailed what happened in a Facebook post she uploaded last Tuesday.

She stated, “As you can see 3 of us were Black. About 10 seconds later we were surrounded by seven cop cars. The officers came out of their cars demanding us to put our hands in the air. They informed us that there was also a helicopter tracking us. They locked down the neighborhood and had us standing in the street. Why? A neighbor across the street saw three Black people packing luggage into their car and assumed we were stealing from the house. She then called the police. At first we joked about the misunderstanding and took photos and videos along the way.”

Not only was the group held up after checking out, but they were then detained at the airport.

“They were detained long enough to figure out if that was true [that they were renting an Airbnb],” Harden says. “They were allowed to move about [during the detention] and they filmed the whole thing… The officers figured out pretty quickly that this was probably an incident where they were renting a room, but they had to make sure.”

According to Prendergast’s legal team, they planned to announce an update on the lawsuit Wednesday, May 9. Rialto Police Department received notice on Monday, May 7 that there was “pending legal action,” although it was unsure of what action was being taken. 

My hand was made strong, by the hands of the Almighty. None of them can stop the time. We won’t stand aside and look. We are greater than they wanted us to believe. #belove #buildcomeunity #mightcannotdefeatright #eachoneteachone #standuplove #emancipateyourself #wehavetherighttoberight

A post shared by Donisha Prendergast (@iamdonisha) on Apr 30, 2018 at 2:52pm PDT

SAN BERNARDINO, CA- (EMPIRE NEWS NETWORK (ENN)- San Bernardino Valley College will host the 7th Annual Inland Empire Media Academy (IEMA) Student Film Festival from Friday, May 4 to Sunday, May 6. This weekend-long event is an opportunity for high school, community college, and university students to present their films and videos to a wider audience. Members of the campus and community are invited to enjoy the film screenings, guest speakers, and food vendors at this free event.

The event kicks off Friday, May 4 at 6 p.m. with a special discussion featuring Lalo Alcaraz, an acclaimed cartoonist who contributed to the Disney-Pixar hit “Coco.” This lecture will be followed by a screening of the film “Coco,” which will also be free and open to the public. 

Saturday’s activities include a university transfer fair, a media vendor fair, and more industry guest speakers, including H. Lee Peterson, whose credits include being an assistant editor for “The Little Mermaid” and lead film editor for “Aladdin,” “Pocahontas,” and more. 

Throughout the weekend, screenings of student-created films will take place in the Library Viewing Room on the SBVC campus. These films were submitted by local high school, community college, and university students, and were selected from numerous submissions by a film festival committee. From horror and suspense to action and drama, these films vary in genre and provide a rich pallet of unique concepts and perspectives. The goal of the film screening is to bring together a community of filmmakers who share the common goal of education and artistic expression.

The event culminates on Sunday with the awarding of prizes to participating filmmakers, including awards for best direction, actor and actress, cinematography, writing, editing, and more. Awards will be decided by a jury of industry professionals, and will be given to enhance student films by supplying added financial backing to their projects. These prizes, which vary from camera equipment to a cash award, are intended to decrease the financial burdens for students who are creating films while going to school. 

The IEMA Student Film Festival will give talented students a sound board from which to be heard and motivate them to further delve into their creative craft. Entry is open to the public and free of charge.

For more information on the event, participants, and films, visit www.valleycollege.edu/iema.

By Manny Otiko

(EMPIRE NEWS NETWORK (ENN)- I hate to admit it, but I have been sucked into the Kanye West-Donald Trump media storm. At first, I didn’t want to play a role in this manufactured event, but there are some important marketing, media and political lessons here.

West has always been a controversial figure. He’s a talented musician, who has won multiple Grammys. I bought two of his first CDs, back in the days when people bought CDs, and I enjoyed that his songs were different from the usual guns and blunts fare produced by other rappers. But in recent years, controversy has overwhelmed his talent.

There was the thing with Taylor Swift, the outrageous boasts and then the marriage to reality star Kim Kardashian. Several people in the industry have whispered that Kardashian’s reality TV antics are overshadowing West’s career and he has now been absorbed by the Kardashian clan. And more recently, West was hospitalized for “exhaustion” and rumored to be treated for a mental health condition. Now there is the sudden alliance with the Trump-MAGA crowd.  

This MAGA love happened just when West is promoting his new album. West comes from the showbiz world, where there’s no such thing as bad publicity. (Rapper 50 Cent once said that he didn’t mind some of the black gossip sites running stories about him being gay, because at least they were writing about him.)

West’s alleged alliance with Trump has news jacked social media and made him trend on Twitter, which is all great publicity for his album. This kind of publicity would cost you millions of dollars, and West just got it for free.

There is a history of people using outrageous antics to market their product. Madonna practically perfected it. I’ve never heard a song by rapper Azealia Banks, but her history of making crazy statements landed her in Playboy.

But there is a danger that West’s antics will alienate his base. And that’s already happening. He’s already lost millions of Twitter followers. And West has been hit by abuse on Twitter as fans are horrified by his comments. He might be embraced by MAGA lords, but they’re not going to buy his album or go to his concerts.

Part of the problem is because he’s allying himself with the Trump administration, which is one of the whitest supremacist presidencies in several decades. As ESPN’s Jemele Hill said, Trump has surrounded himself with open racists. He’s also implemented anti-immigrant, and anti-Muslim policies and referred to African countries as “sh*thole countries.” Even the phrase Make America Great Again (MAGA) is racist, because Trump supporters think America was great in the 1950s, when white males ran everything, and people of color had no representation.

Is this what West wants to ally himself with? If so, it’s no wonder his fans and management team have bailed on him.  It’s also ironic that West is getting praised by FOX News, a network that hates hip hop. FOX often tells entertainers that they shouldn’t talk about politics but loves to embrace Hollywood types if they have conservative views.

One of FOX’s arguments against Hollywood political commentators is they don’t know what they’re talking about. Well, that’s exactly the case with Kanye West! Just look at some of his statements:

• Kanye says he loves Trump and he is his brother, but he’s not political.
• He also once said that he doesn’t see the need to read books and bragged about not reading contracts.
• He also praised black conservative commentator Candace Owens, who said that police violence wasn’t a problem with the black community. She also called Black Lives Matter whiny. Owens appears on Alex Jones’ conspiracy show, Info Wars, which should be enough to kill her credibility. Jones has spent years denying that the Sandy Hook school shooting existed until he was sued by the parents of the children killed at the school.

African-Americans turning against West isn’t about group think. People are not rejecting him because he’s dallying with Republicans. They’re turning against him because he’s allying with racists and he doesn’t know what he’s talking about. It’s not about left or right, it’s about right or wrong.

But good luck to Republicans with their embrace of Kanye. He’s a loose cannon and when he explodes again, it’s going to be your problem.

Manny Otiko is a media professional who is based in Southern California. Follow him @mannyotiko on Twitter. This column represents the views of the author, not California Black Media.

LOMA LINDA, CA- (EMPIRE NEWS NETWORK (ENN)- Loma Linda University Children’s Hospital (LLUCH) patients were treated to a visit by Billboard’s country chart-topper Kane Brown on Monday, April 30. The 24-year-old stopped by several of the LLUCH units to meet with and encourage patients. 

He started out in the LLUCH Toyota Learning Center, playing games with patients and sharing stories with some students about his struggles in school, encouraging them to keep trying no matter their situation.

Brown then visited some of the LLUCH units, taking photos with excited fans, playing games with patients and sharing parts of his story.

LLUCH patient Jennifer Nguyen, 5, from Moreno Valley, was just one child who was excited to meet and talk with Brown. When Brown came into the room, Nguyen insisted on getting up out of bed, and couldn’t stop smiling as Brown talked with her about what made her happy. They ended the visit with a hug.

Brown’s visit was made possible by Inland Empire-based country radio station K-FROG 95.1 FM, which has a long-standing relationship with the hospital.

LLUCH Foundation representative, Tiffany Hoekstra, said she was grateful to K-FROG and Brown for making the day for patients and their families.