Happily Divorced And After

If you’ve ever received care at one of the County’s Health Centers such as immunizations, health screenings, physical check-ups or pediatric care for your children you’ll be pleased to know that the county’s health centers passed a thorough federal audit by the Health Resources and Services Administration (HRSA).

San Bernardino County has four Federally Qualified Health Centers located in San Bernardino, Ontario, Hesperia and Adelanto.

The County’s Federally Qualified Health Centers and the Community Health Center’s Governing Board completed their audit the week of April 11, 2022, after a three-month notice was given to the centers to prepare for an audit. The audit is based on over 90 areas of review.

Federally Qualified Health Centers are community-based health care providers that receive funds from the HRSA Health Center Program to provide primary care services in underserved areas. The centers must meet a stringent set of requirements to maintain funding, including providing care on a sliding-fee scale based on ability to pay and operating under a governing board that includes patients. If the requirements are not met, the health centers could potentially lose this financial support and the ability to continue to provide primary care services to the community.

“We are incredibly grateful to Josh Dugas, director of Public Health, Jennifer Osorio, assistant director, the County’s Administrative Office and the Board of Supervisors for their unwavering support,” said Melanie Bird-Livingston, chief of Clinical Health and Prevention Services. “The staff of our health centers remained committed to serving the residents of San Bernardino County, despite the challenges of a pandemic.”

To learn more about San Bernardino County’s health centers and the clinic services available, visit  wp.sbcounty.gov/dph/programs/clinics or call (800) 722-4777.

By Edward Henderson | California Black Media

If you follow social media or if when you’re out in public and count the number of masks being worn, you might conclude that the COVID-19 pandemic is over. People have resumed posting pictures of their summer vacations and family gatherings. Fourth of July celebrations and fireworks shows entertained thousands of uncovered faces across the nation.

But, neither the Center for Disease Control (CDC) or World Health Organization have declared the pandemic has run its course and statistics and death tolls across California tell a distressing story about the indelible mark the pandemic has left on all of us.

A study by collegiate researchers, including representatives from UCLA, recently published in the Journal of the American Medical Association (JAMA) found that during the pandemic Black Californians and other minorities experienced a disproportionate reduction in life expectancy occurred compared to White Californians.

The JAMA study also found that for Californians living in the highest income census tracts versus the lowest, the gap in life expectancies increased from a difference before the pandemic of about 11.5 years to 14.67 years in 2020 and 15.51 years in 2021.

Between 2019 and 2021 the research shows the life expectancy for Black Californians decreased by nearly 3.8 years from 74.8 years to 71. Latinx Californians’ life expectancy fell by nearly 5.7 years from 82.5 years to 76.8 and for Asian Californians the decrease was 3 years, from 86.6 years to 83.5. White Californians life expectancy only decreased 1.9 years from 80.5 to 78.6 years.

“This disparity, much like other racial and ethnic inequities, has roots in the social determinants of health as well as structural barriers resulting from systemic racism that have helped perpetuate disparities for generations,” researchers stated in the study.

The study found that economic factors including the likelihood of Black and Latinx Californians working frontline jobs increased their exposure to the COVID-19 virus coupled with the increased need for them to attend work in person to financially survive the pandemic were possible contributors to the life expectancy decrease.

“Families of lower socioeconomic status are more vulnerable to economic instability and were less likely to access income support programs during the pandemic, raising concerns that the stresses brought on by the pandemic might have widened health gaps related to income and race and ethnicity,” the study reported.

As of July 11, only 68 % of Black Californians have received both doses of the COVID-19 vaccine and only 25 % of Black children in California.

Government supported programs and additional funds allocated in budget for Medi-Cal coverage for undocumented immigrants are a few steps that have been taken to combat some of these disparities.

BlackandVaxxed.org is a California statewide public awareness campaign designed to give the Black community facts and insights necessary to make informed decisions about the COVID-19 vaccine. Created in partnership with the California Department of Health, the organization provides a compilation of workplace safety initiatives and vaccine related information on its website.

Information on how and where to receive Covid-19 vaccinations can be found here.

By Aldon Thomas Stiles | California Black Media

The Saint Paul African Methodist Episcopal Church’s Commission on Social Action held a community meeting on aging last Thursday in San Bernardino with representatives from the California Department of Aging (CDA) and the Bernardino County’s Department of Aging and Adult Services.

Held in the sanctuary, the discussion featured state representatives and Social Action commission members led by former Assemblymember and Commission Chair Cheryl Brown, who represented the 47th Assembly District in San Bernardino County from 2012 to 2016.

Brown spoke with community members and leaders from San Bernardino and Riverside counties about programs and resources available for elderly Californians and the caregivers who look after them.

“The state has set aside millions of dollars to help older Californians have a better quality of life through the master plan on aging. And caregiving is 4th of the 5 goals established in the state’s Master Plan for Aging,” Brown told California Black Media.

CDA Director Susan DeMarois also attended the meeting.

CDA administers programs that serve older adults, adults with disabilities, family caregivers, and residents in long-term care facilities throughout the State.  It has a $450 million dollar budget and according to its Strategic Plan, CDA’s first objective is to advance Gov. Gavin Newsom’s California’s Master Plan for Aging.

Newsom’s “Master Plan for Aging” was introduced as an executive order in the summer of 2019. Conceptualized as a five-point plan, its framework encompasses housing, health, equity, care giving “that works” and affording aging.

According to DeMarois each point of the governor’s master plan has its own budget and will be implemented over the next 8 years.

During the meeting — titled “Lunch, Listen and Learn” — community members expressed their concerns and suggestions specifically regarding to taking care of elderly Black people in the Inland Empire. A major theme of the discussion was ensuring familiar (traditional) modes and channels of communications were being employed to reach Black elders.

Sharon Nevins, director of San Bernardino County’s Department of Aging and Adult Services, spoke about ways in which the county has been involved in addressing those concerns.

“We have staff out there in the community, putting information in hands,” said Nevins.

Nevins emphasized the significance of Black churches and their unique influence on Black elders in California.

“We definitely reach out to the churches. We’ve always done that,” Sharon Nevins

DeMarois hailed San Bernardino as a model for the rest of the state because the city has been “meeting the needs of the whole person.”

According to the Center for Disease Control (CDC), California was tied with Hawaii in 2019 for the states with the nation’s highest life expectancy at an average of about 81 years.

Riverside County has a life expectancy of 80.3 years and San Bernardino county has a lower expectancy at 78.8 years.

Part of the statewide plan for addressing the Black elder community is to partner with ethnic media organizations to spread the word about the resources that are available to Californians in the advanced phase of their aging process.

DeMarois, much like Nevins, acknowledged that a large portion of the state’s plan to reach Black elders is through local churches.

“It’s multi-pronged,” said DeMarois. “We know in the Black community faith is a proven path.”

One of the organizations mentioned during the community meeting – an organization that DeMarois claims she took note of – is the Inland Empire Pastor’s Association.

DeMarois expressed the need for the state and local agencies to implement “coordinated strategies” to approach challenges facing the state’s aging population.

By Antonio? ?Ray? ?Harvey? ?|? ?California? ?Black? ?Media?

The officer-involved shooting of 23-year-old Rob Marquise Adams in San Bernardino on July 16 has put the spotlight on a law that requires state prosecutors in California to investigate such incidents.

Authored by Assemblymember Kevin McCarty (D-Sacramento), Secretary of the California Legislative Black Caucus, Assembly Bill (AB) 1506 requires the California Department of Justice (DOJ) to investigate “incidents of an officer-involved shooting resulting in the death of an unarmed civilian.”

While an investigation would appear to be warranted in the Adams shooting case, DOJ stated in a July 22 email to California Black Media (CBM), “We’re aware of the incident. However, our office is not currently involved under AB 1506. At this point, local authorities are best-positioned to comment on the matter.”

That’s because the San Bernardino Police Department (SBPD) is claiming Adams had a gun, so an unarmed civilian was not involved.

Adams was shot multiple times in the back while running away from SBPD officers. The officers arrived in an unmarked sedan after receiving information that a Black man armed with a handgun was in the parking lot of a business known to house an illegal gambling operation.

Adams ran toward two parked vehicles with the gun in his right hand, according to a video statement SBPD Chief, Darren Goodman posted on the department’s website. “The cops briefly chased Adams, “but seeing” that Adams had no outlet, “they believed he intended to use the vehicles as cover to shoot at them,” Goodman said, describing his understanding of the events that preceded the shooting.

While SBPD says that Adams had a gun in his hand as he ran from the officers, the attorneys for the Adams family, Bradley C. Gage, and civil rights lawyer Ben Crump say he was holding his cell phone.

Gage said, “There are millions of Black men so any one of them could be a suspect. When you’re holding a cell phone it could look like a gun especially when you think it’s one.”

“They needed it to be a gun because God help them if they shot an unarmed man running away,” Crump said of the officers who shot Adams.

Adams’ mother, Tamika Deavila-King, said the shooting was not necessary and the officers’ version is untrue. “I’ll say it again, it was not a gun. I have proof on my phone the exact time that they killed my son that I was on the phone with him.”

As of July 1, 2021, it’s been DOJ’s responsibility to investigate officer-involved shootings that result in the death of an unarmed civilian. A published public report on each investigation must be released, pursuant to AB 1506.

DOJ states on its website that “when an officer-involved shooting occurs, transparent and open communication is critical to maintain public trust.”

Currently, Attorney General Rob Bonta and DOJ have 21 officer-involved shootings under investigation in jurisdictions such as Anaheim, Salinas, Fontana, Adelanto, San Francisco, Fresno, Bakersfield, and Los Angeles and Riverside counties.

More than 42 law enforcement officers are being investigated and their cases are under review for potential criminal liability, according to the DOJ.

The DOJ recently opened up an investigation of a San Bernardino County Sheriff’s deputy who shot and killed an unarmed man in Adelanto on June 21 following a vehicle stop.

DOJ said in a written statement. “Following notification by local authorities, the California Department of Justice’s California Police Shooting Investigation Team for Southern California deployed to the scene of the incident. Alongside other law enforcement partners, the California Department of Justice is investigating.”

What concerns the Adams family, according to their attorneys, is from what they viewed in the video shared widely on social media, is that Adams appeared unaware that police officers were in the unmarked car. Adams could have believed that he was about to be robbed or attacked.

The officers’ version of the events declares that when they exited their vehicle, they gave Adams verbal commands before opening fire. He immediately ran toward “two parked vehicles with the gun in his right hand,” Goodman said.

The gun the police recovered at the scene of the shooting, was a black 9mm Taurus G3C with a round in the chamber, and 10 rounds in the magazine

Goodman said SBPD is conducting an administrative investigation to ensure department policies and procedures were followed. He also stated that the SB County District Attorney’s Office responded to the scene and is conducting a parallel investigation, which is ongoing.

“Our goal is to be transparent with the community and share as much information as possible when critical incidents occur,” Goodman said. “It is unfortunate that our efforts to keep the community safe through proactive police work occasionally results in encounters with armed felons. Our officers face this danger daily in an effort to help make our community safer.”

Goodman asks the public and the media to allow his department to complete its investigation and gather all the facts. Adams family lawyers say they will file a lawsuit on behalf of the Adams family.

“Make no mistake about it, this is not the first time that we’ve seen them unjustly kill a young Black person. They shoot first and ask questions later,” Crump said. “And then after they assassinate our bodies…they then assassinate our character. They’re going to say all kinds of lies and innuendos to say, ‘Hold on, Rob wasn’t worth it.’ Well, we want you to know that Rob’s life mattered.”

By Chief Mass Communication Specialist John Sorensen, Navy Office of Community Outreach

PEARL HARBOR – A 2018 San Gorgonio High School graduate and San Bernardino, California, native is serving in the U.S. Navy as part of the world’s largest international maritime warfare exercise, Rim of the Pacific (RIMPAC).

Petty Officer 3rd Class Javier Reyes is a mass communication specialist aboard USS Abraham Lincoln, a U.S. Navy aircraft carrier operating out of San Diego, California.

A Navy mass communication specialist is a public affairs and visual information expert. They present the U.S. Navy story to audiences in the Navy and to the rest of the world through a variety of media.

Aircraft carriers provide unique capabilities and survivability. They are a powerful exhibition of the American Navy’s legacy of innovation, technological evolution, and maritime dominance, according to Navy officials.

Since USS Langley’s commissioning 100 years ago, the nation’s aircraft carriers, such as USS Abraham Lincoln, and embarked carrier air wings have projected power, sustained sea control, bolstered deterrence, provided humanitarian assistance and disaster relief, and maintained enduring commitments worldwide.

“The aircraft carrier is our U.S. Navy’s centerpiece, our flagship, and a constant reminder to the rest of the world of our enduring maritime presence and influence,” said Rear Adm. James P. Downey, USN, Program Executive Officer (PEO) Aircraft Carriers. “These ships touch every part of our Navy’s mission to project power, ensure sea control, and deter our adversaries.”

Today, Reyes uses skills and values similar to those learned in San Bernardino.

“From family life, I learned to work hard no matter how unlikable the job may be,” said Reyes.

As the world’s largest international maritime exercise, RIMPAC provides a unique training opportunity that helps participants foster and sustain cooperative relationships that are critical to ensuring safety at sea and security on the world’s oceans. RIMPAC 2022 is the 28th exercise in the series that began in 1971.

The theme of RIMPAC 2022 is Capable, Adaptive, Partners. The participating nations and forces exercise a wide range of capabilities and demonstrate the inherent flexibility of maritime forces. These capabilities range from disaster relief and maritime security operations to sea control and complex warfighting. The relevant, realistic training program includes gunnery, missile, anti-submarine and air defense exercises, as well as amphibious, counter-piracy, mine clearance operations, explosive ordnance disposal and diving and salvage operations.

“During RIMPAC, I’d like to see all the countries interacting with each other,” said Reyes. “It shows the world how we can all work together.”

Serving in the Navy means Reyes is part of a team that is taking on new importance in America’s focus on rebuilding military readiness, strengthening alliances and reforming business practices in support of the National Defense Strategy.

“The Navy can be anywhere at any time to provide defense and humanitarian relief,” said Reyes.

With more than 90 percent of all trade traveling by sea, and 95 percent of the world’s international phone and internet traffic carried through fiber optic cables lying on the ocean floor, Navy officials continue to emphasize that the prosperity and security of the United States is directly linked to a strong and ready Navy.

According to Chief of Naval Operations Adm. Mike Gilday, four priorities will focus efforts on sailors, readiness, capabilities, and capacity.

“For 245 years, in both calm and rough waters, our Navy has stood the watch to protect the homeland, preserve freedom of the seas, and defend our way of life,” said Gilday. “The decisions and investments we make this decade will set the maritime balance of power for the rest of this century. We can accept nothing less than success.”

Hosted by Commander, U.S. Pacific Fleet, RIMPAC 2022 will be led by Commander, U.S. 3rd Fleet, who will serve as Combined Task Force (CTF) commander. Royal Canadian Navy Rear Adm. Christopher Robinson will serve as deputy commander of the CTF, Japan Maritime Self-Defense Force Rear Adm. Toshiyuki Hirata as the vice commander, and Fleet Marine Force will be led by U.S. Marine Corps Brig. Gen. Joseph Clearfield. Other key leaders of the multinational force will include Commodore Paul O’Grady of the Royal Australian Navy, who will command the maritime component, and Brig. Gen. Mark Goulden of the Royal Canadian Air Force, who will command the air component.

“I’ve made my parents and family proud,” said Reyes. “Being a Navy sailor gives me a sense of accomplishment.”

During RIMPAC, a network of capable, adaptive partners train and operate together in order to strengthen their collective forces and promote a free and open Indo-Pacific. RIMPAC 2022 contributes to the increased interoperability, resiliency and agility needed by the Joint and Combined Force to deter and defeat aggression by major powers across all domains and levels of conflict.

As a member of the U.S. Navy, Reyes and other sailors know they are part of a legacy that will last beyond their lifetimes providing the Navy the nation needs.

“Serving in the Navy means I’m able to do the job the Navy has given to me, no matter how difficult the conditions can be,” added Reyes.

Additional information about RIMPAC is available at http://www.cpf.navy.mil

By Lou Yeboah

The Lord saw that the wickedness of man was great in the earth, and that every intent of the thoughts of his heart was only evil continually. The Lord was sorry that He had made man on the earth, and He was grieved in His heart. So, the Lord said, “I will destroy man whom I have created from the face of the earth, both man and beast, creeping thing and birds of the air, for I am sorry that I have made them. For the earth is filled with violence through them; and behold, I will destroy them with the earth.” [Genesis 6:5-13]. Then the angel thrust his sickle into the earth and gathered the vine of the earth and threw it into the great winepress of the wrath of God.  And the winepress was trampled outside the city, and blood came out of the winepress, up to the horses’ bridles, for one thousand six hundred furlongs. [Revelation 14:19].

The unbelievable horror of putting off Christ! The eternal sadness of waiting one day too long is like the terror of those who missed the Ark in the days of Noah, or those who failed to escape Sodom and Gomorrah when they had the opportunity. Think of the scoffing thief who died Christless within inches of the Savior—at the very moment Jesus sacrificed Himself on an adjacent cross. Think of the multitudes at the Great White Throne Judgment who will frantically insist their names “must surely” be written somewhere in the Lamb’s Book of Life. But they will have waited too long.

Listen, the Bible warns that every human being is subject to sudden death. No one has the promise of another second, minute, day, or hour. For the Bible teaches that our days are swifter than a weaver’s shuttle [Job 7:6], like flowers that quickly fade [Job 14:2], and like a mist that appears for a little time then vanishes [James 4:14]. Let today be your day of salvation! Turn now from your evil ways and deeds. For it is appointed to every man to die and then the judgment. Do not be unrepentant. Do not be stubborn.  Do not be like Felix. As Paul reasoned of righteousness, temperance, and judgment to come, Felix trembled, and answered, Go thy way for this time; when I have a convenient season, I will call for thee. He turned aside from the call of God and the message of the apostle. He stifled the voice of the Holy Spirit, and answered God’s invitation with the word, “Some other time, some other day; when I have a convenient season, I will” [Acts 24:25]. That day never came. That tomorrow never came. That convenient season never arrived.  He died, they say, a suicide.  He died without God, without Christ, and without hope in the world. One day too late! God’s wrath came early!

And I looked, and I heard an angel flying through the midst of heaven, saying with a loud voice, “Woe, woe, woe to the inhabitants of the earth, because of the remaining blasts of the trumpet of the three angels who are about to sound!” [Revelation 8:13]. Don’t wait until it’s too late! Repent for the kingdom of God is at hand!

SAN BERNARDINO, CA—- The San Bernardino area Salvation Army Summer Meals Program is in full swing and ready to help area residents enjoy good-tasting and healthy hot meals. Because the Salvation Army’s operations are so efficient, a gift of just $1.28 is enough to provide a nutritious meal for a hungry child, homeless adult, or struggling senior.

“The Summer Meals Program at our San Bernardino Hospitality House served 5,000 to 7,000 meals per month last year, and we expect that because of inflation and a slowing economy, we will be serving more this year”, says San Bernardino Corps Major Isaias Braga.

As one retired healthcare worker put it, “All the food here is excellent and balanced. I feel much better, more energetic, and healthier. A million thank-yous!”

Because of the current COVID situation, sit-down meals are served only to Hospitality House residents, located at 925 West Tenth Street in San Bernardino. Nonetheless, to-go hot meals in boxes are being distributed to community members in need at that location. Community meals are served from 4:30 p.m. to 5:30 p.m. six days per week, Sunday through Friday, and closed Saturday.

In addition to the to-go hot meals offered at the Hospitality House, the Salvation Army also distributes non-perishable food items and fresh meat through a community food distribution program on the first, second and third Thursdays of each month from 9:00 to 11:30 am.

On the first Thursday, this takes place at the Redlands Corps facility, 838 Alta St., Redlands, 92374; on the second and third Thursdays, at the San Bernardino Corps warehouse facility at the San Bernardino Airport, 295 North Leland Norton Way, San Bernardino, 92408.

To find out more about the Salvation Army’s Summer Meals Program and other Salvation Army programs, visit their website at https://sanbernardino.salvationarmy.org.

SAN BERNARDINO, CA—- The British may have invented the “afternoon tea”, but on Saturday, August 6, the Dr. Mildred Dalton Henry Elementary School will host a much more diverse variation on this old English tradition, with the American Girl Doll collection, thanks to the San Bernardino City Library Foundation.

The tea starts at 12 p.m. at Dr. Mildred Dalton Henry Elementary School, 1250 W. 14th Street, San Bernardino. Refreshments and an educational program will be delivered by the University of California’s local Master Gardner/Master Preserver program.

After a two-year hiatus due to COVID, youngsters will indulge in tea and snacks being served by dutiful adults who stand ready to ensure that the children have a delightful time. The annual event attracts children and their parents from the Greater San Bernardino Area.

“American Girl dolls represent the cultures of San Bernardino. Each one is unique, and the variety always finds favor with attendees—both kids and adults,” said Cheryl Brown, San Bernardino City Library Foundation Board member.

Brown adds, “The library’s American Girl Doll collection reflects the ethnic diversity of our community and youngsters can check out dolls that look like them. They can even customize them using the accessories that come with each doll.”

All year round, children can check out an American Girl Doll kit, at San Bernardino City Library’s that includes one of several ethnically diverse dolls, a carrying case, accessories, a book about the doll, and a journal.

The program provides an engaging learning experience that provides a glimpse into different time periods in American history through each doll’s story and a chance for children to write about their own adventures.

The doll collection and the annual tea are both made possible thanks to the generous support of the people and organizations of San Bernardino that take delight in giving children entertaining educational experiences.

San Bernardino City Library Foundation partners include Edison International, the Inland Empire Community Foundation, the Irvine Foundation, the San Gorgonio Girl Scouts, and the San Manuel Band of Mission Indians.

“We had to suspend our in-person tea event during the Covid pandemic, but now that things have calmed down, we are eager to again welcome the public to our version of ‘afternoon tea’,” says Foundation President Arlington Rodgers.

A reservation is required to attend. To make your reservation call (909) 381-8211, by August 3, 2022, and leave your contact information and how many reservations. If you miss the deadline, you are encouraged to still attempt to reserve, and if there is space available, you can be added. The final deadline is Friday. August 5th Participants are requested to call as early as they can.

The California Mortgage Relief Program helps families impacted by COVID-19 save their homes

By Tiena Johnson Hall | Special to California Black Media

For many African American and other Californians of color, housing instability and inequity did not begin with the COVID-19 pandemic. Discriminatory housing and lending policies have long prevented communities of color from exercising their right to stable housing. The gateway to homeownership – proven to be one of the most effective ways to build intergenerational wealth in America – has only drifted farther and farther out of reach for people of color in America and especially in California.

While the pandemic did not create these issues, it has compounded them, forcing more families into vulnerable positions and putting their homeownership at risk.

It is no surprise that Black and Latinx communities are disproportionately impacted by the societal challenges created by the pandemic especially to those who are familiar with our country’s history. The Little Hoover Commission found that over the course of the pandemic, Black and Latinx homeowners were more than two times as likely as White Americans to report being behind on their housing payments.

California is distributing $1 billion in federal assistance to support homeowners at risk of losing their homes due to lost work, increased medical costs, and other hardships brought on or exacerbated by COVID-19 and its associated economic challenges.

Launched in December 2021, the California Mortgage Relief Program is making available grants of up to $80,000 to eligible homeowners from socially disadvantaged communities, including families of color, who have fallen behind on their housing payments.

Over the past six months, relief funds have been distributed to more than 2,600 households. Recent expansions to the program’s eligibility guidelines have opened the opportunity for even more homeowners to get caught up on missed housing payments. In July 2022, the program celebrated distributing $100 million in relief to California homeowners.

The California Housing Finance Agency (CalHFA) has made it a point to be embedded in our local communities and connecting with vulnerable homeowners by speaking in language that they can understand. As these families work to recover from the ongoing financial burdens of the pandemic, there should be no additional barriers for them to access these resources.

A home goes beyond four walls and a roof. It is security. It is peace of mind. For many families, buying a home represents the unraveling of a system entrenched in inequality and lays the foundation of opportunity for future generations.

This housing relief cannot undo a history of exclusionary practices, nor fix the problems the global pandemic created, but it can ensure that whatever progress these families have made toward intergenerational wealth is not erased due to circumstances beyond their control.

And that is the work we will continue to do for these families. For anyone suffering from inequality, we must always strive for better.

For Californians who lost wages, lost jobs, or faced the tragedy of a lost loved one during this terrible pandemic – and especially for those who have faced the additional challenges of historical housing discrimination – the California Mortgage Relief Program is here to alleviate some of the burden. Apply today at CaMortgageRelief.org.

About the Author

Tiena Johnson Hall, Executive Director, California Housing Finance Agency (CalHFA)