EVENTS & OBSERVANCES Calendar
OCTOBER – Domestic Violence Awareness Month
DVAM is a chance for anyone and everyone to unite in raising awareness about domestic violence and join the work to end domestic violence (and not just in October). We invite advocates, loved ones, supporters, and political leaders to join together in solidarity to listen to and uplift survivors directly. With so many people speaking in a unified voice throughout October, we can raise our collective awareness about domestic violence to end abuse for good.
National Domestic Violence Hotline – Call 1.800.799.SAFE (7233)
OCTOBER 14, 2023 FALL FAMILY STORY TIME
Twice a year we are offer opportunities for parents/caregivers to bond with their children during our Story Time events with stories told, songs sung and activities done that help bring the books to life. These events and our choices of books help to build on the protective factors that keep children safe – Nurturing and Attachment; Knowledge of Child Development; Enhancing Social and Emotional Competence of Children and Social Connections.
All registered families will be entered into a drawing to win one of THREE Story Time prize bundles, including fabulous gift cards, children’s books, healthy snacks and SFA and Family Paths swag. (must be present to win)
OCTOBER 21, 2023 FATHERHOOD SUMMIT
Oprima aquí para registrarse https://go.regform.com/#!/registration/1eqnK0j/info
SEPTEMBER: SUICIDE PREVENTION MONTH
Everyone can play a role in preventing suicide! During National Suicide Prevention Awareness Month in September, help the National Institute of Mental Health (NIMH) raise awareness by sharing resources that help others recognize the warning signs for suicide and learn how to get help.
988 Life Line – https://988lifeline.org/
We can all help prevent suicide. The 988 Lifeline provides 24/7, free and confidential support for people in distress, prevention and crisis resources for you or your loved ones, and best practices for professionals in the United States.
AUGUST: Immunization Awareness Month
National Immunization Awareness Month (NIAM) is an annual observance held in August to highlight the importance of routine vaccination for people of all ages. The Centers of Disease Control has many resources to help you discuss routine vaccinations with your healthcare provider during NIAM and throughout the year.
JULY: BIPOC Mental Health Month
BIPOC (Black, Indigenous, and people of color) Mental Health Month, previously known as Bebe Moore Campbell National Minority Mental Health Awareness Month, was created to bring awareness to the unique struggles that underrepresented groups face in regard to mental illness in the US. It was named after Bebe Moore Campbell who was an American author, journalist, teacher, and mental health advocate who worked tirelessly to shed light on the mental health needs of the Black community and other underrepresented communities.
INSIGHTS & RESOURCES
La Clínica de la Raza – CASA DEL SOL
La Clínica de la Raza – Cultura y Bienestar
La Familia – Mental Health Services
Mental Health in Black Communities: Challenges, Resources, Community Voices – NAMI California
PROVIDER DIRECTORIES
JUNE: Healthy Homes Month
A healthy home is one that is dry, clean, safe, ventilated, free of pests and contaminants, well maintained, and thermally comfortable. In addition, homes should be affordable and accessible to all people, regardless of age or ability.
According to the National Center for Healthy Housing, the 10 principles described in greater detail below provide a framework for describing the critical components of a healthy home.
HERE ARE SOME HOUSING RESOURCES & LINKS:
Reduce lead hazards from paint and soil here in Alameda County
Access to affordable housing programs like Strong Families Alliance member Abode
Alameda County Housing & Community Development Tenants/Owner Rights
MAY: Mental Health Month and Foster Care Month
Strong Families Alliance of Alameda County joins Mental Health America in encouraging individuals to look around and look within. From your neighborhood to genetics, many factors come into play when it comes to mental health conditions. We encourage
everyone to consider how the world around them effects their mental health.
Mental Health America’s 2023 Mental Health Month toolkit provides free, practical resources, including information about how an individual’s environment impacts their mental health, suggestions for making changes to improve and maintain
mental well-being, and how to seek help for mental health challenges.
Your surroundings can impact if, how, and when your needs are met, which in turn affects your mental health. However, you can take steps to change your space and protect your well-being.
If you constantly feel worried or sad about where you live, one of the quickest and easiest ways to determine whether you are experiencing symptoms of a mental health condition is to take a mental health screening at mhascreening.org.
HOUSING STABILITY AND HOME ENVIRONMENT
• Having safe, stable, and healthy home conditions set the foundation for achieving and maintaining good mental health.
• For many people, not having a true “home base” to consistently return to can leave them feeling distressed, disconnected,
or isolated. Stable housing allows individuals to develop routines and connections to their local community, which are beneficial for mental health.
• Wherever you call “home,” it should give you feelings of comfort, support, and calmness. If not, there are things you can do to your space to help you be more productive, reach your goals, and improve your mental health.
COMMUNITY
• The area, or ZIP code, that you live in plays a significant role in how healthy you are.
• A strong sense of community within neighborhoods protects mental health through shared support, resources, and joy.
• Challenges like gentrification, community violence, and lack of access to resources can negatively impact mental health. While many of these can be out of your control, being an advocate for change and making healthy community
connections can bring hope.
NATURE
• Spending time in nature is linked to many positive mental health outcomes, including improved focus, lower stress, better mood, reduced risk of developing mental health conditions, and a sense of connection to yourself, community, and
purpose.
• Being around nature doesn’t have to mean hiking in a forest. It can be walking in a park, bringing a plant inside, or sitting in your backyard.
FOSTER CARE MONTH is a time to focus on the needs of foster youth and the importance of continued support for youth aging out of the foster care system. To learn more about EXTENDED FOSTER CARE: https://www.aecf.org/blog/extended-foster-care-explained
APRIL: Child Abuse Prevention Month
At least 1 in 7 children have experienced child abuse or neglect in the United States each year. All community members have a role in ensuring children have positive experiences and families have the resources they need when they need them, well before they are in crisis. Strong Families Alliance of Alameda County is committed to sharing resources, tips and info about upcoming events to raise awareness amongst children, families and the community at large about ways to prevent child abuse by promoting the Protective Factors for strengthening families.
Learn more about child abuse prevention events and resources at the following links:
- Greater Bay Area Child Abuse Prevention Coalition Calendar of Events – April 2023
- CDC – Fast Facts: Preventing Child Abuse & Neglect
- CA Office of Child Abuse Prevention brochure
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Partnership in Prevention’s TUNE IN: Connecting with Your Child
Child abuse and neglect are serious public health problems and adverse childhood experiences (ACEs). They can have long-term impacts on health, opportunity, and wellbeing. This issue includes all types of abuse and neglect of a child under the age of 18 by a parent, caregiver, or another person in a custodial role (such as a religious leader, a coach, a teacher) that results in harm, the potential for harm, or threat of harm to a child. There are four common types of abuse and neglect:
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Physical abuse is the intentional use of physical force that can result in physical injury. Examples include hitting, kicking, shaking, burning, or other shows of force against a child.
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Sexual abuse involves pressuring or forcing a child to engage in sexual acts. It includes behaviors such as fondling, penetration, and exposing a child to other sexual activities. Please see CDC’s Preventing Child Sexual Abuse webpage for more information.
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Emotional abuse refers to behaviors that harm a child’s self-worth or emotional well-being. Examples include name-calling, shaming, rejecting, withholding love, and threatening.
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Neglect is the failure to meet a child’s basic physical and emotional needs. These needs include housing, food, clothing, education, access to medical care, and having feelings validated and appropriately responded to.
Mandated Reporters: If a child is experiencing neglect due to a family’s lack of resources, assist them by connecting them to the appropriate supportive service.
APRIL 7, 2023 WEAR BLUE FOR KIDS!
#WearBlue4Kids
Grab something BLUE and wear it on April 7 for Child Abuse Prevention Month to bring awareness to child abuse and to support prevention efforts in Alameda County. Post on your favorite social media and tag Strong Families Alliance of Alameda County when you #wearblue4kids
APRIL 14, 2023 LET’S CHALK ABOUT PREVENTION!
#KeepKidsSafe
Connecting with your children through play is a wonderful way to show them care and security. In honor of Child Abuse Prevention Month and the protective factors that keep children safe, on April 14, grab some sidewalk chalk and draw, write, and play! Write messages of hope such as “Love shouldn’t hurt”, “No excuse for abuse” or come up with your own. Snap pictures and tag Strong Families Alliance of Alameda County across your social media accounts and be entered into a prize drawing for gift cards!
APRIL 22, 2023 UNPEELED: Ultimate Children’s Event
10am-1pm at Children’s Fairyland
UnPeeled, hosted by Bananas and sponsored by Strong Families Alliance of Alameda County, returns to magical Fairyland in Oakland on Saturday, April 22, 2023 from 10:00 am – 1:00 pm.
This is a FREE event for children and their caregivers, with LIVE shows from local performers. This is a great opportunity to let your little one tap into their creative side to sing along, dance and explore!
APRIL 28, 2023 FAMILY STORY TIME
3:30-4:30pm at Oakland Public Library-Main Branch
READING! HULA! ART! PRIZES! Join Strong Families Alliance of Alameda County and Family Paths for our FREE, in-person Family Story Time. We are thrilled to welcome local children’s book author/illustrator, Edna Cabcabin Moran, who will share her latest book, HONU AND MOA. Edna will also lead children and their caregivers in a hula lesson and art project before we have a prize drawing for three Story Time prize bundles that include children’s book donated by Oakland Public Library, gift cards, healthy snacks and swag. The first 20 families to register & arrive will go home with a signed copy of Edna’s book.
MARCH: National Nutrition Month
National Nutrition month is all about the importance of healthy eating and regular exercise. It’s a chance to learn more about enjoying plant-based foods, doing more home cooking, and shopping on a budget.
It’s also an opportunity to recognize that for many in our community, a barrier to healthy eating is as basic as the lack of grocery stores and markets in low-income neighborhoods.
Oakland’s food divide has been studied by the Oakland Hope Collaborative and reported on by Oakland North. For example, a sobering statistic is that in Oakland’s flatlands, where the median household income is $32,000, there’s an average of one supermarket per 93,126 residents.
Learn more about healthy eating and some of the barriers at the following links:
eatright.org – Academy of Nutrition and Dietetics
Family Exercise Ideas for Every Season (eatright.org)
Soups and Stews (eatright.org)
Oakland’s food divide – Oakland North
FEBRUARY: Teen Dating Violence Awareness Month
National Teen Dating Violence Awareness Month is observed in February. The month encourages young people and their loved ones throughout the country to come together to raise awareness about the issue of teen dating violence.
One in three teens in the U.S. experiences some kind of abuse (physical, sexual, emotional) from someone they’re romantically involved with, and about 43% of college women reported experiencing abusive dating behaviors. They need to be encouraged to talk openly about respect, consent, and boundaries. The earlier they are exposed to what healthy relationships look like, the better it is for them.
WHAT ARE THE MAIN TYPES OF TEEN VIOLENCE?
- Verbal
- Physical
- Sexual
- Emotional
Stalking is also recognized as a common type of abuse that is committed by partners or even acquaintances.
WHAT DOES A HEALTHY RELATIONSHIP LOOK LIKE?
Healthy relationships comprise respect, trust, honesty, effort, communication, and compromise. Partners must respect each other’s boundaries, feel free to share their feelings, and can make decisions without fear of any negative reactions from the other.
LEARN MORE ABOUT TEEN DATING VIOLENCE AWARENESS MONTH
CHECK OUT THE TDVAM ACTION GUIDE HERE
Love Is Respect’s Self-Care Checklist
JANUARY: National Birth Defects Awareness Month
The CDC recognizes January as National Birth Defects Awareness Month. This is a time to raise awareness about birth defects and highlight efforts to improve the health of people living with these conditions across their lifespan. Join Strong Families Alliance and the nationwide effort to raise awareness of birth defects and their impact on individuals, parents, and families.
Along with the National Birth Defects Prevention Network, we encourage all pregnant women and those who may become pregnant to make a pact for prevention by:
1) Planning Ahead
- Get as healthy as possible before becoming pregnant.
- Get 400 micrograms (mcg) of folic acid every day.
2) Avoiding harmful substances
- Avoid drinking alcohol and smoking.
- Be careful with harmful exposures at work and home.
3) Choosing a healthy lifestyle
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Eat a healthy diet that includes fruits, vegetables, whole grains, low-fat dairy, and lean proteins.
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Be physically active.
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Work to get medical conditions like diabetes under control.4) Talk to your healthcare provider
4) Talking to your healthcare provider
- Get a medical checkup.
- Discuss all medications, both prescription and over-the-counter.
- Talk about your family medical history.
