E AST BAY INNOVAT ION S
T he
INSIGHT
Spring 2014
MOVING FORWARD
HEALTH PARTNERSHIP PROJECT (HPP)
The Health Partnership Project (HPP) is a collaboration between East
Bay Innovations, Oakland Unified School District, Alameda County
Social Services Agency, Alameda County Health Care Services Agency,
and East Bay Agency for Children. In early 2012, brainstorming and
planning for the program began, with the
goal of connecting families with CalFresh
and health care coverage.
ERYN
In November 2012, the program started to
take shape, running two days per week.
Then, in April 2013, the program made a
full launch. Four individuals supported by
EBI were hired as Health Support Clerks to
make this happen!
YOU’RE HIRED!
JONATHAN
JEFF
MICHAEL
Health Support Clerks work twenty
hours a week: calling families, setting up
appointments, reminding families about
their upcoming appointments, and entering
critical data. With support from an EBI
job coach, Health Support Clerks perform
some of the most important tasks in HPP.
Their role in HPP is relied upon and highly
valued by the collaborating agencies.
To get started, HPP needed to figure out
what was preventing families from getting
or re-enrolling in health insurance. What
they found was that many people were
afraid that health insurance would be too
expensive. Others just didn’t know where
to go to get health insurance, or they were
concerned with the amount of paperwork.
Some people didn’t think their child would
qualify for health coverage. HPP clerks
helped families overcome these barriers to
enrollment by calling and informing them of
costs, eligibility requirements and available
assisted enrollment. This method was
very successful, and in the first year of the
program, HPP was able to connect 236
individuals (107 adult family members and
129 children) to health coverage.
CALIFORNIA COMMUNITY
TRANSITIONS (CCT)
WELCOME HOME
LAHKEKA and JAIME!
Lahkeka was in a skilled nursing facility
in Livermore for one year. Her time
there forced her to lose custody of her
12 year-old daughter, who has been
in two foster homes since Lahkeka
moved into the skilled nursing facility.
EBI’s CCT program worked closely
with housing-related agencies to find
an affordable place for Lahkeka to live.
Thanks to their efforts, Lahkeka is now
living in a two bedroom, wheelchair
accessible apartment in San Leandro
and is in the process of regaining
custody of her daughter. Lahkeka is
the 59th person that EBI has helped
transfer out of a skilled nursing facility
and back into the community. She and
her daughter are looking towards a
promising future together.
Jaime, a 25 year old man, is the most
recent -- and 60th -- person EBI has
helped transfer from a nursing facility.
After a serious injury, Jaime became
paraplegic and spent eight months in
(continued on page 3)
EMPLOYEE SPOTLIGHT
Meet Melissa Martinez
People might be familiar with Melissa from
her years working as a cosmetologist, as an
adventurous traveler who has parachuted out
of a plane, or as a student at Sacramento State
getting an undergraduate degree in psychology.
At EBI, clients and colleagues are fortunate to
know Melissa through her work in Independent
Living Services (ILS).
First as an Instructor and now as a Specialist, Melissa values her
relationships at EBI and is eager to understand people’s needs and
motivate them to accomplish their goals. Asked what she likes most
about her job, Melissa immediately responds that it’s her relationships
with clients and peers that are so important to her. To Melissa, it’s all
about teaching people. Teaching individuals to cook, so that they can
prepare meals on their own when staff isn’t there to help. Teaching
people what the consequences are of not taking their medications as
prescribed and reminding them what
taking their medications does for them.
Teaching clients not just how to make
a purchase, but how to interact with
people during that exchange. And
teaching co-workers the tips she’s
learned through her experiences and
from her clients. “The teaching goes
both ways, “ Melissa believes. “We
teach them and they teach us.”
When she’s not working, Melissa treasures her time with family and
friends, enjoys planning future trips, and is always ready for her next
adventure!
WELCOME HOME LAHKEKA and JAIME! (continued)
Fairmont Hospital. Wanting to return to his life in the community, Jaime
turned to EBI for assistance. As a first time renter living on SSI, finding
housing was a struggle. Needing in-home assistance, Jaime needed a
place for both him and his mother, where she could serve as his primary
caregiver. EBI worked with Jaime and his mother to overcome barriers
to finding affordable, accessible housing. After much searching, EBI
was able to help them find a home, and today they are happily settled in
the community. Jaime is now able to work towards his goals of finishing
school, getting a job, and learning to drive.
A shout out to the Housing Authority of the County of Alameda, the
Alameda County Housing and Community Development Department,
Housing Consortium of the East Bay, and Hello Housing for helping our
CCT clients access affordable housing!
THANK YOU!
Heartfelt thanks to the many individuals
who are helping us reach our
fundraising goals.
THANK YOU!
KCE America, Inc. and OSIsoft for
generously funding the “challenge”
grant that was met by our donors.
EBI supporters, new and old, for your
spirited response to #GivingTuesday.
Car donors for designating EBI when
donating your vehicles to Car Donation
Services, Inc. (CDS) and to CDS for
making the process so easy.
THANK YOU!
Much appreciation to the current
funders and foundations that make
our work possible:
Alameda County Health Care Services
Agency
City of Pleasanton
Department of Developmental Services
Department of Health Care Services
Department of Rehabilitation
George Miller Youth Fund
RAB-DAB Fund/East Bay Community
Foundation
Regional Center of the East Bay
Safeway Foundation
Social Security Ticket to Work Program
Tarjan Center at UCLA
True North Foundation
PLEASE CONTINUE TO
SUPPORT OUR WORK
by making a donation in the
enclosed envelope or online at
www.eastbayinnovations.org
WE ARE $6,000 away from reaching
our June 30, 2014 fundraising goal!
EAST BAY INNOVATIONS
Bruce Johnston was a supporter
of EBI long before we even
opened our doors. And though
much has changed over the past
two decades, Bruce’s generosity
and support of EBI have remained
constant.
East Bay Innovations
2450 Washington Ave. Suite 240
San Leandro, CA 94577
(510) 618-1580
STAFF
EXECUTIVE DIRECTOR
Tom Heinz: Ext. 11
DIRECTOR OF OPERATIONS
Tamy Ratto: Ext. 20
SUPPORTED LIVING SERVICES
Christine Grabowski: Ext. 18
INDEPENDENT
LIVING SERVICES
Samantha Covey: Ext. 25
SUPPORTED EMPLOYMENT
SERVICES
Lori Kotsonas: Ext. 15
BOARD OF DIRECTORS
PRESIDENT
Jennifer Steneberg
VICE PRESIDENT
Cathy Nielsen
TREASURER
Benny Kwong
SECRETARY
Gina Gourley
DEVELOPMENT
COMMITTEE CHAIR
Renee Beck
FINANCE COMMITTEE CHAIR
Benny Kwong
MEMBERS
Mary Lou Breslin
Gareth Decuir
Bryon MacDonald
Ken McKinney
Karl Mueller
Lee Perez
Ed Tywoniak
DONOR SPOTLIGHT
Katy, Tom, Bruce and Emily
Bruce Johnston
It was more than 20 years ago
when Bruce’s now deceased wife,
Phyllis, Tom Heinz, and a third
colleague, Melanie Lee, sat in the
dining room of Bruce and Phyllis’
home, first envisioning and then
planning the agency that would
become East Bay Innovations.
Flash forward and today, Bruce’s older daughter, Emily, is living on
her own with support from EBI. Katy, Emily’s younger sister, is a local
pediatrician. And Bruce recently married his longtime partner, Tom Noll.
Bruce continues to practice psychiatry, seeing an increasing number of
college students in addition to his ongoing adult clients and conducting
psychiatric evaluations of individuals seeking rehabilitation services after
being in prison, the military, and/or struggling with addiction.
“Bruce’s generosity and
support of EBI have
remained constant.”
Bruce has been a generous
supporter of EBI, monetarily
and beyond. Three times in
three years, Bruce graciously
opened his home to host
fundraising house parties for
EBI. Each time, local family
members of EBI clients, artist
friends of Bruce, and neighbors
came to learn about, celebrate,
and support EBI’s work. EBI
had an opportunity to describe
our services to people outside
the world of disability, a number
of whom became ongoing
supporters.
Bruce Johnston and Tom Noll
Thank you Bruce, for inviting us into your
home way back when…and continuing to
welcome and support us!
WHO WE ARE
2450 Washington Ave. Suite 240
San Leandro, CA 94577
Established in 1994, East
Bay Innovations (EBI) today
supports more than 350
individuals with disabilities to live
as independently as possible
in their own homes, to be
successfully employed, and to
feel a sense of membership in
their community.
Check out our website at www.eastbayinnovations.org
E AST BAY IN NOVAT ION S
T he
INSIGHT
THINKING ABOUT
DONATING A CAR,
TRUCK, VAN,
MOTORCYCLE, RV,
OR BOAT?
Car Donations Services will
make it easy for you and the sale
of your vehicle will benefit EBI.
Call (888) 686-4483 or email
[email protected]
to learn more about making a
tax-deductible donation.
EBI’S 20th Anniversary
is Approaching
Plans for a celebration in 2014 are in motion!
Stay tuned.
Spring 2014
WELCOME NEW BOARD MEMBERS
Renee Beck has worked at the City of San
Ramon for the last nine years, and is now serving as the City Clerk. She became involved with
EBI when looking into employment resources for
her son, Brian. Today, after participating in Project
SEARCH, Brian is working at the Alameda Alliance
for Health. Renee’s appreciation for the services
Brian received made her want to be a part of EBI’s
board and an active member of EBI’s Development
Committee. She is a passionate supporter. Her resourcefulness, experience, and commitment make her a wonderful new addition to EBI’s
board of directors.
Ken McKinney has extensive experience in
philanthropy and non-profit development, having
worked in the nonprofit sector as a fundraiser for
the Tennessee Performing Arts Center, two NPR/
PBS affiliates including KQED in San Francisco,
and for nearly ten years at Children’s Hospital &
Research Center Oakland. As Director of Philanthropy at Children’s Hospital, Ken became familiar
with EBI. His knowledge and commitment make
him an exciting addition to the board, where he is currently serving on
the Development Committee.