Thursday, December 21, 2006

RWANDA
Rwandan village builds health clinic
The residents of Mumeya, Rwanda traveled 20 miles to the nearest health facility, often by walking. So, members of Congregations Re-building Community in Rwanda, a new PICO supported organizing effort in Africa, determined that what they needed most of all was a community clinic. Three hundred village residents came together to volunteer 2 hours per week to the project. Read more>> 

IMMIGRATION
Greeley immigrants face upheaval
Early on the morning of the Feast of Guadalupe, December 12, federal agents moved in on the Swift meat packing plant in Greeley, Colorado. They detained 261 employees of the plant on suspicion of illegal immigration status and identity theft. Congregations Building Community (CBC) immediately organized with the Board of Education for every student to be picked up by a relative to avoid their return to an empty home. Read more>> 

HEALTHY FAMILIES
Santa Clara County, CA moves toward covering uninsured adults
People Acting in Community Together (PACT) and Penninsula Interfaith Action, working with a coalition of labor and health care organizations, is advocating a model county program that would ultimately provide affordable health coverage to 59,000 uninsured adults in Santa Clara County, California. Read more>>

PICO California tells governor to finish job
PICO California and the 100% Coalition held a press conference in Sacramento to press Governor Schwarzenegger to move forward on a proposal to provide affordable health coverage to the more than 700,000 children in the state who are uninsured. PICO California announced that on the evening of the Governor's State of the State Speech on January 9 it would be holding hundreds of "speech watch" parties and asking people to go to a new website www.fulfillthepledge.org to rate the Governor's speech.  Read more>>

Religious leaders push Democratic leaders to move ahead on children’s health
Two-hundred clergy from across the country signed a letter to Congressional leaders calling for next year’s federal budget to move the country toward providing all children in the United States with access to affordable health insurance. Clergy can still add their name to the sign-on letter online at http://ga3.org/campaign/allchildren. Click here to read the letter.

REBUILDING LOUISIANA
Big offshore drilling revenue sharing win in Louisiana
Bayou Interfaith Shared Community Organizing (BISCO) and Louisiana Interfaith Together (LIFT) leaders, along with many other organizations inside and outside Louisiana, are celebrating the passage of the DOER Act. It will give Louisiana $13 billion over the next 30 years to be used for coastal restoration, hurricane protection, and flood control projects. Read more>>

GOOD SCHOOLS
New science-focused school in Oakland
The Korematsu Discovery Academy has opened in Oakland, California as the latest new small autonomous school developed with leadership from Oakland Community Organizations (OCO). OCO's Small Autonomous Schools Movement has now resulted in 40 new public schools in Oakland serving more than one-quarter of all the students in the school system. Read more>>

YOUTH OPPORTUNITIES
Over $1 Million to Reduce Youth Violence in East Palo Alto
In response to an upsurge in shootings in East Palo Alto, California, Peninsula Interfaith Action (PIA) led a successful initiative campaign to pass a special parcel tax that will generate between $1.3-$1.7 million annually to improve police services and fund violence prevention activities. PIA leaders gathered 500 residents on June 29 to ask the City Council to put a measure on the November ballot to raise funds for alternatives to youth violence and organized hundreds of vounteers to win the two-thirds vote needed to pass the initiative. Read more>>

Contra Costa Teens Win Help with Jobs
Teen leaders from Contra Costa Interfaith Sponsoring Committee (CCISCO) won a new career counselor to link youths with mentors, jobs, and educational guidance. The campaign led by teens was the first application for funding from young people to the Workforce Development Board in at least five years.  Read more>>

SAFE NEIGHBORHOODS
Anchorage Tackles Youth Violence
Anchorage has been the scene of dozens of violent youth crimes since 2004. On November 27 Anchorage Faith and Action Congregations Together (AFACT) packed 400 people into an Anchorage church to win commitments from the mayor, police chief, and superintendent of schools to initiate new theatre, arts, and after-school programs for youth; funding for a gang resistance curriculum; and participation in a Clergy, Cops, and Kids program that promotes community policing.  Read more>>

REVITALIZING NEIGHBORHOODS
New Jersey Launches Camden Home Improvement Program
Camden Churches Organized for People (CCOP) held a press conference with state and city officials to officially open an $8 million home improvement program that will finance the rehabilitation of 300 homes in Camden, as part of CCOP's long term campaign to revitalize one of the nation's poorest cities. Click here to watch TV coverage from the press conference.

JOBS
PICO federations in Vermont, Michigan and California have job openings.  Viisit www.piconetwork.org/ab_careers.html to see current jobs and learn more about working in the PICO network.

PICO needs your financial support
PICO's success in empowering families and improving communities depends on financial contributions from our donors. To help support our work on the issues you've read about in this issue of e-news and others, click here to make an on-line donation.