While we do miss our hands-on Aragon Cares activities like cooking meals at the Ronald McDonald house or painting stars for victims of natural disasters with Stars of Hope, the pandemic and its “stay at home” requirements have opened our eyes to many organizations that need our help, even from afar in the form of a monetary donation.
For October, Aragon had the pleasure of making a donation to the East Oakland Collective (EOC). The EOC is a “member-based community organizing group invested in serving the communities of deep East Oakland by working towards racial and economic equity.”
The East Oakland Collective is located about an hour from ARHQ!
The EOC invests time and money into making a difference in three areas:
Civic Engagement & Leadership
The EOC works to ensure that East Oakland residents are represented in the local and regional political landscape through civic participation. They campaign for this cause by fighting for equality and representation in relation to age, race, and district diversity on the City of Oakland Boards and Commissions.
Economic Empowerment
The second area that EOC focuses on is economic empowerment. They work to educate the Black residents of East Oakland on economic opportunities such as savings, home and commercial ownership, small businesses, and entrepreneurship. You can see some specific organizations that EOC works with on these efforts by visiting their website.
Homeless Services & Solutions
The EOC also works to help the homeless and less fortunate residents of East Oakland in many ways. This includes food justice, in which the EOC organizes efforts to bring essential resources to Oakland’s vulnerable residents, participates in the distribution and redistribution of food (food rescue), and helps expand the access to nutritious food options in East Oakland.
Housing justice is another thing that the EOC focuses heavily on. They work to increase housing options for no- or low-income residents in Oakland and fight for affordable housing, believing that this is a basic human right.
The EOC is also passionate about neighborhood and transportation planning in Oakland. This involves planning processes and collaborative opportunities with other organizations to get healthy and equitable community economic development.
Why We Donated
We are happy to have been able to make a donation to the East Oakland Collective this October. There are too many people facing inequality and homelessness in our own backyard (the Bay Area), and far beyond. Organizations like the EOC work tirelessly to make a difference in the lives of people who need our help. And while we would have loved to help more, we know that our money is in good hands at EOC and being used for good while we follow social distancing guidelines.
Consider donating to the East Oakland Collective, or a similar organization in your area, and stay tuned for what we have planned for Aragon Cares this November!