At the Koshland Program, it’s all about solutions that begin at the local level, with deep local understanding. That’s why we’re elated when we learn of community leaders like West Berkeley Koshland Fellow, Reverend Michael McBride, was among the 12 faith leaders who met with Vice President Biden last month to give recommendations for his comprehensive plan to lower gun violence. We know that our deep investment in enhancing leadership, and building neighborhood solutions, is strengthening not only our region, but the good of our entire country.

For Michael, running the Lifelines to Healing Campaign is organic, coming out of his many years of work in West Berkeley as Pastor of the Way Christian Center, and Executive Director of BOCA-Berkeley Organizing Communities to Action ( an affiliate of PICO), and now in leading Lifelines, a national movement of the PICO network of faith-based organizations and congregations committed to addressing the causes of pervasive violence and crime in our communities, and advocating for policies and resources that contribute to the healing of our communities.

From becoming a pastor at a church, to running a local nonprofit, to now leading a national campaign, we’ve watched Michael’s passion and leadership continue to soar. The Koshland Program’s support, capacity building, training, and access to philanthropic success, have been part this recipe for success.

Today, Michael is among several of our Koshland fellows in the Bay Area region who are working together on alternative and innovative solutions to reduce violence in low income communities. From Old Skool Café in Bay View to Dig Deep Farms in Ashland/Cherryland, fellows are coming together to share strategies, approaches, and best practices on violence prevention and to describe their “recipe” for success.

Through their work, the hope is to inspire other communities to act.  That’s why we will be sponsoring an event that will highlight Koshland Fellows’ “recipe” for creating safe and healthy communities, focusing on their place-based work, including strategic partnerships created to address violence, mass incarceration and lack of job opportunities for people living in San Francisco, Alameda and Contra Costa counties. Look out for more information in the coming months.

(SAN FRANCISCO) – Wednesday, July 18, 2012 – The San Francisco Foundation announced today 12 Koshland Community Fellows of the Excelsior community of San Francisco. The 2012 Daniel E. Koshland Civic Unity Awards add up to $300,000 over the next five years.

This initiative in the Excelsior community will enhance civic unity by promoting mutual respect and collaboration among diverse communities to resolve neighborhood problems. The Koshland Community Fellows, along with their neighborhood colleagues, will distribute an average of $75,000 per year through 2017. The initiative will focus on leadership development, promoting civic unity, and celebrating unsung heroes.

“We are excited about the promise and future of San Francisco’s Excelsior District.” – Congresswoman Nancy Pelosi

What:   2012 Daniel E. Koshland Civic Unity Awards Ceremony
When:  Wednesday, July 18, 2012
Time:   5:30 p.m. to 8:30 p.m.
Where:  El Patio Español
2850 Alemany Boulevard
San Francisco

Who:    2012 Daniel E. Koshland Civic Unity Award Fellows
Nicole Agbayani, Corridor Manager, Excelsior Action Group

Paulo Acosta Cabezas, Owner, Mama Arts Café
Jacquie Chavez, Vice President of Parent Involvement, Parent Teacher Association (PTA), San Francisco Unified School District
Joni Tam Chu, Director, OMI/Excelsior Beacon Center
Rachel Ebora, Executive Director, Bernal Heights Neighborhood Center
Carlton Eichelberger, Area Director, Boys and Girls Clubs of San Francisco
Tiffani Marie Johnson, Advisor, Leadership High School
Rene Luna, Bay Area SCORES Program Leader, Cleveland Elementary School
Beth Rubenstein, Executive Director, Out of Site Youth Arts Center
Charlie Sciammas, Community Organizer, People Organizing to Demand Environmental & Economic Rights (PODER)
Alex Tom, Executive Director, Chinese Progressive Association
Terrence Valen, Organizational Director, Filipino Community Center

Highlights of a Few Neighborhood Leaders’ Stories:
Alex Tom’s family immigrated to San Francisco Chinatown in the early sixties where they worked to make ends meet before finally opening up a small business in Chinatown. Now as Executive Director of The Chinese Progressive Association, Alex is realizing a life long dream; to return to work in the community that had a significant impact on his youth.

Nicole Agbayani is native to San Francisco and the Excelsior Neighborhood. At Excelsior Action Group, Nicole works hand in hand with individual merchants, as well as the community, at large to foster a vibrant and active commercial corridor that is a cherished asset of the Excelsior. Her dedication to the community where she grew up is at the heart of her work.

Rachel Ebora is the Executive Director of Bernal Heights Neighborhood Center (BHNC), a multi-service affordable housing organization providing linguistically and culturally appropriate programs and services in Bernal Heights and the surrounding areas. BHNC runs the Excelsior Community Center as a hub for senior, youth and employment programs, as well as public safety organizing and community engagement work. Rachel was recently honored by the SF Board of Supervisors “for being a passionate and articulate advocate on behalf of the oppressed and marginalized communities in San Francisco.”

The Daniel E. Koshland Civic Unity Awards were established in 1982 by The San Francisco Foundation as a memorial to one of its founders and major benefactors, Daniel E. Koshland, a businessman and philanthropist who committed himself to making the Bay Area a better place in which to live.