Share the Spirit 2022 stories. Thank you for reading these stories of help and hope.
These Battle Tested Kids are learning to post victories in life despite the obstacles
By Rick Hurd Bay Area News Group Nita Simpson’s first interaction with the tall teenager who later would become one of her best basketball players did not come on a court. It came in church, and the discussion had nothing ...
How an East Bay nonprofit gave one man a home after 30 years on the streets
By Martha Brennan | Bay Area News Group Just a five-minute walk from Berkeley’s Downtown BART station, around a quiet corner by a local fire station, a modern but unassuming building stands six stories above the street. Inside sits the ...
She succeeded beyond her imagination. This foster youth agency helped make it possible.
By SCOOTY NICKERSON | Bay Area News Group In early 2020, as health officials throughout the Bay Area doubled down on shelter-in-place orders asking residents to stay at home to avoid spreading COVID-19, Celena Johnson reached out to her caseworker at Beyond ...
What does ‘justice’ look like? These East Oakland teenagers are figuring it out.
By SHOMIK MUKHERJEE | Bay Area News Group OAKLAND — The stereotype of a high-school classroom — kids falling asleep at their desks, or stealthily texting their friends, as a disciplinarian teacher drones on about calculus — is a long ...
St. Vincent de Paul volunteer won’t stop giving back
By JUDITH PRIEVE | Bay Area News Group EL SOBRANTE — Dozens of people stood in line on a recent crisp, fall morning for free food that St. Vincent de Paul of Contra Costa County gives away out outside St ...
Meet the diabetic alert dogs who save lives
By MARTHA ROSS | Bay Area News Group As Kathleen Fraser sits curled up on her couch in her San Francisco apartment, describing the daily challenges of living with Type 1 diabetes, her black Labrador Ransom reaches up a paw ...
Bay Area food bank staffers work around the clock to keep up with massive demand
By NATE GARTRELL | Bay Area News Group CONCORD — When Geo Dinoso travels around Solano and Contra Costa to distribute food to thousands of people in need, it’s easy for him to appreciate how, as a young man, he ...
Agency prepares students with disabilities for work in film, media
By JIM HARRINGTON | Bay Area News Group “Mork & Mindy” played a big role in igniting Jarod Lyke’s passion for acting. His grandfather introduced him to the famous ABC sitcom, which made its debut in 1978 — several decades ...
Pittsburg mom able to dream with help of Immigration Institute of the Bay Area
By ROWENA GONDEN | Correspondent PITTSBURG — Elsa Hernandez’ brown eyes are luminous as her thoughts turn to the possibilities that beckon now that she has a green card. Cradling her newborn son, the 24-year-old Pittsburg woman recalls her high ...
Housing helps at-risk Oakland man put down roots during pandemic
East Bay Innovations, a San Leandro nonprofit, helped Oakland native find stable housing By GEORGE KELLY | Bay Area News Group OAKLAND — On a partly sunny midweek afternoon, Leroy Morgan sat in his Fruitvale District apartment and greeted visitors, took ...
Hayward woman credits Civicorps training with bringing dream closer to reality
Judith Verdin’s hope for a career in wildfire mitigation being aided by classes put on by nonprofit By HARRY HARRIS | Bay Area News Group HAYWARD — Dreams can come true. They have so far for Judith Verdin, who is seeing her ...
Martinez shelter welcomes struggling families
By JOSEPH DYCUS | Bay Area News Group During the COVID pandemic, Jessica Madrid and her daughter, now 6, lived out of a car, in motels and anywhere else they could find. Both of Madrid’s parents and the father of ...
