Blog

To provide a financial boost for those affected by the Sonoma County fires, the Chronicle Season of Sharing Fund (SOS) is offering special assistance grants to low-income residents for up to $3000. The grants aim to help those who lost possessions, jobs or income due to the fires: get or keep housing by paying a month’s mortgage, rent or security deposit; cover utility bills; buy essential household furniture, a wheelchair or other vital health aids; or cover costs of medically required...

The Santa Rosa Junior College Photography Department is offering free family portraits for Sonoma County fire victims on Saturday at the junior college from 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. The event is part of the International Help-Portrait Day , where photographers give back to their community by using their expertise for charitable projects. To read the full article, published in the Santa Rosa Press Democrat, click here: SRJC Offers Free Portraits

Nearly every tree species affected by the Tubbs and Nuns fires has a strategy for returning. Some, such as coast live oak, have thick bark and may still be standing with green canopies hanging over blackened understory in places such as Sonoma Valley Regional Park. Trees in this condition will be helped in the years to come because the competition around their bases is gone. If burned, coast live oak have an amazing ability to sprout from the trunk. This can happen as quickly as two months...

(For a colorful and well formatted version, please see the attached .pdf.) Thank you to all that participated in today’s ACES meeting. Lisa Manthe lead us through a meditation that she does with her students. Lisa shared with us that she begins and ends every school day with meditation to help foster routine and a sense of grounding for the mind body connection. Lisa Manthe from New Directions School joined us to share her experience using art therapy as a way of healing. New Directions...

Yoga is a great activity for children and adults and is easy to do just about anywhere! Children need to have multiple healthy ways to express their feelings and have opportunities for mind and body awareness. Yoga is beneficial because it is... Non-competitive Gender neutral Enhances motor skills and balance Improves listening skills in a fun approach Children can focus on what is happening in the moment A healthy way to express feelings Supports social and emotional learning and...

Health Action staff writes: "Last month brought an unprecedented catastrophe to Sonoma County and to our neighboring Northern California counties. We want to express our condolences to those of you personally affected by this disaster. We know that many of you and your staff have been directly impacted by the fires, yet you continue to provide relief and services even in the face of your own personal losses. Thank you for all of the work that you and your organizations have done and will...

Register with Sonoma County Office of Education now here: https://www.scoe.org/pub/htdocs/class.html?class_id=7308 This second offering of the Adverse Childhood Experiences (ACEs) & Resiliency Fellowship will focus on developing former Fellowship members (ACE Interface Master Trainers and Presenters) as Trauma-Informed Agency Champions. As a collaboration between the Sonoma County Office of Education, Sonoma County Human Services, Department of Health Services Behavioral Health and...

Dear Upstream Partner, We hope this message finds you well and safe. There are no words to describe how difficult the last month has been for our community. The resiliency of our residents and the critical support you continue to provide gives us hope for successful recovery efforts. We want to acknowledge all you have done and continue to do to support our community. In addition to personal losses you may have experienced, repeated exposure to the suffering of others takes its toll on the...

Did you know that yoga can reduce stress and heal the mind, body, and soul? Let me explain how yoga can prevent, treat, and heal Adverse Childhood Experiences (ACE’s) and toxic stress. In my personal experience as a Sonoma County preschool teacher, I noticed many children, parents, and teachers in our program had very high levels of stress and anxiety. We all live busy lives and tend to focus on the next activity instead of the one at hand. So I decided to try yoga. I started doing yoga with...

Hello ACEs Connection Members! We are so looking forward to coming together on Wednesday at the Child Parent Institute at 3:30. Here is a peek at our agenda for Wednesdays Meeting: AGENDA Welcome & Introductions (all - please sign in) 3:30 Mindfulness Moment (Kate) 3:35 Report Out- Beyond Paper Tigers (Dave Rose) 3:40 Acknowledge in light of our recent community experience what do you need? (Jessica and Nick) 4:00 Treasury Report (Kate) 4:40 Trauma Informed Care Program Updates (Members)...

In California Wine Country, Child Welfare Responds to Wildfires When wildfires ripped through northern California's wine country in October, the devastation reverberated through the local communities, where more than 40 people were killed and more than 14,000 homes are partial or total losses. The child welfare communities in Sonoma and Napa counties were not immune to the destruction. As the holiday season approached, efforts to stabilize foster care placements moved quickly. Solutions for...

If you found yourself searching for resources to help families of young children cope during disasters and traumatic events, please allow us to point you to a new comprehensive page curated by First 5 Sonoma County. http://first5sonomacounty.org/Resources-for-Parents/Coping-Resources/