Author: LBCEI

Wavemax Laundromat in Long Beach had a busy start to their free laundry event on Feb 17.

From 9:30 a.m. to 12:30 p.m., the first 150 people to arrive received a voucher for a maximum of 6 loads of free laundry along with soap, softener, and snacks. 

Over 40 people arrived within the first hour, and more than 350 loads of laundry were completed by the end of the day.

During the event patrons were offered flyers with information for other basic support needs, such as free wifi hotspots, technical support and local food pantries scattered all around the Los Angeles County area.

Participants learned about this resource through multiple avenues of advertising, both online and in person, like Instagram and St. Luke’s Episcopal Church.

Wavemax owner Melissa Doupounce has teamed up with multiple nonprofit organizations as well as our campus’s basic needs department to make this event happen.

Emily Kazim, who previously served as an LBECI program manager, will take over the position effective immediately.

The Long Beach Center for Economic Inclusion — a community development corporation that works to create more inclusive economic and wealth-building opportunities throughout the city — has hired a new permanent executive director after a monthslong search, the organization announced on Thursday, Feb. 16.

Emily Kazim, who worked as the Life Family Center’s director prior to joining the LBCEI as a Food Support Program manager, will take over the organization’s helm effective immediately.

As executive director, Kazim will act as the LBCEI’s chief spokesperson and community liaison with a focus on bolstering entrepreneurship, small business support, workforce and youth development, affordable housing and homeownership, and economic resiliency for Long Beach residents from all walks of life.

Over the last thee years, LBCEI has provided basic needs to 4,500 households per month through partnerships with various agencies, the press release said — and has directed more than $1 million a year back to residents, small businesses and partner organizations. Last year, for example, the LBCEI launched a Black Wealth Initiative that helped more than 140 Black households embark on the path to first-time homeownership.

I grew up in Long Beach surrounded by gang violence, substance abuse and mental health issues. 

At my sister’s 10th birthday party, we were confined inside because there was a gang doing an initiation outside in the alley.  

At 15, one of my close friends was shot on a Sunday afternoon. Another one of my friends passed away from overdosing on fentanyl.  

Another friend was killed in front of his home. My brother’s best friend was murdered walking out of a liquor store, over mistaken identity.  

I know a student who was homeless, and most nights, he would walk around the city until the school campus opened.  

One thing that is clear to me is that as a community we are hurting. It is a different kind of hurt when you look at childhood photos and the people in them are no longer here. I love Long Beach; this is where I come from. But this city has also taken so much from me and the families around me that for a long time I did not know what to do.  

It took me five years to transfer from LBCC to Cal State Long Beach. It was hard because I did not know what I did to deserve my life or even the opportunities I had been given. I isolated myself from everyone I loved and cared about.  

I was angry at what the world had taken from me and my community. I was angry at what the world did not offer me and my community. I was angry because I knew that the community that we made together was created out of our need for survival and I hated it. We were not expected to thrive like other people. Just surviving was good enough.  

As I go to classes, I often think about how people like me do not go here. There might be Long Beach students here, but the majority do not know what I have gone through. The handful of people from my community that I do know at this school, of course, major in community-centered fields. I think to myself how lucky I am to be here and how I must finish to prove to everyone that someone with my background can make something of herself.  

In April of 2022, I got an email regarding a paid internship opportunity to do something within the local community with College Corps. I want to be a lawyer that helps with crime, juvenile reform, and policy and I was unaware of how competitive law school is.  

I knew that my resume and academic record were weak and an internship in my community would be perfect. I would be able to learn about what the community needs while making lifelong connections and honestly a reference for law school.  

I was lucky enough to be chosen by the Long Beach Center for Economic Inclusion (LBCEI). I started working at LBCEI in September and I can honestly say that it has changed my world. This organization operates on the needs of the community, and I learned that very fast.  

Emily Kazim, my supervisor, and Jeff Williams, then-executive director of LBCEI (now the director of Community Engagement in Mayor Richardson’s office) are the most amazing and caring people. 

I’m not treated like a student intern who is just here to complete her hours. I’m treated like an equal and my opinion is taken into consideration with everything we do.  

I have had the perfect balance of the fun, community-facing side of things with community events and pantry work, but also administrative work that is equally important, although it may not be as fun. Emily talks positively about me in rooms that I am not even in, and where I come from, that speaks volumes. 

Organic Harvest Gardens in North Long Beach is a pleasant surprise when you visit it. Tucked behind two apartment buildings off of Atlantic Avenue and up against the 91 Freeway, organic fresh crops are taking root and sprouting hope. 

PalacioMagazine.com and the Long Beach Center for Economic Inclusion (LBCEI) have partnered to produce a series of video stories on LBCEI’s response to the COVID-19 pandemic.  

LBCEI partnered with Organic Harvest Gardens (OHG) to provide delivery of fresh, local, organic produce to over 300 homebound seniors.  The following video features OHG co-founder Rod Dodd and was produced in partnership with Antonio Ruiz of PalacioMagazine.com 

More on Organic Harvest Gardens

(From their website: organicharvestgardens.com) 

“At Organic Harvest Gardens, we are two University of California Certified Master Gardeners, who head up a team of committed and passionate organic vegetable gardeners, farmers and general landscapers. With over 25 years of collective experience in organic vegetable gardening and landscaping, you can rest assure that you are in capable and professional hands. 

Rod, Master Gardener and our Director of Farm/Garden Design. Rod is a retired Staff Research Associate/Animal Resource Manager for USC, UCLA and the Veterans Administration. He is also a trained world traveled professional Chef, specializing in all types of cuisine, with an emphasis on Organic cooking. 

Adam, a highly-skilled Master Gardener, has an extensive background in horticulture, garden centers, retail nurseries, and private/commercial estates. He is a Certified Irrigation Repair Technician from Irrigator Technical Training School, as well as, the Long Beach Chapter President. 
We, at Organic Harvest Gardens, are zealous and dedicated in assisting you in your desire to live a greener lifestyle. We make it our priority to hold every client in high esteem, from the smallest to the largest. It is our goal to design, build, and maintain the garden that you deserve, from handcrafted garden beds to the very best nutritional and flavor-packed veggies you could never purchase from the grocery store.” 

Source: https://palaciomagazine.com/organic-harvest-gardens-feeding-people-building-community/

Connecting to the internet became an even greater challenge for Long Beach parents and students with the Covid-19 pandemic and the move to remote education. Families faced difficult choices: access technology to help bridge the digital divide or watch their children fall behind. The Long Beach Center for Economic Inclusion (LBCEI) took on the challenge of a world of remote education. As they describe on their website, “The Long Beach community, especially those most vulnerable, will fall behind without access to technology.” The consequences are that this will result in an even greater divide in “…the inequitable distribution of resources across the city.”  

LBCEI rushed in to help.

They partnered with Long Beach-based human-I-T to distribute refurbished laptops to families and students in North, Central, and West Long Beach. The laptops went to students of the YMCA’s Early Childhood Education and Youth Institute programs, Long Beach City College students and families served by local nonprofits, including United Cambodian Community and Long Beach Day Nursery. 

PalacioMagazine.com partnered with the Long Beach Center for Economic Inclusion to document the impact on the YMCA’s Early Childhood Education and Youth Institute program and the students they serve.

Long Beach City College also took part in the distribution and documented it.  

Source: https://palaciomagazine.com/connecting-our-children-to-the-future-the-laptop-giveaway/

The Long Beach Center for Economic Inclusion (LBCEI) presented Long Beach City College (LBCC) a donation of 100 Chromebook laptop computers for LBCC students on Mon., June 22 as part of the citywide #InThisTogetherLB pandemic emergency response campaign.

Together, LBCEI and LBCC distributed the 100 Chromebooks during an event at the Michelle Obama Neighborhood Library to incoming LBCC students who live in North Long Beach.

The #InThisTogetherLB campaign has been LBCEI’s pandemic emergency response initiative that directed $250,000 of program funding primarily from BRIDGE Development Partners, along with funding from Wells Fargo and the Office of Long Beach Councilmember Rex Richardson to support under-served families and underrepresented small businesses in North, Central and West Long Beach over the past two months. Funds have supported #InThisTogetherLB partner agencies in their community crisis relief efforts, including the contribution of Chromebooks refurbished by human-I-T for LBCC and YMCA students.

LBCEI, a community development corporation, aims to create an environment where everyone, including students, has a seat at the table and an opportunity to thrive. Youth development is a critical program element of the organization. One of LBCEI’s #InThisTogether goals has included getting technology into the hands of young people in most need – especially in light of mandated online classroom instruction that students must currently participate in during the COVID-19 pandemic. Wells Fargo was the initial funding partner for LBCEI.

Please see the following quotes below from the partner organizations.

“Our current health and economic emergency has had a profound impact on how we access work, health, and education, forcing students and families without access to internet and technology off a digital cliff,” said Councilmember Rex Richardson. “I’m proud to support our incoming students from Uptown by providing these Chromebooks as a critical resource for their success.”

“When the coronavirus pandemic hit, it closed access to resources that our LBCC students depended on to complete their class assignments, including our valuable computer labs,” saidLong Beach Community College District Board of Trustees VicePresident Uduak-Joe Ntuk. “I’m grateful for this generous donation and our community partners who stood up to meet this moment and stand with us to address the digital divide that unfortunately impedes too many of our students from North Long Beach.”

“LBCC provided 300 loaner Chromebooks to students since we moved our classes to remote learning,” said Long Beach Community College District Interim Superintendent-President Lou Anne Bynum. “A large number of our students do not have a laptop or computer at home. But this generous gift from LBCEI, the BRIDGE Development Partners and human-I-T have provided a more permanent solution for our students and their families.”

“When you’re the Chair of a Board and get to see young people have access, it makes it all worthwhile. We are proud of our youth who are working so hard to build their dreams. Youth development is critical to economic inclusion,” shared Bob Cabeza, Chair of LBCEI.

“This is a great event. Promoting educational equity in our community is the kind of cause that Bridge is proud to get behind. This means everything to us and we’re excited to be a part of it,” said Rosendo Solis, Senior Director of Development at BRIDGE Development Partners.

“What’s great about an event like this is that people have come together. They’ve pivoted to help each other, their neighbors, their communities, their friends and people in need. There’s no better example like what we’re doing today, which is getting this collaboration of partners that are helping our young people move ahead,” expressed Gabe Middleton, CEO of human-I-T.

Source: https://www.precinctreporter.com/2020/06/29/laptops-gifted-to-100-incoming-lbcc-students/

In an attempt to help students who are forced to work at home, the Long Beach Center for Economic Inclusion (LBCEI) has donated 100 Chromebook Laptops to Long Beach City College (LBCC).

The laptops were donated at an event held on Monday, June 22, at the Michelle Obama Library. 

According to the LBCEI, the goal of the donation is to help provide access to student who may not have computers at home, but may need one as the COVID-19 health crisis forces schools to take classes online. 

“When the coronavirus pandemic hit, it closed access to resources that our LBCC students depended on to complete their class assignments, including our valuable computer labs,” said Long Beach Community College District Board of Trustees Vice President Uduak-Joe Ntuk. “I’m grateful for this generous donation and our community partners who stood up to meet this moment and stand with us to address the digital divide that unfortunately impedes too many of our students from North Long Beach.”

The donation was part of the #InThisTogether campaign which is meant to help underserved and underrepresented families in North, Central and West Long Beach. 

The program is funded by $250,000 of funding by BRIDGE Development Partners, as well as funding from Wells Fargo and the office of Councilmember Rex Richardson. 

“Our current health and economic emergency has had a profound impact on how we access work, health, and education, forcing students and families without access to internet and technology off a digital cliff,” said Councilmember Rex Richardson. “I’m proud to support our incoming students from Uptown by providing these Chromebooks as a critical resource for their success.”

Source: https://signaltribunenewspaper.com/50357/news/long-beach-center-for-economic-inclusion-donates-100-laptops-for-students-at-long-beach-city-college/