Jayden’s Story

“My name is Jayden. I’m 19. Growing up, I loved watching sports and playing basketball. When you grow up (as I did) around an environment that you know doesn't love you, through time, you build this character where you just love yourself, and you wanna make sure your family and the ones you love are okay no matter the situation. And we [at the Point] host a lot of community events: baseball games, car shows, special events. So in a way, we've helped out, and all we want back is just to be helped out.” 

Basic Needs 

“My mom used to get a lot of food stamps. I would buy all the snacks, even a bag of chips for someone I may not know, but I know them through my little siblings. It's like a relief, like a relief of joy. I help someone else, like the best feeling ever.” 

“Sometimes the choice is what can you afford to plug in–a refrigerator? The microwave? We couldn't use the stove, so we had to use the microwave. But also, we're not financially stable to buy stuff to use for the microwave.” 

Question 4. Out of 326 responses, 175 (53.68%) said that “Health Services, such as outreach, basic care, on-demand mental health and wellness services, and wellness education” is “Extremely Important” to them. 

“The sharp turnover [of supportive staff] is hard. People are wanting that counseling and support and when someone you've gotten close to leaves, it's hard to reignite that bond. It's like you're breaking your bond to make a new one. It's only so many times you could break bonds and keep making new ones to the point you don't want to make bonds anymore.”

“I would like to see the base provide for the people, not just for temporary moments. If the base was to hire maybe five counselors. Every day, they meet with at least three kids, 45 to 50 kids each week, just someone there knowing that they care about you.” 

“I would provide free rehab for people who needed, or maybe just one-on-one counseling with every individual on the base, just something to start the recognition that the Alameda Point needs a helping hand.” 

“One thing they should change is [having] washing machines free. Why if you know people are low income why would you make them pay? $5 dollars, every time to wash clothes. That five could go to buy food, rent, electricity.” 

“Help people get their IDs. Help people get their license. I would like to see a job fair on the base. One that offers jobs right now, not months down the road, jobs that will hire you even when you have a felony on your record. Jobs that recognize the skills people have like being good at fixing cars.” 

“The base used to do breakfast every weekend for the community. They stopped doing that. And that was a way for the community to talk to each other. I feel like every week there should be a day or two where they serve free lunch for the kids. You know, even if it's a school day, even if it's summer.” 

Community 

Question 12. Out of 323 responses, 154 (47.68%) said that “Parks and Recreation, such as maintaining parks and pools, community events, and promoting environmental education and stewardship” was “Extremely Important.” 

“So my friends and stuff, we are beginning to be at a point where it is like happiness just isn't there no more, that drive to go. Let's go play basketball, at what court? The court, demolished. They did not think to fix the only basketball court that the base had. So that went away.” 

“Families go to the education center, asking to have the rest of the milk, asking to have the rest of the snacks, asking to have the rest of what they need in their household and the education center is a place where you can go to ask for stuff like that. But when the education center isn't being supported with [what it] needs to provide, what do we do?” 

Question 11. Out of 323 responses, 155 people (47.99%) said “Housing Affordability, such as first-time homebuyer support, social housing, protecting tenants from displacement, flexible housing assistance, and supportive housing” is “Extremely Important.”

“We went over to [the neighbor’s to] sing “Happy Birthday.” We heard a loud “boom, boom, boom.” Someone opened the door and came in. It was her property manager saying that there's too many guests in this house. Just because they are property management does not give them the okay just to barge in your house? And it's happened numerous times.” 

“They used to have these pop up inspections when they come in the house, just to make sure it's clean. When you live in a house with seven kids, four of the kids under the age of five, how do you expect the house not to get messy? Knowing that you guys are just gonna show up yet again? Without knocking, they came right in. My mom was in the shower. I was in my room, you know, everyone was kind of doing their thing. No one knew they were actually in the house, until my mom, with her towel around her, went to the living room to grab something. She needed to get dressed, to only be addressed by the property management. “Wow, what are you guys doing here?” They are over here saying, “We don’t have to let you know.” 

Question 8. Out of 323 responses, 153 (47.37%) said that “Child and Youth Development, such as after-school programs, neighborhood youth programs, and youth centers” is “Extremely Important.” 

“Let's not forget that our children would also like to play at nice parks. Our children also would like to have fundraisers with food and stuff. Because I know a lot of kids, personally, I go to sleep hungry. I know a lot of kids personally that come outside with no shoes on. What would help? [Clothing drives], as in jacket shirts, sweat socks, underwear needs, shampoo, conditioner, everything.” 

“I will be at Park and Rec Centers and see what snacks and treats they have. And I have a picture in my head of what the kids on the base have been given. There's been numerous times where whole batches were expired milk and sandwiches that were super hard you'd throw on the grounds and it would sound like a rock, but the Rec Centers, nicely made peanut butter jelly sandwiches, nicely made desserts.” 

Question 5. Out of 326 responses, 165 people (50.61%) reported that “Maintaining Infrastructure, such as streets, sidewalks, bike lanes, beaches, public landscaping, and sewer” is “Extremely Important.” 

“Maintenance is needed badly! Every time I shower at my mom's house I break out in rashes, my body itches. What could it possibly be? Because I know I am not the only one going through it.”

“When the whole base, all of our water shut down, we had to shower in these little boxes that they literally put at the end of the base, so we would have to walk there. Knowingly. No one has cars, no one has a license.” 

“When you go anywhere else in Alameda you see signs where kids are at play. “Caution, 25 mph.” You go anywhere on the base, you don't see signs that say, "Kids at play.” Kids are right here! No speed limit. No speed bumps. It's like they completely forgot about the kids of the base. With kids, my siblings, a regular day for them is waking up not wanting to play at the park, because the infrastructure, the mess, the smell, the used needles, the wrappers, the garbage, you know, there's no place for a kid when it's like that. There's actually been an incident where there were prescription pills at the park, a kid thought it was candy and went ahead and ate them, luckily, the kid’s fine.” 

Public Safety 

“One time we called the police when our garage had been broken into, only for them to detain my mom over a warrant that she had already settled. Knowing that the cop knew that she settled. They detained her. I was crying. My sisters were crying, because who wants to see their mother in handcuffs? Another lesson for the police, which should be number one, if there's kids around, it's have a little bit more respect.” 

Question 17. Out of 316 responses, 64 people (20.25%) shared that the “Police Department, such as staff, vehicles, surveillance equipment, and weapons” was “Extremely Important” to them( the lowest level recorded). 

“Where I grew up, there were always a lot of cop cars around. What do I want? For kids not to grow up seeing SWAT teams break into a house and all the kids watching, being scared of the police when they come around.” 

“You know, my siblings are traumatized because we had an incident where SWAT came in knowing there was kids in the house and still drawing their weapons. And I remember that day clearly, and I felt like there was no remorse. I feel like there was no heart in the cops that did that because there was no calm talking, if that makes sense. Yes, I know my father hasn't been on the right track, but he still doesn't deserve to be slammed, choked, kneed on the head.” 

“Just the other day, we had an incident where guns were drawn on my friend’s black father. I remember the exact day, and guns were drawn instantly and in my opinion, and I'm speaking for everyone who was there, including my friends, the guns were drawn because he was black.”