United Against Racism

BACS staff and clients, our neighbors and family members, and the people we serve are part of the Asian-American Pacific Islander (AAPI) community. The recent murders in Atlanta and the ongoing, escalating attacks in Oakland and San Francisco have brought to national attention to what, unfortunately, is not news to many right here in our community: Asian and Pacific Islander Americans are targets of hate crimes and acts of violence.

Chris Nguyen of the BACS Cultural Responsiveness Advisory Group said “What the younger generation feels growing up as children of Asian immigrants, similarly to many other cultures and immigrant families… Our native countries view us as American (Non-Native) and our home country sees us Asian (Non-Native)… Elders in our communities look at their life in this country as one of a visitor while children don’t see their own country as their native land… American history = Black History = Indigenous History = Latinx History = Asian history. Our history is very much intertwined and defines American society.”

As an organization, BACS works to integrate an explicitly anti-racist framework to our care model – bridging the gap between mental health and housing systems of care to meet the needs of the “whole person” – breaking barriers of generational poverty, racism, injustice, and violence. We are collectively heartbroken, and express our condolences and support for the AAPI members of our staff, our board, our volunteers and our community.

Strategic Plan for 2021-2023

As we set our strategic priorities, we heard from thousands of community members of their struggles – generational poverty, policing, racism, disability, injustice, and trauma.

For nearly 70 years, BACS’ mental health, housing, aging, and youth services have created a comprehensive safety net for our community. Time and again, BACS’ staff, leadership, and volunteers have heard the call of the community and responded to fill those gaps.

Systemic oppression prevents the people BACS serves from being healthy, safe, and housed. Our community is calling out for freedom – this strategic plan is our response.

Welcoming New Board Member

Please join us in welcoming Radhika Bajaria, MA, LMFT, to the BACS Board of Directors!

Radhika Bajaria, licensed Marriage and Family therapist has worked in community mental health for over 12 years in Contra Costa County and Alameda County. Radhika is passionate about community mental health and providing the best services to the most vulnerable population. Radhika is excited to join the BACS board to provide her expertise as a mental health professional and do whatever it takes to help BACS grow.

First BACS Program in the Monterey Bay Area

Bringing a whole new meaning to “Bay Area” Community Services, BACS is thrilled to announce that we are partnering with the City of Salinas and the County of Monterey to open their first housing navigation center! We anticipate opening the SHARE Center around late May.

BACS is excited to bring our strong Housing First philosophy and our determined focus on pathways to permanent housing to the Salinas community. We are grateful to all of the community advocates who made their voices heard and made this possible, as well as the City Council of Salinas and the Monterey County Board of Supervisors for their commitment to real solutions for community members experiencing homelessness.

Tipping Point Community

BACS is excited to share that we are officially part of the Tipping Point Community! Tipping Point fights poverty in the Bay Area, through targeted investments and capacity-building support. Since 2005, Tipping Point has invested nearly $300 million in housing, early childhood, education, and employment solutions – strengthening our community’s safety net.

Tipping Point Community vets organizations extensively before making an investment and evaluate performance regularly, and we are honored and inspired to have the opportunity to partner on such a significant opportunity to help break the cycle of poverty and homelessness.

Thrive City on Wheels – Warriors & Kaiser Permanente

Huge shout-out to two of our major local partners, the Golden State Warriors and Kaiser Permanente, for providing hundreds of farm-fresh food bags to the people we serve!

Thrive City on Wheels is helping the farmers and farmers’ markets and the families who are struggling to access healthy local foods. This 8-week program has already helped more than 150 families just at BACS. Thank you Warriors and Kaiser Permanente!

A New Approach: Housing in San Francisco

Tipping Point is also funding BACS to establish the Shared Housing Collaborative, focused on a coordinated effort to make multi-bedroom units with shared common spaces a viable housing option for people experiencing homelessness. The project will simultaneously build the system infrastructure and help service providers adjust to this strategy to ensure successful implementation.

This model is successful, neighborhood-oriented, and keeps a high standard of living for all people. CEO Jamie Almanza said, ““BACS is thrilled to bring a shared housing and client voice/choice framework to our decades-long success of supporting communities working towards solving homelessness. We are honored to step in and help San Franciscans and community partners implement a shared housing collaborative to increase permanent housing options for our community.”