Updates From Our Community

During this holiday season of giving, remember EOCP, a local, community-based organization that is making a difference in East Oakland. We thank you for your support.

It is our intent to provide a safe and secure environment for everyone residing at our facility while they work towards well-being and a permanent housing placement.

At EOCP we honor our clients' personal stories and we believe that effective, dignified care begins with genuinely understanding a person as who they are, not just what happened to them.

At EOCP, we know that each unhoused person, no matter their struggles with mental health or substance use, carries a unique and complex set of life stories with them.

At EOCP we build personalized, trusting, and authentic relationships with people experiencing homelessness, and walk alongside them as they grow into a life of self-reliance.

Myeeka Calhoun and Carmen Hidalgo both work at EOCP’s Crossroads shelter. They joined the organization a year ago and have brought a renewed spirit to assisting unhoused individuals and families. They share their perspectives on EOCP and why working in homeless services is important to them.

EOCP's staff are the anchor of our tireless work in supporting people to break out of cycles of homelessness and transform their lives.

EOCP's Family Matters shelter is a space that creates beautiful possibility: Since its door opened in June 2020, families with children arrive onsite ready to make a change in their lives, and cross the threshold out of homelessness.

2023 has ushered in a big season of change at EOCP: We’ve welcomed interim executive leadership and hired key staff at Crossroads, our emergency shelter located in the heart of East Oakland. Our commitment to persistent, comprehensive care for families experiencing homelessness continues.

Joining EOCP as Interim Executive Director—and learning about its history, strengths, and vision—has been a bittersweet gift. I am moved by the heartfelt stories of staff, colleagues, and partners who collaborated with EOCP’s longtime leader, Wendy Jackson, across her 26 year tenure, and the reflection and celebration they offer about the incredible impact of Wendy’s leadership. One thing is clear: Wendy’s authenticity, dedication, and ethic of holistic care for EOCP’s clients has shaped all aspects of our work today.

As we near the end of the year, we are struck with gratitude and grief for our late Executive Director, the Wonderful Wendy Jackson, who passed away in October 2O22 after a hard-fought battle with illness. Wendy, who was preparing for her retirement, served 26 phenomenal years with EOCP. Wendy’s leadership at EOCP was profound, and she will be deeply missed. In partnership, in service, and behind the scenes, she led our organization’s critical work of nurturing the dreams of people experiencing homelessness—and she did so with unwavering integrity, heartfelt commitment, and a deep belief in community-based collaboration.

On the morning of October 25th, we learned that our wonderful Executive Director, Wendy Jackson, had passed away. She was an incredible leader and cared so deeply for the work of EOCP and this community. We will miss her terribly.

Please join us in thanking, celebrating, and honoring the Wonderful Wendy Jackson for her service.

While our work has expanded to serve across Alameda County, we’ve been steadfastly committed to our home neighborhood, East Oakland. This commitment is brought to life every day by our dedicated team — many of whom are lifelong East Oaklanders. Their work and their presence demonstrates: EOCP is committed to who we say we are committed to, not only in the people we serve, but also in the people whose careers we invest in and grow.

The COVID-19 pandemic has been one of the biggest challenges for our entire world. For people experiencing homelessness in Oakland and Alameda County, it was an especially heavy hit. At EOCP, we maneuvered with the flexibility, creativity, and deep commitment that we’ve embodied from day one of doing this work. Our team stepped up to adapt to the crisis, strengthen our teamwork, and keep following through. Read more about EOCP’s resilience in responding to COVID-19.

We’re sharing stories of success and growth for two families. With the support of EOCP, each of these families charted a pathway out of homelessness for themselves and their children. With resilience and commitment, each of these families is now on the road to well-being, and a new chapter in their lives.

EOCP was selected to receive a $2.5 million grant from the Bezos Day 1 Families Fund, which issues annual leadership awards to organizations and civic groups doing compassionate, needle-moving work to provide shelter and hunger support to address the immediate needs of young families.