Community
On any given day, close to 90 clients come to God’s Gym for personal training from 49-year-old Gary Shields. Some clients lift heavy weights and work on their massive physiques. Others have more modest routines, toning or rehabbing injuries. The two-story storefront on the corner of Broadway and 25th Street is painted jet black from top to bottom. Images of two posed, flexing bodybuilders fill the front windows. One is a silhouette of Shields in his prime. Centered between the bright, bold white words of the gym’s name, is a painting of a buff, black Jesus breaking free of chains.
What do the Chabot Space and Science Center, PGAdesign, Red Oak Realty, The Tip Top Bike Shop, Mr. Sparkle Window Washers, and Baja Taqueria have in common? They are all “green” businesses in Oakland.
The Nightcap is a series that features a favorite Oakland drinking establishment every Friday afternoon. This week, it’s Luka’s Taproom, which was one of the only bars in Uptown when it opened in 2004.
Kelly Carlisle is the founder of the Acta Non Verba Youth Urban Farm, a program that teaches young people about growing food by using a garden as a classroom. The kids, most of whom are between the ages of 7 and 13, get to take the vegetables they grow home to their families, or donate them to the neighboring community.
Community events and activities for the weekend of November 25 – 27. Got an event we didn’t know about? Please add it in the comments! Enjoy your Thanksgiving break!
We wish you all a safe and plentiful holiday, whether you are racing to the airport or cooking a turkey or already eating pie!
In the Tuesday afternoon sunshine, a line of people formed on 10th Street outside Oakland’s downtown Marriott Hotel while inside, hundreds of volunteers—including Mayor Jean Quan—bustled back and forth in the banquet hall, preparing to serve over 2,000 people at the city’s 20th annual Thanksgiving dinner.
Part pop-up restaurant, part real-life episode of Top Chef, College Avenue’s newest addition, Guest Chef, introduces an innovative business model that is new to the foodie scene: a new chef, cuisine, and menu every two weeks. And the clincher: anyone can apply to be a chef. Yes, even you.
“Love, respect, care, responsibility, honor, and peace”—that’s the Warrior’s Code that East Bay youth are being taught at Destiny Arts Center as part of the Growing Peaceful Warriors Program. Instructors teach young people self-defense and conflict management skills to deal with possible real-life dangerous situations through the martial and performing arts.