Cardea Health Hosts Its First “Winter Palooza” Pop-Up Care Village in East Oakland, CA
December 16, 2022
Cardea Health brings essential care services to its supportive housing community in East Oakland to meet multiple needs and boost spirits.
Backstory
Cardea Health is a nonprofit healthcare organization founded to connect marginalized populations to the clinical and supportive services they need to improve their health, remain stably housed in their community, and age in place. They provide clinical services at a 240-room Project Homekey site in East Oakland and wanted to create an event that facilitated empathy and celebrated the community.
“The holidays are some of the toughest times for a lot of people, especially the homeless population. I wanted our residents here to feel seen, cared for, and know that their community is here for them.” says Monique Brown, organizer of Cardea Heath’s Pop-Up Care Village.
How LavaMaeˣ Helped
Monique learned about LavaMaeˣ and its Pop-Up Care Village program through a mobile healthcare provider who partners both with Cardea Health and at LavaMaeˣ Pop-Up Care Villages in Downtown Oakland. She joined our 1:1 Mentorship program in November 2022 and worked with LavaMaeˣ Program Consultant Sam Reardon to organize the event.
In preparation, Sam met with Monique weekly and she attended one of our Oakland Pop-Up Care Villages to get trained on logistical planning, event design and flow, staffing, and guest inclusion. Monique also utilized our Pop-Up Care Village toolkit to prepare for the event, and Sam attended her event to support set-up and handle last-minute event changes.
Impact & Results
The “Winter Palooza” Pop-Up Care Village was a holiday-themed event hosted on December 16, 2022 at a Project Homekey site near the Oakland Airport. The event offered volunteer companionship services, hygiene kits, clothing and shoes, haircuts, animal services games, music, tacos, and holiday gifts. Adobe Services was a key partner supporting the event.
Guests served: 60
Partners activated: 4
Volunteers recruited: 15
Monique is planning to host a Mother’s Day Pop-Up Care Village in 2023 to support families.
Signature Stories
“David, one of the residents here, was so grateful for that day because that very next week he had to leave to start chemotherapy. He said that the event made his year." ~ Monique Brown
“Grass Valley Elementary donated artwork to the event. They drew pictures of things they wanted the residents here to know and to have. They drew pictures of homes, friendship, and words of encouragement” ~ Monique Brown
“Isha Jethi from Cardea health organized Adopt a Resident and got everyone a sponsor to receive gifts. This event gave me so much inspiration." ~ Monique Brown
