OCO Co-Chair, Pastor Lucy Kolin

On Saturday, May 16, OCO celebrated 32 years of developing leaders who can act together powerfully to improve the quality of life for the people of Oakland, or, as our convention theme stated, “to build a stronger future for our families."  Over the past two years OCO has developed a new maturity, greater staff and Board capacity, and Citywide Leadership meetings that build relationships, highlight the work of LOCs, and strengthen our ability to act as a federation.  We are now 39 congregations and schools and have a membership that reflects Muslims, Jews, and Christians.  Big changes on the national scene impacted local and state issue work, created opportunities to celebrate (the signing of SCHIP legislation) and to contribute our experience and research through PICO to shape policy and legislation in the areas of affordable housing, health care, green jobs, education, and immigration.  Yet OCO has continued to focus on moving forward its primary federated issue:  public safety and violence prevention. 

In the days ahead, I see us continuing to live into our credential as a multifaith, multiracial, multicultural organization through recommitting ourselves to the building block of all our organizing: one-to-ones, and through intentional integration of learnings from work with our VISIONS consultants.  Further, anyone who has participated in a recent Citywide Leadership meeting or who attended the convention also recognizes that we have an opportunity to grow as a multigenerational organization.  I also hope we will take advantage of expertise within and beyond OCO to create new ways to tell our story, build respect and credibility, and attract new support.

As always, we will do this together in spirit and in hope, according to the values of faith, community, justice, and compassion that we share.  I am excited and honored to serve as OCO Co-chair for two more years and to be working with a Board that is competent, strategic, and visionary. Oakland will continue to face tremendous economic, political, and spiritual challenges in the days ahead, but I believe our prayerful, persistent, strategic, disciplined work will yield the victories, small and great, our families need and deserve.  

Peace be with you.

Pastor Lucy Kolin

OCO Co-Chair