Our Board

Board Meetings

Board Meetings are held on the third Wednesday of every month (except where otherwise noted) from 5 to 7:30pm via Zoom. The public is welcome to attend the open session beginning at 6pm. Zoom meeting access can be found in the meeting agenda documents linked below.

Meeting dates and agendas are as follows:
January 18, 2023
February 15, 2023
March 15, 2023
June 21, 2023

Meeting packets are found below:
January 18, 2023
February 15, 2023
March 15, 2023

2022 Board Packets

January 19, 2022
February 16, 2022
March 16, 2022
June 15, 2022
September 21, 2022
November 9, 2022

2021 Board Packets

January 20, 2021
February 17, 2021
March 17, 2021
June 16, 2021
September 29, 2021
November 17, 2021

2020 Board Packets

January 15, 2020
February 19, 2020
March 18, 2020
June 17, 2020
Sept 16, 2020
November 18, 2020

2019 Board Packets

January 16, 2019
February 20, 2019
March 20, 2019
June 19, 2019
September 18, 2019
November 20, 2019

Community Bridges / Puentes De La Comunidad

4 hours ago

Thanks to your voices, Gov. Gavin Newsom has requested a Major Disaster Declaration to provide federal support for residents impacted by storms and floods. Thanks to the more than 800 concerned community members that signed our request, and the more than 200 personal comments sharing your hearts with the community Pajaro as well those who had suffered personal losses.You can continue to use your voice to urge the President to grant the governor's request to release desperately needed support to the people of Pajaro as well as across the state. Use the following updated link to show your support for federal action with President Biden, Governor Newsom and local representatives: communitybridges.salsalabs.org/pajarorecoveryaction#StrongerTogether #pajarostrong #PeoplePower ... See MoreSee Less

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Community Bridges / Puentes De La Comunidad

4 hours ago

A community united can never be divided.We want to acknowledge the dozens of nonprofit and community leaders who signed a letter asking that Gov. Gavin Newsom provide emergency aid to Pajaro Valley residents who have lost so much.Earlier today, the governor officially requested President Joe Biden make FEMA individual assistance available for various California counties impacted by the recent spring storms, including Monterey and Santa Cruz counties. This is excellent news, but more needs to be done.We urge the president to grant this request and for the governor to make state assistance available for Pajaro Valley residents who will not qualify for federal aid because of documentation status.You can continue to advocate for an equitable recovery for the Pajaro Valley here: bit.ly/42DWU9s ... See MoreSee Less

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Community Bridges / Puentes De La Comunidad

6 hours ago

El camino hacia la recuperación ha comenzado para muchas familias afectadas por las inundaciones en el Valle de Pájaro. Para algunos, esto llevará semanas. Para otros, esto llevará años.Community Bridges y sus socios comunitarios, incluida la Junta de Acción Comunitaria del Condado de Santa Cruz, Caridades Católicas, Monarch Services y Pajaro Valley Prevention and Student Assistance, están aquí para ayudar.Los grupos comunitarios ya han distribuido más de $600,000 en asistencia directa a las familias de Pajaro Valley, y ahora tenemos un plan de tres olas para continuar apoyando su recuperación.Agradecemos a la Fundación Comunitaria del Condado de Santa Cruz y a la Fundación Comunitaria del Condado de Monterey por patrocinar este esfuerzo y por su continuo apoyo al Valle de Pájaro durante este momento difícil.Lea sobre el plan de recuperación de tres olas en este artículo de opinión colaborativo en el Santa Cruz Sentinel: www.santacruzsentinel.com/2023/03/27/guest-commentary-pajaro-floods-community-groups-step-up /¿Necesita servicios de gestión de casos de desastres a largo plazo? Comuníquese con Recursos Comunitarios de La Manzana o Catholic Charities para obtener ayuda.La ManzanaVisita: 521 Main St., Suite Y, WatsonvilleLlame: 831-724-2997Catholic CharitiesLlame: 831-316-9122 ... See MoreSee Less

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Community Bridges / Puentes De La Comunidad

7 hours ago

The road to recovery has begun for many flood-impacted families in the Pajaro Valley. For some, this will take weeks. For others, this will take years. Community Bridges and its community partners, including the Community Action Board of Santa Cruz County, Inc., Catholic Charities Monterey, Monarch Services - Servicios Monarca, and Pajaro Valley Prevention and Student Assistance, are here to help. Community groups have already distributed more than $750,000 in direct assistance to Pajaro Valley families, and now we have a three-wave plan to continue supporting their recovery.We thank Community Foundation Santa Cruz County and Community Foundation for Monterey County for sponsoring this endeavor and for their ongoing support of the Pajaro Valley during this difficult time. Read about the three-wave recovery plan in this collaborative opinion piece in the Santa Cruz Sentinel: www.santacruzsentinel.com/2023/03/27/guest-commentary-pajaro-floods-community-groups-step-up/In need of long-term disaster case management services? Reach out to La Manzana Community Resources or Catholic Charities for help.La ManzanaVisit: 521 Main St., Suite Y, Watsonville Call: 831-724-2997Catholic CharitiesCall: 831-316-9122 ... See MoreSee Less

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Community Bridges / Puentes De La Comunidad

14 hours ago

HAPPENING NOW: The Monterey County Board of Supervisors is discussing a temporary eviction moratorium for people impacted by the recent spring storms. The Board will resume its meeting at 10:30am. The Board's agenda and the link to watch along can be found here: monterey.legistar.com/Page.aspx?M=WCommunity Bridges is in full support of the temporary eviction moratorium. It is critical that our local leaders take steps to prevent displacement and relocation in the aftermath of the devastating floods in the Pajaro Valley. ... See MoreSee Less

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Board Members

Officers

Jack Jacobson, Chair

As the longest tenured board member, Jack has been a part of overseeing the agency since its inception. He has a strong commitment to social justice and ensuring the most marginalized have access to services. He attributes his dedication to others from his family’s experience of surviving the holocaust.

Silvia Morales, Vice Chair

Ryan Friedrich, Treasurer

Ryan is a Sr. Administrative Analyst for the Santa Cruz County Administrative Office. He previously worked as a transit planner for the Santa Cruz METRO and a land use/transportation planner for AMBAG. With his deep knowledge in land use, transportation and economic development he hopes to help Community Bridges tackle a variety of challenges in the community including personal mobility, early childhood education and care, and health and nutrition.

Sara Siegel, Secretary

Sara previously worked at Community Bridges’ Mountain Community Resources Center as a probation youth advocate, teen program coordinator, parent education class coordinator and information and referral advocate. Sara has seen what resources and support can do for our community and she believes that Community Bridges is solving those needs. Sara has BA in Community Studies from UCSC and an MS from SJSU in Criminology-Concentration in Global Criminology.

Members

Steven McKay

Steven is an Associate Professor in Sociology at UCSC and Director of the UCSC Center for Labor Studies. He is a published author in the area of historical and multi-sited ethnographic research. He also works locally on a series of community-initiated, student-engaged research projects focusing on low-wage work, wage theft, immigration, and affordable housing. Steven holds a Ph.D. in Sociology and a M.A. in Southeast Asian Studies from the University of Wisconsin – Madison, as well as a B.A. in Political Economy of Industrial Societies, University of California – Berkeley. He is committed to social justice and ensuring we support policies that improve conditions for everyone.