PARKS FOR PEACE
New Peace Pole Dedicated
at Dimond Park
Last Saturday, the 
8th of September, a new Peace Pole was dedicated in Dimond Park. It's located at the park entrance near the tennis courts off Fruitvale Avenue. Members from the faith community I'm a part of sang, read the Beatitudes and offered a prayer for peace for the park and the neighborhood, Councilwoman Jean Quan spoke, as well as Michelle Dopplet (the Dimond Rec Center Supervisore) and Ruth Villasenor representing the Native American Health Center. The celebration was about rededicating our park as a place of peace, against the increasing tide of youth violence in our city.
8th of September, a new Peace Pole was dedicated in Dimond Park. It's located at the park entrance near the tennis courts off Fruitvale Avenue. Members from the faith community I'm a part of sang, read the Beatitudes and offered a prayer for peace for the park and the neighborhood, Councilwoman Jean Quan spoke, as well as Michelle Dopplet (the Dimond Rec Center Supervisore) and Ruth Villasenor representing the Native American Health Center. The celebration was about rededicating our park as a place of peace, against the increasing tide of youth violence in our city.Reflecting on the meaning of the day's events, my mind was pregnant with memories of stories of what the park has meant for so many people in th
e history of the Dimond and Laurel Districts. As I looked around I saw the park filled with diverse and different people and activities - all representative of the Dimond - a footbal game on the green, a family picnic at one of the BBQ pits, a large back-to-school celebration gathering for the nearby Sequoia Elementary School (organized by the efficient and effective Dad's Group) and various families and friends hanging out on benches or enjoying the play structures. In the foreground (at least from where I stood) I saw the multiple neighborhood organizations, associations and faith-based communities with tables and stands on the tennis court networking and seeking to invite new folks to join in the social networks of the Dimond. Positive is the word that comes to mind...HOPE for not just the distant future of Oakland, but for today and tomorrow!
e history of the Dimond and Laurel Districts. As I looked around I saw the park filled with diverse and different people and activities - all representative of the Dimond - a footbal game on the green, a family picnic at one of the BBQ pits, a large back-to-school celebration gathering for the nearby Sequoia Elementary School (organized by the efficient and effective Dad's Group) and various families and friends hanging out on benches or enjoying the play structures. In the foreground (at least from where I stood) I saw the multiple neighborhood organizations, associations and faith-based communities with tables and stands on the tennis court networking and seeking to invite new folks to join in the social networks of the Dimond. Positive is the word that comes to mind...HOPE for not just the distant future of Oakland, but for today and tomorrow!Here's a link to a great article written by the Tribune's Brenda Payton about her experience of the diverse microcosm that we call Oakland all experienced and witnessed in Dimond Park. (HERE)
Learn more about the History of Dimond Park HERE.
A "Short" but longer history is HERE.
A Montclarion article explaining the name of "Dimond" is HERE.
See what's happening in Oakland Parks HERE.
Review and Locate the park on Yelp HERE.
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