After six weeks of nominations and voting, polling for the 2026 Alameda Community Stars Awards ended on February 17. Almost 90,000 votes were cast for 1,995 contenders across 182 categories in nine divisions. Following a brief audit and cleanup of duplicate votes, we are ready to share the results and announce the winners from each category. Second and third runners up and other contenders are listed in their respective categories on the AlamedaStars website.

On Tuesday, we listed the community’s choices for Stars in the Arts & Culture and Personal Services divisions. Today we detail the winners of the Business Services and Household Services divisions. Winners in the Food & Drink and Sports & Recreation divisions will be listed on Thursday, and Friday will feature the Retail, Community, and Kids & Family division winners. The Alameda Stars website will remain available to the public for the rest of the year, so you can check the standings anytime you like.

Thank you to everyone who participated in the competition, whether as a contender, a voter, or both. Be sure to show your appreciation by patronizing these Alameda businesses and service providers!

Business Services

• Accounting / Tax Practice – Lars G Hansson
• Architect – Drafting Cafe Architects
• Attorney / Legal Services – Law Office of Gina M. Mariani
• Auto Body Shop – Alameda Auto Body and Services
• Auto Mechanic / Repair – Jerry’s Tire and Auto Center
• Auto Services / Parts – Big Discount Tire Pros
• Bank / S&L / Credit Union – Bank of Marin – Marina Village
• Bookkeeper – Agatha Sembajwe
• Computers & IT – ABM Computers
• Dry Cleaner / Laundry Services – Martinizing Dry Cleaners
• Financial Planner – Edward Jones – Dominic J McKenna, AAMS®
• Graphic Designer – Red Tie Printing Inc.
• Hotel / Overnight Accommodations – Hawthorn Suites by Wyndham Oakland/Alameda
• Insurance Agent – Kelly Lux – State Farm Insurance Agent
• Marketing – Heidi Bennett Social Media Specialist
• Mortgage Broker – Chris Granger – Xpert Home Lending
• Notary / Fingerprint / Live Scan – Western Notary Services
• Packing & Shipping Services – The UPS Store – Blanding Ave
• Photographer – Sam Breach Photography
• Printing Services – SpeedPro East Bay
• Promotional Products – All Good Living AGL Collective
• Real Estate Agent – Team Schuler
• Real Estate Broker – Kate McCaffrey Group
• Real Estate Firm – Team Schuler
• Smog Shop – Alameda Smog
• Storage Facility – Extra Space Storage – Clement Ave
• Videographer – Maurice Ramirez Photo

View Business Services division on AlamedaStars.com.

Some of the busiest of the 27 categories in the Business Services division were in the Real Estate categories. Team Schuler bested the Andrea Ruport Team at Compass as well as Ringo Liu at Keller Williams to take the coveted Star Real Estate Agent. Team Schuler also took top honors as the Star Real Estate Firm, ahead of the Kate McCaffrey Group and Ryan Dunn Coast + Co. However, Kate McCaffrey Group got more votes than Team Schuler and Ryan Dunn Coast + Co to take the Star in the Real Estate Broker category.

Alamedans chose the Marina Village branch of the Bank of Marin for Star Bank/Savings & Loan/Credit Union, ahead of the South Shore branch and Poppy Bank. For other financial needs, Lars G Hansson won Star Accounting/Tax Practice, followed by Elizabeth Kugler and Ryan Van Valer, while Agatha Sembajwe was the choice for Star Bookkeeper, over Zap Payroll, R&R Professional Services, and Blakely Tax and Bookkeeping Services. The pick for Star Financial Planner was Dominic J McKenna, followed by E. Demmler & Associates and Kevin Kennedy.

On the creative side of business, Star Photographer was a very active category, with Sam Breach earning top honors out of 20 contenders, followed by John Burton and Anne Hohler. Maurice Ramirez is Alameda’s Star Videographer for 2026, earning the nod over Castaway Creative and Noel.Video. Top choice for the Architect category Star was Drafting Café Architects, ahead of Thomas Saxby and Daniel Hoy.

Household Services

• Contractor / Builder – Alameda Property Maintenance
• Electrician – T.E.C. Electrical & Fabrication
• Exterminators / Pest Control – Burge Pest Control
• Housekeeper / Home Cleaning – Bubble Magic Ultrasonic
• HVAC Services – Comfort Air Mechanical Systems
• Interior Design – Market and Nest
• Landscaping – McDaniels Landscaping
• Painting – Olson’s Painting Co
• Plumber – Bonafide Plumbing
• Remodeling – The Glass Man & Sons Windows and Glass
• Roofing Contractor – Central Bay Roofing & Restoration, Inc.

View Household Services division on AlamedaStars.com.

In the Household Services Division, Bonafide Plumbing won the most votes for Star Plumber, leading A.T. Weber Plumbing and Ethan’s Plumbing. Star Painter was awarded to Olson’s Painting, while Better Call Paul for Painting and Western Painting & Improvements were runners-up. The Star Roofing Contractor for 2026 is Central Bay Roofing, followed by Bay Roofing and Advanced Roofing Services.

For those looking to change things up around their homes, Market and Nest is the choice for your Star Interior Design firm, followed by Ingrid Ballmann Interior Design and Threshold Design. The Star for Remodeling was won by The Glass Man & Sons, who topped Alameda Property Maintenance and Buestad Construction. McDaniels Landscaping was picked as Alameda’s Star Landscaping, ahead of Rendered Stone Landscapes and Enchanted Gardens Landscaping.

The post Announcing the 2026 Alameda Stars – Part Two appeared first on Alameda Post.

During the initial stages of the investigation, officers and detectives worked quickly to assess the scope of the incidents. Evidence gathered at multiple scenes enabled investigators to link the same vehicle and suspects to the burglaries. With the assistance of Automated License Plate Reader (ALPR) technology, officers were able to locate the suspect vehicle within hours.

With the help of East Bay Regional PD and Oakland PD, three individuals were detained. Two were arrested on unrelated offenses. Detectives have since identified additional parties of interest and continue to actively investigate these incidents.

“It’s too early to say who all is involved, but we have made some arrests of individuals we believe are involved,” Police Chief Nishant Joshi told KTVU News. “They’ve been arrested for unrelated crimes. We’re going to further our investigation.”

Joshi also said investigators believe the group may be responsible for similar crimes in other cities.

The APD report did not list the names of the businesses that were affected. A couple of the businesses that were robbed posted about the situation on social media.

“We were one of the shops burglarized in a string of smash-and-grabs in Alameda,” Malaya Tea Room, located at 920 Central Avenue, posted on Facebook. “There was nothing to steal. No cash on site …but expensive damages of windows. So horrible to wake up to.” The tea room is expected to be open for business again on Thursday, according to the post.

Doodlecakes, located at 647 Central Avenue, maintained an unexpected good sense of humor in a Facebook post, calling the burglars “four hungry cake connoisseurs,” and noting that they stole a total of $10 from a tip jar in a drawer and left a cash register that had been stolen from Mountain Mike’s Pizza (714 Central Avenue) on the sidewalk.

There were almost 100 comments on the APD Facebook post at the time of writing this article, most of which were devoted to thanking the police for their service and strongly encouraging Alamedans to support local businesses, especially those that were affected by the burglaries.

“I really feel for these small, locally owned businesses. I’m sure they are relieved that you nabbed the alleged bandits so quickly,” one commenter wrote. “Meanwhile, time to order a pizza, get some delicious high tea, and some cupcakes.”

Some comments specifically praised the Automated License Plate Reader (ALPR) technology, which spurred controversy upon introduction, and thanked APD for adopting it.

“ALPR paying for itself in spades again!” one person wrote. “Thank you for going the extra steps to catching the burglars.”

The post Burglars Rob Nine Alameda Businesses in Early Morning Smash-and-Grabs appeared first on Alameda Post.

The performance of Dr. Acker’s play brings together two historic events—the bridge crossing and the 1954 Supreme Court decision that resulted in the unanimous decision to end legal segregation in U.S. public schools. Both bear strong messages today for Americans confronting the disturbing attacks on voting rights, equality in education, and justice before the law.

“Segregation continues to be at the forefront of human rights,” Dr. Acker said. “The fight over Brown v. Board has transformed into a battle for all democratic rights. …The equal right to vote is as critical now as segregation in public places was during the Brown ruling. We’re in the urgency of now, and we need courageous actions, as demonstrated in our play Words… to move people to action, including to vote.”

These issues aren’t limited to the South or red states. They occur right here in the Bay Area. As recently as 2019, Sausalito Marin City School District had to be ordered by the California Department of Justice to desegregate a school due to what state Attorney General Xavier Becerra called “intentional racial and ethnic segregation of schools within the District.” District officials had terminated math, science, and English programs at a school with a predominantly minority community of students.

“The actions taken by the Board of Trustees at that time were intended to segregate the District and they were successful, with negative consequences for hundreds of children,” Becerra stated.

Brown v. Board of Education continues to have meaning to this day as the entire nation struggles with the need to be an anti-racist society.

Learn more

• Watch: 2023 interview with playwright Dr. Cindy Acker with preview of two scenes.
• Watch: The actors, the play, and past performances.
• Read: Bridge Crossing Jubilee  at the foot of the Edmund Pettus Bridge in Selma, Alabama, a festival of music, art and remembrance of the struggle for civil rights.
• Read: Gene Kahane shares a 2024 interview with Dr. Cindy Acker in the Alameda Post.

The post ‘Words that Made the Difference’ to be Performed in Selma, Alabama to Mark Landmark Civil Rights Events appeared first on Alameda Post.

After six weeks of nominations and voting, polling for the 2026 Alameda Community Stars Awards ended on February 17. Almost 90,000 votes were cast for 1,995 contenders across 182 categories in nine divisions. Following a brief audit and cleanup of duplicate votes, we are ready to share the results and announce the winners from each category. Second and third runners up and other contenders are listed in their respective categories on the AlamedaStars.com website.

Today we list the winners for Stars in the Arts and Culture & Personal Services divisions. On Wednesday, we will list the winners of the Business Services & Household Services divisions. Winners in the Food and Drink & Sports and Recreation divisions will be listed on Thursday, and Friday will feature the Retail, Community, & Kids and Family division winners. The Alameda Stars website will remain available to the public for the rest of the year, so you can check the standings anytime you like.

Thank you to everyone who participated in the competition, whether as a contender, a voter, or both. Be sure to show your appreciation by patronizing these Alameda businesses and service providers.

Arts and Culture

• Art Gallery – Rhythmix Cultural Works
• Art Lessons – Coven of Stitches
• Arts Organization – Rhythmix Cultural Works
• Dance Studio – West Coast Dance Theatre Alameda
• Date Night Activity – Pacific Pinball Museum
• Event of the Year – Alameda 4th of July Parade
• Event Space – Faction Brewing
• Exhibition of the Year – In Plain Site by West End Arts District and RADIUM Presents
• Live Music Venue – Faction Brewing
• Local Band / Performer – The Permanent Records
• Museum – Pacific Pinball Museum
• Music Lessons – Starland School of Music
• Performance of the Year – Rising Seas series by Rhythmix Cultural Works
• Social Media Account – Bear’s-Eye View of Alameda
• Theater Company – Altarena Playhouse
• Website – Alameda Post

View the Arts and Culture division on AlamedaStars.com.

In the Arts and Culture division, Rhythmix Cultural Works was voted the recipient of three Stars, for Art Gallery, Arts Organization, and Performance of the Year (for their Rising Seas series of climate-change inspired performances). Pacific Pinball Museum was the top choice in two categories—Star Museum and Date Night Activity, while Faction Brewing got the nod in the Event Space and Live Music Venue categories.

Out of the 16 categories in the Arts and Culture division, the most contested category was Event of the Year, with a total of 19 contenders—all of which received votes from the community. In the end, the 2026 Star in the category was the annual Alameda 4th of July Parade, with Alameda’s GrannyCon and the Filipino Island Fest as runners-up.

The Local Band/Performer category was almost as busy, with 17 nominees. Hard rockers The Permanent Records were the choice of the largest number of voters, followed by holiday favorites, the Tap Dancing Christmas Trees, and drag performer Vicki Sparkle-Titz.

A special bark-out to the intrepid canine reporter for the Bear’s-Eye View of Alameda, who is now the proprietor of Alameda’s 2026 Star Social Media Account, beating out Alameduh Zine and Alameda Peeps. Other busy categories included Art Lessons, led by Coven of Stitches, with Alameda Arts and Mandar Fine Art next, and Music Lessons, for which the Star went to Starland School of Music, followed by Cadenza Studio of Music and Arts and Ozzies’s Music Academy.

Personal Services

• Acupuncture – Mari Kubota LAc.
• Alternative Medicine – Holomua Healing Arts
• Barbershop – Frank Logan Barbershop
• Chiropractor – Radiant Life Chiropractic
• Dentist – Alameda Pediatric Dentistry & Orthodontics
• Elder Care – Alice Home Care
• Facials – eleven esthetics
• Hair & Beauty Salon – Kalos Salon
• Hairstylist / Colorist – Jori Arata, 1500 Salon
• Lash & Brow – Simply Vanity SVSkinlashpros
• Manicures & Pedicures – Meraki Nail Studio
• Massage – Jessica’s Peaceful Journeys
• Nail Salon – Meraki Nail Studio
• Nutritionist – Alameda Nutrition
• Optometrist – Dr. Daniel Chin, OD
• Pet Adoption – Friends of the Alameda Animal Shelter
• Pet Boarding – Under One Woof
• Pet Grooming – Alameda See Spot Run
• Pharmacy – Versailles Pharmacy
• Physical Therapy – Emily Noonan, DPT
• Psychic/Fortune Teller – Feathered Outlaw
• Tailor/Alterations – Arkea Tailor Shop
• Tattoo Shop – Lucky 13 Tattoos
• Therapist/Counselor – Jackie JacksonDaley, M.A.
• Veterinarian / Clinic – Park Centre Animal Hospital
• Waxing – The Suite Spot
• Yoga Studio / Teacher – Svastha Yoga, Wellness and Community Hub

View the Personal Services division on AlamedaStars.com.

Although this division featured 537 contenders across 27 categories and was the most active within the 2026 Alameda Stars competition, only one contender took home multiple Stars in the Personal Services division—Meraki Nail Studio took top honors in both the Manicures & Pedicures and overall Nail Salon categories out of a field of 21 and 35, respectively.

The Hair & Beauty Salon category had a wide-open field of 72 nominees, and out of all of those, Kaos Salon emerged as the top choice, followed by We Are Hair of Alameda and the Hairmonstr Salon. However, out of 29 choices for Hairstylist/Colorist, the Star was awarded to Jori Arata of 1500 Salon, while Ash and Bone Hair Studio and Hair by Erica Ferriera were the runners up.

Other active categories in the division included Facials, where eleven esthetics came out on top of a field of 34, trailed by Faces by Liliana Skincare and Skinn by Francesca. The Star for Massage was awarded to Jessica’s Peaceful Journeys, followed by Secret Garden Skincare and LV Massage Therapy. In the Alternative Medicine category, Holuma Healing Arts was first choice, then Greater Movement Wellness, and The Funky Truth Healing. For Waxing, The Suite Spot was picked as the Star, with Secret Garden Skincare and Skinn by Francesa following behind.

The post Announcing the 2026 Alameda Stars – Part One appeared first on Alameda Post.

We launched Alameda Stars to uplift and recognize local businesses and service providers following the challenging years of the COVID-19 pandemic. Plus, Alameda’s only previous community awards program is no longer engaged. Alameda Stars engendered a huge level of participation from the community—just under 90,000 votes were cast for 1,995 contenders across 182 categories!

The rules of the competition were set up to allow participants to vote once per day per category for the duration of the contest. However, a few felt the need to create multiple accounts to vote for their chosen contenders. Our contest software can easily identify duplicate votes coming from the same user. So after voting ended, we conducted an audit to remove any suspected ballot-box stuffing. The voting is now finalized, and we’re ready to announce the results.

Contenders could appear in as many as five categories in the competition—21 different contenders achieved that goal. Unfortunately, none of them swept all the categories they were nominated for, but two of them won four of five. Julie’s Coffee & Tea Garden is the 2026 Alameda Star for Catering, Coffee Shop, Tea Shop, and Vegetarian/Vegan Food; Pacific Pinball Museum is Alameda’s 2026 Star for Children’s Activities, Date Night Activity, Kid’s Parties, and Museum.

A handful of organizations each garnered three Star awards in the 2026 competition. Rhythmix Cultural Works took top honors as Star Art Gallery and Arts Organization, and their Rising Seas programming was named Star Performance of the year. Kindred Running got the nod for three categories as well—Star Running/Racing Club, Star Shoe Store, and Star Sports Equipment Store. Faction Brewing scored a hat trick with Star Event Space, Star Live Music Venue, and Star Local Brewery/Distillery. Fresh off their one-year anniversary, Two Marys’ Mercantile won the 2026 Star for Boutique, Gift Store, and Thrift/Consignment/Vintage. Moxie bested the field for Star Brunch, Star Cocktails, and overall Star Restaurant.

Other significant 2026 multi-Star winners include the Alameda Food Bank, which was named Star Nonprofit and Star Community Organization, while Friends of the Alameda Animal Shelter was chosen as the Star for both Place to Volunteer and Pet Adoption. The 2026 Star for New Business and Eco-Friendly Business went to Replenish Marketplace. Domenico’s Italian Deli was chosen as the Star for both Lunch Place and Sandwiches, while Scolari’s was the choice for Star Burger and Star Food Truck. And the City of Alameda was awarded a Star for the annual 4th of July Parade, which was named the Star Event of the Year.

The full list of the 2026 Alameda Stars will be published in a series of articles in the Alameda Post and on our social media accounts this week, and the rankings of the top three finishers in each category are available on AlamedaStars.com. Today, we start by listing the community’s choices for Stars in the Arts and Culture & Personal Services divisions. On Wednesday, we will list the winners of the Business Services & Household Services divisions. Winners in the Food & Drink and Sports and Recreation divisions will be listed on Thursday, and Friday will feature the Retail, Community, & Kids and Family division winners. The Alameda Stars website will remain available to the public for the rest of the year, so you can check the standings anytime you like.

We have already reached out to notify the winners and will distribute awards during the week of March 2 to our 2026 Alameda Stars. If you see yourself listed but have not heard from us, please email support@alamedastars.com. In addition to bragging rights as a 2026 Alameda Star, each winner will receive a certificate of their accomplishment and a window cling showing the category in which they took top honors. The certificate is in full color and printed on durable waterproof paper, so even if it’s not framed, it will show off your accomplishment for a long time. The window clings are removable and will look great greeting visitors to your business.

Those Stars who have claimed their profiles on AlamedaStars.com and those who finished second and third in each category will also be able to download graphics from the site to share on their social media accounts and websites. If you haven’t already done so, you can still claim your profile—just go to AlamedaStars.com and type the name of your business into the big red search box and follow the instructions to register.

We have many to thank for making this competition such a success. First, our sponsors—the City of Alameda, Alameda Municipal Power, the Downtown Alameda business association, West Alameda Business Association, and Digifli—along with all of the advertisers on AlamedaStars.com, who helped underwrite the cost of this contest. We’re also deeply grateful to Maurice Ramirez, who shot and produced the amazing video of Alameda’s shopping districts that was central to the website and the competition’s marketing. Thanks also to Post board members Thushan Amarasiriwardena and Ophelia Nicandro for all the time they put in—this would not have been possible without their hard work. And finally, thanks to all the people at VoterFly, the developers of the software for the contest, who have been so responsive to our needs and provided such a robust platform.

We’re already preparing for our next competition in January 2027, and we welcome your input. If you have suggestions to make the contest better, please drop a line to support@alamedastars.com to let us know. We hope to include even more categories next year, and plan to hold a public event to bring the community together when we distribute awards to our 2027 Alameda Stars.

Adam Gillitt is the Publisher of the Alameda Post. Reach him at publisher@alamedapost.com. His writing is collected at AlamedaPost.com/Adam-Gillitt.

The post 2026 Competition Illuminates a Constellation of Alameda Stars appeared first on Alameda Post.

For riders commuting between the East Bay and South San Francisco, adjustments include trip time changes prompted by the results of the recent South San Francisco ferry route study. Additionally, a new early morning ferry trip is being added from Oakland to Downtown San Francisco to accommodate transbay UCSF commuters catching the Lilac Shuttle Route at Rincon Center at the Embarcadero. Other adjustments include minor departure time changes to improve system reliability.

SF Bay Ferry will make the following weekday service adjustments in March. All weekend schedules will remain the same with the exception of the Vallejo route and Alameda Short Hop.

Alameda Seaplane

Westbound

• The 9:40 a.m. westbound trip will be eliminated.
• A new westbound trip will be added at 12:30 p.m.

Eastbound:

• The 9:10 a.m. eastbound trip will be eliminated.
• The 9:40 a.m. eastbound trip will be eliminated.
• The 10:35 a.m. eastbound trip will shift 10 minutes earlier to depart at 10:25 a.m.
• The 12:10 p.m. eastbound trip will shift 10 minutes earlier to depart at noon.
• The 9 p.m. eastbound trip will shift five minutes later to depart at 9:05 p.m.

Harbor Bay

Eastbound:

• A new eastbound trip at 9:55 a.m. will be added.
• The 10:50 a.m. eastbound trip will shift 10 minutes earlier to depart at 10:40 a.m.

Oakland & Alameda

Westbound:

• A new westbound trip will depart Oakland at 5:55 a.m. and arrive in Downtown San Francisco at 6:20 a.m.
• The 9:05 a.m. westbound trip from Oakland will shift five minutes later to depart at 9:10 a.m.
• The 9:50 a.m. westbound departure from Main Street Alameda will be discontinued. This trip will continue to operate only between Oakland and Downtown S.F.

Eastbound:

• A new early morning trip will depart Downtown San Francisco at 6:25 a.m. eastbound to Oakland and Main Street Alameda.
• The 9:25 a.m. eastbound trip from Downtown San Francisco will shift 10 minutes later to depart at 9:35 a.m. This trip’s destination is the Oakland ferry terminal and will not stop at Main Street Alameda.

South San Francisco

Westbound:

• The arrival times for all morning trips arriving at South San Francisco are being adjusted to arrive 15 minutes before the top of each hour.
• The 8 a.m. Main Street Alameda and 8:20 a.m. Oakland departures to South San Francisco will be eliminated. The new westbound South San Francisco departure options from Main Street Alameda will be 6:50 a.m. and 7:45 a.m.
• The 4:10 p.m. Oakland and 4:25 p.m. Main Street Alameda departures to South San Francisco will shift 10 minutes later to depart at 4:20 p.m and 4:35 p.m. respectively.

Eastbound:

• The 7:10 a.m. departure to Oakland and Main Street Alameda will be eliminated.
• The 3:20 p.m. departure to Oakland and Main Street Alameda will shift 10 minutes later to depart at 3:30 p.m.

Alameda Short Hop

Weekdays

Eastbound:

• The 6:05 a.m. eastbound trip will depart Main Street Alameda at 6:50 a.m.
• The 7:05 a.m. eastbound trip will depart Main Street Alameda at 7:45 a.m.
• The 8 a.m. and 9:50 a.m. eastbound trips will be eliminated.

Westbound:

• The 4:10 PM westbound trip will shift 10 minutes later to depart Oakland at 4:20 PM.

Weekends

Eastbound only:

• A new eastbound trip will be added departing at 10:40 p.m. from Main Street Alameda.

Please refer to the updated schedules shown here for all changes. Information regarding the Vallejo and Richmond routes is available on the SF Ferry Schedule Changes webpage.

The post SF Bay Ferry Schedule Changes Start March 9 appeared first on Alameda Post.

“True believers have always fascinated me, but I am most definitely not one,” he said in a recent interview. “Religion, broadly defined, is a great beat. It’s a chance to write about how people find meaning, connection, and community in their lives, but also to write about politics, with the ongoing rise of [the] religious right and culture wars over abortion, sexuality, gender.”

A teen in the 1960s, Lattin studied sociology at UC Berkeley, but despite experimentation, he was more a writer than a hippie and was hired as an Examiner reporter at 23. “I may have turned on and tuned in, but I never really dropped out,” he said. “I never joined a cult or new religious movement, but I’ve been writing about them since the 1970s.”

Those books include The Harvard Psychedelic Club, a national bestseller, and its prequel, Distilled Spirits: Getting High, then Sober with a Famous Writer, a Forgotten Philosopher, and a Hopeless Drunk; Jesus Freaks: A True Story of Murder and Madness on the Evangelical Edge; and Following Our Bliss: How the Spiritual Ideals of the Sixties Shape Our Lives Today. He is also the co-author of Shopping For Faith: American Religion in the New Millennium, and numerous essays in encyclopedias of religion.

The first question that comes to mind is whether all that religious research affected Lattin’s own spiritual path.

“In doing the research for my last book, God on Psychedelics, I briefly joined an East Bay church that uses mind-altering plants, fungi, and chemicals as part of its spiritual practice, partaking in those rites with the Sacred Garden Church,” the author said. “In my previous book, Changing Our Minds, I took MDMA, ayahuasca, and other powerful psychedelic drugs under the supervision of trained therapists or neo-shamans. The goal there was to understand psychedelic therapy and sacred plant medicines from the inside out.”

The Harvard Psychedelic Club also won the prestigious California Book Award, while Distilled Spirits won the Religion Book of the Year from the Religion News Service. Suffice it to say that Lattin knows his subject and writes about it very well.

Lattin said he’s not what one would call a true believer in any one tradition, despite engaging in this interview while on his way to India with his wife. “I’m a skeptical universalist, meaning I look to find rays of truth in all the world’s religions, but I am also on the lookout for the corruption and hypocrisy that seems to infect them all.”

So no, they’re not going to India for enlightenment. “I’ll probably write something for Substack, perhaps on our visit to Varanasi, the major pilgrimage site on the Ganges River, or on our visit to the spectacular Ajanta and Elora caves. Most of the time we will be touring around Rajasthan, in the north, along with a few days in Mumbai, Delhi, and the obligatory swing by the Taj Mahal,” he said.

And yet, seeking some grain of truth in the universe is a regular practice. “For about a dozen years, I’ve been part of a small Zen meditation group that meets every other Saturday morning,” Lattin explained. “On alternate Saturdays, we practice a kind of contemplative prayer practice, or lectio divina, that focuses on a reading that could be from Rumi, a Christian mystic, Sufism, or a poem by Wendell Berry or Mary Oliver. I also practice T’ai Chi and have long felt drawn to Taoism and Advaita, the non-dual Vedic philosophy. Our Saturday gatherings are at Lenox House, a Roman Catholic retreat center near Lake Merritt, further evidence that it’s all pretty eclectic.”

Lattin is not working on a new book these days, and isn’t sure if another book is in his future, but he has been crafting a weekly series on Substack called Messiahs I Have Known.

“It’s about some of my misadventures as a religion reporter on the cult beat. It’s been a chance to publish some old work that, for various reasons, never saw the light of day, and to recast some published material in a new light,” he said. “Of course, I couldn’t resist including the 600-pound gorilla in the room, so I wrote a few posts about MAGA and the messianic cult around Donald J. Trump.”

“I may be done with [writing] books,” he added, although Harvard Psychedelic Club has recently been optioned for a possible feature film or streaming series. But there’s always hope that his inquisitive mind will find a new topic to dive into.

Meanwhile, Lattin stays busy in midtown with a new obsession: “The most exciting thing in our lives is our new granddaughter, who is approaching the terrible twos.” His wife, Laura Thomas, is a local affordable housing activist and puts out a podcast about Alameda called Island City Beat. 

“If you see a big, bearded guy walking a Golden Retriever down Chestnut Street toward the Estuary, it’s probably me,” Lattin said. “Stella [the dog] loves the new waterfront park across from Coast Guard Island. You might also see me riding my e-bike along the Bay on my way to play pickleball at Leydecker Park. That’s my real cult these days. I’m there three times a week getting love-bombed.”

Julia Park Tracey is an award-winning journalist, poet and author of nine books. Julia writes about books and other delicious things from her mountain hideaway, a restored 1880 Victorian, with her cats, chickens, bees, and emotional support husband. Find her on social media as @juliaparktracey, all platforms.

The post Don Lattin on Finding His Religion appeared first on Alameda Post.

Alameda is a bird-lover’s paradise, so it’s fitting that the K Gallery at Rhythmix Cultural Works is presenting “Flight Patterns,” an exhibit that celebrates the wonder of local birds through photography, drawing, painting, ceramic, print and mixed media.

Thousands of long-distance migrant shorebirds spend their nonbreeding season at Elsie Roemer Bird Sanctuary. Endangered and threatened species such as Least Tern and Peregrine Falcon breed on opposite ends of the island. And more common birds like California Towhee and Anna’s Hummingbird populate backyards and community gardens year-round. In all, more than 200 bird species—in an astounding variety of shape, size and color—have been documented in Alameda.

“Flight Patterns,” which will run from March 6 through April 24, is curated by local birder, musician, and writer Deborah Crooks, and will feature works by Brice Binder, Laura (Tex) Buss, Jean Chen, Flavia Krasilchik, Rick Lewis, Mary Malec, Christopher Reiger and Dana Zed.

An opening reception is scheduled for March 13, 6 to 8 p.m., at Rhythmix Cultural Works, 2513 Blanding Avenue. Admission is free; please RSVP online.

About the artists

Brice Binder has shared a new Two Birds from Alameda comic in the Alameda Post every week since August 2022. In his first print zine collection of the comic, he writes, “I loved growing up here. Alameda was so much better back then in so many ways. I love that my boys get to grow up here. Alameda is so much better now in so many ways.”

Laura (Tex) Buss first studied painting at the School of Visual Arts, New York. From there her craft took her into varied directions, including an ongoing career in tattooing at Red Kestrel Tattoo, and oil painting with a heavy focus on figurative work. She also paints bird and nature-focused watercolors. She is based in San Francisco.

Jean Chen is an artist and writer (sometimes at the same time) who lives in Alameda. She is a regular contributor to the Alameda Post. Her articles are available to read online. See her art—comics, sketches, and tattoos—on her website and Instagram.

Flavia Krasilchik was born and raised in Brazil. She moved to the United States in 2003 and practiced architecture until she discovered utilitarian ceramics. She then moved to clay as a medium for sculpture. Her sculptures are whimsical with a touch of the absurd and reflect Brazilian culture and the great painters. “I am an audience for the birds’ cycle on the Alameda shores and bird sanctuary,” she said. “I chose to live in Alameda because it is a place where urban meets nature in total harmony and grace, providing me the source of inspiration to create my ceramic sculptures and whimsical creatures.”

Rick Lewis is a longtime member of the Golden Gate Bird Alliance, Friends of the Alameda Wildlife Reserve, and other environmental organizations. He contributes often to Bay Area and Central Valley birding groups that promote wildlife and habitat conservation. His images have been used on the covers and inside of various magazines, brochures, field guides, newsletters and websites, including the Alameda Post, Bay Nature, Outdoor California, Sierra Heritage, Audubon, Ducks Unlimited, Birder’s World, Earthjustice, Point Blue, Sierra Club Yodeler, Save Wetlands, Golden Gate Bird Alliance, Save the Bay, San Luis National Wildlife Refuge Complex, San Francisco Estuary Partnership, and Wonderments of The East Bay.

Mary Malec is a Golden Gate Raptor Observatory (GGRO) hawk watcher and volunteer for CalFalcons, East Bay Regional Park District, and Predatory Bird Research Group, monitoring the fall raptor migration as well as Bay Area Peregrine Falcon, Golden Eagle and Burrowing Owl populations.

Christopher Reiger is originally from the rural Delmarva Peninsula on the mid-Atlantic coast. He spent his 20s in New York City and his 30s in San Francisco. Whether exploring an abandoned city lot or a tract of forest far from an urban center, he still feels the same excitement he felt as a boy, when he found many of his experiences in the “natural” world to be similar to those of Lewis Carroll’s Alice’s Adventures in Wonderland. Carroll’s premise that things get “curiouser and curiouser” guided Christopher through many an outdoor adventure. As an adult, his love of the outdoors has evolved into a fascination with natural history, conservation, and ecology. His visual art, illustration, design, and writing projects wrestle with contemporary constructions of nature, and the human relationship to nonhuman animal species. Christopher now lives in Santa Rosa with his wife and two young sons.

Dana Zed has been an exhibiting visual multi-disciplinary artist in the Bay Area for more than four decades. She has had solo museum shows at the Napa Valley Museum and the de Young Museum, and multiple gallery shows, most especially Braunstein/Quay where she had yearly solo shows for over a decade. She has done numerous private architectural commissions and a large public commission for the San Francisco Public Library. She has taught at Pixar, San Francisco Art Institute, California College of the Arts, Esalen and Oakland Unified School District. Dana is the mother of two successful children, has cycled from San Francisco to Washington DC twice, and has written volumes of flash fiction.

About the gallery

The K Gallery at Rhythmix Cultural Works supports the organization’s mission to bring people together and build community by inspiring engagement in the arts. Exhibitions in the K Gallery reflect the vitality of local artists in the Bay Area community.

The K Gallery is named for Kazuko (Kay) Koike, one of Rhythmix’s founding donors. “Kazu” is the Japanese word for “peace” and “ko” means “child.” Kazuko Koike, child of peace (1919-2020).

The post Rhythmix Cultural Works Presents ‘Flight Patterns’ at K Gallery appeared first on Alameda Post.

This year there are two separate Community Grant Programs:

1. Annual Community Grants Program of $30,000: These funds are to be distributed among a large and diverse number of the City’s nonprofits to support the diversity of missions these local groups fits represent.  These are typically small grants ($500 to $1,500) that may fund a specific project or may be used for general programming.  Another goal of this program is to fund small organizations that do not have their own resources to raise capital.
2. One-Time Community Grant of $20,000 to a single Alameda nonprofit: The purpose of this grant is to fund a significant capital budget item for the nonprofit and is to be used in its entirety within 12 months.

How to apply

Alameda nonprofits may apply for both grant programs. The application for Annual Community Grants may be completed and submitted here. The application for the one-time $20,000 grant may be completed and submitted here.

Please note that Rotary will verify nonprofit status through the State of California’s Registry of Charities by searching for your FEIN (Tax ID number).  The nonprofit must be a 501c3. Applicants should review this registry before submitting an application to ensure information is accurate and up to date.

The Rotary Club has tried to make the application process as easy as possible, but applicants with any questions may email rotaryclubofalameda@gmail.com.

Important dates

• Application deadline: March 31, 2026
• Grant recipients notified: April 17, 2026
• Grants distributed: May 12, 2026, at lunchtime meeting, 12:15 p.m., at Trinity Lutheran Church, 1323 Central Avenue.

How you can help

If you’d like to support the Rotary Club of Alameda’s fundraising efforts for these community grant programs, please purchase tickets by February 27 to the Lobster Dinner to be held on Friday, March 6, 5-8 p.m., at the Elks Lodge, 2255 Santa Clara Avenue, in the Rathskeller Room.

The event includes live music, a huge silent auction with something for every budget, and a raffle. A vegetarian option may be specified when you purchase your ticket. For more information and to purchase tickets, visit the Rotary Club’s Lobster Dinner webpage. The club needs the public’s help in making this fundraiser a success, so please don’t delay in purchasing your tickets.

Rotary Club of Alameda extends thanks to its sponsors: Silver Level—Ed Hirshberg and Bill Dal Porto; Bronze Level—Alice’s Home Care, Nirmal Rout of Edward Jones, Michael Pucci, and Alameda Municipal Power.

Rotary appreciates your support!

Joyce Mercado is the author of Save the Planet in Your Spare Time: A Climate Protection Handbook for the Busy Person, a member of Community Action for a Sustainable Alameda (CASA), and President of the Rotary Club of Alameda. Her columns are collected at alamedapost.com/Joyce-Mercado. She can be reached at jlmercado246@gmail.com.

The post Applications Now Open for Rotary Club Community Grants appeared first on Alameda Post.

The event starts at 5 p.m. with a no-host bar and live music, and dinner starts at 6 p.m. The menu includes a vegetarian option for those who prefer it. In addition to the delicious food, there’s a popular silent auction with something for every budget, donated by generous businesses, nonprofits, and Rotarians.

Tickets are $95 per person. Purchase online or mail a check (payable to Alameda Rotary Endowment Foundation) to Bill Dal Porto, 208 Brighton Court, Alameda, CA 94502. They’re going fast, so don’t delay! Payment must be received by February 27.

The Rotary Club thanks the event sponsors—Silver Level: Ed Hirshberg and Bill Dal Porto; Bronze level: Alameda Municipal Power, Alice’s Home Care, and Michael Pucci. Last year’s Lobster Dinner raised more than $10,000 for Alameda nonprofits and charities.

Rotary contributes to the community in a variety of ways in addition to its Community Grants and Matching Grants programs. Community Service projects include tree planting in partnership with 100K Trees for Humanity, Community Action for a Sustainable Alameda, and the Alameda Recreation and Parks Department; helping vulnerable communities in Alameda through contributions to the Warming Shelter at Christ Church; assisting with Alameda Point Collaborative’s holiday dinner, and homemade lunches in cooperation with Lunch Elves of Alameda; assisting Boy Scouts with sorting food from their Food Drive for the Food Bank and recycling Christmas Trees; shoreline cleanups in cooperation with Community Action for a Sustainable Alameda; and many more programs. Rotary also raises and distributes scholarships each year to deserving graduating seniors from Alameda high schools.

The club meets on the first three Tuesdays of the month at 12:15 p.m. at Trinity Lutheran Church, and has a social gathering in the evening once a month. The public is welcome to attend a meeting, social gathering, or community service event, which are listed on the online calendar.

And of course, Rotary welcomes and thanks those who support its Community Grants program by attending the Lobster Dinner.

The post Rotary Club to Host Lobster Dinner to Raise Funds for Community Grants appeared first on Alameda Post.