Kaiser Permanente partners with YMCA to combat teen pregnancy in Alameda and West Contra Costa Counties

Business Wire, June 25, 1997

OAKLAND, Calif.--(BW HealthWire)--June 25, 1997--Ces Butner, Chairman, YMCA of the East Bay, announced today a major investment by Kaiser Permanente in the YMCA's groundbreaking pregnancy prevention program, FutureChoice.

The YMCA FutureChoice program responds to high rates of teen pregnancy in Alameda and West Contra Costa counties through innovative programs designed to reach high risk youth at four YMCA of the East Bay locations. These include M. Robinson Baker YMCA in West Oakland, Eastlake YMCA in East Oakland, Downtown Oakland YMCA, and the YMCA Coronado Community Center in Richmond.

Bernard Tyson, senior vice president and East Bay local market leader for Kaiser Permanente in Northern California and Ces Butner, chairman of the YMCA of the East Bay, will be on hand to meet members of the media and discuss their partnership for YMCA FutureChoice at 4:00 P.M. on Thursday, June 26 at the YMCA of the East Bay headquarters office, located at 2330 Broadway in Oakland. In addition, FutureChoice teen leaders and the following individuals will also be available for in-depth interviews and profiles: -0-

Nancy O'Malley, of the Alameda County District Attorney's Office. Ms. O'Malley led the design team that conceptualized FutureChoice. An acclaimed expert in the areas of sexual abuse and statutory rape prosecution, O'Malley is also an active YMCA volunteer.

Yvette Radford, of the Kaiser Permanente External Affairs Department. Ms. Radford has been actively involved in developing the growing relationship between the YMCA and Kaiser Permanente. Radford has been actively involved in a variety of community development and community health activities in the East Bay.

AyoDeji Best, FutureChoice Program Director. With her vibrant energy and spirit and well-honed community development skills, Ms. Best is actively engaged in building the FutureChoice program.

Earlier this year, YMCA FutureChoice received a highly competitive Community Challenge Grant of $673,000 from the State of California. Anna Ramirez, Director of the Office of Community Challenge Grants, has called the FutureChoice program an "exciting effort to demonstrate an effective innovative model for preventing adolescent pregnancy." The Community Challenge Grant Program, a component of the Partnership for Responsible Parenting, is a multifaceted initiative designed to alleviate problems associated with teen and unwed pregnancy and fatherlessness. Ramirez will attend the June 26 press conference.

"Kaiser Permanente's support for this program caps our effort to raise $135,000 in matching funds," said Butner, an active YMCA volunteer, successful Oakland businessman and Chairman of the Oakland Chamber of Commerce. Kaiser Permanente has pledged $90,000 for the effort; Wells Fargo and Nike have pledged $25,000 each. Tom Wornham, Regional Vice President for Wells Fargo, will also be present at the press conference.

"We're eager to support what we feel is an excellent effort by the YMCA and its collaborative partners to respond to one of the most pressing problems in communities served by Kaiser Permanente," Bernard Tyson said.

In addition to financial support, Kaiser Permanente will assist the program with in-house health education resources.

"For example, Kaiser Permanente will make available our educational theater group for upcoming FutureChoice gatherings," said Yvette Radford, Kaiser Permanente's Community and Government Relations Representative. "We hope to contribute other Kaiser Permanente resources to strengthen FutureChoice programs."

Kaiser Permanente and YMCA representatives are planning a performance of the theater group for the YMCA teen summit, a gathering of teens from throughout the Bay Area to be held on September 27. The FutureChoice program will be the theme for this year's summit.

At the heart of the FutureChoice program is a strong collaborative representing a broad base of public and private organizations in Alameda and Contra Costa counties who have come together to build this effort.

Kaiser Permanente joins a diverse group of government agencies (Alameda County District Attorney, Superior Court-Juvenile Division, Juvenile Probation, and Department of Social Services), health care providers (Alameda County Medical Center), educators (Oakland Unified School District, West Contra Costa Unified School District), community groups providing tutoring services (Attorneys for Children, Marcus A. Foster Educational Institute), mentoring services (Mentoring Center, 100 Black Men of the East Bay, Inc. and Circle of Stones) professional sports clubs (San Francisco Giants) and media (KMEL, the No. 1 radio station in the San Francisco Bay Area for persons 12-34 years of age).

"The strength of the FutureChoice collaborative really rests on this incredible group of organizations who have come together to try and put a stop to this problem," Butner noted. "The YMCA of the East Bay is honored to be the lead agency for FutureChoice and delighted that Kaiser Permanente will be joining us. We look forward to working with other public and private agencies in the community who would like to work together to create solutions to the epidemic of teen pregnancy and fatherlessness."