- Ocean Beach Community Foundation
- Posts
- Monthly OBCF Newsletter - July 2024
Monthly OBCF Newsletter - July 2024
Monthly News from the OBCF!
Dear Ocean Beach Community Foundation (OBCF) Supporters,
We are so excited to introduce nine new Board Directors who have joined the OBCF Board through a community election process! As a board, we are gathering in early August to embark on strategic planning and preparing for the year ahead. This will including bringing all of the traditional OB events to the community and we will need your help as volunteers, committee members, sponsors, donors, and attendees.
We are kicking off this ask for help from the community by you to name the theme for this holiday season. That’s right, your idea may be selected as the theme for this year’s parade, including the logo that is printed on the 2024 holiday t-shirts! Check out the details on this and more in this month’s newsletter below.As always, reach out to us by replying to this email (or any time by emailing [email protected]), messaging us on Facebook, or say hi if you see us around OB.
Proudly serving OBecians,
Ocean Beach Community Foundation Board
OBCF Board of Directors
Meet the OBCF Board
OB Community Foundation hosted the candidate forum on June 26, with community voting over the next week to fill the vacant positions on our 15 person board. Meet our 15 person board:
Shelly Parks
President
Jenny Brengelman
Treasurer
Gary Gartner
Corresponding Secretary
Aaron Null
Advocacy Committee Director
Angelo Devlin
Director
Anna Firicano
Engagement Committee Director
Dawnette Sheets
Director
John Carleton
Director
Karen Froehner
Director
Margaret Morghen
Director
Nicole Murray
Director
Palmer Bajari
Director
Rouge Yusuf
Director
Schuyler Winter Jr
Director
Stephanie Kane
Events Committee Director
2024 Holiday Theme
We are asking you, our beloved community, to name the theme for this holiday season. The theme serves as a beacon for parade float decorating, is used on flyers and promotional materials, and is printed on the annual holiday t-shirts. A few of the previous year’s themes include: Santa's Disco Luau (2023), Jingle All the Waves (2022), It's a Wonderful Life, in Ocean Beach (2018), The Year of the Pier with Holiday Cheer (2016), just to name a few.
Rebecca Taylor Longtime Ocean Beach Resident, Navy Veteran, and Former OB Town Council Member Killed in Motorcycle Accident While Returning Home From Utah. She was 40 years old.
We remember with fondness local leader Becca Taylor who touched so many lives with her spark, commitment to helping others, and her zest for life. We join with countless others in San Diego and beyond, who are experiencing shock and sadness after learning of her untimely death.
The Ocean Beach Community Foundation, formerly the Ocean Beach Town Council, mourns the passing of our beloved friend, former colleague, and Chair of the San Diego County Democratic Party, Rebecca Taylor.
She was fatally injured in a motorcycle accident on Tuesday, July 16, 2024, in Utah, when she was hit from behind while returning home to OB from a trip. Her parents and most of her six siblings were with her in the hospital when she passed away.
“Becca was an amazing human being who touched so many lives with her spark for life, deep commitment to uplifting others, and her passionate leadership working to find solutions to make the world a better place for everyone,” said Gary Gartner, Corresponding Secretary of the Ocean Beach Community Foundation.
“She led with kindness, heart, and soul, and always had an incredible smile that would light up any room she entered,” Gartner said. “She believed in using data to guide informed public policy, respecting others' opinions, and working passionately for social justice and equality for all. As her family and many friends grieve her passing, may we all feel the love she created by the many lives she touched deeply. May her memory be a blessing.”
Born in 1983 in Plano, Texas, Becca Taylor moved to Ocean Beach in 2005 after serving in the Navy. She was an OB resident for 19 years. Becca served as Navy aviation electrician in the early 2000’s spending both time in Afghanistan and Germany, where she also volunteered as a sexual assault victim advocate. She graduated from San Diego State University in 2011 and earned a Masters from SDSU in Gerontology in 2013.
She co-founded and became the first woman to serve as chair of the Veterans Caucus for the California Young Democrats in 2014. Becca was a regional training organizer for Senator Elizabeth Warren’s campaign for president in 2020 and a founding member of the Democratic Woman’s Club and the Blue Dream Democrats. She also worked with Serving Seniors and as Outreach Director & Advisory Councilmember of the Military Mental Health Project from 2013 - 2016.
Becca served on the board of directors of the Ocean Beach Town Council from 2013 - 2017. She got involved in local political organizing, rising through the ranks to become the Democratic Party’s top leader in 2022 as the Chair of the San Diego County Democratic Party. In addition, she was a volunteer manager with the San Diego Rapid Response Network, helping asylum seekers find resources, and a leader for LGBTQ+ civil rights.
Becca Taylor was an avid motorcycle enthusiast and would often post photos of her working on her bike or her travels on social media. Her last post on Instagram was from just a week ago, when she was in Springville, Utah on her way to a riding event with the Temecula-based motorcycle group, Babes Ride Out.
Political leaders from Governor Newsom to Mayor Gloria, to members of Congress including Scott Peters, Sara Jacobs, and Barbara Lee remembered her as a strong, dynamic, and compassionate leader.
Here’s an amazing profile about Rebecca Taylor’s life written by Ken Stone of the Times of San Diego in 2023:
Granddaughter of a preacher. Growing up Food Stamp poor in a “very conservative” Texas household. Owner of two Harleys (one named Luna). Overcoming PTSD from Afghan service.
Avoiding being outed as bisexual during Don’t Ask Don’t Tell, she was briefly married to a Navy man and still uses his name….
It’s painful to lose such a kind, vibrant, joyful, and talented
friend and leader with such a promising future and zest for life.
Sending our love to you Becca Taylor.
May you rest in power and in peace. 💜
Community Announcements & Resources
These resources and announcements were shared at the OBTCF meeting and do not necessarily reflect the opinions of the organization. We are leveraging this monthly newsletter as a platform to share relevant information with the OB community.
2024 Summer Movies in the Park
Summer Movies in the Park is the largest free and family-friendly outdoor movie series in San Diego, with over a hundred screenings at dozens of parks across the region. The program launched in 2007 as a ‘take back our parks’ initiative, providing residents with unique opportunities to visit their local recreation destinations after hours to watch blockbuster hits under a starry night sky. Shows run May through October, with pre-show activities before dark and movies beginning about 15 minutes after sunset.
OB screenings include:
July 26
Dusty Rhodes Park
October 25
OB Rec Center
DesBorders: Together for a Cleaner Environment
Are you planning on joining the DesBorder: Together for a Cleaner Environment cleanup and whale launch on August 3rd at Sunset Cliffs Natural Park? We need a head count so we can provide the necessary goodies and cleanup supplies.
Sunset Cliff Car Show
If you have announcements or resources to share with the OB community, please email PDF or JPG flyers and article content to [email protected].
Please note that OBCF will not be hosting a Neighborhood Roundtable in July or August as we are focused on strategic planning for the year ahead.
Join us for our next Community Forum on Oct 23 from 7:00 pm - 9:00 pm at the Point Loma / Hervey Branch Library, or virtually on Zoom.
Our mailing address is:4833 Santa Monica #7959San Diego, CA 92167Want to change how you receive these emails?You can unsubscribe