Growing up in Linda Vista, I experienced firsthand the diversity of the community in a low-income neighborhood. In a food desert where access to fresh and nutritious food is limited, fast food chains flourish. Fast food restaurants are abundant in Linda Vista and are located near schools, residential areas, and healthcare clinics. Despite the scarcity of resources, Linda Vista is home to many immigrants and locals who make the community diverse and vibrant.
The close-knit community of Linda Vista attracted Corey, the director of Bayside, to the neighborhood. Bayside Community Center aims to strengthen the community through different resources and services, including tutoring for students, translation of forms and applications for non-English speakers, food for people with food insecurity, and health and wellness activities for seniors. Corey shared with us his journey with Bayside and what he envisioned the community to be in the future. A few months after Corey started working at Bayside, he was dismayed to learn that the center was bankrupt and on the verge of closing. However, moved by the community’s affection for Bayside, Corey was determined to revive the center and empower the community. The “young and broke” director was offered high amounts of money for the land that Bayside owned, but he rejected these offers from investors who wanted to build apartments and condos for rent on the property. The chance came when an advocate of public education offered to buy Bayside’s property to establish another public school in Linda Vista. Corey gladly accepted the offer because a public school was exactly what the community needed. The residents did not need more privately-owned housing that they could not afford, but a free education facility alongside the new Bayside center would greatly benefit the underserved Linda Vista community. The area around Bayside is undergoing a drastic transformation to become a vibrant community with small businesses surrounding the charter school and Bayside center. Corey’s story of how Bayside overcame financial hardships to continue its mission of providing important resources for the community was inspiring, and I am excited to see the center grow stronger with the community.
Our group then had a chance to participate in the Zumba class with the elders during our visit. The Zumba dance was an intense workout for me, but it was fun and refreshing to see everyone so engaged in the dance. After the dance, we enjoyed a potluck with the seniors. I met a retired teacher who now teaches English online to young girls and boys who have escaped from ISIS. I also chatted with a lady who graduated from the high school I attended in Linda Vista and was a graduate student at UCSD. She told me the challenges she faced as one of the very few female teaching assistants in the math department – most of her students were older than her as they attended college after returning from war, and her male colleagues and professors questioned her capability – she told me that our generation has an easier life and should take advantage of what previous generations have fought for. My visit to Bayside was enlightening as I met many inspiring and humble people, from the center staff to the Zumba class participants, who embodied the values of perseverance, compassion, and appreciation.
The close-knit community of Linda Vista attracted Corey, the director of Bayside, to the neighborhood. Bayside Community Center aims to strengthen the community through different resources and services, including tutoring for students, translation of forms and applications for non-English speakers, food for people with food insecurity, and health and wellness activities for seniors. Corey shared with us his journey with Bayside and what he envisioned the community to be in the future. A few months after Corey started working at Bayside, he was dismayed to learn that the center was bankrupt and on the verge of closing. However, moved by the community’s affection for Bayside, Corey was determined to revive the center and empower the community. The “young and broke” director was offered high amounts of money for the land that Bayside owned, but he rejected these offers from investors who wanted to build apartments and condos for rent on the property. The chance came when an advocate of public education offered to buy Bayside’s property to establish another public school in Linda Vista. Corey gladly accepted the offer because a public school was exactly what the community needed. The residents did not need more privately-owned housing that they could not afford, but a free education facility alongside the new Bayside center would greatly benefit the underserved Linda Vista community. The area around Bayside is undergoing a drastic transformation to become a vibrant community with small businesses surrounding the charter school and Bayside center. Corey’s story of how Bayside overcame financial hardships to continue its mission of providing important resources for the community was inspiring, and I am excited to see the center grow stronger with the community.
Our group then had a chance to participate in the Zumba class with the elders during our visit. The Zumba dance was an intense workout for me, but it was fun and refreshing to see everyone so engaged in the dance. After the dance, we enjoyed a potluck with the seniors. I met a retired teacher who now teaches English online to young girls and boys who have escaped from ISIS. I also chatted with a lady who graduated from the high school I attended in Linda Vista and was a graduate student at UCSD. She told me the challenges she faced as one of the very few female teaching assistants in the math department – most of her students were older than her as they attended college after returning from war, and her male colleagues and professors questioned her capability – she told me that our generation has an easier life and should take advantage of what previous generations have fought for. My visit to Bayside was enlightening as I met many inspiring and humble people, from the center staff to the Zumba class participants, who embodied the values of perseverance, compassion, and appreciation.