Meeting time: Wednesday, Feb. 5th, 6:30 pm

This is a hybrid meeting – on Zoom and in-person at Sunnyvale Community Services.

Zoom link: https://us02web.zoom.us/j/83157736213?pwd=e7ySTiVTP7PrCb3o0atmjaApkqym4b.1

Saturday, February 15, 2025, 5:30 pm

Requiem

in memory of all the Innocents lost in conflict zones…

Seating is limited (300).  

Suggested donations for students: $25 

Checks at the door should be made to St. Thomas Episcopal Church, memo UNICEF. Tickets/donations may also be made through PayPal on the the website, here.

Additional information about the composer and about Requiem may be found here.

BACKGROUND:

2024 has been one of the most tragic years for children in recent times. Many individuals in our community have been emotionally impacted by the graphic images of children who have tragically lost their lives in various conflict zones, especially in the Middle East, Sub-Saharan Africa and in Ukraine. This needless loss of life, beyond our immediate control, pulls us to look for ways to ensure that each child’s life lost this past year was not in vain, and that those still living at significant risk, can be saved.

In response to these on-going tragedies, St. Thomas Episcopal Church in Sunnyvale is hosting on Saturday, February 15th, 2025, at 6 PM, a musical performance entitled ‘Requiem’, featuring the St. Thomas Choir joined by members from other choirs, together with four soloists and a young boy soprano. This performance is a major fund-raising event to support UNICEF. This UN agency has become the gold-standard for helping children in over 190 countries, whose lives are at significant risk.

PROGRAM NOTES:

The program begins with a brief interlude of stringed instruments followed by a poem composed and read by our local poet Veronica Kornberg, after which the formal Requiem begins.

Benjamin Belew, composer and conductor of the ‘Requiem’ has set out to tell the tragic story of a child’s brief life in a conflict zone. The eight movements progress from a time of sweetness in early childhood to a time of bewilderment, questioning, and growing foreboding.  The following movements convey an intense moment of life ending, followed by a haunting silence that slowly yields to a re-awakening of a child’s persevering hope that this was not the end.

Livable Sunnyvale 2024 Accomplishments and Activities:

Livable Sunnyvale 2024 Recognition

• Named Non-Profit of the year by the Sunnyvale Chamber Of Commerce. 

Grant Awardee

• Recipient of a Santa Clara County 2024 URJGENT Grant.  The monies from this grant will be used to support Wordly AI Translation and Capture Software to provide real time translation during meetings.

Advocated For:

• Additional retail throughout Sunnyvale. 
• A new housing development on Wolfe and Fremont.
• City-wide Guaranteed Basic Income (GBI) Program.

After Many Years of Advocacy, Council Approved:  

• Designated safe parking sites.
• Inclement Weather Hotel Pilot Program

Volunteer Events

• Sunnyvale Community Services food distribution.
• Sunnyvale Community Services Christmas toy distribution.

Events

• Co-hosted a social in downtown Sunnyvale with regional pro-housing organizations.
• Hosted a holiday get-together and social with members and local advocacy groups.
• Hosted candidate forums for Sunnyvale Mayor, City Council, and FUHSD trustees

Thanks to all of our members who work so hard to improve our city and make it more equitable for our community.

Our January Meeting will be Wednesday, January 15th at 6:30 pm (one week later than usual)

When: Wednesday, January 15th, 6:30 pm
Where: Sunnyvale Community Services, 1160 Kern Ave., Sunnyvale

or on Zoom
https://us02web.zoom.us/j/87531575775?pwd=9SAwdxAieBVsyGJTRMicwved4vXQ0B.1

Agenda:

Update on Greenbelt Alliance’s latest initiatives from Victorina Arvelo, South Bay Resilience Manager. Victorina grew up in Venezuela, where she cultivated a deep appreciation for nature and an affinity for the life sciences, which led her to pursue higher education in the United States. She holds a BS in Marine Biology and an MS in Environmental Science from the University of West Florida in Pensacola.

Greenbelt Alliance is a long-time supporter of Livable Sunnyvale.

We will also hear from Amanda Sztoltz, City of Sunnyvale Homeless Services Manager, who will talk about the Point-in-Time (PIT) Count on January 22nd and 23rd. The City is recruiting volunteers for this important effort (see details below).

The City of Sunnyvale is currently recruiting volunteers for our 2025 Point in Time Count.  The Point-in-Time (PIT) Count is a critical survey effort to count all Santa Clara County neighbors experiencing homelessness. This is essential to better understand the experiences of unhoused people in our community, secure federal funding, and inform our local strategies to end homelessness.

This year, PIT Count volunteers will be able to support the Count in a number of ways including:

• Managing volunteer sign in day of the Count
• Writing donation letters/collecting donations prior to the Count*
• Surveying unhoused individuals on the day of the Count
• Supporting us with volunteer recruitment
• Joining the Sunnyvale PIT planning committee

*Donations will be collected for gift cards and basic necessities (socks, hygiene kits, etc.) to hand out on the day of the Count.