PREPARED BY: Leticia I. Miguel DATE OF MEETING: 09/05/2023
SUBJECT:
TITLE
REQUEST FOR ISSUANCE OF PROCLAMATION RECOGNIZING DR. CAROL WEYLAND CONNER’S LEGACY OF GIVING TO PEOPLE IN NEED AND THE RESOURCES SHE PROVIDED TO BENEFIT MANY RESIDENTS OF SAN PABLO AND THE GREATER CONTRA COSTA COUNTY
CEQA: This is not a project as defined by CEQA.
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CITY MANAGER RECOMMENDATION
Recommendation
Approve by Minute Order
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BACKGROUND
In 2013, Dr. Carol Weyland Conner founded White Pony Express, the volunteer-powered nonprofit which delivers fresh, surplus food gathered from supermarkets and restaurants to the hungry throughout the county.
Dr. Conner believed, “There is a simple solution that can end the problems of hunger and marginalization for good-a new paradigm: voluntary shared abundance. In this model of life, responsibility for helping the family of man is assumed by everyone, or in the phrase White Pony Express uses, ‘all of us taking care of all of us!”
White Pony Express has provided San Pablo families, primarily to support the Bayview Elementary School community, but other schools as well. White Pony Express also provided food/groceries to local West County schools.
Dr. Conner also founded the nonprofit Following Francis, inspired by the values of Francis of Assisi, which has staged colorful outdoor “fairies”, musical plays, and other activities for nearly 15,000 children throughout the nation, including the children of San Pablo, with the aim of nurturing feelings of kindness, courage, and self-worth in children. Following Francis has also distributed groceries, holiday gift baskets, clothing, and envelopes of cash to the families of San Pablo school children.
Dr. Conner was the spiritual director of Sufism Reoriented, an American spiritual school founded by Meher Baba that honors all spiritual traditions and the essential unity of all life.
The City of San Pablo on September 18, 2023, hereby recognizes the impact of Dr. Conner’s contributions and humanitarian efforts to serve the underserved community in not only Contra Costa County, but specifically in San Pablo. Moreover, we are deeply grateful for her compassionate heart, dedicated work, diligent hands, and exceptional leadership. Her legacy will continue to live on through her nonprofits which serve food, clothing, and beautify our neighborhoods throughout the country
FISCAL IMPACT
There is no financial impact related to this item.
ATTACHMENTS:
Att A - Proclamation Recognizing Dr. Carol Weyland Conner