Building Tomorrow’s EMS Workforce
EMS Corps Fresno is a new, high-impact program launched under the Fresno Regional Workforce Development Board. This initiative is preparing the next generation of emergency medical and fire service professionals, and recruitment is under way for the first class in September.
Eligibility: Applicants should be ages 18‒26, a Fresno County resident, have a high school diploma or a GED and have a valid California driver’s license
The five-month program includes EMT training and ride-alongs; life coaching, mentorship and job readiness and physical fitness training; a $1,500/month stipend during the program; and assistance finding a job after graduation.
Interested parties can apply online at fresnoemscorps.org.
For more information, contact the program coordinator, Gabrielle Sibley, at 559-490-7110 or gsibley@workforce-connection.com.
Kings County Billboard Outs Valadao
Before voting to cut $793 million from Medicaid, Rep. David Valadao (D‒Hanford) told a television audience that “we don’t want to touch Medicaid, and we want to protect it for the most vulnerable population.”
In an April 22, letter from Valadao to leaders of the House and Senate, he stated that “balancing the federal budget must not come at the expense of those who depend on these benefits for their health and economic security…We cannot and will not support a final reconciliation bill that includes any reduction in Medicaid coverage for vulnerable populations.”
Fast forward to May 22 and Valadao voted for a budget reconciliation bill that included more than a trillion dollars in cuts to the Medicaid and SNAP Food Assistance programs—to pay for tax cuts benefiting the very richest Americans.
According to an estimate from the nonpartisan Congressional Budget Office, more than 10 million people will lose Medicaid and seven million will lose or suffer cuts in SNAP benefits because of the Republican cuts.
Cathy Jorgensen, chair of the Kings County Democratic Party, says that Valadao’s vote “shows that he is more concerned about protecting billionaires’ bank accounts than the health and lives of people living in the Valley.”
“Valadao voted to take from the poor, to give to the rich,” said Claire Fitiausi, vice chair of the Kings County Democratic Party.
“As a result of Valadao’s vote, people will die because they can’t afford access to medical care. This is an act of violence on our communities.”
In response to Valadao’s flip-flopping at the expense of his constituents, the Kings County Democratic Party has purchased a billboard in Hanford so that his Congressional district will know exactly where he stands.
Standing with California’s Immigrants
The Sierra Health Foundation has issued the following statement:
The demonstrations for immigrant justice in Los Angeles, San Francisco and across the country—and the unprecedented federal response—underscore the urgency of communities organizing, working and standing together.
Californians know how vital immigrants are to our economy, culture and future. Yet, coordinated efforts are attempting to roll back hard-won equity and justice gains that help stabilize our communities and ensure that undocumented individuals and their families are treated with the dignity and respect all people deserve. The impact of these efforts on the safety and security of immigrant families and the freedoms Americans enjoy must be met with peaceful, persistent and powerful resistance.
At The Center and Sierra Health Foundation, we are using every tool at our disposal—mutual aid for those in Los Angeles standing up for California’s immigrants; support for grassroots organizations working to protect and defend the most vulnerable; power- and capacity-building in immigrant communities in the San Joaquin Valley and throughout the state; and deep collaboration with other funders, elected and appointed officials, residents and community leaders—to meet this moment.
We act in solidarity with immigrants, California families and communities, and all who rise to resist policies of fear, division and exclusion.
Stand strong. We’re with you.
