WSSNews | Volume 39 No. 38

WESTSIDESTORY NEWSPAPER

City of San Bernardino Names Vanessa Carder as Parks Director that I care so deeply about," said Carder. "This is more than a professional opportunity — it's a chance to deepen the relationships that make our city strong and vibrant."

In the role of Director of Parks, Recreation, and Community Services, Carder will over- see youth, adult and senior programs, activi- ties, and sports at San Bernardino's thirty-five parks, four community centers, and two senior centers that span approximately five hundred acres of developed land and open space.

The Department also oversees senior services, aquatics, and a community garden, as well as community events such as Movies and Sum- mer Concerts in the Park, Miracle on Court Street, Easter Egg-stravaganza, and commem- orations of Veterans Day and Memorial Day.

An experienced professional with nearly twenty-five years working in parks and comhave her take the Parks Department to the next munity programs, Carder spent fourteen years

SAN BERNARDINO, CA- The City of San Bernardino has announced that Vanessa Card- er has joined its leadership team as the new Director of Parks, Recreation, and Community Services.

"Vanessa Carder has a long history of deliv- ering impactful recreation programs and ser- vices to the residents of San Bernardino, said City Manager Eric Levitt. "We are thrilled to level."

Carder has served as San Bernardino's Act- ing Parks Director since May. She has worked for the City of San Bernardino's Parks Depart- ment since 2021, serving as Deputy Director, as well as Community Recreation Manager. "I am truly honored to step into the role of Director and continue serving the community with the City of Baldwin Park prior to coming to San Bernardino. She is a member of the Cal- ifornia Parks and Recreation Society (CPRS), the National Recreation and Park Association, Women in Leisure Services, and the Southern California Municipal Athletic Federation. She is the recipient of CPRS professional service awards in 2010, 2013, and 2017.

2025 in Review: Seven Questions for Civil Rights Attorney Areva Martin

Areva Martin is an award-winning civ- il rights attorney, talk show host, com- mentator, author, and keynote speaker who offers commentary on politics, women's rights, children's rights, dis- ability rights and civil rights.

She is President and CEO of the Spe- cial Needs Network, which she founded to advance disability rights and support individuals across the autism spectrum, inspired in part by her experience as the parent of a child with autism

The Harvard Law School graduate also has her own firm in Beverly Hills, Martin & Martin LLP. In 2024, the firm secured a $27 million reparations settle- ment for Black and Brown residents in Palm Springs. That case now serves as a model and precedent for reparations efforts for descendants of slavery across California and around the United States. Martin spoke with California Black Media about her successes and frustra- tions in 2025 along with her hopes for 2026.

Looking back at 2025, what stands out to you as your most important achieve-

By Edward Henderson | California Black Media ment and why?

In my nonprofit work, just recently, we led the charge in working with state agencies to create a new Medicaid ben- efit that will have implications for mil- lions of individuals across the state of California.

Prior to this new benefit being cre- ated, if you were a foster care child in the state of California and you had be- havioral health care needs, it was close to impossible for you to get behavioral health treatment because the agencies that provide that treatment were not able to register with Medicaid and be- come certified Medicaid providers.

So, my nonprofit, Special Needs Net- work, worked closely with several state agencies on raising awareness about this massive gap, this void. Then, we worked with them to become certified Medicaid providers so that those chil- dren who needed behavioral health treatment now have access to it.

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