RPF 2018: A Year of Growth & Impact

December 2018

For the second year in a row, RPF held gun buybacks in Solano County in partnership with the Eric Reyes Foundation and the Vallejo Police Department, and Richmond in partnership with the Richmond Police Department. We expanded the program this year and partnered with United Playaz on a San Francisco gun buyback, as well as with Future Successor and AmeriCorps VISTA in Augusta, Georgia, for their local buybacks. We implement a “no questions asked” policy at all buybacks; however, sometimes people tell us their stories willingly. At the 2018 Solano County Gun Buyback, one woman told us her brother suffers from schizophrenia. Her father found an assault rifle hidden in his room, which he had purchased from the Internet. Frightened of what his son was going to do with it, he took the weapon and planned to dispose of it by throwing it in a river. His daughter informed him of the gun buyback, and that is where it was surrendered. The assault rifle was the same type of weapon used to train SWAT teams.

Our Art of Peace program has attracted interest from artists and the
media at the international level. Many of the participating artists have their own personal stories of how gun violence has impacted their lives, and have chosen our program as a way to channel their pain. Already, Art of Peace has grown from its epicenter in Vallejo, CA, to other Bay Area counties and even Augusta, GA. The inaugural exhibit was unveiled in Downtown Vallejo and attracted approximately 500 guests, and garnered dozens of artist proposals from around the world. RPF also offered private tours to students and participants of an inmate program to raise awareness about the impacts of gun violence.

We know that it’s not enough to get unwanted guns out of circulation. In an effort to reduce crime, our Work In Progress vocational program raises awareness about opportunities in the trades and provides scholarships for those who may not be able to afford the books, boots, tools and transportation to get training. We have partnered with the Napa Solano Central Labor Council, Napa Solano Building Trades, Solano County Workforce Development Board, Solano County Office of Education, Michael’s Transportation Services, and many others in the community and throughout the Bay Area to help create career pathways for those most at risk, including ex-offenders, students at alternative high schools, low-income and homeless populations, and foster youth facing emancipation.

In 2018, we awarded four commercial driving scholarships, of which two grantees are currently enrolled, two have graduated and obtained their commercial driving license, and one has been placed in a full-time job. We have also awarded four apprenticeship scholarships, enabling two beneficiaries to transition from homelessness.

Thanks to supporter Buck Kamphausen, RPF now has an office located at 420 Virginia Street 1C in Downtown Vallejo. Mr. Kamphausen has donated the space to us, allowing us to meet with partners, potential scholarship grantees, and anyone wanting more information on our work.

Thank you, Buck, and thanks to the district offices of Congressman Mike Thompson, Assemblyman Tim Grayson, and Senator Bill Dodd, for welcoming us to the building and sharing your space.

Please come visit us!

As you can see, we’ve been busy, but we’re not slowing down. Here are some things we’re already working on for 2019:

Of course, our work can only continue with ongoing support. If you are interested in volunteering, please
click here to learn more. You can also donate by clicking the button below. Anything helps!