On Thursday, February 12, 2026, at 1:16 a.m., Antioch Police officers and members of the Contra Costa County Fire Protection District were dispatched to the area of Lone Tree Way and Dallas Ranch Road for a reported traffic collision.
Upon arrival, officers located a solo-vehicle collision with two occupants trapped inside the vehicle. Emergency personnel took immediate lifesaving measures, and both occupants were transported to area hospitals with major injuries.
The driver is a 17-year-old female and the passenger is a 21-year-old female. Due to the severity of the collision and the ongoing investigation, no additional information is being released at this time.
The Antioch Police Department Traffic Unit responded to the scene and assumed the investigation. The preliminary investigation indicates that alcohol appears to be a factor in this collision.
Anyone who witnessed the collision or has information related to this incident is asked to contact Officer Egan at (925) 778-2441 or via email at jegan@antiochca.gov.
The Antioch Police Department reminds everyone that impaired driving puts lives at risk.
If you plan to drink, please designate a sober driver, use a rideshare service, or arrange alternate transportation.
Will offer multiple services at former Community Outreach Center
“We’ve been working day and night to transform the place. The new sign just went up today” – Pastor Damon Owens
By Allen D. Payton
Genesis Church of Antioch leaders, Pastor Damon and his wife Shantell Owens invite you and your family to the Ribbon Cutting & Grand Opening of the Genesis Family Life Center on February 7th from 12 Noon to 3:00 pm.
“We are fully persuaded that the Genesis Family Life Center located at 525 East 18th Street in Antioch will be a place of hope and transformation where lives will be changed for the better,” they said.
The center’s slogan, Act Justly, Love Mercy, Walk Humbly… is from the Bible verse Micah 6:8 which reads, “He has shown you, O mortal, what is good. And what does the Lord require of you? To act justly and to love mercy and to walk humbly with your God.”
The Owens’ shared the following “list of culturally relevant wrap around services” available at the Center:
Grocery Share Program
After School Programs for At-Risk Youth
Senior Day Programs
Trauma Informed Care
Business Incubator for Entrepreneurs
Pop-Up Commercial Kitchen
Community Youth Development
Workforce Development
Prison Re-Entry
Transitional Housing
The new Genesis Family Life Center sign was erected on Wednesday, Feb. 4, 2026, just in time for Saturday’s Grand Opening. All photos courtesy of Damon Owens
The building was purchased from Golden Hills Community Church, which operated their Community Outreach Center there, until last year, for $800,000, according to Golden Hills’ Executive Pastor Matt LaValliere. The two churches are part of the same 170-year-old Baptist denomination known as Converge, for which Pastor Damon is a member of the Board of Overseers of the PacWest division.
The loan docs were signed by Pastor Damon and Shantell Owens on Nov. 24, 2025.
The transition from the COC to the GFLC was quick as, according to Pastor Damon, they signed the loan docs on November 24th.
“Genesis qualified for the loan and closed escrow. God did it,” he exclaimed.
Volunteers from the church then began work the day after Thanksgiving to prepare the Center for opening.
“We’ve been working day and night to transform the place,” Owens shared. “We wanted to bring an open Silicon Valley-type feel for organizations to use the space to provide the wrap-around services.”
“The new sign just went up today,” Pastor Damon added.
Construction on the Genesis Family Life Center began the day after Thanksgiving, on Friday, Nov. 28, 2025.
Asked if they would be serving meals to the homeless and those in need he said, “We’re going to be providing ready to eat groceries for those people without a kitchen, like those living in the Opportunity Village (transitional housing hotel), next door.”
“This building is just a shell; it is the people who will fill it that matter most,” the Owens shared. “Seeing the G.F.L.C (Genesis Family Life Center) transition from a vision on paper to a functional space has been a journey of faith and hard work.”
“Participants will be informed…that individuals have different rights and obligations depending on their circumstances. The forum will emphasize the importance of complying with the law…” – City Manager Scott
By Allen D. Payton
The City of Antioch in coordination with several non-profit community organizations, will hold an immigrants’ rights forum for those in the country illegally on Feb. 4, 2026. It was announced by District 1 Councilwoman Tamisha Torres-Walker on Jan. 24th in a post on her official Facebook page and at the Council meeting on Tuesday, January 27th. The event is co-hosted by Immigration Institute of the Bay Area, Immigrant Action Network and Hijas Del Campo.
According to City of Antioch Department of Public Safety & Community Resources Director Monserrat Cabral, “this is a City-supported informational event coordinated through the Public Safety & Community Resources Department.
“Outreach was intentionally targeted through specific community groups, schools and partners to ensure the information was shared accurately and in a way that respected the needs of the community the event is designed to serve. The event will also be formally announced during the City Council meeting, which allows for an official and transparent public announcement.
“For your reference, the event is:
An informational session focused on immigration-related resources and updates
Free and open to the public
Offered in English and Spanish
Hosted by the City in partnership with community-based organizations”
Questions for City Staff
The following questions were sent to Director Cabral and City Manager Bessie Scott:
Is this being done under Council direction?
How is the event being funded and what are the associated costs? Was it from a grant? Did the Council approve the expenditure? Or are the organizations paying for it?
If it’s partially or wholly funded by the City, why is the City using our tax dollars to assist those in the U.S. illegally? Shouldn’t that be left up to the non-profit organizations using private funds?
Will those in attendance be informed they don’t have a right to be in our country without permission?
Will the event not just discuss their rights but also their responsibilities as immigrants, legal or illegal, such as following the law and complying with law enforcement?
Will the forum encourage those here illegally to self-deport to give them a future option to return through a legal port of entry to our country and have the opportunity to become a citizen?
Will they also be informed that if they’re deported, they will never have that option?
City Manager Responds
City Manager Bessie Scott responded, “This is a City-supported, informational event coordinated through the Public Safety & Community Resources Department as part of our ongoing community education and outreach efforts. It is not a policy action item and does not require separate Council approval beyond existing departmental authority to conduct community informational programming. The event was publicly announced during the City Council meeting to ensure transparency.
“The event is low-cost and focused on information-sharing. Any City-related costs are covered within existing, Council-approved departmental budgets. Community-based partners are contributing subject-matter expertise and participation. No new or special appropriations are associated with this event. Any City-associated costs are consistent with standard community outreach and public education activities.
“The Immigration Informational Night is designed to provide general, high-level information about available resources, recent changes and community services, delivered by qualified organizations. It is not an enforcement forum, a legal proceeding or an advocacy campaign.
“The City does not determine immigration status, provide legal determinations, or direct federal immigration outcomes. Accordingly, the event is not intended to instruct attendees on enforcement actions, deportation decisions, or federal legal consequences, which fall under federal jurisdiction.
“The City’s role is limited to facilitating access to accurate information and ensuring residents know where to seek appropriate, lawful resources. This approach aligns with longstanding City practice of hosting informational sessions on a wide range of topics that impact residents’ health, safety and well-being.
“Regarding outreach, initial distribution was intentionally targeted through community partners, schools, and trusted networks to ensure accurate information reached intended audiences. The event is open to the public, offered in both English and Spanish, and the finalized flyers are attached for reference.
“Participants will be informed that U.S. immigration law is complex and that individuals have different rights and obligations depending on their circumstances. The forum will emphasize the importance of complying with the law and encourage attendees to seek guidance from qualified legal professionals regarding their individual situations.
“The event does not promote unlawful behavior, nor does it encourage self-deportation or make representations about future immigration outcomes, as those determinations depend on federal law and individual case facts.
“Our goal is to ensure community members have access to accurate information so they can make informed decisions and better understand their responsibilities and options under the law.”
Event Details
The event will be held from 6:00-7:30 PM at Antioch High School in Conference Room B, 700 W. 18th Street. Dinner is provided and translation available. It is not a program of the Antioch Unified School District and AUSD accepts no liability or responsibility for this program. See flier for an additional disclaimer.
Antioch Sports Legends is hosting a Crab Feed Fundraiser and You are invited to attend! We are hoping to see our friends and supporters on Saturday, February 28th, 2026, at the Antioch Community Center in Prewett Family Park, 4703 Lone Tree Way. The price for each ticket is $100 per ticket – All-inclusive is the food, beer, wine and beverages. Doors open at 5:30 pm and dinner will be served at 6:30 pm
There will be raffle prizes, silent auction prizes as well as a live auction.
Round tables of 8, 9 or 10 can be reserved and purchased. Individuals are encouraged to attend too.
Please come join us for a fun filled night of delicious crab and great company! This is a smaller event and the number of tickets are limited, so please get yours today, as this event is projected to sell out fast.
If you are not able to use a debit or credit card, please stop by the Antioch Sports Legends office any Wednesday or Saturday inside the Antioch Historical Society Museum at 1500 West 4th Street, from 1pm-4pm by February 14th to purchase your ticket. We accept cash, checks, debit or credit cards while tickets are available.
To honor 2025 Business, Citizen, Non-Profit & Youth of the Year
Nomination Deadline: Feb. 13
By Jim Becker, 2026 Board Chair, Antioch Chamber of Commerce
It’s time to celebrate excellence in our community! I invite you to nominate outstanding businesses, individuals, and nonprofits for our Business of the Year, Citizen of the Year, and Nonprofit of the Year awards. The winners will be honored at the annual Chamber Gala on March 27 at the Lone Tree Golf & Event Center.
This year’s theme is, “A New Chapter: Antioch’s Gala for Renewal & Opportunity.” We will also hold the Installation of the 2026 Antioch Chamber of Commerce Board of Directors.
Your nominations help us recognize those who make a real difference in Antioch.
Submission Instructions: Return the forms to Antioch Chamber of Commerce, PO Box 1711 Antioch, CA 94509.
Thank you for helping us honor the best in our community. If you have any questions, feel free to reach out to us at (925) 757-1800 or email frontdeskadmin@antiochchamber.com.
Annual Gala
The Annual Gala will include the Awards Ceremony, Silent Auction, Golden Tickets, 50/50 Raffle, No-host bar, Music by DJ GBaby and Dinner Buffet:
Fresh baked garlic rolls & garlic butter
Italian green salad with vinaigrette
Lone Tree Caesar salad with marinated tomatoes, croutons & shaved parmesan cheese
The Rev. Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. spent time in Contra Costa County. George Gordon (far left), then-President of the Community College District Board, and an unidentified man, welcomed Dr. King to Contra Costa College in San Pablo in February 1964 for an on-campus speech. Board President Gordon and Dr. King on stage before his speech. (Right) Photos courtesy of Scott Gordon
Deadline: Feb. 1; Awards Celebration: Feb. 26
By Juliet V. Casey, Director of Marketing, Los Medanos College
Los Medanos College (LMC) is pleased to announce its call for nominees, recognizing community civil rights and social justice champions, and students whose activism sets them apart as emerging leaders. Use this form (or visit www.losmedanos.edu/mlk) to submit a nomination. The nomination deadline is February 1, 2026.
Award recipients will be honored at LMC’s 2026 Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. Awards Celebration at 11 a.m. on Feb. 26, 2026, in the Student Union Conference Center of the Pittsburg Campus, 2700 E. Leland Road.
Award Categories:
Emerging Leadership Award
The Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. Emerging Leadership Award recognizes an LMC student or alumnus who embodies the spirit of Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. and, who within the past year, has made a significant difference on the LMC campus or in the local community through advocacy and social justice. Emerging leaders in our community exemplify the principles of Dr. King and affect social change. Dr. King once said, “Life’s most persistent and urgent question is, ‘What are you doing for others?’”
Visionary Leadership Award
The Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. Visionary Leadership Award recognizes a member of the East Contra Costa County community who demonstrates the qualities of Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. The Visionary Leadership Award honors individuals who embody Dr. King’s strengths as a transformational, servant leader. Dr. King inspired others to shape the future articulated in his vision. He focused on the well-being, growth, and empowerment of others and the community he served. Dr. King said, “Human progress is neither automatic nor inevitable … Every step toward the goal of justice requires sacrifice, suffering, and struggle; the tireless exertions and passionate concern of dedicated individuals.”
Beloved Community Award
The Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. Beloved Community Award is presented to a local resident who has demonstrated a long-standing commitment to service and who best represents the core values modeled by Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. The Beloved Community Award is inspired by the term popularized by Dr. King – a global vision in which, as noted by The King Center: all people can share in the wealth of the earth; poverty, hunger, and homelessness will not be tolerated; racism and all forms of discrimination, bigotry, and prejudice will be replaced by an all-inclusive spirit of sisterhood and brotherhood; and love and trust will triumph over fear and hatred. At the heart of the quest for the Beloved Community is agape love, which Dr. King described as “understanding, redeeming goodwill for all” – a love “seeking to preserve and create community.”
According to Martinez resident, Scott Gordon, whose father, George Gordon was President of the Contra Costa Community College Board in 1964, that February, Dr. King visited the county for a speech at Contra Costa College in San Pablo.
About LMC
LMC is one of three colleges in the Contra Costa Community College District serving the East Contra Costa County community. Established in 1974, LMC has earned federal designations as a Minority-Serving and Hispanic-Serving institution. It offers award-winning transfer and career-technical programs, support services, and diverse academic opportunities in an inclusive learning environment. With exceptional educators, innovative curriculum, growing degree and certificate offerings, and state-of-the-art facilities, the college prepares students to succeed in their educational pursuits, in the workforce, and beyond. LMC’s Pittsburg Campus is located on 120 acres bordering Antioch, with an additional education center in Brentwood.
During their regular meeting on Tuesday, Jan. 27, 2026, the Antioch City Council will consider approving $50,000 in Civic Enhancement Grants to 16 community groups. An additional $7,650 of in-kind contributions to two of the organizations for City facility uses are also recommended.
According to the City staff report for the Consent Calendar agenda item #5Q, “The FY25-26 Budget includes continued funding for the Civic Enhancement Grants Program to support community events and improvement projects that originate with Non-Profit organizations in Antioch. The City Council authorized $50,000 in FY25-26 to fund the civic enhancement grant program. The staff report shows the total amount of funding requested was $285,730 but the chart (below) shows a total of $308,890 in requests.
“A committee comprised of Mayor Pro Tem Don Freitas, City PIO Jaden Baird, and three Park and Recreation Commissioners, Chair Dorothy Ellis, Mariah Williams and La Shan Hunt all reviewed, scored and made the final recommendations for grant approval to the City Council, which ultimately authorizes the grant allocations.”
Source: City of Antioch
A total of 13 organizations that also requested funds were not approved by the committee for grants, this year.
Proposed 2025-2026 Civic Enhancement Grants:
• $1,500 grant to the Antioch Historical Society for School educational programming
• $2,000 grant to the Antioch Police Activities League for Youth Sports programs;
• $2,500 grant plus approximately $2,300 of in-kind City facility services to the Antioch Rotary Club for the King’s Conference for Underserved Male Youth;
• $1,500 grant to Be Exceptional for Funds to Expand Youth Programs for people with disabilities;
• $1,000 grant to Cancer Support Community SF Bay Area supporting programs assisting Antioch families affected by cancer;
• $2,000 grant to Celebrate Antioch Foundation for organizing and supporting family safe community events. That’s in addition to the $5,000 economic development grant received last year;
• $4,500 grant to Delta Learning Center for enhancing educational outcomes for underserved students
• $5,000 grant to Delta Veterans Group for the Veterans Day/ Memorial Day Ceremonies and the Veterans Banner Program;
• $2,000 grant to Downtown Antioch Assoc. & Foundation for small Business Saturday to market downtown businesses. That’s in addition to the $22,500 economic development grant received last year;
• $1,500 grant to East Bay Forward Economic Development Association for a free community music festival;
• $5,000 grant to Grassroots Poetry to Open mic events for both youth and adults for creative expression;
• $5,000 grant to Loaves and Fishes of Contra Costa for a hot meal program for unhoused and low-income residents;
• $1,500 grant to NAMI Contra Costa for Crisis Intervention;
• $2,500 grant plus approximately $5,350 of in-kind City facility services to New Generation Equity/STEM4Real for a STEM community Event;
• $2,500 grant to Rotary Club of the Delta for Support Antioch’s senior community with home repairs;
• $10,000 grant to Three Thirty-Three Arts for design and lead two crosswalk murals on 2nd street.
Antioch Council Meeting Details
A Closed Session begins at 5:00 p.m. to discuss employee group contracts and the regular meeting begins at 7:00 p.m. in the Council Chambers at City Hall located at 200 H Street in Antioch’s historic, downtown Rivertown. It can also be viewed via livestream on the City’s website and the City’s YouTube Channel, on Comcast Cable Channel 24 or AT&T U-verse Channel 99.
Annual fundraiser to celebrate 25 years of granting wishes
By An Elderly Wish Foundation
SAVE THE DATE!! This will be our “Silver Jubilee of Wishes.”
Come join us as An Elderly Wish Foundation celebrates a monumental accomplishment of serving Contra Costa County residents. The foundation has been making wishes come true for 25 years.
Our goal is to grant wishes for our neighbors, friends and your family members who have serious, chronic or life threating illnesses. All recipients must be 50 years of age.
We are celebrating this wonderful event on February 28th, 2026, at the Lone Tree Golf and Event Center in Antioch. Tickets are $80 per person and available on our website.
RSVP by Feb. 17th.
Sponsorships are being accepted now.
A fun evening is in store for all starting with a delicious dinner, followed by:
Mystery Envelopes
Card Raffle
Our Live Auction, and
Our Silent Auction
An Elderly Wish Foundation welcomes any donations for the Silent Auction and Live Auction. Gifts of cash, gift cards or gift baskets from individuals or businesses will be accepted. Remember they are tax deductible!
Proceeds from the benefit will help pay to grant wishes submitted to us.
Donations are always accepted. Please let foundation staff know if you can make a donation to help us grant our elderly with a special wish by calling (925) 978-1883 or emailing info@elderlywish.org.
If you know of anyone that would like a “Wish” please let us know.
