A Better Way Inc

12/18/2025

Alex had a stomach ache every day.

Stress at home had taken over. Bills piled up. Food assistance was delayed. Small disagreements turned into arguments, and the place Alex depended on for safety no longer felt calm.

Alex grew quiet at school and stopped asking for help.

With your support, families like Alex’s receive mental health care from licensed clinicians and guidance from parent advocates with lived experience. Your generosity helps parents stabilize their home and helps children feel safe again.

Right now, your support is being matched to help twice as many children and families.

The match ends December 31. Your gift goes twice as far.

Donate today to help a child like Alex heal:
https://www.abetterwayinc.net/a-better-way-forward-2025

Double your Impact for a Child in Crisis Your December gift will be matched dollar-for-dollar to help local children and parents receive therapy, support, and stability when they need it most.A Better Way supports children and families across the Bay Area through mental health care, parent advocacy,...

12/11/2025

Our Toy Drive is off to an incredible start — thank you to everyone who has already donated toys for the children, youth & famlies we serve.

We do have one special need: gift cards for our teenage clients are running low.
Teens often request gift cards because they allow them to choose something that fits their interests, their style, and their growing independence.

If you’d like to help make a teen’s holiday brighter, please visit our Holiday Wish List and select a gift card. Our staff will deliver it directly to a young person who truly needs it.

Every gift — no matter the size — brings joy, dignity, and hope.
Wish List: https://www.abetterwayinc.net/holiday-toy-drive-2025

12/09/2025

Six-year-old Lila had already lived in several homes. Each move happened fast. Each goodbye felt confusing. And each change made it harder for her to trust the adults around her.

At school, she struggled to sit still. Loud noises made her jump. Some days she cried. Some days she shut down. At night she woke up shaking from nightmares she couldn’t explain.

Then she met Ms. Renee, a therapist from A Better Way.

Through play, drawing, and gentle conversations, Lila learned how to share what she was feeling inside. Her caregivers learned how to comfort her, respond with patience, and help her feel safe.

Little by little, Lila’s world changed.

She began sleeping through the night.
She started laughing again.
She slowly learned that she could trust the people around her.

After more than two years in the child welfare system, Lila was adopted by a loving family that also keeps her connected to her birth parents. Today, she is thriving — talking about her feelings, making friends, and discovering her bright, curious spirit.

But many children are still living in the hardest parts of their stories.
They are waiting for safety, healing, and hope.

Right now, your donation to A Better Way is matched 2x. Every dollar you give will be doubled to help a child like Lila begin to heal.

If you’re able, please give today and help a child feel safe again.
👉

Your gift brings families closer to safety and hope. YEAR-END MATCH: Double Your Impact TodayEvery gift made by December 31 will be matched dollar-for-dollar, doubling the support families receive this season.Your donation today provides twice the care, twice the stability, and twice the hope for ch...

12/04/2025

If someone you care about is struggling, you can make a difference. Join us for Mental Health First Aid training and learn how to have conversations that truly matter this holiday season.

In this training, you will learn how to:
• Reduce stigma
• Step in with an effective, compassionate plan
• Increase mental health literacy
• Practice talking about hard topics

Live instructor-led course via Zoom
Thursday, December 18th, 2025
9:00 AM – 4:30 PM

✨ Training fees are generously sponsored this holiday season.
🔗 Register here: https://linktr.ee/abwtraining?utm_source=qr_code
(or scan the QR code in the graphic)

Together, we can support the people who need it most.
Hosted by A Better Way in partnership with Mental Health First Aid® / National Council for Mental Wellbeing.

12/02/2025

Your gift today goes twice as far.
On this Giving Tuesday, every dollar you give to A Better Way will be matched up to $2,500 — helping children, youth, and families across the Bay Area access the care, stability, and support they deserve.

Your kindness can change the course of a child’s life.
👉 Donate today and double your impact: https://www.abetterwayinc.net/a-better-way-forward-2025

11/26/2025

Our Social Services Programs (SSP) team — including ARS, PEP, and FRS — brought so much heart to Hayward this weekend at their 6th Annual Holiday Food Basket Giveaway.

With generous support from Shiloh Church Oakland and local store partners, the SSP team distributed 175 bags of food, 60 turkeys, and enough groceries to support over 90 families. Families arrived early by car, on foot, and by rideshare, and every one of them left with a warm smile and a full basket.

Please join us in celebrating the SSP team for spending their Saturday uplifting our community with compassion and joy. ❤️✨

11/21/2025

Our Parent Engagement Program (PEP) team had a wonderful team-building Painting Luncheon this week — and we had to share some of the smiles and artwork! 🎨💙

PEP Parent Advocates walk beside parents involved with Alameda County’s Child Welfare System, offering guidance, education, and hope during some of the hardest moments a family can face. Because they’ve navigated the system themselves and successfully reunified with their own children, they bring a level of empathy, understanding, and courage that is truly extraordinary.

Moments like this retreat help our team recharge and strengthen their bond — so they can continue showing up for families with compassion and confidence.

11/21/2025

Our new Impact Report is here! 💙

Every page is filled with the real-life impact of your kindness. You will see how children, youth, and families are getting mental health support, parent advocacy, and family strengthening services because people like you care.

Thank you for helping bring hope to the Bay Area.

📖 Take a look at the Impact Report: https://buff.ly/XFJLmHK

11/11/2025

Our offices are closed today in observance of Veterans Day. We honor and thank all who have served — and their families — for the courage and sacrifices made in service to our country. 💙

11/06/2025

ONLINE TRAINING
Thurs, Nov 13th | 9:15a-1:15p
Supporting System-Involved Youth and Families in Navigating Conflict

Description:
Conflict is often avoided, feared, and seen as negative. In a world of “cancel culture” and hypercriticality on social media, the “good/bad” binary persists and perpetuates the idea that there is only one right way to exist.

How can we shift the concept of conflict and understand it as a means for deeper connection and more trusting relationships with one another and ourselves?

In this interactive workshop, participants will explore their own experiences with conflict in the way they were socialized from childhood to adolescence and into adulthood. We will look at models for giving and receiving feedback and engage in small group discussion about the way conflict pushes our shame buttons and how we can co-regulate and self-soothe to stay present and accountable.

The main goal of the course is to support the work providers and clinicians do with system-involved youth and families who are navigating conflict. We hope participants will leave with useful tools, language, and resources, as well as a deeper contextual framework for the “why” behind the complexity of conflict in personal, interpersonal, systemic, and cultural ways.

Trainers:
Jasmin Banaei and Lyssa Ichikawa

Sign In or Sign Up for more info and to register:
https://training.abetterwayinc.net/courses/8178

11/04/2025

🚨EMERGENCY FOOD DRIVE 🚨
We’re getting urgent requests from our clients for food assistance. Your donation will be used to deliver grocery store gift cards to families affected by SNAP funding delays.

Right now, families across the Bay Area are struggling to put meals on the table after losing vital SNAP support. For parents already doing their best, this loss means going without groceries—or skipping bills just to feed their kids. But you can change that. Your gift today gives a grocery gift c...

11/01/2025

Happy Halloween from A Better Way! 👻
Wishing everyone a night filled with laughter, imagination, and just the right amount of spooky fun!
Whether you’re trick-or-treating, passing out candy, or dressing up with your family, we hope your evening is safe, joyful, and full of sweet surprises.

💜 Thank you for helping make our community a kinder, brighter place — today and every day.