Keri Hayes Troutman

Clown School

For 29 years, fourth- and fifth-graders at Oakland’s Prescott Elementary have learned to juggle, walk on stilts, and balance on a giant Earth ball after school. These kids—who put on more than 50 shows a year—hone their skills as part of the nonprofit Prescott Circus Theatre, a dynamic circus arts and youth development program that teaches circus, theater, and life skills to underserved kids.

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Faces of the East Bay

In the Philanthropic Swim

In the Philanthropic Swim

Rockridge residents John Bliss and Kim Thompson may live far removed the gritty flats of East and West Oakland. But this philanthropic couple see themselves as one with the citizens of Oakland, particularly those who are struggling financially, and they’re leading a campaign to get their “financially blessed” peers to invest in the community like they have by funding city programs to teach kids how to swim.