Aramenta Hawkins is an experienced community and campaign coordinator with a passion for racial and social justice, and a successful track record of working for nonprofit organizations. She was raised in Southern California, where she was involved in creating outreach programs for the inner city youth of Los Angeles through her family’s nonprofit organization, Sports Spectacular. Later, she attended Chico State, received a BA in Communications and worked as a coordinator for several local grassroots organizations, such as Frack-Free Butte County.

The Board

Izeck Free-World Hempseed is the Chico Peace & Justice Center’s current Board President. Izeck grew up the son of an Air Force Officer moving from Air Force base to Air Force base both in the US and in Europe where he learned and saw the military’s effect on military families, the communities they are in and around, and how different communities function. He went to High School in the DC area during 9/11 and thought that following in his military family’s footsteps made sense. He joined the United States Marine Corps as an Ammunition Technician, and got first hand knowledge of what war and violence does to people and life after being deployed to Iraq twice for a total of a year and a half spent in the country. After he finished his 4 years in the military, he got out and attended CSU, Chico where he earned a BS in Recreation Administration. During his time in college, he got involved with the Occupy movement and started to realize, recognize, and rectify his former violent ideology of “might makes right” that he was brought up to believe and found the light and love in all life swearing off his former way of thinking. He continues to work on himself and his community by helping with workshop facilitation, setting up speaker series, and other peaceful and just activities that help make positive change.
My name is Ann Polivka. I have served on the Advisory Board of CPJC for about 8 years, on the Executive Board of Directors for 1.5 years, and as Board / Executive Director liaison for 21 months. Volunteering in this way has been incredibly challenging at times, and also rewarding above and beyond my expectations, as we move forward together, teamed up with the wider Chico community and beyond, to work for peace and justice in our time, and in this special place. My growing up years were spent between Paradise (up on the ridge northeast of Chico), Israel, and Mexico. My father taught at CSUC. My mother was an artist through and through. We lived 5 years abroad, due to my father’s employment with the United Nations. Those formative years still drive my passion for human rights, cross-cultural understanding and preservation of our planet’s natural beauty and abundance, to be shared fairly by all its living creatures. I have chosen to do ongoing work with CPJC community allies — Palestine Action Group and Martin Luther King Unity Group. When I am able to, other CPJC allies get my attention — Chico Housing Action Team, Chico Peace Vigil and the Beale Air Force Base drone protests. Weekly, I lead beginning Spanish conversation at CPJC. I deeply appreciate that I am able to walk this path towards peace and justice with other like-minded souls.