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Housing is a human right, declared labor and senior-rights advocate Helen Corbin Lima (1917-2005). Five years ago, when she died, she was 88 years old, a resident of a Strawberry Creek Lodge (SCL) senior housing, which continues but is different.  

Housing problems especially for low-income and disabled seniors have been in the news. At Strawberry Creek Lodge (1320 Addison) and Redwood Gardens (2951 Derby), for example. 

(Read December 19, 2014 Planet “Troubles in Berkeley's Redwood Gardens.”) 

In 1991, when Helen moved into a tiny SCL studio, her only income was Social Security. She applied for Section 8 housing, and a whole new realm of political activity opened up for her. From then until her death, she was active in the fight for affordable housing and to save Section 8. Senior citizens and disabled persons are Section 8 eligible. Until her deteriorating health made it no longer possible, she was also actively involved in the SCL Tenants Association. 

Low-income seniors were finding their subsidized housing "under attack" by federal funding cuts. In 1997 she founded Save Section 8, a nonprofit self-help, grass-roots effort in behalf of American seniors who need rent-subsidized apartments. No admission or membership fees were charged. Income source was voluntary contributions. Activities included picketing, petitions, meetings, newspaper publicity, proposal of a Berkeley ordinance to protect then-current tenants, publications, presence at California’s annual senior rally, counseling individuals and providing speakers. She was responsible for the production of a video, Housing is a Human Right: Seniors and Section 8. The Santa Clara City Library had it in its collection. (It appears no longer to be in libraries, possibly attributable to public libraries discarding their VHS’s in favor of DVD’s. (I have a copy, and film director Anahita Forati may have copies.)  

Rent was and is charged for non-senior related events that are held in senior center rooms. Save Section 8 meetings in the large meeting room of the North Berkeley Senior Center were not always viewed by the City fathers as senior events. I corresponded with the City Manager’s office about this perception and we were ultimately able to hold a more or less monthly meeting without paying rent. Center Rules prohibit soliciting; collecting contributions within the senior center towards Save Section 8 expenses was thusly prohibited. Some gutsy seniors resorted to standing outside on the corner with tin cans.  

There are several detailed biographies on the Internet; I’ll mention just a few details of Helen Corbin Lima’s life. She and her twin brother were born in 1917 in China, where their father was a Congregationalist missionary. She declared herself an atheist. She moved to the United States in 1928 and began her union affiliation in 1939, as a secretary for the fishermen's union Local 38 in Eureka. She soon became an organizer. She joined the Communist Party and, in 1940, married local party leader Albert J."Mackie" Lima. The Limas later moved to San Francisco. In 1957, she joined the kitchen staff at Herrick Hospital in Berkeley and became a strike captain and union organizer for the Service Employees International Union Local 250, with which she worked for 21 years. After her husband's death in 1989, she moved into SCL.  

SCL, referred to locally as The Lodge or Strawberry, was built in 1962 in Berkeley, California. Its purpose was affordable rental housing for lower to middle income senior citizens. Three adjoining buildings in a park-like setting provided 150 units—most were studios, some one-bedroom apartments, each with a bathroom and kitchenette. An elective, not-free evening meal was introduced when there no longer was a supermarket was no longer within walking distance.  

It was generally agreed that the SCL buildings were in poor shape when, in August 2009, it received a 66.69 inspection score, which was 23.2% worse than the average HUD inspection score (100=best) for all Section 8. 

By 2012, the Lodge was a not-for-profit complex governed by a Board of Trustees whose meetings were attended by a Tenants Association representative. SCL was managed by Church Homes of Northern California (CCH). Income was derived from residents’ rents and HUD subsidies under Section 8. Tenants were thinking about staging a protest outside the Board’s meeting in November.  

Most recently, Satellite Affordable Housing Associates – SAHA – “acquired SCL and is partnering with Strawberry Creek Lodge Foundation to refinance and remodel the Lodge including seismic and building upgrades. SAHA will also provide property management services, as well as provide on-site service coordination.” [Internet] 

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The Berkeley Commission on Aging will meet on Wednesday, January 21, 2014 at 1:30 P.M. at the North Berkeley Senior Center (corner Hearst and MLK). This commission’s mission is “To enhance the quality of life for people 55 years and older in the Berkeley Community, and to increase public awareness of their contributions and needs by actively promoting their health, safety, independence and participation in our community.” 

Reminder: "Older people urged to get high-dose vaccines against flu this season," by Cynthia H. Craft (Sacramento Bee, December 28, 2014).