Our Story – Hands for Life Lake Merritt

How We Got Here

.The Crisis We Couldn’t Ignore

People in the Oakland hills live to 82.
People in the Oakland flatlands die at 67.

Fifteen years.

That’s not genetics. That’s not personal choice. That’s systems failure.

When Dr. Ben Glass started practicing chiropractic in Oakland in 2012, he saw it every day. Patients whose back pain was the least of their problems. Families living in food deserts, drinking contaminated water, unable to afford care, dying from preventable conditions.

Adjusting spines helped individual patients. But it didn’t change the fact that Oakland’s health infrastructure was fundamentally broken for entire neighborhoods.

From Clinic to Community

In 2015, we founded Hands for Life Lake Merritt with a simple mission: make chiropractic care accessible through sliding-scale pricing. We served students, young parents, people on tight budgets.

But the more patients we served, the clearer it became: Oakland didn’t need more clinics. It needed mobile infrastructure that brings care directly to communities.

We realized that:

Telling people to “eat healthy” when they live in food deserts is useless
Advising exercise when there are no safe parks is tone-deaf
Expecting people to come to clinics when they can’t afford transportation doesn’t work

So we stopped waiting for the system to change. We started building our own.

The Ice Cream Truck Model

The idea hit when Dr. Ben was watching an ice cream truck roll through East Oakland. Kids came running. Families came out. The truck didn’t wait for people to come to it – it went where people already were.

What if we did that with health?

What if instead of expecting Oakland’s most underserved residents to navigate complex healthcare systems, we brought healthcare directly to them? Fresh produce, clean water, blood pressure screenings, health education – delivered weekly to parks, community centers, and neighborhoods that need it most.

Not one-time charity events. Permanent infrastructure. Consistent presence. Real relationships.

Training the Workforce

But who operates these mobile units? Who delivers care in ways that communities actually trust?

Not outside experts parachuting in. People from those communities themselves.

That’s why we created the Urban Wellness Advocate Training Program – a 12-week certification that trains Oakland youth and residents to become paid community health workers serving their own neighborhoods.

No college degree required. Free training. Career pathways starting at $15-18/hour.

Because health equity isn’t just about delivering care. It’s about creating economic opportunity for the people closest to the problems.

Where We Are Now

Today, Hands for Life Lake Merritt operates:

Office-based sliding-scale chiropractic care (since 2015)
Urban Wellness Advocate Training Program (launching Spring 2026)
Mobile Wellness Unit Initiative (first two units launching 2026)
Community-led research in partnership with [UC Berkeley/UCSF]

We’re no longer just a chiropractic clinic with a good heart. We’re building the infrastructure that closes Oakland’s 15-year life expectancy gap.

🤝 Building Community

Hands for Life is not just about chiropractic care — it’s about building stronger, healthier communities. We’ve partnered with local schools, nonprofits, and service providers to provide programs that support wellness, education, and personal growth.

We focus on holistic care: when people are healthy in body and mind, they become agents of positive change for their families and communities.

🌍 Growth and Milestones

Over the years, Hands for Life has grown in reach and impact. From a single office-based initiative, we now support a wider network of individuals and families.

Our milestones include:

Helping people regain strength and focus
Supporting young parents in nurturing their families
Empowering service providers who tirelessly care for others

Every achievement demonstrates the power of compassion, care, and community partnership.

🎯 Our Core Belief

At Hands for Life, we hold one central belief: every person deserves to be healthy, empowered, and supported. Wellness is more than physical health — it encompasses mind, body, and spirit.

Our mission continues to grow: to reach more lives, strengthen communities, and ensure that hope and opportunity are accessible to all.

🙌 Join Our Journey

You can be part of this story. Whether you volunteer, donate, or help spread our mission, your involvement transforms lives.

Together, we can:

Restore health and dignity
Empower individuals to care for themselves and others
Build communities where wellness and hope are realities, not privileges

This Is Just the Beginning

Two mobile units serving 400 families. Fifteen trained Urban Wellness Advocates. Measurable health outcomes over 18 months.

That’s Phase 1.

Phase 2 is scaling this model to every Oakland neighborhood. Phase 3 is proving it works so well that other cities adopt it. Phase 4 is influencing California policy so Medicaid reimburses community health worker services everywhere.

We’re not dreaming small. Because Oakland’s health crisis isn’t small.

And we’re not waiting for permission.

Join Us Apply for Training Become a Founding Partner