As I reflect on the last 12 months, I see a year of many changes and challenges coupled with significant accomplishments and activities. No one would have imagined how the pandemic and economic recession would affect our local communities, the Foundation, or our work. I believe we matured as an engaged local funder and...
Since the pandemic began, there's been lots of speculation about how our economy - and communities - will emerge from it. Economists describe the various 'recovery curves' that have existed for some time. As we move from pandemic relief efforts to rebuilding, a new curve has entered into this economic lexicon that we should...
Webinar: What Does a K-Shaped Recovery Mean for Our Community? Panelist Maria has been a driving force behind the success of the Day Worker Center of Mountain View for nearly two decades. She joined the Center as a house cleaner in 1999 and began organizing the workers on the street when its original...
Webinar: What Does a K-Shaped Recovery Mean for Our Community? Panelist Ellen Kamei serves as the Mayor of the City of Mountain View, California in the heart of Silicon Valley. A third-generation Mountain View resident, Ellen is the daughter of a Chinese and Puerto Rican American mother and a Japanese American father born...
Webinar: What Does a K-Shaped Recovery Mean for Our Community? Panelist Catherine Crystal Foster is an entrepreneurial social sector leader who has worked across disciplines to drive positive change for more than 20 years. Before co-founding Magnify Community, she served as Executive Director of the Westly Foundation, where she expanded grantmaking and the foundation’s...
When I began my relationship with LACF as a board member, I was excited by the Foundation’s willingness to support emerging nonprofits through fiscal sponsorships. Fiscal sponsorships – where a supporting organization like LACF will accept donations on behalf of a project or entity that does not qualify for tax-exemption on its own –...
A year ago, I walked into the Community House (LACF’s office) and asked my team to drop everything and start work on the launch of LACF’s 2020 Nonprofit Relief Fund (which provided critical support to local nonprofit organizations and services affected early on by the pandemic). Our community came together in an amazing response...
A Conversation on Risk, Trust, and Equity in Philanthropy A few months ago, I had the privilege of hosting a conversation among a group of outstanding nonprofit leaders about the intersectionality of risk, trust, and equity in philanthropy. The philanthropic sector this year has made tremendous strides in responding to community needs, reducing...
E3 Youth Bring Holiday Cheer to Kids in Custody It all began with a phone call to Los Altos Community Foundation (LACF). Carol Rhoads, a Santa Clara County Juvenile Justice Commissioner, reached out to Judy Crates, Director of E3 Youth Philanthropy, an LACF program. E3 offers local high school youth the opportunity to learn...
Remember when we provided food to tired healthcare workers during the summer COVID-19 surge? Sadly, the numbers of hospitalized patients have only increased, and healthcare workers are even more stressed and beleaguered. As we take time to reflect and mark the holidays, let’s take a moment also to remember and support our healthcare heroes,...
