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06/12/13

Our Most Recent Grantees (2013)

Check out our most recent grant recipients for 2013! (See all 2013 grantees here.)

826 Valencia 826 Valencia St San Francisco, CA 94110 415-642-5905 www.826valencia.org	826 Valencia is a nonprofit organization dedicated to supporting students ages six to eighteen with their creative and expository writing skills and to helping teachers inspire their students to write. Services are structured around the understanding that great leaps in learning can happen when trained tutors work one-on-one with students and that strong writing skills are fundamental to future success.826 offers a range of programs, all free of charge, for students, classrooms, and schools in the Bay Area. A project-based approach allows students ownership over the writing process, and strengthens their ability to express themselves clearly and in their own voice. By making writing fun, by demystifying the process and by creating gorgeous books, magazines, and newspapers that honor their work, the 826 program can inspire young people to gain critical skills and write with confidence.
California Domestic Worker Coalition 3543 18^th St, #23 San Francisco, CA 94110 415-621-8140 www.cadomesticworkers.org	Founded in 2006, the California Domestic Worker Coalition is the state’s leading voice for the 200,000 of domestic workers in California, most of whom are women. The Coalition is comprised of 13 membership-based affiliate organizations of over 5,000 nannies, housekeepers and caregivers for the elderly. Their mission is to empower domestic workers to come out of the shadows through community organizing, grassroots action, leadership training, and working to establish statewide guidelines that protect them from abuse and exploitation. The coalition believes workers deserve basic labor protections and will continue to work until all are treated with the dignity and respect, and will act collectively to achieve just and equitable employment.
Culture Jam Oregon Country Fair/Youth Program 442 Lawrence St Eugene, OR 97401 541-465-2230 www.oregoncountryfair.org	In 2002, the Oregon Country Fair launched a new program designed specifically for teens called Culture Jam. This 8-day summer gathering, held separately from the 3-day main event in July, adds to and amplifies the intention to serve the larger community. With a policy of â€œno youth turned away for lack of funds,â€ 55 diverse youth ages 14-18 come together with 25 artists, performers, change-makers and naturalists. Together they explore the arts as a tool for social change; build community that honors diversity and values each member; and inspire each other to take action on the issues they care passionately about. Culture Jam is now planning for its 12^th annual event, and since its inception has empowered hundreds of youth. It has also inspired hundreds of youth workers to take what they learned at CJ out into their year-round work with young people and adults, thus broadening Culture Jam’s reach and impact.
Girls Incorporated of the Northern Sacramento Valley PO Box 1135 Red Bluff, CA 96080 530-527-7767 www.girlsincnsv.org/	Girls Incorporated of the Northern Sacramento Valley seeks to transform girls‘ views of themselves and help them recognize the endless stream of opportunities that exist. Girls ages 6-18 are taught to be strong, smart, and bold through life-changing programs and experiences that help them navigate gender, economic, and social barriers. Research-based curricula, delivered by trained, mentoring professionals in a positive all-girl environment, equip girls to achieve academically, lead healthy and physically active lives, manage money, navigate media messages and discover an interest in science, technology, engineering and math. Girls Inc. offices are often located in low-income areas and provide a weekly average of 30 hours of after-school, weekend, and summer activities. Programs address math and science education, pregnancy and drug abuse prevention, media literacy, adolescent health, violence prevention, and sports participation.
Richard Grace (2013 Bill Graham Award Recipient) c/o Grace Family Vineyards Foundation 1210 Rockland Dr St. Helena, CA 707-963-0808 www.gracefamilyvineyards.com	Richard Grace has been instrumental in delivering much needed services in the field of education and healthcare through various projects throughout the world. Examples of some of his work include the following: Building a medical clinic on the grounds of Shechen Monastary in Kathmandu, Nepal. More than ten years later that clinic is seeing over 100 underserved citizens each day. Refurbishing a school in Eastern Tibet (Kham) where the children were drinking fecal infected water, were freezing in their dormitory and classroom, and had virtually no classroom supplies. The kids now drink clean water, are warm in the classroom and dormitory, and have a much better set of supplies in each classroom. To help girls in Ganze Prefecture in Eastern Tibet to overcome the horrendous conditions that they had to endure. Volunteers and built a dormitory and classrooms and assisted with a new cafeteria. 100 young girls are now living and learning in a much better environment. Taking numerous individuals off the streets of Kathmandu, Lhasa and Bangkok and ensuring their quality of life and their access to education.Â He has visited each of these people once or twice yearly and in every instance they have taken advantage of the opportunity afforded them. Instead of being unemployed, street people, beggars, or prostitutes, they are now all exposed to a more fulfilling lifestyle and can be contributors to a more harmonious, just, and peaceful planet.
In Movement: Art for Social Change Paseo de la Castellana 28 28014 Madrid Spain www.inmovement.org	In Movement: Art for social change, promotes the well-being and socio-cultural development of orphaned and other underprivileged children in Uganda by providing a multi-disciplinary arts education program, which creates a vital space for their human growth, creativity and happiness. The organization accomplishes this through a multidimensional program, combining the following elements among others in a comprehensive strategy: Arts instruction facilitators provide instruction and guide the creative process in music, dance, drama, visual arts, circus arts, and creative writing workshops. Field trips In Movement believes that exposure to the world beyond the classroom setting is an important part of a young person’s development. Cultural activities Students are involved in a variety of cultural events in Kampala throughout the year. Community service Students participate in creating public mural projects, tree-planting activities, etc., as a way of understanding the importance of giving back to the community. Integration In Movement coordinates activities such as art camps that bring together young people from different schools, genders, tribes, religions, racial and ethnic backgrounds, and socioeconomic strata. Psycho-social support The In Movement counselor visits our partner facilities and has individual counseling sessions with our students.
KXCR Community Radio Partners PO Box 127 Florence, OR 97439 541-997-1205	KXCR Partners are dedicated to developing a true “Community Radio” station with maximum locally generated programming to be developed and produced by and for people of all age ranges (school aged youth to elderly); providing a radio voice for local nonprofit organizations; offering in-depth news and informational programs; and locally produced musical and other artistically based shows. The Rex Foundation grant to KXCR is toward the purchase of an Emergency Alert System (EAS), critical to the station’s role in providing emergency information to the public.
My New Red Shoes Sobrato Center for Nonprofits 330 Twin Dolphin Dr, Ste 135 Redwood City, CA 94065 650-376-1491 www.mynewredshoes.org	The mission of My New Red Shoes is to help homeless and low-income children look and feel confident as they start the school year by providing them with new clothing and shoes and by rallying youth and adults around this effort through volunteer and educational opportunities for individuals, families, schools, corporations, and community groups. Not everyone has experienced poverty or homelessness, but everyone has had a first day of school. And for many, memories of the excitement and anticipation of the first day of school are still fresh in their minds decades later. My New Red Shoes was founded with the vision to improve the attendance and educational experience of disadvantaged children and youth by increasing their confidence. Providing the basic necessities of shoes and clothing for children who truly needed these things could eliminate at least one barrier to attending school and impact a child’s overall school experience: everything from increased confidence inspiring a child to participate more fully in the classroom to being able to try out for the basketball team could be influenced with a new pair of shoes and new clothing for school.
Next Generation 636 Lindaro St. San Rafael, CA 94901 415-459-6398 www.gonextgeneration.org	Next Generation is about guiding youth to connect with our fragile planet, our life-giving communities and their resourceful selves.Â The mission is to empower young people in Marin to learn about pressing environmental and social issues; develop leadership skills; and take grassroots action for peace and sustainability. The Green Schools Program is at the core of Next Generationâ€™s work.Â Tailored to each schoolâ€™s interests and priorities, program offerings include school garden and nature awareness activities, in-class sustainability lessons, school-wide assemblies, puppet shows, outdoor field trips and service learning opportunities.Â In addition, the Green Schools Program provides youth leadership development through our facilitation of green teams and eco-clubs on campus.Â Furthermore, consultation services are offered to help schools green their campuses and connect with community organizations that can assist them to reduce their environmental footprint. Next Generation continues refining and improving programs and effectiveness in order to provide funders with high level of quality outputs for modest investment. Overall, the response from students, teachers and administrators continues to be positive and our programs continue to be in high demand.
Notes for Notes PO Box 90632 Santa Barbara, CA 93190 802-318-3657 www.notesfornotes.org	Notes for Notes is dedicated to providing youth with free access to musical instruments, instruction and recording studio environments so that music may become a profoundly positive influence in their lives. They build, equip and staff after-school recording studios called MusicBoxes: positive, safe, and inspiring recording studio environments that offer youth the opportunity to explore, create and record music. MusicBoxes are drop-in studios offering free instruction and access to guitars, basses, drums, keyboards/synths, DJ turntables, computer workstations with music creation software and a full recording studio. MusicBoxes are located throughout Santa Barbara, CA at Boys and Girls Clubs and coming soon to Nashville, TN. Notes for Notes was founded on the core belief that music is the universal language of humankind, and has the power to transcend virtually any barrier, be it economic, cultural, racial, or societal. At the heart of the organization is a dedication to the relationships formed through music. The organization makes a point not to censor lyrics as it is the freedom of expression and respect for the creativity of others that drives an open environment in the studio. Music is an incredibly powerful means of inspiring collaboration and connection and Notes for Notes believes it is these relationships that will have the most impact in a young person’s life.
Ol Malo Foundation, Inc. PO Box 265 Beals, ME 04611 207-497-3055 www.samburutrust.org	The Samburu Trust will help pastoralist people to create a better future for their tribes and their children; one which appreciates the delicate balance between people, land and wildlife — the three areas of concentration. Samburu Trust projects are to be community-led by the Samburu for the Samburu, following project blueprints to move towards our ultimate goal of a model structure for working with pastoralist communities. Ol Malo Foundation aims to establish a modular system that can be implemented all over Africa and beyond. They strive to understand and work within the boundaries of the Samburu cultural practices which have allowed the people to survive in Northern Kenya’s desert lands for thousands of years. The focus is on children, from basic literacy to gender equality as well as health and environmental education. Nomadic schools accommodate the Samburu lifestyle. Committed to working in collaboration with pastoralist communities based on individual community needs, projects are hand made and managed by the community for the community. The role of the Foundation is to successfully demonstrate effective and cost-efficient program models so other non-profits can adopt the methodology and practices, demonstrating the possibilities of delivering sustainable programs tailor-made to pastoralist communities throughout Africa.
PAW FUND PO Box 99485 Emeryville, CAÂ 94662 510-390-3488 www.pawfund.org	The purpose of this organization is to help low income and homeless people take care of their companion animals by providing wellness services, such as free and low cost spay/neuter and free vaccinations to curb the spread of contagious diseases; as well as education of such pet owners and the general public about pet wellness, responsible animal care and the consequences of pet overpopulation; to nurture the animal/human bond by providing focused animal care support and assistance to those who might otherwise have to surrender or euthanize an animal due to lack of resources; and to keep animals out of shelters by reducing the population of kittens and puppies and keeping animals with their caretakers; to take in owner surrendered pets when possible, and rescue animals from animal shelters for the purpose of finding them permanent homes through adoption; and to create, publish, disseminate educational and informational materials as well as other publications promoting animal welfare and which explore the human/animal bond.
Predator Defense PO Box 5446 Eugene, OR 97405 541-937-4261 www.predatordefense.org	The mission is to protect native predators. Predator Defense has achieved a significant body of work over the last 23 years by using limited resources efficiently to fulfill its mission, without large fundraising teams and big salaries. Their efforts have exposed America’s ill-advised, hazardous and wasteful tax-funded “war on wildlife” to a worldwide audience. Predator Defense is working toward passage of a bill to ban two deadly wildlife poisons, Compound 1080 and sodium cyanide, widely used by Wildlife Services.