The Fund for Santa Barbara has announced the awarding of $95, 000 in grants and invites the community to join the 2018 Grant Awards Celebration, 5-7 p.m. Tuesday, Dec. 4, at the Veterans’ Memorial Building, 313 W. Tunnel St.
The organization will be awarding its Fall General Cycle Grants and Immigrant Legal Defense Fund Grants. There will be live music by Gerardo Melendrez and appetizers served by Testa’s Catering. Spanish and ASL interpretation will be provided and everyone is welcome.
The Fall 2018 Single-Year Grant recipients are:
» Californians for Pesticide Reform / Organizing to reduce the pesticide threat in Santa Barbara County — $10,000. Funding to support the pesticide reform movement in Santa Barbara by educating residents about the hazards pesiticides pose.
» Cuyama Valley REC Fund / Cuyama Valley REC Fund (nonprofit startup) — $5,400. Seed funding for the capacity to build an organization that will provide basic community programs in the Cuyama Valley
» Families ACT! / Jail Advocacy Project — $10,000. Funding for a community campaign that focuses on organizing and educating families that have someone behind bars so they can be better support for their loved ones.
» Interfaith Initiative of Santa Barbara for Showers of Blessings / Radical Hospitality! Transforming the way people experiencing homelessness are seen and served — $7,550. Support for volunteer recruitment and trainings that focus on compassionate care designed to shift the way the public views homelessness.
» La Casa de la Raza / KZAA-LP Community Radio Project – $10,000. Conitnued support for a platform that gives a voice to the Latino community and other marginalized groups in Santa Barbara County.
» NAACP, Santa Maria-Lompoc / Women’s March Santa Maria Valley – $7,350. Funding to pay for the mandatory fees required by the city of Santa Maria to hold a march that advocates for the rights of women.
» Organizacion en California de Lideres Campesinas, Inc. / Farmworker Women Addressing and Preventing Sexual Violence in their Workplace — $10,000. Funding to support the efforts of farmworker women to end sexual violence in their workplace.
» Parrot Rainbow Conservatory / Building a Village of Diverseability — $5,660. Seed funding to establish a coalition of individuals with disabilities, their families and allies in an effort to build a trusting community.
» Restorative Community Network / Voices Restorative Dialogue — $5,750. Funding to help bridge the gap and misunderstanding of each other between law enforcement and the communities they serve.
» Santa Barbara County Action Network-SBCAN / Youth Arts Alive – $6,000. Continued support for art classes that are culturally responsive and which gives youth an alternative for getting involved in their community.
» Santa Barbara Response Network / Immigration Advocacy Collaborative – $10,000. Support to continue coordinating the Immigration Advocacy Collaborative and help the migrant communities of Santa Barbara with legal needs.
» The Mobile Homeowners Project – $7,290. Continued funding to organize, mobilize, and empower people who live in mobile home parks to defend their affordable housing and have a voice in shaping housing policies.
Immigrant Legal Defense Fund grantees are:
» MICOP / Immigration Legal Assistance – $10,000. Funding to support culturally and linguistically competent immigration legal assistance in the Santa Maria area.
» IMPORTA Santa Barbara / Expansion of North County Through Hiring and Training — $10,000. Funding to train someone that can provide professional and skilled immigration services to South and Central Coast immigrant communities.
The Fund for Santa Barbara’s grant-making and capacity-building programs support community groups working for social, economic, environmental and political change throughout Santa Barbara County.
Since 1980, Fund for Santa Barbara has awarded some $5 million to more than 1,000 community projects and organizations including CAUSE, Environmental Defense Center, SBCAN, Pacific Pride Foundation, Just Communities, and the Legal Aid Foundation.
The fund also provides free capacity building in the areas of fundraising, community organizing, organizational development, advocacy, strategic planning and effective use of media to more than 300 projects each year.
There is no fee to attend the grant awards evernt, but a $10 donation is suggested at the door. No one will be turned away for lack of funds.
The event is a time to celebrate the work of community-based organizations receiving grants, as well as 37 years of the Fund for Santa Barbara’s work in the community.
To attend the event or for more information, call 805-922-1707 or visit www.fundforsantabarbara.org.
— Patricia Solorio for The Fund for Santa Barbara.