As we near the season of Thanksgiving, Community Foundation Boulder County would like to express just how grateful and humbled we are for your ongoing trust and engagement in building a more equitable Boulder County. Decades of partnership has allowed the Community Foundation Boulder County to work as a convener and catalyst for the long term interests of our beloved community and nothing epitomizes this work like our primary discretionary grantmaking program, the Community Trust.
This brings the total Community Trust has granted in 2022 to $420,000 for community partners working within Education, Arts & Culture, Environment, Animal Care and Welfare, Health & Human Services, and Civic Engagement. Community Trust has given over $6M since its inception in 2001.
As always, we relied on a community-driven grant review process that involved more than 75 Boulder County residents volunteering 2,500 hours to review proposals from nonprofit organizations and recommend grants. And in coordination with dozens of organizations, donors, and community leaders including our collaborator, Mission Launch, we will be working with a new strategy for the Community Trust in 2023.
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In addition to Community Trust, we have continued to strengthen the other long-term strategic programs that have come to define our work, even during the times of crisis our community has been challenged by over the last few years.
On Veteran’s Day we announced $15,763 in Veterans Fund grants to four nonprofits serving local veterans, including: Cultivate, the Qualified Listeners Corp., Veterans Community Project — Longmont and Homeless Outreach Providing Encouragement (HOPE).
And the impactful Open Door Fund Continues to enhance the lives of the LGBTQ+ community in Boulder County with eight recent grants totaling $56,833 to Aging Services Foundation, Boulder County AIDS Project, Boulder County Public Health, Boulder Valley Women's Health Center, Dancin' Divas, Out Boulder County, Queer Asterisk, TGTHR.
It is not just grantmaking that catalyzes change in our community, but our legacy of convening and celebrating leaders who embody the transformational work required for all Boulder County residents to thrive is central to our mission.
Michael Lozano Roman, a bilingual educator and STEM specialist at Casa de la Esperanza, the 2022 Nino Gallo Leadership Award Recipient
Nobody embodied this work more than our late friend, and Boulder County legend, Nino Gallo. In 2021 we created the Nino Gallo Leadership Award to honor Nino’s legacy and his innovative work on behalf of immigrants and the economically disadvantaged. This year we are pleased to announce Michael Lozano Roman, a bilingual educator and STEM specialist at Casa de la Esperanza, has been awarded the 2022 Nino Gallo Leadership Award.
Another transformational leader who personifies the values the founders of Community Foundation Boulder County intended to nurture is Boulder County Sheriff Joe Pelle. We are delighted to announce that Sheriff Pelle has been awarded the Community Foundation's 2022 Stan Black Award for his lifetime of giving his "time, treasure and talent" to the community. “It is humbling to receive this award, especially from the Community Foundation Boulder County, an organization we have leaned on time and time again,” said Sheriff Pelle. “The Foundation has supported this community through fires, floods, and a mass shooting. They are trusted stewards of donated funds and accomplish so much for our community. I am very proud to be given this very special recognition by this terrific organization. Thank you.”
Sheriff Joe Pelle, the 2022 Stan Black Award Recipient
Sheriff Pelle has been an incredible partner for years, but in particular during the events of the last two years which have challenged our community in ways none of us could have imagined. And just as Sheriff Pelle did, our community rose to the occasion in supporting our Boulder County friends and neighbors affected by the largest wildfire in our state’s history. The challenging recovery work of the Marshall Fire persists, and our dedicated partners leading Recovery Navigation continue to refine the program in order to best meet the needs of those who are rebuilding and those with unmet needs. Filling the gaps in data is imperative as we sustain our coordination with government and community partners in order to enhance these important programs and meet the needs on the horizon for those affected by this unimaginable disaster. We continue to listen to the community and create opportunities, big and small, to support survivors as we reach the first anniversary of the Marshall Fire including: proposals from nonprofits that provided support (financial or otherwise) to fire-affected individuals and/or communities, including first responders and open funding for commemorative events that support Marshall Fire survivors.
In partnership with our amazing community and thousands of other friends and donors, Community Foundation Boulder County works to inspire, nurture, and celebrate philanthropy, and to build our community so all residents can thrive. In these last years, we have witnessed extraordinary challenges and extraordinary generosity. As you assess your year-end philanthropy, we ask you to consider a direct philanthropic investment in the Community Foundation Boulder County to support our continued work to meet these challenges together by visiting commfound.org/fallappeal.