Six nonprofits have been selected as this yearÃs recipients of the fourth annual Pleasanton Weekly Holiday Fund, the community-wide campaign that starts today to provide needed funding for vital local nonprofits.
Last year, the Holiday Fund exceeded its $75,000 goal, raising $76,575 in direct contributions and matching funds. Each of the targeted six nonprofit organizations serving the needs of the community received $12,762 to help them continue their work.
“The economy is improving and yet needs by the charitable organizations greater than ever, we’ve raised our sights with a goal for this year’s Holiday Fund set at $100,000,” said Gina Channell-Allen, president of the Pleasanton Weekly. “Already some of last year’s donors have given again, wanting to double their giving through the Holiday Fund.”
The organizations that will benefit from the 2006-07 campaign are Axis Community Health, the downtown Pleasanton Firehouse Arts Center project, Open Heart Kitchen, Ryan Comer Cancer Resource Center of ValleyCare, Tri-Valley Haven and the Valley Humane Society.
“This year, the Pleasanton Weekly will be able to increase the contribution our readers, advertisers and others make by 100 percent because of the partnership we have established with the Tri-Valley Community Foundation,” Channell-Allen said. “The foundation has agreed to provide matching funds to our campaign drive so for every $1 contributed, another $1 will be given to these local organizations.”
Unlike most other fundraising drives by individual organizations, the Holiday Fund has no administrative expenses or other overhead. The Pleasanton Weekly donates all the support services so all money raised can support local nonprofit groups.
All funds are held in trust by the Tri-Valley Community Foundation and are tax deductible to the extent permitted by law.
David Rice, president of the Tri-Valley Community Foundation, said giving to the Pleasanton Weekly Holiday Fund this year is more important than ever.
ìAlthough Pleasanton is ranked as one of the wealthiest cities its size in the nation, there are thousands who rely on these six organizations for individual and family assistance, emergency aid when they’re suddenly without jobs and health care,” Rice said.
“Not everyone is wealthy here, not everyone has a job, not everyone has health insurance,” he added. “These are the people who need our help.”
He pointed to increased requirements by the nonprofits to meet the needs of an increased number of those in low-level-paying jobs, many without adequate or any health insurance. Some have lost their jobs or their benefits, or both, because of corporate downsizing, layoffs and benefit reductions.
“Open Heart Kitchen, for example, already has served more than 130,000 meals to the hungry and those in need, up from 27,000 meals just two years ago, and we still have another month left in the year,” Rice said.
Added Carol Beddome, the Executive Director of Open Heart Kitchen:
“We serve nutritious lunches and dinners to anyone who is hungry, without charge or qualification. Unlike typical urban soup kitchens that cater to the homeless, most of our guests are low-income people who have jobs and a place to live. They come from all walks of life, including single parent families, seniors on a fixed income, men and women working two jobs, people who are unemployed or deeply in debt. They all find that a free hot meal can help make ends meet.”
“Last year, the Pleasanton Weekly Holiday Fund’s contributions to Open Heart Kitchen fed more than 8,000 in the locations where we provide meals, including Trinity Lutheran Church in Pleasanton. This year, a generous donation of $100 will feed over 65 guests.”
Axis Community Health, another recipient of this yearÃs campaign, is Tri-ValleyÃs sole provider of medical care for the areaÃs working families who do not have health insurance.
ìWe are seeing an ever-growing number of families in need,î said Sue Compton, Assistant Director at Axis. ìMore than 25 percent of our patients are children under the age of 12. In the past year alone, the number of children we care for has increased by 20 percent. We are putting every resource we have into meeting this growing need, but the support we receive from state and local funding is not keeping pace with the demand for services.î
ìWe have a constant waiting list for well baby and well child examinations at Axis, and support from the Holiday Fund will be used to provide additional hours of direct care for children,î she added. ìFor every $500 we receive, we will be able to provide another four hours of pediatric services, during which time 15 babies and children will receive comprehensive check-ups and immunizations.”
“Support from the Holiday Fund last year allowed us to provide an additional 180 health care visits for local children, and we would be thrilled to be able to provide these extra services again this year. The Holiday Fund is truly making a difference for the families in our community.”
Tri-Valley Haven, a shelter, rape, crisis and counseling center, reported that money from last yearÃs Holiday Fund went to operating costs. The organization said it is especially appreciative of gifts like these because it finds it increasingly difficult to obtain grant funding to meet expenses such as utilities and telephone costs. One of its major expenses is to support its 24-hour crisis line, with call forwarding that allows it to divert the line to volunteersà homes overnight.
Contributions from the Holiday Fund will also support two shelters, a community building and a satellite counseling office, all with telephones and computers.
Another recipient of this yearÃs Holiday Fund will be the Firehouse Arts Center, whose foundation is seeking $4 million to add to the $10 million already raised for the downtown facility. It will bring arts to the downtown, as well as a 240-seat theater and art classrooms with emphasis on school-age students and younger children.
The Pleasanton City Council has already allocated $8.8 million for the project, which will replace much of the old firehouse Station 4 and fire department headquarters on Railroad Avenue. Built in 1929, a large portion of the historic brickwork will be preserved as part of an innovative architectural design that will also incorporate a glass and steel lobby and high tech production equipment.
“So much has been done by so many to make Pleasanton such a special place to live,” said Greg Reznick, president of the Pleasanton Cultural Arts Foundation whose nine-member board of directors recently contributed $1 of their own money toward the project.”
“With the help of the Pleasanton Weekly Holiday Fund, we will be able to move even faster toward meeting our goal of starting construction and opening the center in 2008,” he added.
The Ryan Comer Cancer Resource Center, located inside the ValleyCare Health Library, offers personalized reference assistance and access to medical databases, some in other languages, including Web sites and articles, plus books, videos and models. The library has both a librarian and nurse on staff to help with research.
“On behalf of ValleyCare Health System, I would like to thank the Pleasanton Weekly for including the ValleyCare Health Library and Ryan Comer Cancer Resource Center as a recipient of this year’s Holiday Fund drive,” said ValleyCare Vice President Ken Mercer. “The Holiday Fund’s contribution helps our library provide much needed health information and education to our community.”
Last but not least is help for our furry friends who give so much to us in return. Once again, the Valley Humane Society is on the list of recipients for the Pleasanton Weekly Holiday Fund.
This all-volunteer group, with its mission to educate others on responsible pet ownership, is building a new facility on Nevada Street and is in need of funding to complete the project and add to its services that include rescuing, treating and finding homes for abandoned or injured animals. It does not euthanize unless health problems dictate.
“WhatÃs important about giving to the Pleasanton Weekly Holiday Fund is that, in partnership with the Tri-Valley Community Foundation, we can identify these programs and activities that need our help and serve our entire community,” said the foundationÃs David Rice.
“We know what the needs are locally because of our expertise in covering these nonprofits in the WeeklyÃs news columns and through the foundationÃs programs to help serve their financial needs,” he explained.
“We can put money to work very quickly where as it might take quite a long time for these organizations to partner up with donors themselves,” he added. “So this is a much more effective and direct way to get money to work in the community by giving to the Holiday Fund.”
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