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Two announcements from the Three Valleys Community Foundation caught my eye early this new year, so I reached out to get a better sense of what all this blossoming local nonprofit has planned for 2025 – turns out I’d get another news tip out of the inquiry too.
From my exchange with CEO/President Kelly Bowers, it’s clear 3VCF stands as one of the most inspired and invigorated organizations in the Tri-Valley.
“We take great pride in responding to our community’s needs in real time,” Bowers told me by email last Friday.
“By reviewing needs assessment data, participating in roundtables and engaging in focus groups, we stay attuned to the most pressing challenges our constituents face … we listen, learn and lean into our community’s evolving needs, ensuring we continue to empower and facilitate transformational change where needed most,” she added.
Founded in 2020 and beginning operations the following year, Three Valleys provides financial and organizational support to local nonprofits and projects — positioning itself as the “philanthropic anchor” in the region “through inclusive leadership, thoughtful funding, informed giving and collaborative action”.
It is buoyed by some of the most important figures in the Amador, Livermore and San Ramon Valleys: John Sensiba (board chair), Pat O’Brien (treasurer), Alexander Mehran Jr. (board member), and Catharine Baker, Nelson Fialho, James Paxson and Christine Wente (advisory council members), to name a few.
Bowers, herself well-known in the area with 12 years as superintendent of the Livermore Valley Joint Unified School District, was hired as the foundation’s first permanent CEO and president in the summer of 2022.
She was quick to credit the efforts of the inaugural board, founding benefactors, “Sustainability Circle” donors, all-volunteer advisors, partner cities and Alameda County, and new board members for putting the organization on such a positive path in these early years.
“To date, 3VCF manages nearly $3 million in total assets, and we’ve already awarded more than $1 million in grants and donor-directed gifts,” Bowers said. “Another $2.7 million in innovative opioid settlement grants is slated to support nonprofits and community-based organizations in Alameda County tackling the opioid crisis. We believe this level of grantmaking can be transformational for our community.”
Whether individual gifts, donor advised funds or endowments, 3VCF solicits contributions for Tri-Valley causes via its unrestricted 3VCF Fund or dedicated field-of-interest funds such as its Community Health Impact Grant Fund, the Dublin Education Alliance Fund, Innovation Tri-Valley Community Fund, Sunol Strong Community Fund or Partners for Local Press Fund.
The foundation also offers other support to charitable efforts, including serving as their fiscal agent, maintaining its nonprofit directory, leveraging its “Professional Advisors Network” and creating agency funds.
To bolster its financial position, 3VCF this month announced its board selected Fremont Bank as its new investment management services provider.
“Our collaboration with Fremont Bank reinforces our commitment to keeping local resources within our community to serve our region’s needs,” Sensiba said in the Jan. 6 press release. “Together, we can ensure that every dollar is managed with integrity and invested in our shared vision of a thriving, resilient region.”
The foundation also recently launched its new “Nonprofits Now!” podcast – “an engaging platform for the community to learn firsthand about philanthropic efforts and for nonprofits to share their impactful work,” Bowers told me.
The debut episode, available now, features Bowers interviewing 3VCF co-founder and board secretary Susan Houghton.
The third bit of organizational news just became public on Monday: 3VCF has stepped up to take over the Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. Legacy Fellowship Breakfast and Awards starting in 2026.
The event, created 25 years ago, was originally hosted by the now-defunct Tri-Valley YMCA before the Pleasanton Community of Character Collaborative grabbed the reins starting in 2018. There will be no fellowship breakfast this year for logistic reasons, and next year’s format and scope are expected to look different with 3VCF at the helm.
“It is a very positive development that 3VCF is taking over event sponsorship. Because they represent the entire Tri-Valley, 3VCF is well positioned to recruit nominees from across the region and draw widespread participation and attendance,” Ken Mano, chair of the collaborative, said in a press release. He added that his organization would work with Bowers “to ensure a smooth handoff and the event’s ongoing success”.
In the meantime, Three Valleys is gearing up for its annual State of Giving Gathering on March 13 at which its leaders will unveil its latest community impact report and discuss the state of philanthropy in the Tri-Valley.
Bowers told me she also has her eye on cultivating the organization’s “Next Gen Philanthropy” initiative in 2025, something that connects her two career paths well.
“After all, the future of philanthropy and how we build community lies in the hands of these bright and capable next-generation leaders,” she added. “If we can help shape their capacity, empathy, and vision, the possibilities for our region are endless, and the outcomes all the more promising.”
Visit 3vcf.org to learn more about the Three Valleys Community Foundation.
Editor’s note: Jeremy Walsh is the editorial director for the Embarcadero Media Foundation’s East Bay Division. His “What a Week” column is a recurring feature in the Pleasanton Weekly, Livermore Vine and DanvilleSanRamon.com.
