Local charities fear tsunami relief will trim donations Local charities fear tsunami relief will trim donations (January 07, 2005)

Matching funds hike value of Holiday Fund for Valley needy
by Jeb Bing

The generous donations by Pleasanton and other Tri-Valley residents to tsunami relief efforts has some local charities concerned that they may be short-changed in a year when state and federal funds are drying up while their needs are increasing.

With the Pleasanton Weekly's Holiday Fund accepting contributions through Jan. 28, David Rice, president of the Tri-Valley Community Foundation, said local donors might consider digging a little deeper to help both charitable efforts. An added benefit for donors is that contributions made to the Weekly's Holiday Fund will be matched dollar-for-dollar by Rice's foundation, doubling the amount charities will actually receive. Also, contributions to the Holiday Fund go directly to the charities with no administrative costs deducted.

"We saw after 9/11 a major drop-off in contributions to local charities as Tri-Valley residents redirected many of their contributions to the relief efforts that were underway in New York and Washington, D.C.," Rice said. "While it's too early to see what impact the tsunami relief effort will have, we have a pretty good idea of what could happen to local nonprofits, at least in the short term."

Contributions to the 2004 Pleasanton Weekly Holiday Fund totaled $66,170 as of noon Wednesday, just $8,830 short of the fund's $75,000 goal for the year. Donations will be shared by eight designated charities and nonprofits: Axis Community Health Center, Kaleidoscope Activity Center, Open Heart Kitchen, Pleasanton Cultural Arts Council, Ryan Comer Cancer Resource Center of ValleyCare, Senior Support Program of the Tri-Valley, Tri-Valley Haven and the Valley Humane Society.

"While I want to encourage those who can to contribute to the tsunami relief, I also want to stress the need to continue supporting local organizations that serve the needy here," Rice said. "The tsunami relief effort is blessed with millions of dollars in contributions pouring in from around the world. The needy organizations the Holiday Fund is supporting depend on local efforts like this, and we know their needs are growing."

"If people are giving more and more to disaster relief on a global scale, there could be fewer dollars for local charitable organizations," Rice said. "We need to make sure we meet this year's goal here at home."

E-mail a friend a link to this story.