Half Moon Bay Nonprofit to Receive $80K for Community Leadership Project

The Silicon Valley Community Foundation announced this month it has selected 10 local organizations to participate in the Community Leadership Project, a three-year initiative to increase the capacity and sustainability of nonprofit groups that serve low-income communities and communities of color in San Mateo and Santa Clara counties. 

Among the selected nonprofits is Sonrisas Community Dental Center in Half Moon Bay, which over a three-year period will receive grants totaling $80,000, including $60,000 for operations and $20,000 for capacity-building. 

Sonrisas opened its doors in 2001 to provide access to affordable dental care for low-income San Mateo Coastside residents. Last year, Sonrisas provided dental treatment to nearly 1,500 children and adults who might otherwise have gone without care. “We are delighted to be selected for this leadership program. Not only does it recognize the importance of Sonrisas' mission but also allows us to work with a community of non-profits with a similar focus," said Nigel Taverner, Sonrisas Board President.

SVCF will award a total of $800,000 to the organizations participating in the Community Leadership Project and bring together representatives of the grantee organizations to work and learn together on organizational problem-solving and other capacity-building issues. The community foundation will also help the organizations gain access to possible sources of philanthropic funding and increase their visibility to the public.

Funding for this second phase of the Community Leadership Project (CLP) comes from generous grants from the William and Flora Hewlett Foundation, the James Irvine Foundation and the David and Lucile Packard Foundation. The first phase of the CLP began in 2009 when, after a rigorous selection process, SVCF was chosen to guide a group of organizations in building their capacity to serve their communities and in achieving financial sustainability. After evaluation of the CLP’s impact in 2012, the Hewlett, Irvine and Packard foundations decided to create a CLP 2.0 to continue and expand the work. Again, the community foundation was selected as a partner.

The new CLP grantees are:

• Council on American-Islamic Relations, San Francisco Bay Area chapter
• Institute for Sustainable Economic, Educational and Environmental Design
• Latinas Contra Cáncer
• Multicultural Institute
• Pacifica Resource Center
• Peninsula Interfaith Action
• Sonrisas Community Dental Center
• Sunday Friends
• Third Street Community Center
• Veggielution

“We are excited to begin work with these organizations, which are fulfilling important roles in their communities. This work is about giving low-income communities and people of color greater access to philanthropic resources that our region has in abundance,” said Mauricio Palma, SVCF’s director of initiatives. “CLP helps put grantee organizations and Silicon Valley Community Foundation at the forefront of creating vibrant communities.”

During the initial phase of the Community Leadership Project in 2009, SVCF awarded operating and capacity-building grants to 11 organizations. These organizations achieved many successes, from the Sikh Coalition’s successful advocacy efforts with the United States Justice Department, to the Multicultural Institute’s expansion of its facilities to serve additional clients in the East Bay, to the Foundation for a College Education being honored with a Chamber of Commerce award. 

SVCF also was able to attract an additional $500,000 from multiple funders and donors to support these efforts and leverage the $1 million in funding it received from the Hewlett, Irvine and Packard foundations.

For more information about CLP, please visit http://www.siliconvalleycf.org/community-leadership-project.