Women’s Fund of Santa Barbara Awards $550,000 to Nine Local Nonprofits

Santa Barbara, CA – On Monday, April 28, 2014, the Women’s Fund of Santa Barbara awarded grants totaling $550,000 to nine local nonprofit agencies at its 10th Annual Presentation of Funds Luncheon. This luncheon celebrates the end of the annual Women’s Fund grant cycle, and recognizes and honors its newest grantees, voted on by the membership of nearly 600 women. Since it began in 2004, the Women’s Fund of Santa Barbara has awarded grants now totaling $4.7 million to 64 local nonprofit programs impacting more than 83,000 local women, children and families in Santa Barbara, Goleta and Carpinteria. The awards luncheon was held at Fess Parker’s Doubletree Resort.

The nonprofits receiving 2013-2014 Women’s Fund awards are:

Casa Esperanza – $50,000 for shelter and support to transition women out of homelessness.

Domestic Violence Solutions – $50,000 for a security systems upgrade and a safe playground surface.

Legal Aid Foundation of SB – $75,000 for a domestic violence attorney for women and children.

Peoples’ Self-Help Housing – $50,000 for after-school/summer educational enhancement programs for children of low-income families.

Posse Program: Opening Doors to College – $75,000 for a tutorial and mentoring partnership for high-achieving low-income students.

SBCC: Single Parent Achievement Program – $90,000 for childcare support for low-income single mothers allowing them to attend college.

Santa Barbara Rape Crisis Center – $50,000 for crisis intervention and long-term counseling services.

Storyteller Children’s Center – $50,000 for a food program for low-income preschool children.

Youth Interactive Santa Barbara – $60,000 for entrepreneurial and job skills programs for underserved youth.

“The Women’s Fund is proud to mark it first decade—ten years of commitment to improving the lives of women, children and families in our community,” said Sallie Coughlin, Women’s Fund Chair. “The grants our members selected this year focus on two broad categories: programs that protect and nurture women and families in crisis, and programs that enrich and educate young children. We are looking forward to another decade of Changing Lives Together.”

“When we began ten years ago, we were inspired by a new concept in women’s philanthropy: giving large and well-researched local grants without spending money on recruiting and fundraising,” said Carol Palladini, Women’s Fund Founding Chair. “In 2004, a small group of women said there had to be a better way to make a difference in our local community. We were weary of planning and attending fundraisers. We wanted to make a bigger impact than most of us felt we were doing alone. And we wanted to celebrate the strength and generosity of women.”

“The Women’s Fund is based on a simple, creative model—women combining our charitable donations so we can make a larger impact in the community than most of us would be able to do on our own,” said Coughlin.

“Changing Lives Together” is what the Women’s Fund of Santa Barbara is all about. For 10 years, local women have been combining our charitable dollars to make larger donations in our community than most of us can give on our own. With today’s announcement of our newest grant recipients—nine local nonprofit agencies will receive $550,000—the Women’s Fund celebrates its 10th anniversary of awarding grants – marking a decade of commitment and community collaboration.

About the Women’s Fund of Santa Barbara: The Women’s Fund of Santa Barbara is a collective group of volunteer donors focused on the needs of women, children and families in Santa Barbara, Goleta and Carpinteria. Committed to “Changing Lives Together,” Women’s Fund members pool their charitable donations, research critical community needs and then vote on which agencies will receive the funds collected during the year. For additional information about the Women’s Fund, visit womensfundsb.org.