Kern County Women in Art will hold a "celebration and auction" at the Icehouse Framing & Gallery on Thursday, March 19. The Women and Girls' Fund, part of the Kern Community Foundation, is the beneficiary.

The Silicon Valley Community Foundation has awarded a total of $934,000 to seven organizations focused on helping lower-income residents in San Mateo and Santa Clara counties set aside money and begin building financial assets for the future.

"In the midst of a recession, it is critical for us to invest in programs that offer residents in our communities financial education and savings incentives so they can better handle serious setbacks such as a car breaking down or the loss of a job," said Emmett D. Carson, CEO and president of the foundation.

Nonprofits move forward, make community projects more efficient

This year marks the beginning of my seventh year in the Blue Water Area and the 65th anniversary of the Community Foundation of St. Clair County. While 65 years is a long time for any nonprofit, we're not the oldest one in the region. The local American Red Cross, United Way, Salvation Army and the Blue Water YMCA all have been around at least as long -- if not longer.

In fact, I think the YMCA has been serving the community for more than 100 years. I know its new building is the second one we helped fund via large capital grants and at least their third building overall.

So what will 2009 hold for our respective organizations and the many other local nonprofits that provide a wide array of programs and services to the region?

E. Kristen Frederick has stepped down as president and CEO of the Community Foundation for the Greater Capital Region in Albany, N.Y.

She is replaced by Karen Bilowith, the organization’s senior director of philanthropic services since June. Bilowith is the former president of the United Way of Schenectady County.

Community Action has received a $20,000 grant from the John and Betty Gray Early Childhood Initiative of the Oregon Community Foundation.

The funds will help support "Make Parenting A Pleasure" classes through Community Action's Opening Doors program. These classes provide parenting support for low-income families in Washington County.

On its part, the Sangamon County Community Foundation, which manages 82 funds for a variety of local charitable and scholarship programs, is planning a workshop for donors to discuss the 27.5 percent drop its major investment fund suffered in 2008.

The foundation had assets estimated at $5.2 million at the end of 2008, compared to $6.5 million at the end of 2007.

“We are very conscious of the world out there,” Stremsterfer said. “We want to make sure we’re transparent in talking about this situation. We want to go to our donors, who are very generous.”

The stop, at the edge of downtown Fresno, California, was at a homeless encampment, a sagging jumble of castoff plywood, blue plastic tarps, and wooden pallets all tacked together to serve as shelters for dozens of families. From the looks of it, it's been there a while.

For Flores, who recently joined the Fresno Regional Foundation as a program officer, the latter-day Hooverville represents the culmination of civic work deferred: not enough jobs, education, health care, counseling - you name it.

But thanks in part to a $1.4 million grant from the Hewlett Foundation, the Fresno Regional Foundation is poised to make a difference again in public life in the Central Valley's largest city, addressing problems that ultimately contribute to encampments like the one in the downtown's shadow.

President of the Ottawa County Community Foundation Joy Roth has recently announced the Foundation has a new Web site, www.ottawaccf.org.

In coordination with the local news media and the Foundation newsletter, this completes a well rounded program for keeping the public informed on the Foundation activities, deadlines for grant applications, assistance for grant application, assistance for establishing funds, and benefits derived from the Foundation activity.

So far, people of the Mid-South have met that challenge by increasing their giving, according to three charitable organizations: The Community Foundation of Greater Memphis, Church Health Center and the United Way of the Mid-South.

The Community Foundation of Greater Memphis during its next fiscal year that begins May 1 will only distribute about $200,000 from its discretionary grant-making fund instead of the $800,000 it gave this year, said Executive Director Bob Fockler.

The reason for the decrease is losses to the charity’s investment pools last year of 35.2 percent in its equity investment pool and 24.7 percent of the funds in its balanced investment pool.

By the end of the year, Greensboro's homeless residents will have a place to spend their daytime hours, advocates will announce today.

An East Washington Street warehouse and office building near the former home of the Southern Plate and Window Glass Co. has been donated to the Community Foundation of Greater Greensboro to be used as a new service center for the area's homeless.

Organizers hope to use $55,000 in city and nonprofit funds to continue to run a temporary day center until summer, while the permanent building is renovated. City staff will ask the City Council to designate $30,000 for that purpose tonight.