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HAF’s future success will be built on the strong foundation that was set during Patrick Cleary's tenure, and we are glad he will continue his work at the Foundation in a new role as Director of Community Prosperity and Investment.
July 16, 2019
Dear friends,
I am honored to write this letter to you as I enter my twelfth and final year on the Board of Directors of Humboldt Area Foundation. This is an exciting time at HAF. As we look forward to this new chapter, we are fully engaged in the upcoming transitions. On August 1, 2019, we welcome Bryna Lipper as our new Chief Executive Officer. Her previous work in philanthropy includes co-founding the Rockefeller Foundation’s 100 Resilient Cities. Bryna has an impressive range of skills, experience and expertise to guide HAF to the next level. We enthusiastically welcome her into her new role at HAF.
As we moving forward, I am also reflecting on the many milestones HAF has achieved in the past six years under the leadership of Patrick Cleary as Executive Director and with the help of our community partners. We have compiled a list of some of those accomplishments which you can find below. HAF’s future success will be built on the strong foundation that was set during his tenure, and we are glad he will continue his work at the Foundation in a new role as Director of Community Prosperity and Investment.
On behalf of the Board of Directors, I full-heartedly thank Patrick for his years of dedication, his deep commitment to the mission of the Foundation and for the many significant accomplishments as Executive Director.
Our future is looking very bright!
Kathryn Lobato, Board Chair, Humboldt Area Foundation Board of Directors
Here are some of our major accomplishments since 2013:
BAYSIDE, CA (APRIL 3, 2020) – The first grants from the COVID-19 Regional Response Fund, totaling $195,920, are going to eighteen organizations in Humboldt, Trinity, Del Norte and Curry counties to help our communities deal with the effects of the coronavirus.
The COVID-19 Fund was launched on March 20, by Humboldt Area Foundation and its affiliate the Wild Rivers Community Foundation in Del Norte County. With additional support from The California Endowment and The California Wellness Foundation, the fund started with $150,000. During the first two weeks, over 55 individual contributions and donor pledges have grown the fund to more than $285,000.
“Every one of our board members has given to the fund,” said CEO Bryna Lipper. “We live in a generous community and think $1 million is within our reach. It will help thousands of people,” Lipper said.
To encourage giving to the fund, HAF is taking no administrative fees, with 100% of every gift going to grants.
HAF’s areas of focus in awarding grants from the fund includes seniors, people with compromised immune systems, homeless, first-responders and Native communities.
In making the grants, HAF is using a streamlined review process that does not burden area nonprofits during this difficult time with a lengthy application process.
Sara Dronkers, Director of Grantmaking and Nonprofit Resources said, “Our team is reaching out daily to area nonprofits, public agencies, businesses, civic leaders and Native communities from Garberville to Weaverville to Hoopa, Crescent City and Brookings, Oregon to help us target our grants to charitable organizations on the front lines of service.”
Grants from the COVID-19 Fund are just one tool HAF is utilizing to meet the current crisis. Other resources being mobilized include loans to nonprofits, grants from other funds, fundraising from partner foundations and community leadership activities to bring partners together for action.
The first grants made from the fund (as of April 2) are:
· United Indian Health Services, $18,200, to get food and meals to 1,300 elders in local Native communities during the coronavirus and during a gap in federal funding.
· The Wiyot Tribe, $1,000, for extra hygiene, cleaning and pet supplies for elders.
· The Yurok Tribe, $20,000, to provide additional hygiene packages, food delivery and firewood to tribal members, including 900 elders and 500 at-risk youth.
· 211 Humboldt, $2,000, to the Mother Women Rising Support Group for extra help for clients as a result of the coronavirus.
· Affordable Homeless Housing Alternatives, $5,000, for additional general operating support for homeless services resulting from the coronavirus.
· Arcata House Partnership, $4,000, for facility improvements to maintain health, safety and physical distancing during the coronavirus.
· Cooperation Humboldt, $5,000, for their COVID-19 Response Coalition and $2,000 for the Humboldt Parent Hive Childcare Co-op.
· Del Norte Mission Possible, $10,000, for increased program and management support needed to address the coronavirus.
· Eureka Rescue Mission, $10,000, to help meet an increased demand for services resulting from the coronavirus.
· Family Resource Center of the Redwoods, $10,000, for its food pantry facing increased demands during the coronavirus.
· Food for People, $18,000, to respond to increased COVID-19 related demands on the organization.
· Gold Beach Senior Center, $10,000, to help with increased food distribution needs in Gold Beach and Port Orford, Oregon due to the coronavirus.
· Healy Senior Center, Redway, $15,000, to maintain and expand program operations and staffing for senior services during the coronavirus.
· Humboldt Bay Firefighters Local 652, $15,300, to purchase reusable medical Personal Protection Equipment jackets for first responders needed to protect them and the public during the coronavirus.
· Humboldt Family Services Center, $6,000, for virtual counseling for struggling families sheltering in place during the coronavirus.
· Southern Humboldt Housing Opportunities, $12,420, for two weeks of motel rooms for homeless people made vulnerable during the coronavirus and additional meals for other homeless individuals.
· Transitional Residential Treatment Facilities, $20,000, to support the shelter in place operations for 25 mentally ill individuals.
· Trinity Community Food Outreach, $10,000, for an additional food storage unit for the county’s food bank in Weaverville, along with funds for seven pantries to purchase perishables not available through government programs.
Contributions, small or large, can be made to the COVID-19 Regional Response Fund online at hafoundation.org/Giving/COVID19 or by mailing checks to HAF at 363 Indianola Rd, Bayside, CA 95524. For more info call (707) 442-2993.
Humboldt Area Foundation board chair Kathryn Lobato announced today that the board has chosen Bryna Lipper as its new chief executive officer. The decision came after a six month hiring process which saw more than 90 candidates apply from across the country. Lipper was one of six candidates invited to visit and interview with staff in Bayside and at the Wild Rivers Community Foundation in Crescent City.
“Lipper was the candidate most qualified to take Humboldt Area Foundation to the next level,” said Lobato. “Her presentation to the board included very deep and strategic thinking about the Foundation and how we work. Her energy, enthusiasm and experience in managing complexity will be great assets to the Foundation.”
Lipper holds a master’s degree in Public Administration from the Harvard University John F. Kennedy School of Government. Her previous experience in philanthropy includes co-founding the Rockefeller Foundation’s 100 Resilient Cities initiative and serving as the initiative’s senior vice president from 2013 to 2018. Prior to that Lipper served as acting director for the Office for International and Philanthropic Innovation at the United States Department of Housing and Urban Development. Lipper has stated that she is looking for her “forever home” where she can make a long-term commitment and positive impact.
Humboldt Area Foundation’s board of directors worked closely with staff, community members and local consultants throughout the hiring process, eventually reaching a unanimous decision to hire Lipper. Lipper will be moving from the Boston area to Arcata next month and start at the Foundation August 1.
Patrick Cleary, who served as Executive Director of the Foundation for the past six and a half years, will stay on part-time as Director of Community Prosperity and Investments. This new role will involve overseeing investment portfolios and advising and managing complex gifts.
About Humboldt Area Foundation:
Vera Vietor established the Humboldt Area Foundation in 1972. Since then, more than $80 million in grants and scholarships have been awarded in Humboldt, Del Norte, Curry and Trinity Counties. Humboldt Area Foundation promotes and encourages generosity, leadership and inclusion to strengthen our communities.
For more information on services provided by the Foundation please visit the Humboldt Area Foundation website at hafoundation.org or call (707) 442-2993.
Image: Headshot of Bryna Lipper.
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Wiyot Tribe and Humboldt Area Foundation Finalize Agreement for Gathering Rights on HAF Property
BAYSIDE, CALIF. (June 7, 2019) – Humboldt Area Foundation and the Wiyot Tribe have finalized a Memorandum of Understanding that will help restore traditional land practices to the community foundation’s campus in Bayside. The MOU, which was signed by Wiyot Tribal Chair Ted Hernandez and HAF Executive Director Patrick Cleary on May 15, establishes gathering rights for Wiyot tribal members to harvest hazel and other culturally significant plants from the grounds. Hazel is one of several materials used by the tribe for basketry.
"I would like to thank Humboldt Area Foundation for working with the Wiyot Tribe and our Traditional Gatherers with this new MOU for gathering on their property of traditional plants that surround their property. Also for seeing how important the plants on their property have been for the Wiyot People in our basketry and medicine since the beginning of our creation," said Hernandez.
“Traditional Native practices such as gathering and basket-weaving are an essential of the Wiyot people’s cultural work,” said Cleary. “However, with displacement from their traditional lands and increased development, many Native culture bearers have fewer spaces where they can gather. HAF is pleased to make this partnership with the Wiyot Tribe, and we hope other local property owners will also open their lands for tribal members to gather.”
The agreement was approved unanimously by the Humboldt Area Foundation Board of Directors in February 2019 with the understanding that the tribe will provide consultation and advice on traditional land management practices on the 14.5 acres of Bayside property that includes the Lynn Vietor Nature Trail. The Bayside property falls within the historic boundaries of Wiyot land. As part of the MOU the community foundation has agreed to spread awareness about how other landowners may partner with the Wiyot Tribe to enact similar agreements. Sitka spruce, hazelnut, salmonberry and red huckleberry are some of many plants tribal members may be interested in gathering. Landowners who want to participate are encouraged to call Tribal Offices at (707) 733-5055.
“I’m only here because of Trinity County Search and Rescue,” says Donna Brantly. On December 29, 2007, Brantly and her husband James were traveling east on California State Route 299 when they hit a patch of black ice and left the road. James was killed. Donna remembers nothing of the accident. It was a series of chances that led to her rescue – two fishermen spotted the tracks in the ice, the passenger seat brackets broke so Donna was thrown backward and cocooned in the crushed metal. The search and rescue team worked for four hours to remove her from the vehicle, which was trapped precariously near the Trinity River.
After the accident, and after Donna’s long recovery, which included a full year of rehabilitation, she and her family began to learn more about the rescue team and the vital role they play in rural communities.
“They have to replace about a 1,000 feet of rope every year,” says Donna. She also learned that volunteer first responders often pay for their own training and emergency gear. In 2008 the James P. Brantly Memorial Fund was created to support the work of rural search and rescue organizations.
Donna and her daughter, Cheryl Kingham, believe that James would have approved of the work his legacy supports. James Brantly was a steadfast man who stuck with the things he cared about. He was a member of the United Methodist Church for 50 years, a lifetime member of the Veterans of Foreign Wars organization. He worked in federal law enforcement for 30 years, earning the Commissioner's Meritorious Achievement Award for rescuing a woman on Palomar Mountain. He received citations from President Kennedy and Attorney General Robert Kennedy for his assistance during the Oxford riots when the University of Mississippi enrolled the first black student, James Meredith. His marriage to Donna spanned five decades.
“He was so handsome that the girls at my college accused me of keeping the photo that came in the frame,” says Donna, referring to the photo of the “tall, handsome sailor” she met on the Long Beach boardwalk at the dawn of the Korean War. It was only when James took leave and showed up at her dormitory with a flat of strawberries that the teasing stopped.
Cheryl describes her father as “very loyal, very loving.” He respected his wife, who had studied business and went on to be a business manager at the local school district.
“Big Jim,” as some people dubbed James, liked to give back. He often volunteered at his church and helped neighbors in their homes, doing plumbing and electrical work.
“He could fix anything,” says Donna, who also called James her “Handy Andy.”
The James P. Brantly Memorial Fund has supported small fire departments and search and rescue organizations by providing emergency equipment, training funds and supplies such as water purification equipment, intubation dummies and rope.
Donna, now 86, helps administer the fund along with Cheryl; the family lives in McKinleyville and regularly host Cheryl’s Girl Scout troop. Cheryl says that one takeaway from the tragic experience was that if you’re traveling you should make sure to have emergency contact information in the glove compartment of the car and other locations so first responders will know who to call if there’s an accident. The family adds to the fund every year on James’ birthday, January 16. To learn more about the James P. Brantly Memorial Fund, click here.
Donors and nonprofits who are interested in seeing their charitable money work for social good have a new way to invest. Humboldt Area Foundation is now offering a Socially Responsible Investment Fund (SRI) which focuses on investments that address climate change, sustainability and other social issues.
“HAF has been evaluating the possibility of a Socially Responsible Fund for over a decade,” said Humboldt Area Foundation Executive Director Patrick Cleary.
Cleary explained that socially responsible investing has historically generated lower returns than traditional investments, creating a “conundrum” for donors who would then have less money to offer in grants and scholarships. That, combined with a lack of consensus on what “socially responsible” meant, gave HAF’S staff and Investment Committee much to research before deciding on the best strategy.
“The approach we settled on after much research was to focus the fund on investments which address environmental and climate change issues, which resonated with our donors,” said Cleary. “In addition, we were able to construct a portfolio that appears to be competitive on return with our long-term pool, so hopefully donors will not have to accept lower returns. The reaction from our fund holders has been positive enough for us to reach a large enough threshold to launch the fund.”
The investment option is broadly consistent with the investment policy established by HAF for its long term investment pool, but invests with fund managers whose security selection and portfolio construction processes focus on companies with high sustainability ratings, positive economic development, attention to renewable resources and good governance. Holdings in the pool will be regularly reviewed to assure they are meeting sustainable investment practices.
“At HAF we incorporate the tenets of our Mission statement in all we do,” said Finance Committee Chair Charlie Jordan. “Our investment strategy is yet another way that is true. By investing in socially responsible funds we seek funds that provide both financial returns and social and environmental good to bring about a positive change.”
Because this is a new offering, there is no historical track record on investment performance, but simulations show that the proposed fund mix for the SRI would have performed slightly better than HAF’s long term pool over the last three years and matched HAF over the trailing five years, with somewhat higher volatility. The underlying investment costs of the funds are very comparable to the fees on HAF’s Long Term Investment portfolio.
“Some of our donors would like to direct their donations into an investment vehicle that more aligns with their values,” said Investment Committee Chair John McBeth. “HAF is lucky to have Angeles Investment advisors on our team, and with their help we have developed a Socially Responsible Investment Portfolio to address this complex issue.”
Investing in the Socially Responsible Fund is at the option of the donor or nonprofit. Individuals interested in learning more should contact Patrick Cleary at (707) 267-9902
Humboldt Botanical Garden, a nonprofit organization, has established a new fund at Humboldt Area Foundation. The Humboldt Botanical Garden Foundation Fund is another way for people and businesses to contribute through HAF in supporting this local outdoor jewel, with its variety of local plant species, as well as educational and family programs.
The Garden began with a small group of volunteers in 1991, who built and manage the 44.5 acre site south of Eureka, near Humboldt Bay and adjacent to the College of the Redwoods. It currently features 10 different gardens, a Butterfly House and an earth sculpture designed and constructed by Eureka artist Peter Santino that features two non-intersecting quarter mile meditative walking circles.
The Garden is supported by more than 1,100 individual, family and business members, over 100 active volunteers, three paid staff and curators and a ten-member volunteer board of directors.
“Our board felt a fund invested with a trusted local partner like Humboldt Area Foundation would help us attract annual and planned gifts as we look to the future,” said Board President Evelyn Giddings.
The nonprofit started its fund with $10,000 that it will work to grow through contributions. The fund will be invested for long-term growth. HAF will administer the fund and manage all donor and IRS reporting. HAF staff is also available to advise and help the volunteer-led organization with estate and planned gifts.
Tax-deductible contributions to the fund can be made online at www.hafoundation.org/HBGF or by calling (707) 442-2993. Learn more about Humboldt Botanical Garden at https://www.hbgf.org/.
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