2021 Annual Report
A Note From Marcos: Sometimes we are so engaged with the issues at hand that it is only when we are forced to pause and look back that we can begin to appreciate the scope of our work, the importance of our endeavors, and the impact of our organization. 2021, the second year of a global pandemic and a continuation of the systemic disruption that is forging a new way forward— challenged us, and in the ever-evolving nature of The FUND, shaped us for the better. As I reflect on what this organization was able to accomplish in 2021, and how that work impacts the organizations and groups we serve and the communities those groups serve, I can’t help but feel incredibly proud. What's more, when I assess how our work is influencing philanthropy and policy-making, compelling people to take action for equity-centered causes, and shifting culture— I am encouraged by a tremendous sense of hope for the future. Our vision for the future is rooted in justice and equity, and at The FUND, we work tirelessly in the aim that we may contribute to making that vision a reality. We understand that we are a part of a larger ecosystem working succinctly in tandem with other organizations, individuals, and coconspirators who are called forth to build something better. We embrace our role as a trusted-table and regional intermediary facilitating the organizing and collaborative engagement of progressive community organizations, institutions, activists, funders and donors in order to build movements for economic, environmental, political, racial and social justice along the Central Coast, and beyond. My most heartfelt appreciation goes out to the special collective of visionaries |2
and leaders that comprises The Fund for Santa Barbara. The FUND’s work would not be possible without our BIPOC-led team— our committed staff, the leadership of our Board of Directors, our activist-led Grant Making Committee, our trail-blazing Youth Making Change Cohorts, the enduring support of our donors and the foundations that sustain us, and the pivotal work of our grantees and partner organizations. While it is impossible to distill a year’s worth of work and impact into a short report, I invite you to navigate through the following pages to get a glimpse of what we and our extended progressive community carried out in 2021. In Solidarity,
Marcos Vargas, PhD Executive Director
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Our Mission:
Advancing progressive change by strengthening movements for Economic, Environmental, Political, Racial, and Social Justice
We advance our mission by employing these strategies:
Build Capacity Develop Movement Leadership Influence Philanthropy Make Grants
Nurture Coalitions
of progressive organizations to help them be bold and effective.
so that social justice movements and the progressive philanthropy sector look like the communities we serve: diverse, intergenerational, and values-driven. to support community organizing and movement building.
to community groups and coalitions across the region supporting longterm movements and emerging needs. by being a hub for collaborative efforts and serving as a trusted table to convene people and groups for strategy, resource sharing, and inspiration.
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In 2021 we got a new look. Years in the making, what initially began as a renaming process evolved into a further embracing of “The FUND," and a pivot to capture the essence of our work through our branding.
Our new logo evokes the spirit of an intersectional community drawn to working together to bring about progressive change. There is a magnetism pulling the elements within the mark together— they gravitate towards one another while maintaining individual identities. The sphere shapes are all of equal size, and consist of five colors— each representative of The FUND’s five focus areas of justice.
We also introduced a new Youth Making Change logo. The logo denotes action, conveying the importance and necessity of youth leadership at the forefront of movements for social change. |5
2021 By The Numbers
44
$300K+
Grants Awarded
Grants Distributed
1,000+
300+
Hours of Free Consulting
Groups Served through Capacity Building Initiatives
17
11
Workshops Convened/CoConvened
Event/Action Sponsorships
11
500+
Activist Brown Bag Lunches
Individual Donors
41
Years of Building Movements for Progressive Change |6
2021 Geographical Grant Distribution
City Specific North County County-Wide
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Issue Areas
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Media Representation ● Social SocialJustice Justice ● Anti-Discrimination Civic Engagement ● Community Health ● Public Safety Justice ● Housing Rights Reimagining Policing ● Economic Economic Justice Indigenous Rights ● Immigrant Rights ● Criminal Justice Juvenile Justice ● Youth Engagement ● Language Justice Political Racial Justice Justice ● Health Care Equity ● Worker’s Rights Educational Access/Equity ● Environmental Environmental Justice Justice ● Mental Health ● Houselessness ● Food Justice ● Education Arts & Cultures ● Access/Disability Rights ● LGBTQ+ Rights Racial Justice Political Justice ● Demilitarizing Schools ● Women’s Rights
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2021 Grant Awards Spring General Cycle Blue Sky Center Sustainable Living Center / Cuyama Valley Victory Gardens – $7,000 CAUSE Action Fund – $5,000 Corazón del Pueblo: The Cultural and Creative Arts Center of the Santa Maria Valley / Arts for the People: Santa Maria – $10,000 Council on American-Islamic Relations, Greater Los Angeles Area Office (CAIR-LA) / Empowering the AMEMSA Community of Santa Barbara – $5,000 Food Not Bombs Isla Vista / Food Not Bombs Isla Vista Operational Relief – $3,000 Freedom 4 Youth / Youth-led Justice Magazine: Freedom Philosophies – $9,000 Future Leaders of America / Padres Para La Justicia Educativa (Parents for Educational Equity) – $5,000 Healing Justice Santa Barbara (HJSB) / “We keep us safe” Advocating for Accountability and Transparency in Policing – $10,000 Latinx and Indigenous Migrant COVID-19 Response Task Force (LIMCR Task Force): Language Justice Team / Language Justice Team Support of LIMCR Task Force – $10,000 NC FRESA / North County Food Resiliency Equity Sustainability and Action – $6,000 People's Justice Project, Inc. / People’s Justice Project: “Homeless Rights Project”– $10,000 Santa Barbara Friends Meeting – Truth in Recruitment / Truth in Recruitment – $5,000 The Guadalupe Community Changers – Little House by the Park/FSA / Fair Housing Mobilization Project “Adelante Guadalupe!” – $10,000
Youth Making Change - South County
Diversify Our Narrative Carpinteria / Fundraising for BIPOC Authored Books in CUSD – $3,000 Just Communities YLC / CAN DO! – $3,000 Black Student Youth Santa Barbara – Black Student Union / Elevating Youth Voice of Color in the Airwaves – $3,000 SB Pal Youth Leadership Council / Teen Agricultural Leadership – $3,000 World Healer’s Global Awareness Club at UCSB / Teen Global Awareness Program (GAC) – $3,000
Youth Making Change - North County Santa Maria Youth Abolition / Journalist Collective – $3,000 ERHS Future Business Leaders of America / Education Nonprofit – $750 Santa Ynez Valley Progressives Coalition / Early Voter Registration – $715
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Emerging Needs Valley of the Flowers UCC – CAHOOTS in Lompoc Project / CAHOOTS in Lompoc Project – $5,000 Future Leaders of America / State of Black, Indigenous, and People of Color (BIPOC) Youth – $5,000 One Community Bridge Project / Ortega Park Mural Rescue Project – $5,000 Planned Parenthood Central Coast Action Fund / Santa Barbara County Redistricting Coalition – $4,074 North Santa Barbara Manufactured Homeowners Team (NSBMHT) Community Bridge Project / Rent Stabilization Ordinance – $4,000 Children & Family Resource Services/ Santa Maria Women’s Health Equity Initiative: Promotores Network collaboration – $5,000
Fall General Cycle
Committee for Social Justice / Outreach and education to the Homeless – $7,000 Environmental Defense Center / Protecting Drinking Water for the Communities Surrounding Cat Canyon – $10,000 Gateway Educational Services (GES) / Uplifting Leaders of Color – $10,000 Martin Luther King Jr., Day Celebration Committee / Community of Multicultural Gathering – $4,500 Pacific Pride Foundation, Inc. / General Operating Support – $10,000 Santa Barbara County Action Network / Youth Arts Alive – $10,000 Santa Barbara County Food Action Network / Santa Barbara County Food System Resilience Through Advocacy and Coalition Building – $10,000 Santa Barbara Response Network / SBRN Fostering Mental Health Systemic Shift in Marginalized Community Agencies – $10,000 University of California, Santa Barbara – Underground Scholars / Gaucho Underground Scholars – Ambassador Program – $6,000
Fall Multi-Year
CAUSE Action Fund – $10,000 (annually in 2021, 2022, 2023) Just Communities – $10,000 (annually in 2021, 2022, 2023) Santa Barbara County Action Network (SBCAN) – $10,000 (annually in 2021, 2022, 2023)
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The Impact of Multi-Year funding In 2019 The FUND awarded Mixteco Indígena Community Organizing Project (MICOP) a $30,000 multi-year (10k annually for 3 years) grant that concluded in 2021. Executive Director, Arcenio Lopez, shares the impact these funds had on the organization. "It is important to mention that The FUND was the first funder in MICOP's expansion into Santa Barbara County and specifically the city of Santa Maria in 2018. The boldness of The FUND’s mission for social change and by standing not behind nor in front, but by the side of their grantees in fighting for equity and social justice is a reassurance to MICOP's mission and vision to achieve better quality of life for the indigenous migrant community in California’s Central Coast. Multi-year funding makes a huge difference in the mission and vision of an organization like MICOP, because it gives flexibility to the development team to concentrate on other fundraising efforts as well as planning for the future. Most importantly, multi-year grants support the increased internal and external capacity of our organization to better serve our population- especially during difficult times such as the one we have been in. It is a form of long-term sustainability for the programs that provide crucial and meaningful services to the community we serve. During the pandemic, having a commitment of multi-year grants enabled us to better respond to this unexpected crisis of COVID-19. 2021 was a year of substantial organizational growth, from having 10 employees in Santa Maria in 2020 to 22 full time staff in 2021. This type of grant contributes to the leadership development and staff retention which has been very important to MICOP due to the increase of new challenges faced by the indigenous migrant community, such as COVID19 related interpretation, organizing, and community outreach. It was imperative for us to recruit, hire, and retain multilingual staff to carry out all of this critical and challenging work."
learn more: mixteco.org | 10
The Impact of Multi-Year funding In 2019 The FUND awarded Central Coast Alliance United for a Sustainable Economy (CAUSE) a $30,000 multi-year (10k annually for 3 years) grant that concluded in 2021. Operations and Research Director, Cameron Yee, shares the impact these funds had on the organization. "Multi-year funding from the Fund for Santa Barbara demonstrates commitment to CAUSE’s core strategy of organizing youth and immigrants as well as to our organizing in the North County where there is a stronger need to organize youth, farmworkers and immigrants to make positive social change. Multi-year funding allows us to plan for growth in our organizing and policy staff while also demonstrating to other funders that CAUSE has local funding support from our Santa Barbara County work. During the pandemic, the FUND’s support allowed CAUSE to continue to improve the lives of farmworkers through organizing. CAUSE organized Rancho Laguna farmworkers to win a raise, train foremen and supervisors in better communication skills, triple the amount of shade to secure proper social distancing during breaks, and ensure that workers would be rehired next season. In February of 2021, CAUSE partnered with ALRB (Agricultural Labor Relations Board) to host a check distribution campaign where 212 checks were distributed to compensate workers for lost wages. The total compensation was about $30,000. The Campaign held Laguna Farms, a supplier for Driscoll’s, the world’s largest berry distributor accountable to farmworkers in Santa Maria who organized for dignified pay & increased workplace safety. This third demand from courageous workers, alongside calls for better pay, increased workplace safety, and that they be treated with dignity and respect, was only possible with community support. Together, with CAUSE’s help, we won a wage raise for over 600 farmworkers, making them among the highest paid strawberry workers in the Santa Maria Valley."
learn more: causenow.org | 11
Towards a Just and Equitable Central Coast The Central Coast Regional Equity Initiative aims to deepen our understanding of regional disparities, facilitate a region-wide conversation, and support the planning and implementation of initiatives focused on advancing social, health, environmental, and economic equity within Santa Barbara and Ventura Counties. A collaborative partnership between The Fund for Santa Barbara and the UCSB Blum Center on Poverty, Inequality, and Democracy, the Initiative's first report, Towards and Just and Equitable Central Coast, was produced with support from USC Equity Research Institute in December 2021 and uses rigorous, community engaged research both to bring socioeconomic inequities — and the price we pay for them — to light, and to establish concrete guideposts for regional equity. The following is an excerpt from the Executive Summary:
"On the Central Coast as in the U.S. and the wider world, the disparities brought to light by the global pandemic, racial uprisings, and climate change-related disasters are a sign of a deeper, political and civic failure to address the inequities that have shaped social, economic, and civic life for decades. They are also a stark reminder of how inequality makes us more vulnerable to crisis and disaster—in no small part by undermining the sense of shared fate and common purpose required for an effective response. As we look to the post-pandemic future, then, it is imperative to set our sights appropriately: not on a return to an inequitable “normal,” but on a transition to a just and equitable future on the Central Coast. Justice and equity—full inclusion of all residents in the economic, social, and political life of the region, regardless of race, ethnicity, age, gender, or neighborhood of residence—are not only crucial values in their own right, but essential for regional health, prosperity, and sustainability.
"The time for transformative change is now"
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The Regional Equity Initiative calls for large public investments in opportunities and social protections for historically underserved communities and an honest reassessment of resource allocations that have privileged the interests of more advantaged constituencies. We must imagine and act upon policies that push beyond the boundaries of narrowly construed political possibility to lay the groundwork for transformative change. Such change is not something we can achieve alone; the Regional Equity Initiative will rely on commitments from progressive change organizations, businesses, public and private employers, service providers, educators, researchers, and philanthropic organizations alike. Now is the time for us to take a transformational approach to investing in regional equity, a just and adequate infrastructure of opportunity and social provision, and an economy that works for all. We invite you to join us in this effort and to advance equity in the Central Coast region."
Get Involved: Read the entire Executive Summary Read the entire report Visit the Regional Equity Initiative Website Watch the Regional Equity Initiative Launch
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Our Collaborations Effective movements for progressive change require the work of multiple organizations working together in partnership and collaboration. In 2021 the FUND led and/or actively participated in numerous collaborative efforts as part of our movement building strategy. These included:
Central Coast Immigration Network (COIN) Central Coast Climate Justice Network Central Coast Regional Equity Study Foothills Forever Latinx & Indigenous Migrant COVID-19 Response Task Force Nonprofit Resource Network (NPRN) North County Coalition Racial Equity Fund of Santa Barbara County Regional Capacity Building Collaborative Santa Barbara Foundation Roundtable Ventura and Santa Barbara Counties Funders Forum
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"YMC inspires me to live better and more educated and showed me no impact is too small. Sometimes I just feel like the worlds problems are extremely daunting - obviously problems I want to be a part of the solution to, but problems where I don’t even know where to begin. How do you solve world hunger? How do you eliminate poverty? How do you create an equitable and inclusive society? YMC showed me baby steps - starting small. Changes don’t have to be big - they can be small projects in your local community. THEY HELP and are steps towards a bigger change in the future" - Allie C., North County Board Member
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Bread & Roses 2021: Celebrating Progressive Leadership Founder's Award: Nancy Weiss & Marc Chytilo Nancy’s life work has been focused on community empowerment, social justice, and the environment, working with hundreds of organizations to uplift community voices, provide social services and create policy change in SB County since 1980. She was a proud staff member at the Fund for Santa Barbara and S.B. Rape Crisis Center (now STESA) for a total of 33 years. A few of the projects she helped lead over the years include the Sexual Assault Response Team, S.B. County No on Proposition 187 Campaign, and the Isla Vista Self Governance Fiscal Feasibility Study. Marc’s activism in Santa Barbara began in 1987 when Selma Rubin hired him as staff attorney to the Environmental Defense Center. Over the past 34 years, Marc has been involved in hundreds of environmental and social justice cases on behalf of dozens of community groups addressing transportation justice, coastal access, air quality, protection of biological resources and their habitat and protecting open spaces. In their work/life partnership, Nancy and Marc have combined their efforts at various times, including most recently the Foothills Forever Campaign and holding So Cal Edison accountable for illegal dumping in Mission Creek.
Firebrand Award: Julianna Neel Juliana Neel was born and raised in the Santa Maria Valley. After graduating Ernest Righetti High School in 2018, she attended Allan Hancock College, where she graduated with degrees in Political Science and Behavioral Studies in 2020. Juliana got her start in the social justice community working with the Women’s March of Santa Maria Valley as their social media manager. She has since worked with various organizations to push for progressive and equitable change in the Santa Maria Valley. | 16
Bread & Roses: Joy in Community
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2021 Financial Summary Paycheck Protection 6.8%
Revenue:
Fundraising Events 11.1%
Foundation Grants: $361,371 Fundraising Events: $171,853 Individual Donors: $909,829 Paycheck Protection Program: $105,172 Total: $1,548,225
Individual Donors 58.8% Foundation Grants 23.3% Program 60.8%
Expenses: Administration: $116,189 Fundraising & Development: $144,847 Grants & Sponsorships: $320,039 Program: $904,087 Total: $1,485,162 Fundraising & Development 9.7%
*the numbers presented as part of this report are pre-audit and subject to change. This is not an official statement of financial activities.
Grants & Sponsorships 21.5%
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Administration 8%
"Being able to bring people together, to help them engage in honest and open dialogue and then – most importantly – to give them the tools to put their intentions into action to make progressive change happen – all of these make The FUND an asset in our community and drive my commitment as a supporter" - Steve Glikbarg
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We don’t do this work alone. Our work is made possible by a broad coalition of supporters, community partners, and co-conspirators.
Funding Partners
Corporate Partners
Atterbury Foundation Blue Shield Foundation Hutton Parker Foundation James Bower Foundation James Irvine Foundation Kautz Family Foundation McCune Foundation Mott Foundation Natalie Orfalea Foundation Santa Barbara City College Foundation Santa Barbara County Santa Barbara Foundation The California Endowment Ventura County Community Foundation Weingart Foundation Wood-Claeyssens Foundation
Boston Trust Walden Cottage Health Cox Communications KCRW Law Office of Renee M. Fairbanks LOACOM MacFarlane Faletti & Co LLP Mechanics Bank Mullen & Henzell, L.L.P. Pacific Premier Bank SAGE Publications Inc. Santa Barbara Independent
Collegiate Partners Allan Hancock College Cal Lutheran University CSU Channel Island Fielding Graduate University Pacifica Graduate Institute Santa Barbara City College UC Santa Barbara University of Southern California Ventura County Community College District
Labor Union Partners LiUna Local 220 SEIU Local 620 SEIU Local 721 UFCW 770 United Domestic Workers
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Our Team Board of Directors: Rev. Julia Hamilton President David Landecker Vice President Gloria Soto Vice President Marsha Bailey Treasurer Andrew Oman Secretary Susan Wax Liaison to GMC Ruth Ackerman Maria Garcia-Cacique Eric Cárdenas Diane Fujino Jenn Hooten Chelsea Lancaster Eder Gaona-Macedo LeeAnne McNulty David Pellow Erica Reyes Ted Rhodes Cuco Rodriguez John Steed
Grant Making Committee: Feliciano Aguilar Co-Chair Rachel Johnson Co-Chair Suzanne Valery Liaison to Board Lupita Cervantes Lyiam Galo JP Herrada Dr. Leonie H. Mattison Jennifer Navarro-Rios Bailey Needham Julianna Neel Wendi Pacheco Rich Sander Lucerito Salgado Vickey Smith Bob Thiel Chuy Valle
YMC - North County Jasmin Olivera Facilitator Carlos Gonzalez Facilitator Andrea Cuevas Allie Cabiles Angel Gonzalez Cesar Vasquez Daniela Cayetano Danna Hernandez Deisy Mendez Damarie Diel Harry Mullin Jade Espinoza Jamielynne Lomibao Litzy Bautista Cruz Mickayla Piñon Ray-Ar Ramos Susana Espinoza Zimin He
YMC - South County Clare Schneider Facilitator Margherita Scussat Facilitator Allegra Cullen Anna Lucia Muñoz Awan Haj Christy Guerrero Jimenez Dawson Kelly Florence Wang Gabriele Scussat Halie Bissell Joselyn Pacheco Morales Kavya Suresh Kimberly Mendoza Lorenzo Lara Norah Ferguson Sophie Suh
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Staff: Marcos Vargas Executive Director Patricia Solorio Associate Director Andrés Armenta Office Mgr. /Exec. Assistant Alina Rey Keswani Dev. & Comms. Manager Kathleen Knight Capacity Building Manager David Melendrez YMC Coordinator Alex Murkison Development Associate Tania Reyes Grants Associate Abel Rico Photographer
Honorary Board: Nancy Alexander, Founder Kate Adams (in Memoriam) Susan Bower (in Memoriam) Carnzu Clark (in Memoriam) Sevren Coon Nancy Franco Susan Jørgensen Don Olson Katy Peake (in Memoriam) David Peri Susan Rose Selma Rubin (in Memoriam) Naomi Schwartz (in Memoriam) Sarah Shoresman (in Memoriam) Herman Warsh (in Memoriam) Nancy Weiss 2021 Interns: Nancy Avoce Peyton Bivona Rebecca Bogdanovic Amber Chapman Cristhy Olivera Lillian Perez Marisol Ramirez
“One of the most vital ways we sustain ourselves is by building communities of resistance, places where we know we are not alone” - bell hooks
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fundforsantabarbara.org 1219 State Street, Santa Barbara, CA 93101 Mailing: PO Box 90710 Santa Barbara, CA 93190-0710 120 E. Jones Street, Suite 110, Santa Maria, CA 93454 Santa Barbara: 805-962-9164 | Santa Maria: 805-922-1707 Stay connected: