I
n the early 2000s, then city-council
member Greg Sellers and former
mayor Dennis Kennedy dreamed
up a vision of how to tap into the
generous resources of Silicon Valley in a
way that would funnel back to Morgan
Hill’s community. Inspired by the work of
the Silicon Valley Community Founda-
tion they eventually formed a board with
five others and birthed the Morgan Hill
Community Foundation (MHCF), a non-
profit philanthropic organization “that
connects impassioned donors with local
needs” as their website states.
There were already a ton of “micro
non-profits in the community,” Sellers
told
TODAY , “groups that wanted
to do an event but didn’t want to wait a
year for 501c3 status.” Thus, the MHCF
was able to step in and bolster projects
that might have taken years to come
to fruition.
The effort was a success, and the
MHCF has gone on to be a major player
in the success of non-profit projects
ranging from the community dog park,
to the community gardens, plus events
like Senior Bingo Night, and Project
Road Map at PA Walsh school, which
helps kids with college prep.
Current President, Pamala Meador,
a local artist and real estate agent, is
excited about the work the foundation is
investing in now. She came on board two
years ago after helping create a non-profit
called El Toro Culture and Arts that
raises money for the maintenance of local
sculpture in town.
“Of all the things I could do in town,
this is the thing I’m incredibly passionate
about,” she said. She explained that the
function of the foundation is to be “the
platform, the umbrella, the firm ground
beneath the feet of so many organizations
in town that do really wonderful things.”
Meador said they are the “accountants
and lawyers,” and while not a “sexy
story,” they are necessary for any non-
gmh
profit organization to raise funds and do
good work.
Morgan Hill is already a deeply
philanthropic town, with its share of
fundraisers, but not every group that
raises money has the desire or time to
become their own non-profit. By piggy-
backing under the foundation, they
don’t have to.
Meador explained that the MHCF is
one of the few community foundations in
the state that can give their fiscal partners
nonprofit status immediately “and puts
them on a path to get their own non-
profit status.”
They fund six areas of focus:
recreation, arts and culture, agriculture
and environment, education and lifelong
learning, science and tech, and health
and human services.
If a group does not want or intend to
become a non-profit but wants to raise
money for a philanthropic cause, the
Foundation takes away “the additional
burden of a tax return, filing to get
the raffle done, credit card machines,”
Meador said. They help remove “all the
stuff that that takes energy, focus and
resources away” from the organization’s
main goal: to raise money.
“We’re that bridge,” she said.
She went on to say that their
partners essentially become one with
the foundation, though how they fund-
raise and put those funds to use is up to
them. “Partners get a bucket under our
umbrella. If they want to get a grant,
they can write one under us.”
Meador is also excited about another,
newer facet, known as donor advised
funds (DAF). Here, individuals in the
community can set up a fund and
“direct it where they want it to go,” she
said. They can choose to have it be an
endowment if they want.
And, if you wish to create a DAF but
don’t yet have the $10,000 minimum
investment, they’re creating a program
where you can build your fund over
time. “If you don’t have a lot of money,
but have some, if you can get a pathway
to reach your goal in a certain amount
of years, we’ll be your bank account and
then it can get endowed,” Meador said.
Or a family could come together and
pool their money to create a fund.
In the immediate future the MHCF’s
next big act is taking over a wine action
that used to be put on by the South
Valley Athletic League to support athletic
programs. Here in what would be its
20th year, the League felt they no longer
had the volunteer power to pull it off.
When they came to Meador to
disband, she couldn’t bear to see a good
thing go, especially on what would be
its 20th anniversary. So, in partnership
with the South Valley Wine Association,
the newly revamped South Valley
Wine Auction will take place May 11,
the Friday of Mother’s Day weekend, at
the Morgan Hill Community Center. 5 to
7 p.m. is VIP Tasting, and 6 to 10 p.m. is
general admission and the wine auction.
“Instead of focusing specifically on
athletics, we’re focusing on non-profits in
the area. They don’t have to be a partner
of MHCF to use this as a vehicle to fund-
raise,” Meador said.
Her vision is that the event supports
“everything philanthropic in the
community” and eventually goes on to
become “the premier wine auction for
our community.”
Any nonprofit that wants to
participate can do so, and will keep 75%
of the proceeds from their auction items.
“The non profits don’t have to have the
risk of putting the event on. They don’t
have to do anything but bring their stuff,
hang their posters and contact people in
their database,” she explained.
Meador sees this as a time of great
philanthropic growth in Morgan Hill,
and she’s proud to be part of making
non-profit dreams come true.
PHOTOS: Back Row (l-r): Matt Wendt, Janet Librers-Leach, Mario Banuelos, Myra Kaelin, Amy Whelan, Rob Christopher
Front Row (l-r): Nick Gaich – Vice President, Peggy Martin – Treasurer, Pamala Meador – President, Bob Lipscomb – Secretary
Board Member not pictured is Steve Cox. Inset: Pamela Meador, President.
GILROY • MORGAN HILL • SAN MARTIN
APRIL/MAY 2018
gmhtoday.com
37