E
very community has chal-
lenges. We’re lucky to have an
organization like the Latino
Family Fund de Gilroy responding to
some of these challenges in a way that
will benefit future generations. It takes
a lot of heart to bring positive change,
and this organization’s got it.
The genesis of the Latino Family
Fund (LFF) dates back to a 2006
study commissioned by Silicon Valley
Community Foundation and the
Hispanic Foundation of Silicon Valley
to look at regional philanthropy trends.
The study found that Latinos were
generous in their charitable giving, but
not in formalized ways; and they were
underrepresented in the membership
and leadership of philanthropic organi-
zations.
One result was a gathering of people
including Angie Aguirre (who worked
on the study), Javier Aguirre, John and
Leighan Perales, Donna Pray of the
Gilroy Foundation, and local families.
They met to discuss their shared desire
to bring positive change by getting
more Latinos involved in local phi-
lanthropy. That led to the establish-
ment of the Latino Family Fund, a
donor-advised fund, under the Gilroy
Foundation’s nonprofit umbrella.
According to Edwin Diaz, former
Chair and Founding Member of LFF,
the fund started with a dozen families
each donating $500 or $1,000. They
quickly made youth philanthropy part
of their mission.
“Many of us in the original group
were educators,” Edwin said. “We
wanted to get kids involved, to be
aware of the work of local nonprofits,
and to develop an appreciation for
giving back to the community them-
selves.”
LFF created the Youth in
Philanthropy (YIP) program with its
first pilot in 2013 at South Valley
Middle School in Gilroy. Ernie Oliveras
served as Chair of YIP since its incep-
tion. He turns the reins over to Sal
Tomasello for the new school year.
“Every year we give each school's
students five hundred dollars and guide
them in managing their own philan-
thropic effort,” Edwin said. “We meet
monthly, talk about the importance of
philanthropy, and walk them through
the grantmaking process. They learn
about local nonprofits and choose a few
causes to support. The students also do
their own fundraising to supplement the
grant funds.”
The program has expanded to
include Ascencion Solorsano Middle
School. For the 2018-19 school year,
South Valley students donated $500
plus two $300 grants. Ascencion
Solorsano students made similar dona-
tions and grants. Their efforts have
benefitted their schools and organiza-
tions such as Gilroy Compassion Center,
Operation Freedom Paws, DreamPower
Horsemanship and others.
{
It takes a lot of
heart to bring
positive change.
“We’ve worked with over 325 stu-
dents to date,” Edwin said. “This fall,
we’re taking YIP to Brownell Middle
School. It’s wonderful to see kids learn-
ing about philanthropy and leadership
while providing grants to community
service organizations in need.”
According to Enrique Diaz, current
Co-chair of LFF, the list of grantees con-
tinues to grow.
“It’s interesting to see how well the
kids identify needs in the community,”
Enrique said. “They learn about a range
of issues from homelessness to families
displaced by fires to lack of funds for
teachers to buy classroom supplies.
They explore issues together and vote
on the causes they want to support.”
“Along with giving back and devel-
GILROY • MORGAN HILL • SAN MARTIN
august/september 2019
oping an affinity for their community,”
Edwin said, “the kids gain confidence,
with a sense of purpose and goals they
can achieve.”
Students are selected by school
counselors for their potential to grow
and benefit from participation. Parents
are brought in during orientation.
Students and grant winners are recog-
nized at the Gilroy Foundation’s Grant
Night and parents are invited.
Every year, LFF also hosts YIP stu-
dents on a college tour, and a corpo-
rate tour, and connects them with the
philanthropy teams of those organiza-
tion.
Edwin attributed LFF growth to
long-term planning and goal-setting.
“We became more thoughtful about
our goals and brought in new leader-
ship. Enrique and Emily Diaz stepped
up to co-chair our program. Things are
expanding in ways beyond what we
originally imagined.”
Enrique noted that regional interest
in LFF is growing. “We’re now over
100 members including many active
community leaders from Gilroy and
Morgan Hill.”
He said the organization’s first
Tequila Tasting fundraiser, held on
Cinco de Mayo at Jaime Rosso’s home,
was so popular they made it an annual
event. This year’s event took place at
Fortino Winery and raised $28,000.
LFF has a ten-member volunteer
board of directors. Their annual appeal
to “friends of LFF” has led to generous
gifts from the community: For exam-
ple, Ken Christopher of Christopher
Ranch recently made a $10,000
donation; and the Castellano Family
Foundation provides an annual $5,000
grant to support the work of LFF.
“There are many worthy causes in
this community,” Enrique said. “When
people become familiar with what
we’re doing, and our track record of
stewardship, they want to help.”
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