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Napa Valley Community Foundation invests nearly $300,000 in two more years of Safety Net Grants

Jan 29, 2010

Calls on Community to Participate

Napa Valley Community Foundation (NVCF) announced today that it will continue its Safety Net grant program for two more years, providing critically needed financial support to a core group of local charities that meet the basic needs of Napa County’s struggling families. "We began this effort in 2008, because we saw a sharp increase in demand from local families for food, shelter and emergency assistance as the economy faltered,” said NVCF President Terence Mulligan. "Since then, we have distributed more than $500,000 to a group of carefully selected nonprofits, which they have used to help thousands of people in our community.” 

While the economy may be improving, it continues to test area households, noted Mulligan. He cited persistently high unemployment rates and ongoing home foreclosures as two reasons for the Foundation’s long term approach to bolstering the social safety net. “We are committing resources through the end of 2011 because the challenges we face are not temporary, particularly in housing, where it’s predicted that 1,200 Napa County families both this year and next may face foreclosure,” he said. “Our job is to think about the current and future needs of this community, and to encourage others to do so as well,” Mulligan added. “We don’t have enough money to do everything that needs to be done to strengthen the safety net – and we hope that by announcing our plans, others might feel inspired to join us.”

Two dozen local donors have already come together through the Foundation to provide financial backing for Safety Net grants in 2010 and 2011. “They responded, in part, to the results we’ve seen so far,” said Mulligan, noting that a program to help families avoid foreclosure had been particularly effective. Made possible by NVCF’s first slate of Safety Net grants, the Napa Valley Foreclosure Collaborative has:

  • provided 400 households with education about the foreclosure process, bankruptcy and foreclosure rescue scams
  • served 109 families to date with intensive mortgage counseling
  • applied for loan modifications on behalf of 29 of these families and
  • completed 19 loan modifications so far, with 10 still pending.
“Finding your way through the mountain of paperwork and the multitude of financial institutions involved with any particular mortgage is extremely complex, even for sophisticated borrowers,” said Mulligan. For instance, only four percent of homeowners nationwide that are participating in a federally-sponsored program have received final loan modifications. “By carefully screening applicants and providing skilled legal counseling to them at every step of the loan modification process – in both English and Spanish – the nonprofit program we funded has been a resounding success: Nineteen out of 29 homeowners, or 65 percent, have completed the loan modification process. As a result, they are not homeless. They have preserved their most valuable asset. And, they are not creating demands on an already strained social services system.”

The organizations receiving Safety Net grants totaling $286,000 are:

  • American Canyon Family Resource Center: $7,500 in general support
  • Calistoga Family Center: $15,000 in general support
  • Community Resources for Children: $2,500 for emergency childcare assistance
  • Family Service of Napa Valley: $12,500 in general support for adult mental health counseling
  • Greater Napa Valley Fair Housing Center: $10,000 in general support
  • Legal Aid of Napa Valley: $15,000 for housing services
  • Napa Emergency Women’s Services: $5,000 in general support
  • ParentsCAN, Inc: $7,500 in general support
  • Salvation Army – Napa Corps: $7,500 for feeding programs
  • Spirit of Unity in Napa, Inc.: $3,000 in general support for Puertas Abiertas
  • St. Helena Community Food Pantry: $3,000 in general support
  • St. Helena Family Resource Center: $5,000 in general support
To learn more about the Safety Net grants program or make a contribution, visit www.napavalleycf.org or call 707.254.9565.

About Napa Valley Community Foundation

The Community Foundation works to multiply the impact of individual givers, pooling resources and investing in charitable projects that make a difference. Since 1994, the Community Foundation has served as a bridge between philanthropic families and hard-working nonprofit agencies, bringing people, ideas and resources together to enhance the quality of life in the Napa Valley community. From American Canyon to Calistoga, the Community Foundation has distributed more than $20 million in grants in the last 15 years, and currently serves as the philanthropic partner to 100 individuals, families, nonprofit agencies and corporations in Napa Valley.  To learn more, call 707.254.9565 or visit www.napavalleycf.org.