Page 4 - 2019-2020 Annual Report v3

On March 18, 2020 the County of Mendocino issued a shelter-in-place order in response to the
COVID-19 pandemic which grew into something larger than most of us predicted. Gratefully in
those first few days of working remotely our phones rang with the generosity of donors who
anticipated the need that would come. Sonoma Clean Power and the Savings Bank of Mendocino
County asked if we would establish a fund to help those impacted by the crisis. Their lead gifts
began our journey.

Food and housing insecurity were among our immediate concerns, so we made grants to nearly
30 food-relief organizations countywide to ensure no one would go hungry during the crisis.
Grants to community partners to help people with rent and utilities soon followed.

As the pandemic continued, our relief efforts grew from a single fund to a multi-sector program
supporting residents throughout Mendocino County. The COVID-19 Relief Program is now comprised of:

• COVID-19 Relief Fund to provide basic needs to individuals and families countywide.
• COVID-19 Non-Profit Relief Fund to mitigate the difficulties faced by the non-profit sector
in Mendocino County and enable them to continue to serve the community.

• Business Innovation and Resiliency Fund to provide small grants through West Business
Development Center to enable micro-businesses to adapt to the restrictions of the pandemic
economy.

We are all impacted; no one is exempt from this pandemic. Together we can support our
neighbors and friends to ensure our communities not only survive the crisis but continue
to flourish.

Many thanks to our lead and significant donors who have made this work possible: George and Ruth Bradford
Foundation, The Candelaria Fund, The Cleo Foundation, DeLucia Family Fund, Otto and Jean Graham, Harvest Market,
Harold and Vivienne Henderson Family Fund, J-Olivanti Fund, Jantzen and Romelli Donor-Advised Fund, Robert Wood
Johnson Foundation, Diana Coryat and Ashok Khosla, Kevin & Bree Klotter Charitable Trust,
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