YWCA 20th Anniversary
By Savannah Lira, PVF Program Officer
In 2004, the YWCA of the Mid-Peninsula closed its doors and sold its Palo Alto building, but they were far from done. The proceeds from the sale were used to create the YWCA of the Mid-Peninsula Donor Advised Fund (Fund), originally held by the Women’s Foundation of California, and has now been administered by Philanthropic Ventures Foundation since 2019. On May 17, 2024 we gathered at the YWCA’s original location, now Congregation Etz Chayim, to celebrate the Fund’s 20th anniversary.
Over these 20 years, the Fund has leveraged the interest derived from its investments to distribute over $4 million in grants to 57 agencies whose programs align with the Fund’s mission of Eliminating Racism & Empowering Women and Girls in the geographic areas previously served by the YWCA of the Mid-Peninsula, including: Cupertino, East Palo Alto, Los Altos/Los Altos Hills, Menlo Park, Mountain View, Palo Alto, Redwood City, Sunnyvale, as well as other YWCAs throughout Northern California. Those programs include education, teen pregnancy, termed out foster care girls, rape crisis intervention, domestic violence, women entrepreneurs, LGBTQ+ issues, immigration rights, public policy advocacy training, and numerous barrier breaking racial justice programs.
20+ organizations were represented at the 20th anniversary celebration as past and current grant recipients, in addition to current and former YWCA Board members, and friends. Current Board Chair Antoinette Battiste and Board Member Laura Prentiss led us in a reflection on the creation and accomplishments of the Fund, including acknowledgement of Grace Wilbur’s contributions as one of the founding Board members still on the board 20 years later.
In addition, we heard from each grantee about their organization (many of whom are doing work complementary to each other) and their connection to the Fund. It was a wonderful occasion of celebration and collaboration.
Thank you to everyone who joined us to acknowledge the past and celebrate the present and we look forward to seeing the future of the YWCA of the Mid-Peninsula Donor Advised Fund!
