Affinity Funds Archives

Grant Announcement

$838K in Grants to Local Nonprofits to Create More Inclusive, Equitable and Accessible Outdoor Experiences

On August 9, 2022, we awarded $838,704 in Opening the Outdoors grants to 24 nonprofit organizations that offer equitable access to outdoor spaces in San Diego County.

“San Diego Foundation is proud to once again support its partners committed to increasing community-driven efforts to enhance accessible outdoor space, encourage youth to learn more through hands-on education and create the next generation of environmental stewards in the San Diego region,” said Christiana DeBenedict, SDF Director of Environment Initiatives.

This year’s grantees will help address these inequities and enhance access to the outdoors throughout San Diego County.

See Grantees

About Grant Oliphant

Grant Oliphant is CEO of the Conrad Prebys Foundation, a major independent foundation working to strengthen San Diego’s future through a focus on impact in the arts, medical research and care, youth development, and higher education. Previously, Grant was president of The Heinz Endowments in Pittsburgh, one of the nation’s largest regional philanthropies, where he focused the foundation’s giving on sustainability, creativity, and learning. He also launched major initiatives to support democracy, public media, and racial and social equity, and worked with his board to bring the foundation’s investments into alignment with its social and climate change priorities.

Prior to joining Heinz, Grant was President & CEO of the Pittsburgh Foundation, one of the nation’s largest community foundations, where he doubled the foundation’s size while helping to reinvent the national model of community philanthropy through an emphasis on regional leadership and impact. An outspoken advocate for philanthropy that is both effective and clear, Grant launched and hosted a popular podcast, “We Can Be,” and writes and speaks frequently about philanthropic leadership. He is the immediate past chair of the Center for Effective Philanthropy, a national organization working to promote better giving, and chaired the Communications Network, which promotes better use of communications by philanthropy.

Devoted to community leadership at the intersection of business, nonprofits and universities, Grant served on the boards of the Allegheny Conference on Community Development, the Pittsburgh Cultural Trust, the August Wilson African-American Cultural Center and the Pittsburgh Promise, along with Grantmakers of Western Pennsylvania and Riverlife, both of which he chaired. Earlier in his career, which also included a brief stint in advertising, Grant launched a magazine in Washington D.C. on American politics and co-hosted a radio talk show before joining U.S. Senator John Heinz as his press secretary. He is also the author of a novel, “Ring of Years.” Grant and his wife Aradhna, who have four grown children, are delighted to be making their home in Mission Hills and are looking forward to being active members of the San Diego community.

About Melanie Cruz

Melanie B. Cruz is the Associate Vice Chancellor for Health Sciences Advancement (AVC-HSA) at UC San Diego. Melanie serves as a core member of the Advancement Leadership Team and is the Chief Advancement Officer for the tripartite mission of the Health Sciences which includes its research, clinical, and academic areas. She oversees the development of short- and long-term strategies for ongoing fundraising initiatives and recommends appropriate courses of action to increase philanthropic support through targeted and campus-wide efforts. Her leadership responsibilities include transformational gifts, principal gifts, major gifts, prospect pipeline, and development of individual and programmatic strategies. In addition, she is an officer on the UC San Diego Foundation and the Health Sciences Board of Advisors.

Melanie is a proven fundraiser with twenty plus years of experience and a strong track record of success at complex public academic institutions with academic medical centers. She manages a team of more than 50 talented professionals and previously served in the interim role for her current position. During her tenure she has seen to the consistent fundraising trajectory surpassing more than hundreds of millions of dollars annually in philanthropy for health sciences, including a record breaking $350 million year in health sciences.

Melanie previously held roles as Senior Executive Director in Leadership Strategy and Engagement supporting top campus priorities under the direction of the Chancellor as well as being responsible for the physical and biological sciences fundraising at UC San Diego. She was a major gifts officer at The Ohio State University supporting campus and health priorities in regional work and its donor society. She has also worked for the March of Dimes and supported the Chancellor at the University of Kentucky. Melanie has worked tirelessly on four separate billion-dollar fundraising campaigns at all of these academic institutions, including both campaigns at UC San Diego.

A native Californian raised in the farming community east of San Diego and spouse of a UC San Diego trained physician, Melanie holds a bachelors from the University of Kentucky, a masters from The Ohio State University, and doctoral work at the University of Illinois, Urbana Champaign. She is an active volunteer in many nonprofit organizations in the community.

About Pamela Gray Payton

Pamela Gray Payton is vice president, Chief Impact and Partnerships Officer at San Diego Foundation (SDF). Since joining SDF in 2020, Pamela has leaned on her experience as a compassionate leader to guide SDF’s Community Impact team through two consecutive years of record-breaking grantmaking and the innovative implementation of three pillars of the SDF Strategic Plan to advance racial and social justice, foster equity of opportunity and build resilient communities. She plays a critical role as an agent of change in developing cross-sector partnerships and implementing future strategic plans for SDF.

Since joining SDF, Pamela and her team have launched several programs, including the Black Community Investment Fund, the Binational Resilience Initiative, the Healthy Children & Families Initiative, Level Up SD and the San Diego Black Homebuyers Program, which is the first program of its kind in California and has helped 35-plus families to date. Pamela directly manages the SDF Black Community Investment Fund which has funded more than $4 million in grants to support initiatives in education, employment, entrepreneurship and homeownership.

Prior to joining SDF, Pamela served as assistant vice president of Community and Government Affairs at the University of San Diego. During her 20-plus years at USD, she also served as AVP of Public Relations and Communications. She is the co-founder of USD’s Black Student Resource Center and the recipient of several on- and off-campus awards and recognition.

Pamela received her master’s degree from the University of San Diego Knauss School of Business, and her bachelor’s degree from the University of California, San Diego. Active in the community, Pamela serves on the boards of the Monarch School Project and the Community Foundation Opportunity Network. Previously, she served as Board Chair for both RISE San Diego and the Kim Center for Social Balance. She is a proud member of the Epsilon Xi Omega Graduate Chapter of Alpha Kappa Alpha Sorority, Incorporated, and the Southeast Cluster of Rady Children’s Hospital Auxiliary.

In Memory of Simon Silva

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