November 25, 2024 – San Diego, CA –Rancho Bernardo Community Foundation (RBCF), an affiliate of San Diego Foundation, celebrated 36 years of grantmaking by awarding over $90,000 to 24 nonprofit organizations that help make Rancho Bernardo a great place to live, work and play.
The grants were announced to over 250 attendees at the Annual Thanksgiving Luncheon at the Rancho Bernardo Inn. The nonprofit organizations that receive funding will support a variety of social impact areas, including education, youth development, science and technology, the arts and more.
“We are so very proud and excited to have been supporting our community for 36 years,” shared Debbie Kurth, RBCF Board President. “These 24 nonprofits demonstrate the power to build a more vibrant and civically engaged community with programs that make Rancho Bernardo a great place to live, work and play, as well as inspire community pride, revitalization and increase the quality of life of the broader community.”
RBCF has granted over $1.2 million to the nonprofit community through membership and fundraising programs, such as the Pathway of Pride and the annual Thanksgiving luncheon. Grantmaking is bolstered by an endowment fund that supports the Rancho Bernardo community in perpetuity.
This year’s 2024-25 grantees include:
- Bernardo Heights Middle School Performing Arts Boosters Inc. – Music Library – $2,500 to revitalize music library offerings for BHMS orchestra and band programs.
- Best Buddies in California – School Friendship and Inclusion – $4,000 to build mutually enriching friendships between Rancho Bernardo students with and without intellectual and developmental disabilities.
- Ed Brown Center – Cultural Connections – $3,500 to provide older adults with strong social connections to prevent isolation.
- Friends of the Rancho Bernardo Library – Concert Series – $5,000 to host a series of eight concerts, including piano soloists, trios, jazz artists and larger ensembles.
- Let’s Light the Cross – Sustainability – $2,800 to preserve the integrity, enhance visibility and accessibility with lighting.
- Poway Onstage – Arts in Education Initiative – $5,500 to introduce 4th graders to musical instruments and support for its 35th Season.
- Poway Unified School District – The Kitchen Table Academy – $5,000 to provide a culinary, nutrition, smart farming, and green waste curriculum for students with autism and developmental disabilities.
- Rancho Bernardo High School Foundation – Robotics – $3,000 to support student competitions, travel, materials and machinery.
- Rancho Bernardo High School Friends of the Library – Multifacets of Growth – $4,000 to provide the RBHS Library with the learning tools necessary to enhance the RBHS students’ learning experiences in reading, resources, research, and technological development.
- Rancho Bernardo High School Parent Teacher Student Association – Breaking Down Walls Workshop – $5,000 to provide social-emotional programming for students where they will discuss real-life challenges, such as anxiety, depression, family crisis, loss of a loved one, bullying, etc.
- Rancho Bernardo High School Music Boosters Inc. – $2,500 to support the RBHS Royal Regiment – Mallets for Percussion.
- Rancho Bernardo Historical Society Inc. – Historical Image Preservation – $3,500 to professionally digitize old and fragile images.
- Rancho Bernardo Senior Services – Rancho Bernardo Services – $5,000 to provide free information, volunteers and a variety of services to senior citizens in need.
- Rancho Bernardo Veterans Memorial Association – Patriots Walk Plaque – $4,000 to dedicate Patriots Walk plaques for fallen heroes who were killed in action while serving on active duty in the U.S. Armed Forces since 9/11 and were also graduates of Poway Unified School District high schools.
- Ride Above Disability Therapeutic Riding Center – Rider horse show team – $2,500 to assist the disabled community in achieving their goal outside of horseback riding lessons with horse showing.
- San Diego Harmonics Chorale-Sound Equipment – $2,500 to purchase sound equipment that will help lessen performance costs and allow the group to perform in a variety of local venues that may require special sound design to accommodate the size and acoustics of the venue.
- San Diego Oasis – Bridging the Digital Divide Program – $5,000 to increase older adults’ wellness and quality of life, foster integration of technology and encourage lifelong learning.
- Spirit of the Fourth Inc. – Spirit of the Fourth July 4, 2025, Celebration – $7,700 to contribute to a full day of activities, including a Community Fair in Webb Park, the RB Star competition winners concert and other performances.
- The Continuing Education Center at Rancho Bernardo – History Classes – $2,500 to promote mental health and well-being among the senior citizens by providing intellectual stimulation and learning opportunities for them to socialize in a welcoming and secure environment.
- The Rise Concept – Resources in Support of Empowerment- $3,000 to support a community hub with volunteer resources, professional services, a resale store with affordable shopping and a pathway to self-fulfillment for at-risk youth, survivors of human trafficking and challenged veterans.
- Tremble Clefs – Therapeutic program for people with Parkinson’s – $3,000 to support voice therapy that is both therapeutic and socially supportive.
- Turtleback Education Foundation – Bringing World Music to Students – $3,000 to teach about diversity and share different cultures through musical assemblies that give students the opportunity to interact with performers and hear music from another culture.
- Voices For Children – Court Appointed Special Advocate (CASA) Program – $2,500 to provide advocacy on behalf of two Rancho Bernardo children in foster care and fund the recruitment, training, screening and supervision of new CASAs.
- YMCA of San Diego County – Teens in Motion – $3,000 to support a program for teens and young adults with developmental disabilities at Rancho Bernardo High and provide a safe space to foster friendships, learn life skills and create fun opportunities for our students to thrive and become connected in our community.
RBCF was founded by local leaders as a way for residents to give back to the community and invest in programs that make Rancho Bernardo an even better place to live and work. Through its annual grantmaking, the organization has addressed a wide range of community issues including health and human services; youth development and education; access to the outdoors; arts and culture and more.
To become a member, visit the RBCF website or contact Trudy Armstrong at trudy@sdfoundation.org.
About Rancho Bernardo Community Foundation & the Regional Affiliate Program
The Regional Affiliate Program, including Rancho Bernardo Community Foundation, was established by San Diego Foundation to create a regional network of affiliate foundations by leveraging local leadership, building endowments, increasing impactful philanthropy and promoting civic engagement. Affiliates reside in Carlsbad, Chula Vista, Escondido, Oceanside, Ramona and Rancho Bernardo. The Regional Affiliate program has exceeded 1,000 members, established endowments of more than $5 million overall, and granted more than $6 million in total to nonprofit organizations throughout the region.
About San Diego Foundation
For nearly 50 years, San Diego Foundation has been inspiring enduring philanthropy and enabling community solutions to improve the quality of life in our region. Our strategic priorities include advancing racial and social justice, fostering equity of opportunity, building resilient communities, and delivering world-class philanthropy to realize our vision of just, equitable and resilient communities. Since our founding in 1975, SDF and our donors have granted $1.8 billion to support nonprofit organizations strengthening our community. Join us in commemorating 50 years of impact – and looking toward the next 50. Learn more at SDFoundation.org.
