Introduction
Where would we be without each other? TTCF sits at the confluence of community need and community generosity. We are proud to serve as the vehicle in which these two elements of our community can come together in a productive and helping way. As the year came to a close, TTCF facilitated nearly $2 million in grants!
Our community grantmaking was in full swing with our open-competitive, Queen of Hearts, and Forest Futures cycles. Our Give Back Tahoe Giving Season celebrated 10 years with another record breaking year of giving at just over $600,000 The newly created Juniper Awards, established in memory of beloved community member Jeff Hamilton, honored its inaugural recipients.
Meanwhile our Board and staff were focused on an update to our Strategic Plan which was adopted in January. In preparation of our strategic planning, we took the time to recap the last 5 years and the strategic plan that guided our work and celebrated TCF’s 25 year anniversary! All this hard work is celebrated in our recently published Impact Agenda. We hope you can carve out a peaceful moment to sit down with the Impact Agenda and relish all that we have accomplished together.
In gratitude, and ever forward,
Stacy Caldwell, CFRE
Chief Executive Officer
Philanthropy
25
Years of Service
36.1m
in Total Grants & Scholarships Awarded Since Inception
$5.3M
in Impact Investments
Hot off the Press: TTCF’s Next Impact Agenda
We are thrilled to share the newest iteration of our Impact Agenda. In 2017, TTCF published our Impact Agenda as a new paradigm– one that focuses on readiness by anticipating community issues and reshaping the systems that perpetuate them. This ambitious plan transcends any single organization or sector, and calls upon us all to work together. Published in December 2023, our new Impact Agenda delves into the work we’ve done in three core initiatives you are undoubtedly familiar with: Family Strengthening, Housing Solutions, and Forest Futures. Join us as we celebrate our collective impact over the last five and twenty-five years, and cast our eyes forward to the work we endeavor to do together. Read it here.
Jeff Hamilton’s Legacy: Honoring Commitment, Imagination, and Fearlessness
The Jeff Hamilton Legacy Fund awarded its inaugural Juniper Awards in December. Nine recipients were honored across the icategories of Art, Music, Community Impact, Trades, Medical Care, and Winter Olympics. Awardees were selected for demonstrating commitment, imagination, and fearlessness. The community nominated 131 individuals of all ages for these qualities.
In the last months of his life, Jeff Hamilton worked with his family and TTCF to create a philanthropic fund at the foundation. His intent was “to do significant good” after he was gone. Jeff understood that asking folks to notice who among us was inspiring, contributing, and modeling these qualities would have an impact beyond nine people being recognized. It would turn this annual process into a community wide endeavor to both honor individuals and strengthen community.
Looking across the room, I saw donors, members of the selection committee and TTCF, my own brave daughters, and the recipients themselves alongside proud parents, or spouses, or partners. I saw all these relative strangers hugging, listening to each other’s stories, smiling, laughing, and even crying. There was so much intimacy and warmth in that first of many generations of a family that started with Jeff and his desire to do significant good after he was gone.
Carolyn Hamilton
Jeff’s Wife and Chair of the Jeff Hamilton Legacy Fund
Inspired to leave your own legacy? We would love to help you shape how that looks.
Community Impact
$431,900
Awarded in the 2023 Grant Cycle
48
Grants
55%
Unrestricted Funding
TTCF uses its annual Community Grant Cycle as an opportunity to check in with our local nonprofits, to hear honest and in depth information about the challenges they are facing, which in turn informs the initiative work that TTCF prioritizes. Our Trust-Based Philanthropy honors the long standing relationships we’ve fostered with our nonprofit partners and allows us to award unrestricted funding whenever possible, acknowledging these organizations know best how to use the grant funds in furtherance of their missions.
Funding for “Fostering Forests” will allow us to empower students to take action over the frightening subject of forest fires. I believe that action projects can promote hope over very scary climate related topics, and we all need hope around the topic of forest fires. Furthermore, I wanted to give the students an aspect of service and compassion to this project, where they could learn about the value of defensible space and how it can keep us safer, while directly helping a neighbor in need.
Melissa ‘Missy’ Mohler
Executive Director, Sierra Watershed Education Partnerships (SWEP). SWEP & Truckee Fire District received a grant for a collaborative project.
collective Giving
$627,206
Raised through Give Back Tahoe
70+
Participating Give Back Tahoe Nonprofits
215
Seniors Gifted through Senior Gift Program
Give Back Tahoe: A Collective Success
Celebrating its ten year anniversary, the Give Back Tahoe Giving Season uplifted the missions and work of 70+ local nonprofits. Hundreds of residents, visitors, and friends donated to the causes that make this region so incredible. Between November 28 and December 31, you and your neighbors raised $627,206!
Local nonprofits post volunteer opportunities all year long. Visit www.givebacktahoe.org to continue contributing!
Queen of Hearts Impact
TTCF’s Queen of Hearts Women’s Fund is made up of women who have donated $1,000 to the Queen of Heart’s endowment. At the end of every year, they contribute to our local community through two campaigns. The first is an annual gift drive for local older adults in partnership with Sierra Senior Services and other community members. Holiday cheer arrived for 215 of our most vulnerable neighbors, homebound Meals on Wheels recipients, and senior apartment residents. Seniors received gift cards to buy themselves a gift either in-person or from the comfort of their homes.
In December, donors voted from around the world to award grants to eight local nonprofits. The recipients of $10,000 grants were Truckee Roundhouse, Gateway Mountain Center, Sierra Watershed Education Partnerships (SWEP), and Tahoe Ability Program. The recipients of the $5,000 grant were Fox Cultural Hall (formerly Arts for the Schools), Positively Rolling, Tahoe Cross Country Ski Education Association, and Elevation Truckee. This grant cycle is an opportunity for donors to learn about the missions and goals of local nonprofits, and to discover new ways to give back.
Buoyed by the generous support of the Queen of Hearts Women’s Fund, young people, entrepreneurs, retired persons, and hobbyists have access to state-of-the-art tools and training to explore their inventive or artistic side, sometimes for the very first time. It is an honor to partner with the Queen of Hearts to serve as a catalyst for a more connected, inspired, and creative world.
Karyn Stanley
Executive Director, Truckee Roundhouse and Queen of Hearts Grantee
Families
3
Local Leaders Honored by their Partners
79
Nights of Extreme Weather in 2022/2023
640
Overnight Stays in the Emergency Warming Center
Sheltering the Unhoused
On November 1, our region’s only emergency shelter was forced to close due to staffing shortages, reflecting how integrated the issues of workforce, housing, and families are in our region. Our community worked together to respond as swiftly as possible by opening a new location at Truckee’s Joseph Center by the end of December. Safeguarding the well-being of our neighbors during harsh winter weather and life-threatening situations is vital to who we are as a community. Learn more details about the center.
Honoring Local Partners
The Community Collaborative of Tahoe Truckee (CCTT), announced the recipients of its annual partner awards. CCTT partners nominated individuals who they believed go above and beyond for our community. A committee assisted in selecting winners in three categories. Read more. We are pleased to recognize:
- The Public Service Award of Excellence awarded to Maddie Leh, Program Coordinator at Adventure Risk Challenge (ARC);;
- The Chris Ballin Award awarded to Erica Mertens, Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion Program Manager for the Town of Truckee; and
- CCTT Partner of the Year awarded to Anne Rarick, Manager of Tahoe Truckee COAD (Community Organizations Active in Disaster).
The caliber of nominations we received this year is a testament to the depth of our collaboration. Those chosen for awards are truly the trailblazing stars among us, sparking a profound sense of admiration and inspiration within our community
Kristina Kind
CCTT Program Director
Participate in the 2024 Community Engagement & Behavioral Health Survey! This data helps our region ensure that every resident receives the mental health support they need.
Forests
$694,753
Awarded
11
Projects Awarded
$3M
Awarded through Forest Futures since 2021
Nearly $700,000 Awarded to Local Forest Health Projects
Forest Futures awarded its third phase of grants for wildfire resilience and forest health projects. Eleven projects received nearly $700,000. Grants awarded are aligned with the Forest Futures Impact Strategy, and fall into the target areas of Protecting our Communities and Re-Building Forest Infrastructure. Projects include efforts to build forestry career pathways, financial support for homeowners to create defensible space, large scale fuel reduction projects, and a local wood energy facility.
Lessons in Fire Recovery
In December, TTCF staff members visited two grantees who received the first round of Forest Futures funding. During the Dixie Fires and Beckwourth Complex fires, TTCF responded quickly to provide our neighbors with support. Two grantees, the Feather River Land Trust and Sierra Institute received funding for fire recovery efforts that can serve as a learning model for our region. The Feather River Land Trust brought together multi-disciplinary experts including biologists, ecologists, and Maidu families who have long lived in the valley. Together, they are exploring and comparing different forest recovery methods. This experimental and iterative approach is something that has been at the center of TTCF’s forest work from day one. We are excited to support the regeneration of the land, creatures, and people who call the Feather River watershed home, and to learn from their work.
Attention Property Owners: Forest Funding Available to You
Are you a property owner of 3 – 5,000 acres of private, non-industrial forestland? Do you need to do forest maintenance work? The Truckee North Tahoe Forest Management Program provides financial support for technical assistance and project implementation of forest management on private property. This support is for various types of work including developing a Forest Management Plan, CEQA environmental compliance preparation, pruning, removing dead trees, etc. The application is open January 9 -February 18, 2024.
Accelerating forest resilience requires innovative, collaborative solutions. A great example comes from the Truckee North Tahoe Forest Management Program’s first round of grantees. The Olympic Valley Public Services District is coordinating the planning and CEQA process on behalf of 20 private landowners whose properties are adjacent to a large fuel reduction project led by Tahoe National Forest. Collaborating and prioritizing projects adjacent to one another is crucial to increase our community’s safety to wildfire.
Housing
83.1%
of local housing units are single-family homes
30.1%
of homeowners interested in building an ADU
16.1%
of homeowners interested in learning more
A Promising Housing Solution Exists in Our Backyard
Recently, we partnered with the Sierra Sun to poll community members’ appetite around building Accessory Dwelling Units (ADUs) or “granny flats” on their properties, and to write an article highlighting this solution. According to the Mountain Housing Council’s 2023 Regional Housing Needs Assessment, ADUs have been identified as a cost-effective and feasible housing solution for our workforce needs. Nearly 50% of homeowners expressed definite or potential interest in constructing an ADU on their property with their primary motivation being potential rental income. The biggest factor that could hold them back is the cost of construction. To make it easier for homeowners to build an ADU, there are four key programs that are currently being offered in the region. This includes the recently launched Tahoe Housing Hub & Accelerator Pilot Program, a social enterprise supported by TTCF, Martis Fund, and the North Tahoe Community Alliance, aiming to increase ADU development.
The ADU Accelerator Program is strategically designed to make ADU development more accessible and efficient for homeowners by offering comprehensive support that includes expert advice, financial planning assistance, and clear guidance through the regulatory landscape. This approach not only addresses the barriers head-on but also leverages expertise within land use agencies, ensuring a collaborative effort towards expanding affordable housing options in the North Lake Tahoe-Truckee region.
Erin Casey
President/CEO Tahoe Housing Hub
Our Team
Our Investment Committee Expands
We are pleased to announce the addition of three new investment committee members.
Marie Young
CFA, Chief Investment Officer for a Private Family Office
Marie Young is the Chief Investment Officer at a private family office, where she leads investment strategy and portfolio construction in addition to contributing to the overall leadership of the firm. Marie started her career at Goldman Sachs.
She attended Northwestern University on a full athletic scholarship, earning her degree in Economics and competing as a distance runner in the Big Ten conference. Since first getting introduced to Lake Tahoe by her husband, a Reno native, nearly 20 years ago, Marie and her family have developed deep ties to the region. She is excited at the opportunity to give back to a place that she loves.
Andrew Jensen
Chartered Financial Analyst, Software Engineer
Based in Truckee, Andrew is a software engineer at Beyond 12, a nonprofit organization dedicated to helping students from under-resourced communities succeed in higher education and beyond. Before joining Beyond 12, he taught high school math for seven years at the Ruth Asawa San Francisco School of the Arts and at Sugar Bowl Academy. Prior to becoming a teacher, Andrew was a portfolio manager at BlackRock, where he managed asset allocation and rebalancing strategies, multi-strategy hedge fund cash implementation, index equity portfolios, and currency hedges. Experience in his previous roles includes consultant relations, RFP production, and fund accounting.
Andrew is a lover of the outdoors and is happiest when sitting beside a cool, blue alpine lake. He enjoys hiking, backpacking, and skiing, and has ridden his bike from San Francisco to Southern California multiple times.
RoB Leupold
CEO at Acacia Capital Corporation
Rob Leupold lives in the San Francisco Bay Area and is the CEO and a principal owner of Acacia Capital, a real estate private equity firm that manages a series of funds that own and operate a portfolio of apartment properties throughout the western US. Acacia’s investor base includes university endowments, private foundations, pension plans and high net worth family offices. Rob earned a BA in economics from UCSD.
Rob is the proud dad of 3 grown children. Together with his wife, Alison, Rob is passionate about supporting first generation college students on the Peninsula through scholarships and mentorship. As someone who has loved hiking, backpacking and boating around Lake Tahoe for nearly 40 years, he is very excited about the opportunity to serve as a member of the TTCF Investment Committee and support the community benefit that the foundation provides to the entire Tahoe region.
Funding Opportunities
Forest Futures
Our Forest Futures campaign ensures healthy forests today, tomorrow, and forever— to unlock the innovation and resources that hold the potential to solve our communities’ underlying forest restoration and management issues. Since its inception, we have leverages more than $12 Million in funding for local forests.
TTCF’S GENERAL OPERATING FUNDS
TTCF is grateful to do the work we do every day. If you’re inspired by our portfolio of work and the stories you’ve read today, please consider contributing to our general operating funds. These dollars are imperative to helping us power our operations and team.
To learn more about our community impact and how you can partner with us to make a difference, contact Stacy Caldwell at stacy@ttcf.net.