Editorial Editorial (January 23, 2004)

Holiday Fund winds up first year

Thanks to the generosity of our readers and the support of four area foundations, the first Voice Holiday Fund drive has raised more than $26,000 for six local nonprofit agencies that serve families and children.

The campaign began in early December and soon after, it received support from the Wakerly, Krause, Hewlett and Packard foundations to provide grants to match every donation, dollar for dollar.

As a result, the $13,231 donated by 70 Voice readers means that $26,462 will be distributed to the following nonprofit agencies:

* The Community Services Agency of Mountain View and Los Altos. The grant will be used to support the Alpha Omega Shelter, which provides short-term housing and case management services to homeless adults. CSA's shelter is a cooperative effort between 17 faith communities in Mountain View and Los Altos.

* The Community Health Awareness Council (CHAC), which serves Mountain View, Los Altos and Los Altos Hills and seven area school districts. The grant will be used for Prevention Plus, a school-based program to protect students from high-risk behaviors, such as drug and alcohol abuse, premature sexual activity and violence.

* Mountain View Rotacare Clinic, for ongoing expenses. Rotacare provides uninsured community residents with medical care and medications and is frequently the last resort for this woefully underserved clientele.

* Society of St. Vincent de Paul of Santa Clara County. A $5,000 grant will provide emergency services to low-income, limited English-speaking day workers in the Mountain View area. The agency helps provide basic living needs and offers a site for workers to meet prospective employers.

* The Support Network for Battered Women. The grant will be used to pay for ongoing expenses. The network runs a safe shelter for women and their children and offers counseling for families facing this problem.

* Community School of Music and Arts. The grant will be used to give students in the Mountain View-Whisman School District the opportunity to participate in hands-on art and music education projects in the classroom. Nearly 40 percent of MV-Whisman students are classified as low income, and 28 percent have limited English proficiency.

The Voice is proud to bring these additional resources to the agencies that help those who need it the most in our community. Articles published throughout December in the Voice explained the operation of each agency, giving readers a close look at the services they provide in the community.

Donations to the Holiday Fund came in all sizes, including $1,000 from the Mountain View firefighters in memory of Doris Condon, a 77-year-old woman who died after confronting robbers in her home. Another large donation, $1,721.75, was received from St. Timothy's Episcopal Church on Grant Road.

Voice Publisher Tom Gibboney expressed gratitude to the community for its strong support of the paper's first Holiday Fund.

"This is the first year of what we hope will become a tradition of giving in the Mountain View community," he said.

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