Wednesday, September 25, 2019, marked the official public opening of the East Bay Community Foundation’s (EBCF) Contra Costa office. Located in Walnut Creek at 2185 N. California Blvd., Suite 220, the foundation celebrated the occasion with a reception attended by foundation fundholders, local government officials, staff, and grantees.
The event kicked off with a walkthrough of the new space and guests were treated South American food catered by Walnut Creek-based restaurant Sabores del Sur. The reception included a short program with inspiring remarks from EBCF Board Member Mark Friedman, Contra Costa County Supervisor John Gioia, as well as Melissa Stafford Jones of the Margaret & Dean Lesher Foundation, and Ali Saidi of the Contra Costa Public Defendant’s Office.
Designed by Fougeron Architecture, the new office space is a reflection of the foundation’s deepening work in the region. Since 2008 EBCF has supported a number of initiatives in the county, including:
- East Contra Costa STRONG Nonprofits– A partnership with the Y&H Soda Foundation, the Thomas J. Long Foundation, the Dean & Margaret Lesher Foundation designed to help strengthen the nonprofit ecosystem and increase their effectiveness in East Contra Costa.
- Stand Together Contra Costa– An initiative with the objective of ensuring that all people in Contra Costa County, regardless of immigration status or ability to pay, are afforded the rights established by the United States Constitution, and are protected from actions or policies that result in disparate, discriminatory, or unlawful treatment.
- Lift Up Contra Costa– Led by economic and labor concise environmentalist and racial justice organizations that have come together as a county-wide civic engagement table. These groups seek to build power in Contra Costa County through a shared vision of equality, and an ethical healthcare system that is shared by organizations across the county.
EBCF’s Contra Costa office is clear nod to the foundation’s trajectory of change, and is vitally important to the continued ability to handle emerging challenges facing Contra Costa.
For more information, or to make philanthropic investments that support residents of Contra Costa County, visit ebcf.org.