The San Diego Women’s Foundation Grants $220,000 To Six Local Nonprofit Environment Groups

City Council of San Diego proclaims June 10th as “San Diego Women’s Foundation Day”

SAN DIEGO – June 10, 2004 – Six San Diego environment nonprofit groups tonight will receive over $220,000 in grants from The San Diego Women’s Foundation, a four-year-old organization of 222 active and committed women philanthropists.

Earlier today, Councilmember Donna Fry presented the Women’s Foundation with a resolution of the City Council of the City of San Diego naming June 10, 2004 as “The San Diego Women’s Foundation Day.” The proclamation “commended all members of the San Diego Women’s Foundation for their continued commitment to improving the quality of life for all San Diegans.”

Julie Dubick, president of The San Diego Women’s Foundation said “We are immeasurably proud to be recognized for our work by the San Diego City Council, including the fact that The Foundation will be making over $220,000 in grants today to local environmental causes to improve the health of San Diego’s land, air and water resources.”

The grant awardees, grant amounts and projects are:

•Aquatic Adventures Science Education Foundation – $54,000 – for the expansion of three programs: $39,000 for the wetland education program for fourth grade students in five underserved schools in the City of San Diego, $10,000 for the annual community-wide educational event and $5,000 for the volunteer membership base of the Friends of the San Diego River Mouth.

•Chula Vista Nature Center / Friends of the Chula Vista Nature Center – $30,000 – for building a signature aquarium, featuring endangered green sea turtles, at the entry of the Nature Center,

•Laguna Mountain Volunteer Association/San Diego Fire Recovery Network –$15,000 – for San Diego Fire Recovery Network’s operating, staffing and material expenses to establish sustained, long-term public information and education programs, and volunteer activities to involve and educate citizens on fire recovery and in protection in San Diego’s natural environment,

•San Elijo Lagoon Conservancy – $30,000 – for its Boardwalk Design and Interpretive Panels Program,

•Tierra Miguel Foundation – $40,000 – for the Environmental Stewardship Program, to expand, design and implement agricultural education programs to improve the environmental health of San Diegans, and;

•The Trust for Public Land – $50,000 – for San Dieguito River Project to support the significant project expenses related to the acquisition of five San Dieguito River Park properties currently under negotiation.

Dubick said, “The grant selection and review process followed by The San Diego Women’s Foundation is rigorous and conforms to the dictates of this year’s grant cycle focus, which is the San Diego County environment. By the end of February 2004, we received 40 grant proposals from throughout the region. A detailed review of each organization determined the degree to which each organization met the criteria of the grant guidelines. Twenty nonprofits chosen for the final round were subjected to team site visits by specially trained Women’s Foundation members. The twenty finalists were narrowed down to a recommended slate of nine. On May 15th, the general membership voted on the final six grant winners. We are proud of the commitment our membership made to ensure our collective funds make a significant difference in our region.”

The new grants will be awarded formally at The San Diego Women’s Foundation “Grants Celebration and Annual Meeting” held at The Neurosciences Institute in La Jolla. At this event, past grant recipients will share grant impact stories with Foundation members and help celebrate the awarding of grants to a new group of community partners.

The San Diego Women’s Foundation (SDWF) was founded in 1999 to increase the participation and leadership of women in philanthropy. A supporting organization of The San Diego Foundation, SDWF boasts 222 active members who have built an endowment fund of $700,000.

At the close of its fourth annual grant cycle, SDWF will have granted a total of over $608,000 into the San Diego community.

For more information on The San Diego Women’s Foundation, please visit www.sdwomensfoundation.org or call 619-235-2300. The San Diego Foundation can be found on www.sdfoundation.org.