Quarterly Letter from OCF Board Chair Beverly Holtz

Greetings everyone,

I hope you had a wonderful holiday season with your friends and family and the new year has been treating you well.

Special thanks to Colleen O’Harra for opening her home for our Holiday Mixer last month. We thank all those who attended and welcome our new members!

Our funding in 2023 will focus on programs that identify and address the behavioral health needs of Oceanside adults 50 years and older such as: safety, mobility, socialization, food insecurity, and mental and physical health.

Our grants committee recently reviewed proposals from dedicated organizations serving this population. With many deserving applicants, we are reminded that the strength of the collective is vital to sustaining our impact in Oceanside. We look forward to connecting with the finalists and supporting their causes; all made possible by the membership of our outstanding foundation.

Let’s continue to share our mission, connect with passion, and grow our impact – together.

Beverly Holtz
Chair, Oceanside Community Foundation

Grantee Spotlight: North County Lifeline

After coping with the trials and tribulations of pandemic shutdowns, Lifeline’s Club Crown Heights afterschool program wanted to create something that would bring joy to the dozens of neighborhood kids who participate in the program every school day.

With generous grant funding from Oceanside Community Foundation (OCF), the OpenHeART (Art Reflecting Togetherness) project achieved that objective and more. This exciting mural project promoted OCF’s theme of diversity and inclusion, provided a leadership opportunity for Crown Heights youth, supported local artists, and delivered a remarkable beautification project that benefits the whole community.

The Lifeline team worked with support from the City of Oceanside and collaborated with the Hill Street Country Club, who connected us to three incredibly talented local artists. The artists worked side-by side with Club Crown Heights youth to help them finalize their mural mock-ups and guided them through the process of turning their ideas into beautiful murals.

Along the way, the team learned about the challenges of coordinating a major project, including the steps needed to protect outdoor artwork from damage. In December 2021 the project was carried out, transforming ordinary walls into works of art that reflect the passion, culture, beauty, and unity of the people who call Oceanside home.

According to Don Stump, Lifeline CEO, “We simply could not have attempted this wonderful neighborhood beautification project without support from the Oceanside Community Foundation. They continue to be a highly valued partner for Lifeline and a source of meaningful support for Oceanside’s Crown Heights community. We are truly grateful!”

Member Spotlight: Mark Wall

Mark Wall is one of the newest members of OCF.

He is a farmer in Oceanside (since 1986) and a farmers market coordinator. Conferences, meetings, dinners, and various sorts of events are in his organizing past — many around food and farming.

He believes that we need to utilize every mind and every tool available to make the world more fair, more humane, and more fun.

Service and advocacy are important to Mark, and he’s excited to be working within this group.