Did you hear that? Somewhere close, someone just exhaled.
A mother laid her head on her pillow, knowing her baby’s care was secure. A student walked into his college class, focused solely on what he would learn today. A family opened the door to their home, knowing they wouldn’t have to leave it.
Exhales mean a lot to us.
They are often the result of people who care, people who show up when neighbors need them.
At San Diego Foundation (SDF), we have 50+ years’ worth of stories of neighbors helping neighbors. Here are a few that stand out from this year.
The Student Who Found a Community Ready to Help
This summer at SDF’s Scholarship Celebration, Obidullah Mahmoodi took the microphone. Four years ago, he arrived in San Diego from Afghanistan as a refugee, navigating a new language, a new school system and the work of building an entire life from scratch.
This fall, he started classes at the University of California, Irvine, where he is studying computer science. He is one of 1,057 students who received a Community Scholarship Program award this year.
At the celebration, Obidullah talked about gratitude and what it means when a community believes in you.
“Never let your passion be let down because you cannot pay [for] it. There will be all these people who will support you. You just have to look for them,” Obidullah said.
The Mother Who Kept Dreaming
I recently watched a video of a mom named Rebecca, sitting with her baby daughter, Adaeze, describing the small moments that make up a day—a laugh, a smile, the things that keep a new parent going.
“I didn’t know how powerful it could be,” Rebecca said.
Born during the Liberian Civil War, she remembers dreaming about what her life could become, telling herself, “One day I’m going to get there. One day I’m going to have it.”
Today, she is raising Adaeze and is one of 25 mothers in the Guaranteed Income Program of Born Well, an SDF initiative working to give mothers and babies in our region a healthy start. Born Well has supported more than 880 mothers since launching last year.
“Now they don’t have to choose between paying for their housing or paying for their medical bills,” said program director Khea Pollard.
The Family That Kept Its Home
When a family can’t make rent, the challenge rarely stops at housing. It can mean choosing between rent, groceries, medical bills and other basic needs. When a serious illness kept Tarlease, a single mom of two, from work this spring, she fell behind on rent.
“I did not want to return back to [homelessness],” she said.
That’s when she found Urban League of San Diego County, which launched the program with support from SDF to help families stay housed. The program provides up to $10,000 in direct payments to landlords to help prevent homelessness.
“It restores the resilience to keep going,” Tarlease said.
Connected Challenges, Connected Solutions
San Diego is the home we all share. When neighbors like Obidullah, Rebecca and Tarlease need us, we show up—together.
SDF’s new strategic plan focuses our work across four interconnected priorities: Family Well-Being, Education, Environment and Housing.
These challenges are connected, and so are the solutions.
When we give together, we do what no single gift could do. We say to our neighbors: San Diego sees you, and San Diego is behind you.
This Giving Season, California Bank & Trust is matching up to $25,000 in donations to the San Diego Foundation Close to Home Fund, doubling the impact of your gift—no matter the size—through December 31.
Help us get closer to that next exhale this holiday season.
