I have been working with VCCF for 27 years supporting the TEACh foundation. VCCF represents the smiles I see on the faces of hundreds of Ventura County foster youth throughout this time. I have never had to worry about the security of our funds or struggle with the financial compliances associated with running a scholarship program - VCCF does that for us.
While I’ve always hoped our funds could be more, donors have stepped forward through these times and I should mention that the major donors have been associated with VCCF. Vanessa is the first community leader who has ever asked me “What would be your dream for financial needs for the foster youth?” in 27 years. That speaks to SUPPORT and VISION.
I will say that my favorite memory will always be last year for the Scholars Night Event. The Ventura County Library Foundation came through with a $3,000 contribution for the event that had to be given in gift cards. Our Scholars Night Fund requires VCCF to purchase and pay for the needs from the fund. Mike Silacci, Bonnie Gilles and I’m sure several others ran around to Target, grocery stores, etc. to get the needed gift cards because you can only buy certain amounts at the stores. They could have said they could not make that happen with their busy schedules, but they all came together to make it happen for the foster youth. It’s the people and values of VCCF.