A majority of the recipients are in East Palo Alto
The Chan Zuckerberg Initiative announced Wednesday the first 41 beneficiaries of its CZI Community Fund who are working to address various community challenges. Of the 41 Bay Area organizations, 35 serve residents of East Palo Alto.
The Chan Zuckerberg Initiative, founded by Dr. Priscilla Chan and Facebook founder Mark Zuckerberg, has awarded dozens of grants through the organization’s CZI Community Fund formed in 2017. Photo courtesy Facebook.
The organization, founded by Facebook CEO Mark Zuckerberg and his wife, Dr. Priscilla Chan, launched its Community Fund in October to support local residents, leaders, and community organizations striving to address crucial challenges in the Bay Area. The organization said the grants ranging between $25,000 and $100,000 will help nonprofits and schools neighboring Facebook’s Menlo Park headquarters.
The fund is intended to respond to community needs identified by local residents and leaders as top priorities, including education, housing, homelessness, immigration, transportation and workforce development.
One of the award recipients, Ravenswood Family Health Center, announced on Facebook that the CZI funding will help improve transportation to its East Palo Alto facility for patients. The center’s mission is to serve the community “by providing culturally sensitive, integrated primary and preventive health care to all, regardless of their ability to pay or immigration status.” They also collaborate with other community organizations to address barriers to health care.
“We love the Bay Area and we want to make it a place where individuals from all backgrounds can thrive,” Chan wrote in a Facebook post. “The grants we are announcing today support 41 Bay Area organizations doing innovative, inspiring work to strengthen their communities, taking on some of the most pressing issues facing residents in Belle Haven, East Palo Alto, North Fair Oaks, and Redwood City.”
Ravenswood Family Health Center and six other CZI award recipients also benefited from the 2017 Palo Alto Weekly Holiday Fund:
- Bayshore Christian Ministries, a nonprofit that provides tutoring services, academic programs, mentorship and part-time work opportunities to East Palo Alto youth.
- Family Connections, a bilingual preschool and parent-education program that operates in Menlo Park, Redwood City and East Palo Alto.
- Foundation for a College Education, a college preparatory program.
- Friends of Palo Alto Junior Museum & Zoo, a group that helps provide free science education classes in East Palo Alto and east Menlo Park, among other endeavors.
- College Track, a program assisting students into post-secondary institutions.
- New Creation Home Ministries, which runs housing and outreach programs for families.
See article on Palo Alto Online website.