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Grants |
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During 2009, the 1200 Foundation awarded grants to nine worthy non-profit organizations in the East Bay that support the 1200 Foundation’s mission of helping low-income individuals and families achieve economic self-sufficiency:
The Bread Project (http://www.breadproject.org), started in 2000, trains low-income and unemployed persons in commercial baking and food preparation skills. Graduates are fully prepared for entry-level jobs in the food service industry. The staff helps students find and retain jobs, and provides work performance tracking and ongoing support for one year after graduation. Today, there are five classes of 20 adults each year in Berkeley and two additional classes annually in Oakland. Students participate in intensive nine-week training sessions, eight hours a day, five days a week.. C.E.O. Women (http://www.ceowomen.org) is a non-profit organization based in Oakland that is creating economic opportunities for low-income immigrant and refugee women. It empowers them by teaching entrepreneurship, English and communication skills so they can establish successful livelihoods and small businesses. C.E.O. Women has developed a systemic model for bringing immigrants and refugees of diverse backgrounds into the economic mainstream by blending English language training and entrepreneurship development. The organization then enhances their students’ likelihood of success and continued participation by connecting these women through high-touch elements of training, networking, coaching and access to capital. Cypress Mandela Training Center (http://www.cypressmandela.org) provides pre-apprenticeship jobs and life skills training in the construction trades. Cypress Mandela is located in Oakland and has been in operation since 1993. Every year several cohorts go through a rigorous 16-week training process which exposes students to the selection and use of tools, reading blueprints, surveying, computer assisted drawing, and safe construction practices. EARN (http://www.sfearn.org) is a nationally-recognized organization engaging low-wage workers, businesses, policy-makers and other non-profits in its efforts to empower low-wage workers in the Bay Area to escape poverty through asset building products and services. EARN offers money management training, access to financial services, and 401(k)-like matched accounts. It is the nation's second-largest (and the single fastest-growing) provider of Individual Development Accounts (IDAs). EARN breaks the cycle of poverty by matching the savings of low-wage workers and helping them invest in assets that build wealth, creating a cycle of prosperity across generations. Operation Access (http://www.operationaccess.org/) was founded in 1993 by two prominent surgeons to increase access to care and promote medical volunteerism. Its mission is to mobilize a network of medical volunteers, hospitals, and referring community clinics to provide low-income, uninsured people access to donated outpatient surgeries and specialty care that improves their health, ability to work, and quality of life. Patients are typically adults working in the service sector with no health benefits who do not earn enough to pay for their own health insurance and do not qualify for government insurance programs. Operation Access has arranged for around 3,800 surgical and specialty care services, donated at no cost to uninsured patients – saving an estimated $22 million in waived medical fees. Opportunity Junction (www.opportunityjunction.org), based in Antioch, fights poverty by helping low-income adults get the confidence and competence to get good jobs that enable them to support themselves and their families. Through intensive training programs, they build a solid foundation in computer skills, introduce participants to workplace culture, and offer the skills necessary for students to thrive in a competitive business environment. Opportunity Junction offers a three-phased program for its students including training in computer-based business applications, paid internship, and alumni services with 18-months of continued networking support and job-related guidance. The Stride Center (http://www.stridecenter.org/), based in San Pablo, is a nonprofit social venture that is empowering economic self-sufficiency for individuals and communities in the Bay Area. Through its programs, it is harnessing the power of technology to help low income men, women and families. The Stride Center prepares its adult students for professional, well-rounded careers in the information technology field. It also operates its own technology consulting business called ReliaTech. This operation generates jobs and internships for Stride Center graduates and students, provides revenue to sustain its nonprofit mission, and brings affordable, local technology solutions to the community. WAGES (Women’s Action to Gain Economic Security) (http://www.wagescooperatives.org) was founded in 1995 and uses the cooperative business model to help build worker-owned, environmentally friendly housecleaning businesses that create healthy, dignified jobs for low-income women. WAGES which is based in Oakland has helped found and “incubate” four eco-friendly housecleaning cooperatives in the Bay Area, including Natural Home Cleaning in Oakland. WAGES is beginning a new coop in the Concord area. Wardrobe for Opportunity (http://www.wardrobe.org), based in Oakland and Pleasant Hill, is a volunteer-based nonprofit organization that provides professional clothing and career support to low-income jobseekers in the Bay Area. The WFO organization works in partnership with over 70 community agencies, hundreds of clothing donors and 200 active volunteers. In 2006, Wardrobe for Opportunity provided interview attire to over 1,700 low-income jobseekers. Founded in 1995, provides its clients with the tools they need to project the positive image, self-confidence, and self-esteem necessary to find and maintain employment and achieve economic self-sufficiency. |
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