You are currently browsing the category archive for the ‘Charity’ category.
Enter a caption
Left to right are SILVAR Los Altos/Mountain View District Chair Katherine Frey, President Karen Trolan, President-elect Denise Welsh, De Anza College Development Director Dennis Cima, Dean of the Disability Resource Center & Veterans Programs at Foothill College Teresa Ong, Foothill-De Anza Colleges Foundation Executive Director Tess Chandler, and Silicon Valley REALTORS® Charitable Foundation President Eileen Giorgi. the presentation took place at the December 16 Los Altos/Mountain View District Holiday Breakfast at the Los Altos Golf & Country Club.
The Silicon Valley REALTORS® Charitable Foundation, the charitable arm of the Silicon Valley Association of REALTORS® (SILVAR), has created a scholarship endowment for student veterans at Foothill and De Anza Colleges. “The John Tripp-Silicon Valley REALTORS® Veterans Scholarship Endowment” was formally presented to officials of both colleges last week at the Los Altos Golf and Country Club.
The scholarship endowment was created by the REALTOR® foundation in memory of John Tripp, a longtime REALTOR® who died on December 27, 2015. Tripp was a veteran of the Korean War and served his country with honor and distinction from 1947 to 1956.
A REALTOR® for over 50 years and past president of SILVAR and its charitable foundation, Tripp was instrumental in “REALTORS® Honor Veterans,” the fundraising event held last year to establish a veterans scholarship fund to support eligible U.S. veterans residing in SILVAR’s traditional service area who wish to further their education. The event raised approximately $40,000.
Earlier this year, the foundation presented $10,000 each to Palo Alto University and West Valley College. The remaining funds went to the scholarship endowment to Foothill-De Anza Foundation, an auxiliary organization of the Foothill-De Anza Community Colleges District.
“In all he did, John emphasized education, ethics and the Golden Rule. The opportunity to grow through education was very near and dear to his heart, and with the establishment of this endowment, we honor his contributions to our community and our profession,” said Charitable Foundation president Eileen Giorgi.
“This is a perpetual scholarship that will grow through the years and be here even after we are all gone,” said Tess Chandler, executive director of Foothill-De Anza Foundation. “This endowment will give our student veterans from both colleges needed assistance to reach their academic goals.”
The endowment will pay out a $1,000 award each year – $500 for a student veteran on each campus. The awards can be used for book vouchers student fees and/or other education expenses.
The Silicon Valley REALTORS® Charitable Foundation this week presented West Valley College President Bradley Davis with a check for $10,000 to provide assistance to U.S. veterans through the SILVAR Veterans Scholarship Fund.
The Foundation is the charitable arm of the Silicon Valley Association of REALTORS® (SILVAR), a professional trade organization representing over 4,500 REALTORS® and Affiliate members engaged in the real estate business on the Peninsula and in the South Bay. SILVAR promotes the highest ethical standards of real estate practice, serves as an advocate for homeownership and homeowners, and represents the interests of property owners in Silicon Valley.
The SILVAR Veterans Scholarship Fund is designed to support eligible U.S. veterans residing in SILVAR’s traditional service area who wish to further their education. Funds for the scholarship fund were raised at SILVAR’s 2015 “REALTORS® Honor Veterans” event from donations made by members and friends of SILVAR, including a generous grant from the Pacific Gas & Electric Company.
Silicon Valley Association of REALTORS® President Karen Trolan thanked members for their generosity. She said money veterans receive from the GI Bill is not enough to afford a college education. She noted she was impressed with the help West Valley College extends to veterans.
Silicon Valley REALTORS® Charitable Foundation President Eileen Giorgi also thanked members for their support of last year’s event and their contributions to the Charitable Foundation. “The SILVAR Veterans Scholarship Fund is our way of supporting our veterans, to thank them for their brave and invaluable service to our country, and to help them be successful,” said Giorgi.
Davis expressed his gratitude on behalf of West Valley College. “Thank you from the bottom of my heart. Your donation will help our veterans tremendously,” said David. He said the grant will go a long way to assisting veterans with tuition, books and supplies for their studies.
At the August Palo Alto District tour meeting, the Silicon Valley REALTORS® Charitable Foundation, the charitable arm of the Silicon valley Association of REALTORS® (SILVAR) presented Palo Alto University with a check for $10,000 to provide assistance to U.S. veterans through the SILVAR Veterans Scholarship Fund.
The SILVAR Veterans Scholarship Fund is designed to support eligible U.S. veterans residing in SILVAR’s traditional service area who wish to further their education. Funds for the scholarship fund were raised at SILVAR’s 2015 “REALTORS® Honor Veterans” event from donations made by members and friends of SILVAR, including a generous grant from the Pacific Gas & Electric Company.
Silicon Valley REALTORS® Charitable Foundation President Eileen Giorgi thanked members for their generosity and Palo Alto University for assisting the country’s veterans. “Thank you for your commitment to help our veterans achieve their goals. The SILVAR Veterans Scholarship Fund is our way of supporting our veterans, to thank them for their brave and invaluable service to our country, and to help them be successful,” said Giorgi.
Representing Palo Alto University at the presentation were Dr. Maureen O’Connor, president of Palo Alto University; Elizabeth Shaughnessy, director of Advancement; Derrick Felton, Board of Trustees and counselor, Veteran Affairs; Teresa Lee, executive assistant to the Provost & Director, Military/Veteran Student Services; and Jo Harvey, Advancement associate.
The Los Gatos/Saratoga and Los Altos/Mountain View districts’ pumpkin auctions held last month raised a combined total of $8,925 for charity. Both events drew active and generous participation from members and their companies, who donated an array of beautiful pumpkin displays and fall arrangements, accompanied by big prizes for the winning bidders. Money raised from the Los Gatos/Saratoga District’s pumpkin auction, a total of $4,275, will go to Operation Reindeer, a program REALTORS® and affiliates of the district have supported for more than 20 years. The program distributes gifts, including clothing essentials and food certificates to needy families and seniors in the community during the holiday season.
Members from Los Altos and Mountain View cheered when they raised $4,650 for the Silicon Valley REALTORS® Charitable Foundation at their second annual pumpkin auction. Money raised by the district topped last year’s earnings of $3,525, thanks to the generous participation of members and brokers from both communities. The Silicon Valley REALTORS® Charitable Foundation gives grants to non-profit organizations for needy families, and scholarships to graduating high school seniors in Silicon Valley. The grants and scholarships are made possible through donations from SILVAR members.
SEE PHOTOS AND READ MORE ABOUT THE LOS ALTOS/MOUNTAIN VIEW DISTRICT PUMPKIN AUCTION
SEE PHOTOS AND READ MORE ABOUT THE LOS GATOS/SARATOGA DISTRICT PUMPKIN AUCTION
Event raised over $15,000 for Charity
Team 650, 2013 Day On the Diamond Champions
Over 150 SILVAR members and guests watched Team 650 breeze through the field with hits and runs and ultimately retain their winner’s title at Wednesday’s “Day on the Diamond,” SILVAR’s co-ed REALTOR® softball game.
The winners, REALTORS® from area code 650 – members from the Menlo Park/Atherton, Palo Alto and Los Altos/Mountain View districts, were jubilant. It was a great day for a ball game and everyone – spectators, cheerleaders and players had fun. More important, the event raised over $15,000 for the Silicon Valley REALTORS® Charitable Foundation.
Team 650 and Team 408, SILVAR REALTOR® members from the Cupertino/Sunnyvale and Los Gatos/Saratoga districts, have been engaged in friendly softball competition. Team 408 took the title in 2011 in Portola Valley, and last year Team 650 became the winner at the game held in Los Gatos. This year, REALTORS® from SILVAR’s districts to the north were bent on keeping the title and held regular practices weeks before game day. Their practices paid off. Team 650 led throughout the game, amid cheers from their districts’ affiliates.
There were good moments for Team 408, thanks to the quick reflexes and running by outfielder Marc Gallardo, who caught the ball and struck out a few Team 650 players. But it wasn’t enough. Despite Team 408’s efforts, the 650 members succeeded in keeping their trophy, with a score of 23-2.
Nearly 100 members and guests participated in Monday’s 14th Annual Silicon Valley REALTORS® Charitable Foundation Golf Tournament. The annual charity event held at the Los Altos Golf and Country Club, included the golf tournament, a cocktail reception and awards ceremony. The event is one of two fundraisers this year for the Foundation.
Special guests included California Association of REALTORS® (C.A.R.) President Don Faught and C.A.R. President-elect Kevin Brown, who golfed in the tournament. A highlight of the event was a hole-in-one on Hole #6 by Alain Pinel REALTORS® Vice President and Regional Manager Jeff Barnett.
This year’s golf tournament top winner is Sereno Group’s team, with Justin DeSantis, Ed Graziani, Timothy Proschold, and Chris Ray. The Sereno Group team won first place for the third year in a row.
Suzanne Barnett (left), host of “The Better Part” gets ready to interview RSVP co-founder David Barca and RSVP Chair Eileen Giorgi. Watch the feature on RSVP on cablecast and on the Internet next week.
The program about Silicon Valley REALTORS® helping seniors and the homebound with household tasks will telecast September 1 – 7 throughout Silicon Valley on “The Better Part,” a public access television program produced by seniors from the Cupertino Senior Center. In the show, both Barca and Giorgi are interviewed by host Suzanne Barnett.
Each year during a designated week in May, teams of REALTOR® and affiliate volunteers provide senior citizens who are physically or financially challenged free assistance with household tasks they can no longer perform on their own. Such tasks include replacing light bulbs, changing furnace filters, cleaning windows, flipping mattresses, or installing new smoke detector batteries.
“For homeowners or renters who are advanced in years and are physically and financially challenged, some household tasks can pose a major challenge,” said Barca.
Barca, together with members of SILVAR’s Palo Alto and Menlo Park/Atherton districts, started the program in 2001. RSVP was adopted as an official association community outreach project the following year, with REALTORS® and affiliates helping seniors living in SILVAR’s five districts. RSVP has since spread throughout the Peninsula and South Bay, involving members of SILVAR, the San Mateo County Association of REALTORS®, Santa Clara County Association of REALTORS®, and Santa Cruz County Association of REALTORS®. Since its inception, RSVP has served over 4,000 seniors. This year 447 RSVP volunteers from these associations helped 297 senior households in their communities; 241 volunteers from SILVAR assisted 118 seniors.
“As REALTORS®, we sell the benefits and aspirations of our communities,” said Giorgi. “We are also neighbors and know about local needs. We share the desire for our communities to be great places to live and are committed to give back to those who have built our communities. This program enables us to help seniors and the homebound enjoy their homes in the community for a longer time.”
Producing the show was an eye-opening experience for Diane Sparks, executive producer of “The Better Part.” “When I learned of the program, I thought it was worthwhile to show our communities that REALTORS® don’t just sell houses; they also do a lot of good work for our communities,” said Sparks. “Filming the volunteers helping the seniors and witnessing the appreciation among the seniors, showed me what a difference the program has made in their lives.”
See the schedule for days, times, cities and channels where the REALTOR® Service Volunteer Program will be televised. The program can also be accessed on YouTube under the topic “Cupertino City Productions” or go to REALTOR® Service Volunteer Program.
The Silicon Valley REALTORS® Charitable Foundation donated $29,500 in grants and scholarships this year, as part of the Silicon Valley REALTORS®’ outreach to help the communities where they live and work. The Charitable Foundation is a trust which makes grants available to organizations from donations by members of the Silicon Valley Association of REALTORS®.
Grants are annually presented to different non-profit organizations that help homeless and low-income individuals and families in Silicon Valley. The 2012 grant recipients include Friends of Deer Hollow Farm, Youth Community Services (YCS), Westwind 4-H Handicapped Riding Institute, JustREAD (on campus of Mountain View/Los Altos Union High School District) and East Palo Alto Kids Foundation (EPAK).
As part of its annual scholarship program, the Charitable Foundation likewise presented a $1,000 grant to each of 18 graduating seniors from public high schools in Silicon Valley. The Foundation has been assisting students with the scholarship grants for the past 13 years
In addition to voluntary contributions from members, grants are funded by proceeds from the local trade association’s annual charitable foundation golf tournament and fundraiser and donations from the REALTOR® group’s districts to their local community nonprofit organizations. Donations from the districts included $1,200 for backpacks for needy students through West Valley Community Services and $1,000 to the Cupertino Education Endowment Foundation.
John Tripp, 2012 president of the Silicon Valley REALTORS® Charitable Foundation, said the Charitable Foundation grants support three main causes: families, youth and housing. He thanked members for their contributions and fundraisers this year in support of the foundation.
“We thank our members and friends for being so generous and supporting the foundation in 2012,” said Tripp. “Please support this cause in 2013, as well, so we can continue our commitment to the welfare and prosperity of communities where we live and work.”
The Charitable Foundation trustees meet quarterly to evaluate grant applications. Serving on the 2013 Silicon Valley REALTORS® Charitable Foundation Board of Trustees are Tripp, Lehua Greenman, Jimmy Kang, Carolyn Miller and Susan Sweeley.
Non-profit organizations operating within the areas served by the Silicon Valley Association of REALTORS® are eligible for grant consideration provided they meet certain guidelines. The guidelines include community need for the expenditure and people who will be served; impact on the recipient organization; location of the community served; financial soundness and efficiency of the organization; accuracy and completeness of the application; structure of volunteer organization and level of volunteer support; and appropriate use of the Foundation’s previous grants (if applicable).
The Charitable Foundation trustees meet quarterly (March, June, September, and December) to evaluate applications. Applications must be received by Feb. 15, May 15, Aug. 15, and Nov. 15 in order to be considered at the quarterly meeting. For more information and details about the Charitable Foundation grants and an application form, visit www.silvar.org, or call SILVAR at (408) 200-0100.
SILVAR members took to the golf course on Monday, September 17 for the 13th Annual Silicon Valley REALTORS® Charitable Foundation Golf Tournament. Over 100 members and guests participated in the special event, which was held at the Los Altos Golf & Country Club, and included a round of golf, a no host cocktail reception, awards ceremony and raffle.
Silicon Valley REALTORS® Charitable Foundation President John Tripp thanked everyone for supporting the annual Foundation fundraiser, which is SILVAR’s biggest event of the year. Proceeds from the annual golf tournament will go to the Silicon Valley REALTORS® Charitable Foundation, which makes grants available to numerous beneficiaries, including scholarships, family and youth programs, housing programs and various other community services in the different communities SILVAR serves.
Congratulations to the tournament’s First Place Winners: Chris Trapani, Justin DeSantis, Peter Ye and Timothy Proschold; Second Place Winners: Brian Cano, Paul Van Every, John McCune and Paul Hossack; and Third Place Winners: Dean Hollingsworth, Adam Smith, Kyle Beagle and Brian Griego. Other winners were Kyle Beagle, Longest Drive – Men; Cammie Brodie, Longest Drive – Women; Dean Hollingsworth and Tawd Frensley, Closest to the Pin – Men; Diane Renna, Closest to the Pin – Women. Receiving a special award for the “Most Fun Team” were Barbara Cannon, Bonnie Kehl, Joanne Fraser and Fred Hibbert.
Moise Nahouraii of Referral Realty – Cupertino won the drawing for a deluxe iPad with data plan (a $1,000 total value). Members still have an opportunity to purchase raffle tickets as the drawing of other raffle items, including the grand cash prize of $5,000, will be held at SILVAR’s Economic Seminar and General Membership Meeting on November 1.
SILVAR would like to extend a special thanks to this year’s generous sponsors! Cart Sponsor: Harrell Remodeling, Inc.; Lunch Sponsor: Sereno Group; Awards Ceremony Sponsor: MLSListings Inc.; Beverage Sponsors: Ratecomb, Property I.D. and Citi; Tee & Hole Sponsors: Alain Pinel Realtors-Los Gatos; EverBank; Law Offices of Peter N. Brewer; Moise Nahouraii – Referral Realty Cupertino; Palo Alto Affiliate Bank; Princeton Capital; Property Inspection Service; Rossi, Hamerslough, Reischl & Chuck; FAREPA (Filipino American Real Estate Professional Association); Property Minder; JCP-LGS Disclosures and Heineken®.
The 13th Annual Silicon Valley REALTORS® Charitable Foundation Golf Tournament will be held on Monday, Sept. 17 at the Los Altos Golf & Country Club, 1560 Country Club Drive, Los Altos. Early bird reservations at a price of $225 are now available for SILVAR members until April 15.
Regular cost per person is $275, which includes green fees, golf cart, lunch, and award ceremony reception. Registration starts at 11 a.m., with a Shotgun Start at 12 p.m. (Scramble Format). A no-host cocktail reception will be held at 5 p.m.
The Silicon Valley REALTORS® Charitable Foundation Golf Tournament is a wonderful opportunity for members of the Silicon Valley Association of REALTORS® (SILVAR) to help their communities while enjoying a spectacular day of golf. Proceeds from the annual event go to the Silicon Valley REALTORS® Charitable Foundation, which makes grants available to organizations that help youth, disadvantaged individuals and low-income families and seniors in the communities where SILVAR members live and work. The golf tournament proceeds also fund the Charitable Foundation’s annual Scholarship Program, which awards a $1,000 scholarship grant to each of 18 graduating seniors selected from public high schools in Silicon Valley.
Members may now register online at http://ims.silvar.org/. For sponsorship opportunities or more information, contact SILVAR Development Director Kelly Dadsetan at (408) 200-0117, or email kdadsetan@silvar.org.
Silicon Valley Association of REALTORS® says ... 