In her retirement years, Delia moved to Spring Lake Village after her husband died and became an integral part of the community even while living there only part time. She regularly visited a good friend from college in Arizona and found the dry weather agreed with her health. Delia purchased a home in the Southwest and split her time between Arizona and California for about 15 years.

“I guess you could say I was not your typical resident, but even though I didn’t live at Spring Lake Village full time, I still felt connected to the community and wanted to support my neighbors and the team members there,” Delia said.

“Especially during the Sonoma fires and the pandemic, it was important to me to give to the Circle of Friends resident assistance fund and the HEART Fund (then known as the Employee Emergency Fund). I knew I was safe and had what I needed, but there were many who struggled.”

In addition to making gifts to the Front Porch Communities Foundation to support her community at Spring Lake Village, Delia also took a strong interest in the programs of the Community Services division of Front Porch, especially the social connection and housing programs. “The more I learned about the work that was being done through these programs, I felt proud of being a part of this organization and cared about the people who needed that support,” Delia said. “Giving to causes you care about is just the right thing to do.

This story was originally shared in the Spring 2023 edition of Community Matters.

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“Casa is our home and we want to help the community, staff and residents in as many ways possible,” Judy said. “The more we learned about the work of the Foundation, the more we wanted to support both employees and residents.”

Larry and Judy, both retired educators, hold a special place in their hearts for those employees and employees’ family members who want to continue their education with the help of a philanthropic scholarship. Casa de Mañana residents last year awarded 17 employee scholarships and, through the separate “Casa de Futuro” scholarship fund, provided awards to five children of Casa de Mañana staff members, many of whom are the first in their family to attend college.

The Casa de Mañana Philanthropy Committee this year is also working with the Foundation team to provide school supplies for staff members’ elementary school-age children.

Each summer, the Sowders look forward to “Philanthropy Week” at Casa, a week of activities and events programmed by the community’s Philanthropy Committee and Foundation staff to educate residents and raise charitable gifts to support the funds they care about. “It’s not only a fun time but a time when residents can really get an education on why the Foundation’s work is so important and how they can get involved,” Judy said.

*This story was originally shared in the Community Matters newsletter

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Carving her path to aging and wellness, Joanne also demonstrates leadership in her giving plans. She uses a Donor Advised Fund (DAF), which allows her to make generous, tax smart gifts throughout the year. While she often makes gifts to the Foundation for her community’s Staff Scholarship Fund and the Fitness and Aquatic Center, she recently made a major gift to support the Vista del Monte memory care program, Summer House.

“When I was a child, my family had a practice of giving back to others. I’ve kept this practice throughout my adult life and love giving to programs that serve people in my local community. Summer House serves residents at VDM who have various stages of dementia and Alzheimer’s.”

*This story was originally shared in the Community Matters newsletter

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“As we move through this new year of hope and into 2022, I am delighted at the opportunity the new Front Porch Communities Foundation has to do good work,” said John Woodward, CEO of Front Porch Communities and Services. “The generosity of our donors’ giving — and their commitment to engagement — exemplify the values each of our communities live every day.”

All past gifts made under the previous foundations will be honored and used for the community and purpose that donors designated. Donors will continue to be able to direct their gifts through FPCF to the community or program they wish to support.

Caring and generosity have historically been strong values of the nonprofits that over the years have come together in the Front Porch system.

Front Porch itself was initially formed by four separate nonprofit retirement community organizations, each connected to a charitable foundation. Three of those foundations — Pacific Homes Foundation, FACT Foundation, and Sunny View Foundation — merged in April to create the new Front Porch Communities Foundation to support and serve all the original Front Porch retirement communities.

The Covia Foundation has served the six Covia communities and widespread community services programs since 2002 and became a partner to Bethany Center Foundation when the Bethany Center community joined Covia. When Friends House joined Covia in 2021, the Covia Foundation assumed administration of the Friends House charitable funds.

The joining together of all the foundations and charitable funds in the new Front Porch Communities Foundation provides an opportunity to extend the culture of philanthropy and help supporters achieve greater impact with their charitable gifts.

Katharine Miller, who has served for many years as executive director of the Covia Foundation, is the executive director of the new Front Porch Communities Foundation. She and the Covia Foundation team will work closely with the Front Porch Foundation team to serve supporters and continue to build on the culture of generosity and caring that is an integral part of our communities and programs.

“Those who care about others are at the heart of each of our community’s strong spirit of giving,” said Katharine. “It’s an honor to be working with people who are striving to achieve greater good for those they care about.”

The Front Porch Communities Foundation will be guided by the FPCF Board of Directors, drawn from supporters and board members from across the Front Porch and Covia systems. The work of the Board and the Foundation will be supported by local community philanthropic committees, executive directors at the community level, and residents, friends and staff members who bring to life the Front Porch values.

*This story was originally shared in the Community Matters newsletter

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“Things happen — and we may have greater needs than any of us anticipated,” said Hilda Pressman, a Circle of Friends committee member. “It’s a great comfort to know the Circle of Friends is there.”

The resident assistance funds provided through the Front Porch Communities Foundation provide peace of mind to neighbors and friends in need. As one resident said, “Any of us could outlive our resources, so I want to be a part of being there for one another.” In Northern California, the assistance program for life plan residents is called the Circle of Friends fund and the average age of recipients is 92, with many living at a higher level of care.

“Throughout our communities, the spirit of caring for one another is apparent in the many gifts we receive for the assistance funds,” said Foundation Executive Director Katharine Miller. “It is a reflection of the close friendships people form in our communities and the care that residents have for one another.”

*This story was originally shared in the Community Matters newsletter

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