2026 Grant RECIPIENTS

Below are the 16 recipients of our 2026 Impetus Grants, listed alphabetically. There are 15 full grant recipients and 1 partial grant recipient. Square Peg Foundation received the greatest amount of member votes after the 15 full grants were awarded. They will receive an unrestricted grant of $4,800. 

We are pleased to announce that Impetus Grant recipient Sonoma Family Meal will also be awarded a $25,000 Encore Grant in early 2027. Total amount of grant funds to be awarded across all recipients is $365,000.

Note: First-time grant recipients are marked with an *.

See a listing of past grant recipients

Cumulative Grant Recipient Spreadsheet from 2025

Cumulative Grant Recipient Spreadsheet from 2009-2024

Boys and Girls Clubs of Sonoma Valley

IMPETUS

$24,000 for: Family Therapy Program

This grant will launch a Family Therapy Program offering three rounds of eight-week sessions annually, serving five families per cycle. Each cycle will address community-identified challenges, including gang violence, immigration-related stress, and family communication. This program will add the final critical component to an already strong mental-health support system.

Type of Support: Programmatic

Focus Area:  Human & Social Services

About the Organization: Boys & Girls Clubs of Sonoma Valley (BGCSV) provides after-school and expanded learning programs for youth ages 5–18, supporting academic success, social-emotional development, and long-term well-being.

Website: bgcsonoma.org

Catholic Charities of Northwest California *

IMPETUS

$25,000 for: Sonoma Home & Safe Village

This grant will fund practical necessities that help Home & Safe Village participants secure employment and transition into permanent housing—including legal identification, birth certificates, credit reports, housing application fees, and transportation. Once housing is secured, funds will provide household basics to help participants set up a functioning home. These targeted resources remove many of the barriers that stand between participants and self-sufficiency.

Type of Support: Programmatic

Focus Area:  Human & Social Services, Health

About the Organization: Catholic Charities of Northwest California creates access to opportunities for self-sufficiency by providing innovative and compassionate services to people of all backgrounds, beliefs, and cultures. Programs are open to everyone and are not religious in nature.

Website: www.ccnwc.org

Friends in Sonoma Helping (FISH)

IMPETUS

$18,200 for: In-Person Client Conference Space with Spanish-Speaking Staff

This grant will fund one year of rent for a shared office space in the Springs, open four days a week, and a part-time Spanish-speaking staff member. The space will give clients a private, accessible place to meet, copy, and submit documents, and pick up checks directly—eliminating mail delays and reducing processing time for rent and utility assistance

Type of Support: Programmatic

Focus Area:  Human & Social Services, Health

About the Organization: FISH provides critical safety net services—including rental and utility assistance—and is a trusted last-resort resource for Sonoma Valley’s most vulnerable residents.

Website: www.fishsonoma.org

Habitat for Humanity of Sonoma County *

IMPETUS

$25,000 for: Aging in Place Program

This grant will fund staff dedicated to serving Sonoma Valley seniors and provide home repairs and accessibility modifications for five local homes. The program addresses the critical health, safety, and functional needs that allow older adults to remain safely and independently in their homes.

Type of Support: Programmatic

Focus Area:  Human & Social Services, Civic Engagement and Benefit

About the Organization: Habitat for Humanity of Sonoma County builds safe, affordable homes for low- to moderate-income households through a sweat-equity model, engaging volunteers, partners, and the community through construction and its ReStore resale store.

Website: www.habitatsoco.org

The HomeMore Project *

IMPETUS

$5,000 for: Backpacks for Homeless Women

This grant will fund 50 weatherproof backpacks—called Makeshift Travelers—distributed to unhoused women in Sonoma Valley through local partner organizations. Each backpack will include a solar-powered phone charger, blanket, rain poncho, sleeping bag, and secure storage for documents and belongings.

Type of Support: Programmatic

Focus Area:  Human & Social Services, Civic Engagement and Benefit

About the Organization: The HomeMore Project strives to uplift the homeless community by providing innovative solutions that improve safety, dignity, and access to essential services.

Website:  www.thehomemoreproject.org

Kids Cooking for Life *

IMPETUS  

$18,000 for: Cooking and Nutrition Education

This grant will fund a year-long cooking and nutrition education program at Sassarini and El Verano Elementary Schools, and expand into the special education program at Sonoma Valley High School. Funding will cover instructor stipends, equipment, and ingredients—ensuring that 90 to 100 students can learn to prepare healthy, affordable meals.

Type of Support: Programmatic

Focus Area: Health, Education

About the Organization: Kids Cooking for Life teaches nutrition and inspires lifelong healthy eating habits through hands-on cooking classes for youth, including those from low-income and special education programs.

Website: www.kidscookingforlife.org

La Luz Center

IMPETUS

$25,000 for: Housing Stabilization for Low-Income Latinos

This grant will fund one-time emergency rental payments paired with individualized case management, targeting families with children ages 0–5. With this funding, La Luz can extend stabilizing services to 30 additional families who would otherwise go without support.

Type of Support: Programmatic

Focus Area:  Human & Social Services, Health

About the Organization: La Luz Center provides culturally responsive support to Latino individuals and families across a wide range of basic needs and essential services.

Website: www.laluzcenter.org

Magnolia Project *

IMPETUS

$20,000 for: Career Exploration at Creekside High School

This grant will fund Magnolia Project’s Career Explorations program for 67 students at Creekside High School for the 2026–2027 school year. Current funding expires this year, and this grant will ensure that the program continues without relying on the school district for support.

Type of Support: Programmatic

Focus Area:  Education

About the Organization: Magnolia Project delivers hands-on, semester-long, career-connected learning experiences fully embedded into the school day for middle and high school students.

Website: www.magnolia-project.org

Make it Home *

IMPETUS

$25,000 for:  Furnishing Households for Transitioning Individuals and Families

This grant will fund the furnishing of 13 households in Sonoma Valley for individuals and families moving from crisis into permanent housing to provide stability and create a sense of home. Working with local agencies to identify clients, Make It Home curates donated furnishings into complete homes—including furniture, bedding, new mattresses, kitchen setups, and cleaning supplies—providing everything a family needs to settle in and thrive.

Type of Support: Programmatic 

Focus Area: Human & Social Services, Ecology, Environment & Animals

About the Organization: Make It Home helps individuals, youth aging out of foster care, and families transitioning out of crisis by recycling and repurposing donated furnishings to create fully equipped homes. All services are free.

Website: www.makeithomebayarea.org

Music in Place *

IMPETUS

$25,000 for: Youth Music Education Program

This grant will sustain and expand Music in Place’s youth music education and performance programs, funding teacher stipends, supplies, cultural event tickets through the Sonoma Valley Mentoring Alliance, and awards for the Youth Battle of the Bands. Programs will be offered through the Boys & Girls Club of Sonoma Valley and the Sonoma Community Center, serving 500+ young people annually.

Type of Support: Programmatic

Focus Area: Education, Arts, Culture & Humanities

About the Organization: Music in Place delivers free and low-cost music education and live music experiences throughout Sonoma Valley, with a focus on young people from families who rely on community-based programs for enrichment and connection.

Website: www.musicinplace.org

North Bay Children's Center

IMPETUS

$25,000 for: Preschool Outdoor Play Area

This grant will fund improvements to the preschool play area at Sassarini Elementary School, where NBCC operates an infant, toddler, and preschool program. Existing sod, dirt, and mulch will be replaced with turf and approved fall-zone materials, and a play structure will be installed to create a safe, developmentally appropriate outdoor space to be maintained year-round by qualified NBCC staff.

Type of Support: Capital Expenditure

Focus Area: Education, Human & Social Services

About the Organization: North Bay Children’s Center (NBCC) provides high-quality early childhood education and care to low-income families in Marin and Sonoma Counties, serving vulnerable children from six weeks old through school age.

Website: www.nbcc.net

Sonoma Family Meal *

IMPETUS/ENCORE   

$25,000 for: Sonoma’s Unity Kitchen: Safeguarding Food Security in Sonoma Valley

The Impetus Grant will fund the salary of a Food Security Program Coordinator to oversee meal distribution and delivery, manage the pantry, and help expand capacity while keeping costs low and quality high. This position will also lay the groundwork for launching workforce development and social enterprise programs that would strengthen the long-term sustainability of the food security program.

In 2027, Encore funding will sustain the Coordinator position into a second year, allowing the operational systems built in year one to fully take hold and enabling SFM to continue growing its reach and impact across the community.

Type of Support: Programmatic

Focus Area: Human & Social Services, Health

Website: www.sonomafamilymeal.org

Sonoma Valley Education Foundation

IMPETUS

$25,000 for: Elevate Math: Powering Student Success in Middle School Math

This grant will expand a proven, research-based algebra-readiness summer program by training four additional middle-school math teachers and providing ongoing support and training throughout the academic year. The program is designed to help students who are behind academically become ready for high-school level math.

Type of Support: Programmatic

Focus Area: Education

About the Organization: Sonoma Valley Education Foundation (SVEF) enriches teaching and advances innovative academic, wellness, and enrichment programs that enable every student to succeed across Sonoma Valley’s seven public schools, grades TK–12.

Website: www.svgreatschools.org

Sonoma Valley Hospital Foundation 

IMPETUS

$25,000 for: Stryker Surgical System Upgrade

This grant will contribute to upgrading the hospital’s legacy surgical system to a next-generation Stryker Operating Room Integration System, providing advanced imaging, visualization, and surgical tools seamlessly integrated into other hospital systems. The upgraded system will improve patient safety, staff efficiency, and care outcomes.

Type of Support: Capital Expenditure

Focus Area: Health, Human & Social Services

About the Organization: Sonoma Valley Hospital Foundation supports the viability of Sonoma Valley Hospital by funding enhancements to medical services, facilities, and programs—including care for patients who cannot afford to pay.

Website: www.svhfoundation.org

Square Peg Foundation

$4,800 for: Scholarships for Adaptive Horsemanship Program

This partial grant is unrestricted, but it must be used for the benefit of Sonoma Valley.

About the Organization: Square Peg Foundation provides inclusive, equine-based programs for neurodiverse children, youth, and young adults, fostering confidence, independence, and a sense of belonging.

Website: www.squarepegfoundation.org

Vintage House

IMPETUS

$25,000 for: Grief Support Initiative

This grant will fund the Sonoma Valley Grief Support Initiative, which will offer six eight-week grief support group cycles per year, led by a licensed therapist from Hanna Center. The program includes community workshops, family follow-up sessions, and volunteer facilitator training to build lasting local capacity for managing grief. Trauma-informed and financially accessible, it will give older adults a supported space to process loss and strengthen emotional well-being.

Type of Support: Programmatic

Focus Area: Health, Human & Social Services

About the Organization: Vintage House is Sonoma Valley’s senior center, providing programs and services that promote wellness, connection, purpose, and independence for older adults.

Website: www.vintagehouse.org