Gala has put a spotlight on local South Valley volunteers since 2005

The 2020 Philanthropy Night honorees pose for a group photo.
Photo courtesy Susan Brazelton

By Staff Report

Volunteers serving in 20 nonprofit organizations will be honored at the Morgan Hill Community Foundation’s 16th  annual Philanthropy Night recognition.

This year’s award dinner will be held at the Morgan Hill Community and Cultural Center starting 6 p.m. Nov. 12.  The program will include a video montage showcasing and recognizing the work of various organizations and their honoree volunteers, a review of grant awards to nonprofits supporting the local Morgan Hill area, and acknowledgment of donors and sponsors who enable these local grants.  The program will conclude with an awards ceremony and presentation to each of the 2021 Philanthropist honorees.

In 2005 the Morgan Hill Community Foundation initiated its first event honoring local philanthropists and has held the event each and every year since, including 2020 when successfully conducted over Zoom. Mario Banuelos has been a foundation board member since its inception in 2002 and has been a part of each of the philanthropy events.

“Every year I’m impressed by the level of contributions and impact so many individuals and organizations make to enrich others’ lives in our community,” he said. “It may be cliché, but Philanthropy Night Awards get better every year, and it’s amazing to interact with those who rise to meet local needs.”

The past two years have been especially challenging for nonprofit organizations that have been working to support others in the South Valley community impacted by the COVID-19 global pandemic. In 2020 the foundation developed a disaster relief fund to support these local nonprofit efforts.  Through the generosity of individuals and organizations, donations were received that enabled more than $129,000 to be granted to 14 nonprofits in support of local COVID-19 relief programs.

MHCF also partnered with the YMCA and Morgan Hill Unified School District to fund $34,000 for essential worker childcare, and through partnership with the Downtown Association raised more than $16,000 used to support meals for essential hospital workers from distressed restaurants in our area.  Most recently, MHCF teamed up with the Morgan Hill Chamber of Commerce and Sobrato Philanthropies to fund micro grants for local businesses hard hit by COVID-19.

“This first-ever program has enabled us to help 25 locally owned businesses with small ($1,000 to $3,000) but much appreciated cash supplements for survival basics like rent and payroll,” said MHCF Secretary and Grants Committee Co-Chair Rob Christopher.

Philanthropy Night will include both live presentation and pre-recorded segments to ensure an organized fast-paced program. Focus will be placed on the stories and actions of the honorees who do heartfelt work supporting people in the Morgan Hill area. Jona Denz-Hamilton, 94.5 Bay FM air personality, who will emcee this event for her 15th year.

Board Member and event chairman Steve Cox worked with each organization on the video presentation.

“The videos are so fun to be a part of producing and seeing how much work and fun goes into each and every one,” he said. “I am personally moved by the stories behind each of the honorees and love that the nonprofits have the opportunity to showcase themselves in front of a room of those who support philanthropy.”

Philanthropy Night is a fundraiser for the MHCF with sponsorships and proceeds from ticket sales used to support local nonprofit grants. The foundation maintains an ongoing grants committee which reviews local non-profit requests with a community advisory committee and distributes available funds through grants to local nonprofits. The foundation is also building a long-term grants fund to ensure it can continue to provide support to local nonprofits for years to come.

“Through sponsorships, individual donations, and the work of philanthropists, people in the Morgan Hill area are working to make a difference in our community,” Cox said.

The Philanthropy Night’s main sponsor is Ladera Grill restaurant in downtown Morgan Hill. Other sponsors include Hayes Financial, Silicon Valley Clean Energy, Graniterock, Anaerobe Systems, EAH Housing, Rosy’s at the Beach, Edward Boss Prado Foundation, Neil Berman from ROL&M law firm, The Ford Store Morgan Hill, Jachimowicz Law Firm, Pinnacle Bank, Heritage Bank, Recology, and South Bay Piping Industry.

Event information, including ticket purchase, is available at www.MorganHillCF.org.