June 2020 

We are in an extraordinarily difficult moment. The public murder of George Floyd has catalyzed advocates whose protests and direct actions have brought the world’s rapt attention to issues of police violence, disinvestment and policy injustice in Black communities. The recent deaths of Ahmaud Arbery, Breonna Taylor and Tony McDade weigh heavily on our hearts and remind us of all whom we have lost, including Stephon Clark, over the decades. We have seen more devastated families and communities than we can count. We are called to reaffirm unequivocally that Black Lives Matter.

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Thank you to our partners and community members who have donated to our three regional response funds. Together, you have pledged $6,410,220! Distributions to 105 nonprofit partners total $5,168,419 to benefit our vulnerable neighbors, small businesses, low-wage workers and others who are impacted by the pandemic. We are disbursing additional grants to community partners as we receive pledged funds.

We continue to accept donations and pledges for ongoing and long-term support. Learn more and make donations on the three response fund web pages:

Donate4Sacramento COVID-19 Regional Response Fund
Northern California COVID-19 Response Fund
San Joaquin Valley Health Fund COVID-19 Response Cluster

“This grant had many significant impacts. It helped provide nutritious food, including fresh fruits, vegetables, rice, beans, cooking oil and canned foods to our vulnerable population, who, ironically, are the ones who toil in the hot sun to put food on our tables.”

— Raul Z. Moreno, CEO
Education & Leadership Foundation, Fresno

More than 29,000 vulnerable individuals in Sacramento received food between March 20 and June 2 through the Black Child Legacy Campaign’s COVID-19 response efforts. Community Incubator Lead organizations in the campaign’s seven neighborhoods of focus served families through drive-by food pick-ups and drop-and-go deliveries. Partners included the Sacramento Food Bank, the City of Sacramento, Sacramento County, Sierra Health Foundation, The Center at Sierra Health Foundation, Donate4Sacramento, the Board of State and Community Corrections, and Sacramento Kings player Harrison Barnes and his wife Brittany. Learn more from the COVID-19 Response infographic and highlight video.

The California Department of Health Care Services is utilizing federal grant funding to support organizations to develop, enhance and/or expand their facility’s telehealth infrastructure to address the needs of individuals with substance use disorder and/or mental health disorders. The Center at Sierra Health Foundation will assist with the administration of the funds.

There are two individual funding opportunities: 1. Substance Use Disorder Telehealth Activities and 2. Mental Health Telehealth Activities.

Application Materials:
Behavioral Health Telehealth Funding and Application Overview with link to apply
Budget Template

Applications are due by August 3 at 1 p.m. Please e-mail us any questions.

Eleven nonprofit organizations in Los Angeles County and two in Santa Clara County will receive a total of more than $2 million in funding to support telehealth service delivery for individuals with substance use disorders and/or mental health disorders who are impacted by COVID-19.

The California Department of Health Care Services applied for a Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration (SAMHSA) grant specifically for organizations in Los Angeles County and Santa Clara County, which have been greatly impacted by the COVID-19 crisis. The Department of Health Care Services is partnering with The Center at Sierra Health Foundation, which will administer the funds.

See the funding awards list.

The San Joaquin Valley Health Fund convened its Policy Committee on June 17 to discuss how the fund and its partners can support the Black Lives Matter movement, engage in anti-racism learning and practices, and advocate for policies that fully invest in Black communities in the San Joaquin Valley and across California. The conversation was led by community partners Pastor Trena Turner from Faith in the Valley, Bobby Bivens from NAACP Stockton, Pablo Rodriguez from Communities for a New California Education Fund and Deep Singh from the Jakara Movement, and included a group discussion.

The Black Child Legacy Campaign and the Build.Black. Coalition joined community partners for a week of organized civic actions, culminating in neighborhood marches and a celebratory Juneteenth rally on June 19. Young people, advocates and community members joined Sacramento Area Youth Speaks spoken word artists and speakers to acknowledge the importance and history of Juneteenth and to call for reallocating police funding to invest in community.

The U.S. Census Bureau announced on June 24 that it will send an additional reminder postcard to households that have not yet responded to the 2020 Census. The postcard is scheduled to arrive between July 22 and July 28, a few weeks before census takers are set to begin visiting most households that have not responded.

The California Complete Count – Census 2020 Office is providing COVID-19 updates. Topics include Overall Guidance, U.S. Census Bureau Operational Adjustments Due to COVID-19, Resources and What can you do now?

If we want to address the racial injustice of the system and support all of California’s young people to succeed, we must think and act differently. Chet P. Hewitt, president and CEO of The Center at Sierra Health Foundation, and Shane Murphy Goldsmith, president and CEO of Liberty Hill Foundation, wrote this commentary for CalMatters.

The Build.Black. Coalition is calling for the immediate return of $45.7 million of the City of Sacramento’s Measure U tax proceeds that have been allocated to the police and other city services back to the Measure U Community Advisory Committee for distribution to support an inclusive economic and youth-centered agenda.

Coalition members met with Measure U Community Advisory Committee member leadership to review data and discuss shared priorities. Following this conversation, members placed their full support behind the Committee’s demand to the city to return the tax proceeds to the Committee to fund its recommendations for direct investment in Sacramento’s most under-resourced communities.

Read Sacramento city leaders, listen and pay up: That police money is owed to those who need it by Marcos Bretón in The Sacramento Bee.