About

Your community foundation — not an HOA, not the Town Council.

We hold a trust born from a closed landfill, add whatever neighbors give, and grant the income to public-benefit work in Elfin Forest and Harmony Grove.

Mission

Fund beneficial projects that enhance rural quality of life.

Vision

Foster a vibrant rural lifestyle.

Values

Encourage community involvement
Beautify the community
Benefit the whole community, not an individual
Award grants, including matching grants, for public-benefit work
Remain financially sustainable

Where we work

Elfin Forest and rural Harmony Grove, inside the red line on the County map. Harmony Grove Village is not included. The map, the exclusions, and examples of work we have funded are on the service area page.

See the service area

How the money works

The Remediation Trust

After the San Marcos landfill closed, the City transferred $340,087 in tipping fees on the condition that a separate nonprofit would hold them. The principal stays intact. Net income is what we grant. That is the deal that created us, and we have kept it.

Donations

Neighbors can give directly to the Foundation. A donor may restrict a gift to project grants or to the matching-grant pool; otherwise it joins the general pool. We do not raise money on behalf of other nonprofits. The board may make small discretionary expenditures when the community good is obvious and waiting for the next cycle would waste the chance.

We pay no salaries. Directors donate their time. Overhead is under 1%, so money given to the Foundation is put to work in the community, not on staff.

Give to the grant pool

Governance

We are an autonomous California nonprofit public benefit corporation, Document No. 1920711, filed February 3, 1995. The Foundation is a 501(c)(3) public charity, EIN 33-0672537. A Board of Directors elected from resident landowners of Elfin Forest and Harmony Grove governs the work. Directors are neighbors. They are not staffed by the County and they do not run the Town Council.

Meet the board and how to stand for a seat

This is not an HOA and not the Town Council

Elfin Forest has no HOA and no annual assessment. The Town Council is the open forum where the community debates topics that affect Elfin Forest and Harmony Grove. Elfin Forest Community Trails is a Town Council committee, not a separate 501(c). The Fire Safe Council, Conservancy crews, and a dozen ad hoc groups do the physical work. The Foundation is the independent checkbook created so that work can be funded without turning every project into a passing-the-hat emergency. We do not set the community’s priorities. We are the mechanism those priorities run through.