Who can apply
Grant applicants must be residents or landowners of Elfin Forest or Harmony Grove. Matching-grant applicants must be a local 501(c) in good standing. The request must be not-for-profit and for the public good.
Policies
Short rules. Same ones we use in the room.
The charter limits us to preserving, maintaining, or enhancing rural quality of life in this community. These cards are the working version.
What we raise money for
Gifts to the Foundation fund our community project grants and our matching-grant pool. We pay no salaries. Directors donate their time, and overhead is under 1%. We do not raise money on behalf of other nonprofits. A local 501(c) that wants a match runs its own campaign and applies to us.
What we will not fund
Studies for their own sake. Personal benefit. Labor, except in rare cases. Anything that serves one household. Work outside the service area. Pepper trees dressed up as landscaping.
Native plants
We prefer Coast Live Oak and chaparral species. Non-natives that change the look of the valley — pepper trees especially — are discouraged. Board members will help an applicant pick plants that belong here.
Maintenance
If we fund a structure or planting that needs upkeep, the application must say who will maintain it. Taking the check is an agreement to keep the project alive. We are not a perpetual maintenance department.
Conflicts of interest
Directors disclose ties annually — other boards, businesses, recent work. They may discuss a conflicted item. They recuse from the vote.
Geographic boundary
Elfin Forest and the rural part of Harmony Grove inside the red line on the County planning-area map. Harmony Grove Village and Harmony Grove Village South are outside. The map is on the Service Area page.