Health-Sector Nonprofit Executives Receive 2011 TCWF Sabbatical Program Award
LOS ANGELES, Nov. 10, 2011 /PRNewswire/ -- Eight nonprofit health-sector executives are being recognized with The California Wellness Foundation (TCWF) Sabbatical Program Award at a luncheon ceremony today in Los Angeles. This leadership support program – now in its ninth year – provides eight organizations with grants of $35,000 each to cover salary and other expenses during their executive directors' sabbaticals, which last a minimum of three months.
The eight executives receiving the 2011 sabbatical award are: Linda Civitello of Breathe California, Golden Gate Public Health Partnership in Daly City; Lou Fox of Family Support Services of the Bay Area in Oakland; Dori Rose Inda of the Watsonville Law Center; Viveca Lohr of Meals on Wheels of the Monterey Peninsula in Pacific Grove; Daniel Macallair of the Center on Juvenile and Criminal Justice in San Francisco; Lorraine Martinez of the Villa Center in Santa Ana; Joe Navidad of People's Community Organization for Reform and Empowerment in Los Angeles; and Christopher Peters of Seventh Generation Fund for Indian Development in Arcata. Profiles of the honorees can be accessed at www.CalWellness.org in the Leadership Recognition Program portal.
"We are pleased to recognize these eight individuals who provide valuable leadership during challenging times," said Gary L. Yates, TCWF president and CEO. "The Foundation created the sabbatical program to prevent burnout, promote the health of these nonprofit health and human service executives, and develop opportunities to strengthen their organizations."
The program was created to support nonprofit leaders and seeks to improve the long-term effectiveness of health-focused nonprofits by providing their executives with the rest they need to continue to direct their organizations' missions. Each organization receives $30,000 to cover its leader's salary during the sabbatical, plus an additional $5,000 to cover expenses related to the professional development of managers and staff who will assume extra responsibilities during their leader's absence. Each of the 2011 sabbatical honorees has served in the nonprofit sector for at least 19 years – half of them for more than 30 years – and most have worked in their current roles as lead executives of health-focused organizations for many years without a significant break.
"Executive directors at nonprofit health and human service organizations in California work in a challenging environment, given the continued economic slump and rising demand for their agencies' services," said Sandra J. Martinez, TCWF director of public policy. "By acknowledging their leadership and supporting their organizations during the sabbaticals, the Foundation is helping the sector improve the health of diverse California communities, now and in the future."
The California Wellness Foundation is a private independent foundation created in 1992 with a mission to improve the health of the people of California by making grants for health promotion, wellness education and disease prevention. The Foundation prioritizes eight issues for funding: diversity in the health professions, environmental health, healthy aging, mental health, teenage pregnancy prevention, violence prevention, women's health, and work and health. It also responds to timely issues and special projects outside the funding priorities. Since its founding in 1992, TCWF has awarded 6,213 grants totaling more than $780 million.
SOURCE The California Wellness Foundation
