It’s a big job, fundraising for a cause as well as for a new construction project. You dream big — you’ve always been good at that. But how do you navigate the twisted way from the dream of a shiny, new headquarters to the steel and concrete reality of one?

In May 2015, a pediatrician at Kaiser Permanente Roseville Medical Center pioneered a life-saving idea. It was remarkably simple, relatively inexpensive and would help address a public health crisis. Nurses would ask every mother of a newborn leaving the hospital if her baby had a safe place to sleep. If not, Kaiser would send the parent home with a free, portable Pack-N-Play.

If recruiting and empowering millennials and gen-Xers challenged the status quo, there’s no telling what will happen in coming months as Bray’s bold new vision for United Way unfolds.

The beauty of the diversity of a foundation such as the Sutter Yuba Community Foundation is that there is an unlimited scope of possibilities for assistance, as opposed to a foundation that grants funds for a specific purpose only.

It was as close to a miracle as you can get. Just when all hope seemed lost for Wind Youth Services, the only homeless teen shelter in Sacramento, a financially-solvent fairy godmother swooped in to save the day.

“Balancing the stage” is a common theater term. It refers to the arranging of the actors and set in a strategic way to produce a desired effect. A director can create a feeling of order or of chaos with the choices they make. For the audience, balance is crucial — a stage that lacks balance will pull focus and distract from the story the company needs to tell.

Stand Up Placer has been serving survivors of domestic and sexual violence since 1978. Survivors and the children of domestic violence, sexual assault and human trafficking can find refuge, emergency services and advocacy around the clock in our 55-bed safe house. Victims get to us either by calling our 24/7 crisis line, visiting one of our service centers in Roseville or Auburn, or from law enforcement referrals.

Next Move serves more than 10,000 people in the Sacramento area every year. They provide a safety net of services that range from arranging for bus passes to maintaining permanent housing for the disabled or mentally ill.

Like many local nonprofits, Cool Davis is challenged with limited funding opportunities, harnessing the talents and energy of diverse people and organizations to a common vision and purpose, and finding a positive and effective message to inspire and care for our community in the face of a rapidly worsening view of the future.

Family upheaval cast Jairus into foster care at age 5. Now almost 19, he’s taking his first steps into adulthood. Even after a life in the foster care system, he’s thriving, thanks to his resourcefulness and optimism and support from his Court Appointed Special Advocate — his CASA — Dennis Beasley.