We are responsible for shaping our community
Guest Essay by Elizabeth Martineau, director of the Los Alamos Community Foundation
By Elizabeth Martineau
In what kind of community do you want to live?
What needs does our community have?
What do you want Los Alamos to look like in the future?
Who is responsible for shaping our community?
Your actions and donations shape our community. Every time you show up, voice your opinion, donate to causes, and volunteer, you are adding your fingerprint to the structure that forms Los Alamos.
We have local needs
Sometimes our local needs are obscured by positive statistics, and this makes it difficult for local non-profit organizations to receive grants and assistance. Because the need in surrounding areas is “greater,” they are able to receive funding. Local needs, however, do exist. Recognizing that our community has needs is the first step in meeting them. Thank you to Boomtown for shining a light on some of those needs.
Brandi Weiss, Los Alamos Community Foundation (LACF) program manager, explained, “Being able to recognize and understand when an individual is struggling is a good first step in breaking this cycle for the community. Ignoring the problem does not make it go away, this mindset is imperative in our small community.”
Diane Smogor, executive director of Self Help, Inc., witnesses needs daily. “While Los Alamos County often ranks as one of the healthiest communities in the nation,” she said, “we see every day how financial strain impacts many community members, especially single parents, hourly workers, and older adults or anyone living on a fixed income. For many families, it only takes one unexpected car repair or medical bill to put them into a downward financial spiral.” One client shared that assistance from Self Help, Inc. one year made the holiday bearable.
It can be a problem for individuals to access assistance, too. For mental health services, for example, not only is there a shortage of providers, but paying for those services can be a challenge. Los Alamos Family Council Executive Director Jordan Redmond said, “Thirty percent of our clients receiving counseling are on a government insurance program (such as Medicaid), receive public assistance for their treatment, or are uninsured.”
How can our community help meet these needs?
Non-profit organizations, like Self Help, Inc. and Los Alamos Family Council, are a grass-roots solution to meet local needs and provide services that build a strong community. Los Alamos has over 150 non-profit organizations! A list is available on the Los Alamos Community Foundation website, or through a search on GuideStar. A peek at the list provides a sense of what our community values. (How many arts organizations do we have?) The list may even have some organizations that surprise you!
Why are there so many nonprofit organizations in Los Alamos? Well, this community has always had a “can do” and “let’s make it happen” attitude. When someone sees a need or opportunity, they often start a nonprofit organization. These organizations improve the quality of life in Los Alamos, often filling in service gaps and responding to our community’s greatest needs. They provide a helping hand to our friends and neighbors who may be struggling, programs that nourish our youth, and community events and classes that educate and bring people together. All of these services help create our sense of community and belonging.
We are lucky that many programs in Los Alamos are offered for free (or for a small fee), allowing wide community participation. These programs, however, are not free to organize and plan. There are expenses to pay for music, a speaker, utilities, insurance, room rental, or supplies. Lectures, festivals, and entertainment — many of the programs and the organizations that provide them are created, managed, and funded by YOU! Your donations of money and time make these programs possible.
One easy way to support many local programs is through LosAlamosGives.org, a website managed by the Los Alamos Community Foundation. This website allows donors to browse local organizations and donate to one — or several — with a credit card. Thanks to sponsorship from Enterprise Bank & Trust, this site is free to nonprofit organizations serving Los Alamos and Rio Arriba counties. Money collected on the site goes straight to organizations; nothing filters through to Los Alamos Community Foundation. This is just one way to learn more about and invest in programs that are making a difference in our community.
Building community, however, takes more than money
Creating requires effort, and creating a community is no exception. Your words and actions are tools that can build up individuals and organizations. We check in on our neighbors and coworkers, save seeds for the library, participate in public meetings, vote, and greet people. No matter what your talent is, there is a nonprofit that could benefit from your help. Can you design a website? Take photos? Teach a program? Load boxes of food? Answer the phone? Join a board? Opportunities abound! VolunteerLosAlamos.org is a website that allows you to browse local nonprofit opportunities. You can find a match that fits your values, talents, and schedule. Your actions, large and small, contribute to our community.
When you find an organization that shares your values, one of the greatest gifts that you can provide is to make a legacy gift to sustain them in the future. Los Alamos Community Foundation holds a number of endowment funds created by donors to benefit specific local organizations (like Los Alamos Family Council or Los Alamos Retired and Senior Organization), favorite causes (like historic preservation or youth sports), or for the general benefit of community nonprofits. Endowment funds are invested, and the income provides funding and grants to organizations every year.
Anyone may contribute any amount to established endowment funds, and your giving method may be individualized. Some people choose to make monthly donations or annual required minimum distributions (RMDs), and others leave a portion of their estate in a will or trust. Creating or contributing to an endowment is a way to make your donation last in perpetuity, and that makes a real impact!
When you give your time and money to an organization, it is a vote of confidence that says, “Yes, I agree with what you are doing. Please continue!” If donors do not support a nonprofit, it will not be able to fulfill its mission, and eventually it will dissolve.
So, what services and programs do you think are important for our community to have?
Music? Mental health services? Arts? Health and wellness? Great schools?
This year, reflect on how your actions will shape Los Alamos. Consider giving your time and energy, so that when you see something great happening in Los Alamos, you can say, “I helped make it happen!”
Thank you. Together, we can meet local needs and create a community that we should all be proud to call home.
Elizabeth Martineau is the executive director of the Los Alamos Community Foundation and a long-time Los Alamos resident. Incorporated in 2015, the Los Alamos Community Foundation seeks to improve the local quality of life by inspiring, facilitating and supporting enduring philanthropy, and building the capacity and success of our local nonprofit organizations. Los Alamos Community Foundation currently stewards locally endowed funds and has total assets of over $1.5M. For more information about the Los Alamos Community Foundation, or to donate, visit www.losalamoscf.org.
Excellent- ty.