RAP Quarterly Newsletter 
Hello everyone!

I know that we are all looking forward to better days in 2021. Many of us know of someone who has suffered physically, emotionally or financially because of the COVID-19 Pandemic. As we start the New Year, we are hoping to pivot to better times. But as we face difficult times in the months ahead, we have optimism that vaccines will soon be available to all residents and this will allow us to have a more normal life in the near future.  
Here is some RAP news I would like to share with you:  

RECENT GRANTS 

The RAP Board allocated the following grants to these organizations recently: 

  • Lift To Rise’s United Lift Rental Assistance 
  • Cal State University Foundation’s Street Medicine 
  • Parkinson’s Resource 
  • Desert Sands Unified School District Educational Foundation’s CAMFEST 
  • Angel View Children’s Outreach Program 
  • Desert Ability Center’s Spinal Cord Injured Virtual Training 
  • The Well In the Desert 
  • Coachella Valley Disaster Preparedness 

Welcome to Newest RAP Team Members  

RAP welcomed Nora Duffy in November to take over as our Accountant. In this role, Nora hopes to bring her extensive professional experience to help us continue to work effectively and efficiently. 
We also welcome Trinidad (Trini) Arredondo to serve as a Community Services Manager this month.  Trini will be administering a grant from Riverside County Public Health Department. He will be responsible for the Coachella Valley Coalition Engagement and Desert Tobacco Retail Licensing project and be working towards ensuring that tobacco products are not sold to young people – thereby preventing tobacco product addictions among young people. 
We are happy to have Nora and Trini join our Team and look forward to being able to work in the same building, but for now we will have to settle for working together “virtually”.  Read about Nora and Trini later in this edition. 

Working Remotely 

Along with many other organizations, RAP staff continues to adhere to the Governor’s Guidelines in response to the COVID -19 Pandemic by working remotely. You can always reach us by email and we will get back to you right away. Check out our website: WWW.RAPFoundation.org for our email addresses.   
At RAP, we have all been directly or indirectly impacted either physically, mentally or financially by the pandemic.  It has not loosened its grip on our lives but we are optimistic that we will be able to resume our pre-COVID activities this Spring with progressive steps towards this goal. 

Till then, we wear masks and socially distance until that day we can act more like the social creatures we are.  Be safe, take care; wishing you all good health. 

Lety De Lara, CEO
RAP’S REQUEST FOR PROPOSAL (RFP)- Released January 6 And Due January 25  
The RAP Foundation recognizes the financial hardships facing nonprofits as a result of the COVID-19 Pandemic. Therefore, RAP will be allocating a total of $150,000 to strengthen and support organizations serving residents in the Fourth Supervisorial District (the western end of the Coachella Valley and east to the Palo Verde Valley). Organizations are required to be providing Health and Mental Health (H/MH) Services. Letters of Intent must be submitted on our on-line portal by January 25 at 5 PM. 

The Funding will be limited to supporting existing programs which are struggling to survive/adapt to changes in program delivery. Funds may be directed towards maintaining in-person service delivery for programs negatively impacted by COVID -19. It can be used for: Operations and Technology/equipment upgrades for remote service delivery. The targeted population includes: All ages starting at 6, and including special populations (for example: disabled, homeless, LGBTQ, etc.) especially in remote and hard to reach areas.  

The total Grant Award allocated for this RFP is $150,000.00. Applicant organizations must address one or more of these six Funding Goals:
A. Substance use
B. Depression 
C. Anxiety/Stress 
D. Homelessness 
E. Suicidal ideation/Self-harm behaviors 
F. Isolation/Grief/Loss 

If you are interested in learning more about this funding and how to apply, please visit our website for more information. Letters of Intent are required to be submitted by 5 p.m. on January 25. You will need to register in advance to create an account for our on-line portal, if you do not already have one.  
 INTRODUCING NEW RAP STAFF
Introducing Nora Duffy, RAP’s Accountant
Nora is a native of Portland, Oregon but has lived in Los Angeles and until 2019 was a 30 year resident of Seattle. Nora and her husband moved to the Coachella Valley to get away from the rain and cold and they are loving the desert climate.

Nora comes from a high-tech background working with Fortune 500 companies in diverse industries including Microsoft, T-Mobile, Getty Images and Avanade. For the last 10 years, Nora has owned her own business consulting firm and has specialized in non-profit management.

Nora has one son living in New York, three grandchildren and a new great-granddaughter living in Seattle.
Introducing Trinidad Arredondo, Community Services Manager
Trini is a lifelong resident of Coachella, has joined the RAP team as the Community Services Manager. For the past 10 years, he has been focused on improving the lives of residents and particularly youth throughout Southern California.

With a group of 10 mentors, Trini founded “Coachella Valley Youth Leadership,” which works with young people, providing intensive mentorship through restorative practices and transformational “learning circles.” He has also provided similar services to four school districts throughout Southern California.

Trini has spent countless hours working to transform his community and more recently was elected Area 1 trustee on the Coachella Valley Unified School District. A former employee of RAP, Trini left in 2016 to work directly with school districts. He says he’s excited to return as the Community Services Manager to focus on working with cities in the Coachella Valley in order to strengthen their tobacco policies to keep our youth tobacco free.
Vaccine Offers A New Hope in Fight Against COVID-19
By V. Manuel Perez, Riverside County Supervisor and RAP Foundation Board Member
As we closed a year of tragedy and hardship, the arrival of a vaccine for COVID-19 brought a message of hope, that a new day is coming.

As the Chair of the Riverside County Board of Supervisors, I had the opportunity to visit the Riverside University Medical Center in Moreno Valley on Dec. 18, as county nurses and other medical professionals that received the first coronavirus vaccines shared why it is important to take the vaccine. It was a moment we came full circle. Nearly a year ago, Riverside County’s response to the global pandemic began at the county medical center, where staff assisted 200 Americans returning home at March Air Reserve Base from Wuhan, China. Now, the day we were long seeking, the arrival of the vaccine, marks what we hope is a new beginning, the end of the past and a new beginning of hope.

The vaccine is a life-saving breakthrough. Vaccines, along with face coverings, physical distancing, hand washing and avoiding unsafe crowds and gatherings, are the best tools we have to prevent COVID-19 infection and ultimately the pathway to defeating the virus. While it will take time to make the vaccine available to all in our county, nation and the world, it is our goal to do so as quickly as possible with efficiency and equity.

Here is what we expect for the roll-out of the COVID-19 vaccine in Riverside County:

Riverside County is following our vaccination distribution plan with a phase and tier system to allocate vaccines as they become available. Right now, the first supply of the vaccine is being distributed to health care workers and residents of long-term care facilities.

As more supplies of vaccine become available, successive vaccination phases are at-risk and vulnerable community members, front-line workers including farmworkers and grocery store workers, and eventually the larger public.

To make this easy to follow, we have developed a new dashboard at https://www.ruhealth.org/covid-19-vaccine. This is a resource for residents to get more information and track the roll-out of the vaccine. The dashboard contains the vaccine plan, schedule and frequently asked questions.

The Riverside County vaccination distribution plan has been established in accordance with CDC guidelines and in conjunction with the California Department of Public Health and Riverside County Department of Public Health.

The vaccine will help us stop the virus. The vaccine will help our front-line workers in fighting this pandemic. The vaccine will hopefully get us back to a new normal. The vaccine will help people get back to work, get our kids back to school, and stop the stress and the anxiety that’s happening in our communities.

I celebrate this moment and, when my turn comes, I will gladly and without hesitation take the vaccine. I ask that you all do the same.
CARES Act Relief Fund for Skilled Nursing Facilities
The RAP Foundation collaborated with the Riverside County Department of Public Health to serve as the administrator of a CARES Act Relief Fund in the amount of $7M for Skilled Nursing Facilities (SNFs). Eligible Skilled Nursing Facilities throughout Riverside County were identified and invited to apply for funding ranging from $50,000 to $200,000, based on the number of resident beds.

RAP is on the last stretch of this program which started August 1, 2020. Although 54 SNFs were eligible to apply only 36 decided to take advantage of this opportunity. These SNFs were adversely impacted by COVID and this federal funding allowed them to comply with the various federal, state and local guidelines to operate and protect their staff and residents/patients.  

There were five categories of which funding could be used: Testing, Personal Protection Equipment (PPE), Infection Control, Training, and Education and Outreach.

The PPE included: N95 masks, gowns, sanitizers, disinfectants, plexi-glass barriers, testing kits, testing equipment, air purifying units. There were also significant costs associated with COVID, such as the need to provide hazard pay, testing kits, purifying units, as well as purchasing technology equipment to allow for increased telemedicine, and to allow communication between residents and their family members. 

This partnership allowed the County to provide the resources to ensure that SNFs were prepared to better manage the crisis they were facing in an expedient and efficient process. RAP was proud of our intermediary role to help others manage this crisis. 
CNA CORNER
By Stephanie Minor, CNA Director
Congratulations...you made it through 2020!

2020 was all about adaptation. A big round of applause for the nonprofits who...

  • Kept their donors engaged and giving
  • Pivoted to virtual events
  • Embraced online tools and the Internet
  • Created new partnerships and collaborated with other nonprofits to broaden their reach
 
As we move through 2021, CNA will be providing you with tools you can use RIGHT NOW that will help you connect with and increase your supporters. Toward that end, we are providing you with a FREE 2021 Social Media Calendar to kickstart the new year. (Click the button below to download.) The calendar is packed with ideas for days of celebration throughout the year and monthly themes for content planning.
Just a 🎁 to you from me. Because whether it's the end of an old year or the beginning of a new one, we’re all in this together. And together, we will find a new path forward.

Happy New Year!
Find Grants!
Foundation Directory Online is a research tool that helps nonprofits find the grant makers most likely to fund their projects. CNA is providing temporary, free, remote public access to you for the next several weeks, while the pandemic is affecting our onsite location in Palm Desert. If you have any questions, please contact Christine via email at CDemonaco@RAPFoundation.org
 
Click the button below to gain remote access to Foundation Directory Online. Best wishes with your search!
WWW.RAPFOUNDATION.ORG