Resident Generosity: Nurturing the Future

For Casa de Mañana residents Judy and Larry Sowder, their passion for giving includes supporting the residents and the employees who make up their La Jolla community. They support three separate Front Porch Community Foundation funds that make a difference in the lives of those they care about: The Resident Assistance fund, the HEART (Helping Employees At Risk Today) Fund, and the Employee Scholarship funds. To extend their caring into the future, they have also named the Front Porch Communities Foundation as a beneficiary in their estate plan.

“Casa is our home and we want to help the community, staff and residents in as many ways possible,” Judy said. “The more we learned about the work of the Foundation, the more we wanted to support both employees and residents.”

Larry and Judy, both retired educators, hold a special place in their hearts for those employees and employees’ family members who want to continue their education with the help of a philanthropic scholarship. Casa de Mañana residents last year awarded 17 employee scholarships and, through the separate “Casa de Futuro” scholarship fund, provided awards to five children of Casa de Mañana staff members, many of whom are the first in their family to attend college.

The Casa de Mañana Philanthropy Committee this year is also working with the Foundation team to provide school supplies for staff members’ elementary school-age children.

Each summer, the Sowders look forward to “Philanthropy Week” at Casa, a week of activities and events programmed by the community’s Philanthropy Committee and Foundation staff to educate residents and raise charitable gifts to support the funds they care about. “It’s not only a fun time but a time when residents can really get an education on why the Foundation’s work is so important and how they can get involved,” Judy said.

*This story was originally shared in the Community Matters newsletter