Nurturing the roots of holistic wellbeing
Rather than focus on project-based outputs or services, we seek to invest in the holistic wellbeing of people living in vulnerable communities around the world.
Through our grantmaking, we prioritize community-led initiatives that seek to heal people’s connections to God, self, others, and creation. As communities embrace new mindsets about their own identity and purpose, and learn to steward resources in more innovative ways, new paths unfold.
We believe if you heal the spirit of a people, they will lead themselves
We believe that it is not simply lack of access to such things as education, healthcare and job creation that keeps communities from flourishing, but a much deeper brokenness of spirit evidenced by lack of voice, purpose, meaningful relationships, agency and connection. (See Theory of Change)
Choosing our Grant Partners
When exploring new partnerships, we use the following criteria in our evaluation process.
We focus on 4 geographic areas – Mexico, Haiti, Northern India, and East Africa – prioritizing community-based organizations in specific regions of each country that can be connected and learn from each other.
Our support goes beyond funding. We seek to be mutual partners, creating opportunities for networking and collaboration across regions.
We seek partners who share our values and approach to living and working in community.
We are place-based, prioritizing rural communities; we are faith-inspired, responding to God's call to service and justice; and we are healing-centered, prioritizing grassroots initiatives that promote healing and reconciliation.
At this time, funding applications are available by invitation only.
Our Partners
Our current grantees work in one or more of the following areas of community development.
Stories
Changing Mindsets and Livelihoods in India
Inderpaul is a cotton farmer in the Vidarbha region of India. Due to poor weather conditions, he fell into heavy…
Combatting Gender-Based Violence in Latin America
In 2018, VHF hosted our first international grant partner retreat in Mexico City. Forty people from 15 organizations attended. Following…
We For Others: Mindset Change in India
When I (Joseph) joined Vista Hermosa Foundation as a Program Officer to steward relationships with partners in East Africa and…
Changing Mindsets and Livelihoods in India
Combatting Gender-Based Violence in Latin America
We For Others: Mindset Change in India
Gordon Cosby, Midwife to the Dreams of God
In the early 1980’s, I was exposed to poverty and suffering on a global scale. But, through several life-changing encounters, I found Jesus to be very present there! I went back to my church, with my heart broken, but also racing with ‘what-if” kinds of questions that I thought might help both the materially poor,…
Startup Communities
By Cheryl Broetje Start Up Communities is the name of a book by Brad Feld, about ‘building entrepreneurial ecosystems in your city’. He starts the book out by saying that startups are at the core of everything we do. We were all startups at our birth! Every city was a startup, as was every company,…
International Women’s Day is a Success
If you missed it, we’d like to give you the opportunity to relive the excitement of International Women’s Day 2013. In the gallery below are photos of the event. Thanks to the generosity of those who attended, the Center for Sharing was able to provide over $6300 to support the education of young women in…
Join us for the 4th International Women’s Day Fundraiser
We’re excited to invite you to the 4th Annual International Women’s Day fundraiser. For those of you who came last year, you’ll remember we had a wonderful time with three great speakers, and with your help were able to raise over $10,000 to help keep young women from Oaxaca in school! If you missed it, there…
Trumping the ACES–Adverse Childhood Experiences
From our latest Newsletter–by Cheryl Broetje Do not exasperate your children; instead, bring them up in the training and instruction of the Lord – Ephesians 6:4 Recently our friend, Jim Sporleder, principal of Lincoln Alternative School in Walla Walla, gave a seminar for staff from several local communities in which we are working. He told…
Tackling the toughest problem–Tails from Tierra Vida
It wasn’t graffiti, alcohol, drugs or bullying—no, when we asked our future leaders in the Tierra Vida community what the biggest problem was, we learned it was a cat. On the one hand, it felt pretty great to know that the youth of our community feel safe and cared for—so much that they felt that…
Join the Y12 Campaign!
Girls have the power to change the future. If they can negotiate a few critical obstacles facing them in countries around the world, they will. By the age of 12, many have finished their primary education. Without safe and realistic options to continue their studies, they commonly face early marriage, limited employment, and a continued cycle of poverty. We think…
Serving Customers and Employees well
This is a part of a series of stories on companies who are attempting to practice Servant Leadership as a way of doing business. The Center for Sharing works with businesses and non-profits in the northwest who want to be part of a society that serves its people well. Inland Tarp is one of these…
7 Reflections on the Impact of Servant Leadership Development
Seven Reflections on the impact of Servant Leadership—from course participants in Kenya. The Center for Sharing’s mission statement is “Calling forth the gifts of all people through Christ Centered community.” We do this by facilitating Servant Leadership development opportunities where people are allowed to explore their gifts and talents as they wrestle with the age…
Teaching Values and Servant Leadership with youth
Teaching Servant Leadership to Youth Ines Arenas works at Vista Hermosa Elementary School. It was there that she decided that the most important things she was called upon to teach weren’t just the basic academic principles that every student is expected to learn during those years. Ines decided she wanted to use this as an…