Fostering Resilience

Mentor, Dee Ptak, shares a little about her match with Mentee, Sunny Gray. Sunny Gray’s Mentor Shares Q: What are your thoughts about mentoring? Dee Ptak: In my experience it is not always easy to see if you are making an impact – or not. Mentors may never know the whole impact they make on...Read More

Mentee, Sunny Gray, shares a little about her match with Dee Ptak. Each day brings a new opportunity to reframe our outlook with renewed hope for a brighter future for our own selves and the generations that follow. This community is filled with personal stories of triumph and defeat. Through life’s challenges, some individuals find...Read More

After 10 Years Board Member Claudia Pruett Resigns Claudia Pruett cares about community, children, and philanthropy. As a ten-year Director, she dedicated her service to the MGCF Board and worked as a major advocate for the mission. Claudia’s time, talent, and treasure caused ripple effects that reached far and wide for the scholar’s lives that...Read More

Greetings! Hope rises and a new day brings a renewed commitment to embrace unity. Truly, I feel grateful to work with people who serve a greater good—our donors and team of volunteers, who work as mentors, board members, and philanthropists. We rally to support an important mission—to advocate for education and training for our county’s...Read More

Over the last 20 years, the Foundation continues to create great community impacts for aged-out foster youth in San Joaquin County. Currently, we focus on awarding scholarships, mentoring students, and enrichment programs for the county’s children’s shelter. As we move forward into new horizons, hopefully, we remember the feel-good moments when giving our time, talent,...Read More

We need your critical support for over 30 scholars Mary Graham Children’s Foundation continues to postpone our fundraising for the rest of 2020. Still, we need your critical support for over 30 scholars. We are foregoing our signature events and asking you to support our cause as if you were sponsoring our fundraisers. Your support...Read More

MARK PABALATE, Scholarship Recipient Mary Graham Student Scholar, Mark Pabalate, is currently attending his final year at the University of California, Los Angeles, and will graduate with a Bachelor of Arts in Sociology. He has contended his way across California into higher education with hope for a brighter future. To support his education and future...Read More

Esmeralda Mascorro Grand Canyon University graduate Esmeralda graduated from Grand Canyon College in December 2018. Her mentor and MGCF board member Claudia Pruett told us, “We are very proud of Esmeralda! She has persevered through many setbacks and challenges due to childhood abuse. With MGCF support, Esmeralda has the determination to earn success, the desire...Read More

Great Chefs Thank you for your support. Coming back in 2021 CANCELED MG Kids Classic Golf Tournament Stockton Golf & Country Club August 31, 2020 Game Day DINNER & CONCERT Waterloo Gun & Bocce Club October 16, 2020Read More

Your support is changing lives Walmart awarded two grants to MGCF in November and December.  We’d like to thank Kou and Princess from the March Lane store and Richard from the Hammer Lane store. Both donations made for a bright holiday for our foster youth!Read More

GAME DAY with Tim Flannery October 2019 Former Major League Baseball infielder and third-base coach for the three-time World Series champion San Francisco Giants Tim Flannery performed with his band, Tim Flannery and the Lunatic Fringe, for the Mary Graham Children’s Foundation’s Game Day Dinner and Benefit Show in October at the Waterloo Gun and...Read More

A CONVERSATION WITH OUR FOUNDER JOHN R. VERA This year marks the 20th anniversary of the Mary Graham Children’s Foundation. We thought it appropriate to have a conversation with the person who was instrumental in creating this private not-for-profit organization, John R. Vera. John, how did all this happen? What was the impetus? Well, it...Read More