It is a privilege and honor to volunteer for the Sonora Area Foundation, and to see first-hand the good work all of us accomplish together in Tuolumne County.

Our Board of Directors is very pleased to welcome Ed Wyllie as the new Executive Director. Ed, a Tuolumne County native who spent his career in community development with the City of Sonora, joined our staff just a few weeks ago and already is immersing himself in learning the ropes of the foundation world. Ed is a skilled administrator with deep roots and a stellar reputation in our community– just the type of leader we know will support, strengthen and further the Foundation in fulfilling its mission.

This fall the Foundation has continued its commitment to keeping abreast of the changes and challenges in the field – and to bring that knowledge back to Tuolumne County. We revived our tradition of hosting an educational seminar for financial professionals, with more than 40 local advisors attending our sessions by nationally known experts in financial markets and investing services. We also sent four Board Members to San Francisco for an enlightening national conference for Community Foundations. All of us were struck by how fortunate and unique we are in Tuolumne County – not many rural communities in the nation have such a thriving base for community giving.

This has been another year of challenges for our local community, and the future is still uncertain as many struggle to navigate turbulent economic conditions. The Foundation has kept a special focus on helping meet basic needs in this climate and will continue that commitment in the coming year. We will however continue to respond to other local needs and opportunities.

As you'll see, the Sonora Area Foundation and its partners are truly accomplishing our mission of strengthening our Community.

Jim Johnson
SAF Board President