Anniversary - RCF Connects - Richmond Community Foundation

(510) 234-1200 info@richmondcf.org 3260 Blume Drive, Suite 110, Richmond, CA 94806

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Celebrating 25 Years of Equity, Opportunity & Progress

As RCF Connects celebrates 25 years of service, our story shows that hard times can lead to transformation. Our mission is simple: to connect people, communities, and opportunities all across Contra Costa County—not just in Richmond, but everywhere. From the very start, our goal has stayed the same: equity and opportunity for everyone. That means making sure every person—no matter where they live, how much money they have, or where they come from—has a real chance to thrive.

Our Story

Ways to Give

Events

The Next 25 Years Start with You!

Join the Celebration!

RCF Connects’ 25th Anniversary Gala

Saturday,
February 7th, 2026
5:30pm to 10pm

Tickets are on sale NOW!

Reflecting on the 25-year commitment to building a healthy community that thrives for everyone.

Everyone enjoys a home they can afford,

Health care and support services are nearby,

Financial stability is within reach,

Historically marginalized people’s voices are heard,

Small and local businesses grow and succeed,

And everyone feels like they belong

25 Year Timeline of Impact

The Story of RCF Connects: From Crisis to Community Transformation

1993 - A Crisis Sparks Change

It started with a big bang—literally. On July 26, 1993, a train car burst open as workers unloaded oleum, a sulfur acid product. The rupture released tons of sulfuric acid into the atmosphere sending over 24,000 people to hospitals with breathing problems, headaches, and sickness. For more than three hours, a sharp foul-smelling chemical cloud—1,000 feet tall and eight miles across—loomed over Richmond, until rail yard staff stopped the leak.

This community crisis ironically brought about promise and a chance for change. An agreement with the Richmond chemical company set aside up to $180 million to handle claims and allocated $1.5 million to create a community benefit fund. This fund set the stage for what would evolve into the Richmond Children’s Fund later renamed the Richmond Children’s Foundation.

2006 – Investing in Education

From these beginnings, the Richmond Children’s Foundation played a pivotal role in shaping Richmond’s future, including the establishment of the Richmond College Preparatory School in 2006. This marked a significant milestone, as the foundation split into two organizations. the Richmond College Preparatory School and the Richmond Community Foundation.

2011 – RCF Expands Its Mission

As the work of the foundation grew, the Board revised the mission and in April of 2011, the organization became the Richmond Community Foundation. The Richmond Community Foundation continued its work of reinvesting resources to improve lives in Richmond, with a primary focus on youth, education, and community revitalization.

Under the leadership of Jim Becker, the current President and CEO, the foundation broadened its mission. Jim, who transitioned from working with a state affordable housing nonprofit, brought a vision of equity and community development that extended beyond Richmond. His leadership ushered in a new era for the organization, shifting its focus to creating healthy, thriving, and equitable communities.

2014 – NURVE: Transforming Neighborhoods

One of Richmond Community Foundation’s first major projects was NURVE (Nystrom United Revitalization Effort), co-founded in partnership with the East Bay Community Foundation. This project set out to change the area around Nystrom Elementary School. It planned to put in place improvements, boost programs, build partnerships in the community, and create stronger links between key people. NURVE showed how neighborhoods could team up to breathe new life into communities and make them thrive.

2019 – RCF's New Era of Countywide Impact

From 2012 until 2019, RCF grew, bringing aboard several key initiatives:

SparkPoint Contra Costa (established financial education centers in Richmond, San Pablo, Bay Point, and Pleasant Hill that empower individuals and families to become financially sustainable)

Ensuring Opportunity Campaign to End Poverty in Contra Costa (an initiative that brings together policymakers, community leaders, and residents to raise awareness and fight policies that contribute to the root causes of poverty)

Healthy Contra Costa (which gathers resident leaders and advances the demand for economic justice, education reform, and systems change)

Richmond Housing Renovation Program (which refurbishes blighted houses and turn them into energy-efficient homes for first-time homebuyers)

Restoring Neighborhoods (which holds the NURVE program, Housing First, Mobility LABs, electric vehicle carsharing program and more)

Equity for Black Women and Girls (investing in the present and future of the most historically neglected demographic in Contra Costa)

2020 – RCF Rebranding and Expanding

However, back in 2019, something important happened. The Richmond Community Foundation—known for its work in Richmond and West Contra Costa—noticed a big shift. More and more families were moving east to places like Antioch, Pittsburg, and Bay Point. And with that move came new needs, new challenges, and new opportunities.

RCF didn’t just watch from the sidelines. RCF stepped up. Expanding our reach and became RCF Connects—a new name for a new era. One that reflects our mission: to connect people, communities, and opportunities all across Contra Costa County. Not just in Richmond. Not just in one corner of the map. But everywhere.

2025 – 25 Years and Beyond

From the beginning, our mission has stayed the same: equity and opportunity for all. That means making sure every person—no matter where they live, how much money they make, or where they come from—has a real chance to thrive.

We work side by side with residents, city leaders, and community partners to create the kind of place we all want to live in.

As we celebrate 25 years of service, we look back with pride—and forward with purpose. What started as a response to a community crisis has become a powerful force for fairness, connection, and hope.

RCF Connects is more than a name. It’s a promise: to keep building bridges, lifting voices, and creating a brighter, more just future—for Richmond, for Contra Costa County, and beyond.

Be Part of the Next 25 Years!

Join the celebration, support the mission, and continue making a difference.

Our Impact

Hours spent advocating in town halls, meetings with representatives, protests, action days, and more by Ensuring Opportunity, Healthy Contra Costa, and Restoring Neighborhoods

Individual and group coaching sessions held by Embodied Leadership Coaching, Equity for Black Women and Girls, Restoring Neighborhoods, and SparkPoint Contra Costa

Dollars invested in communities to advance affordable home ownership, rental assistance, and emergency housing support through Restoring Neighborhoods and SparkPoint Contra Costa

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Organizational partnerships across all of RCF Connects’ programs, initiatives, and collaborations that drive our collective vision toward reality