San Diego, CA – January 15, 2025 – The Prebys Foundation is proud to announce the launch of its Healing Through the Arts and Nature initiative, which awarded $5.2 Million to 59 nonprofits across San Diego. These grant awards will support programs serving youth, veterans, justice-impacted individuals, and historically underserved communities, offering proactive ways to enhance quality of life in a post-pandemic world.
This effort is rooted in growing evidence that non-clinical approaches, such as spending time in nature and engaging with the arts, can reduce social isolation, improve mental health, and foster a stronger sense of community. The nonprofits receiving recognition and grants engage in activities including playwrighting, horse therapy, hiking, farming, dancing, painting, surfing and more.
The event, held on January 15, 2025, featured transformative experiences at three locations across San Diego. Attendees had the opportunity to engage with interactive art exhibits, nature walks, community discussions, live performances, and nature-inspired activities. The event highlighted the innovative work of the grantees and the positive impact of the initiative on community well-being.
“Modern research is validating ancient wisdom that engaging with nature or creativity can be a major source of healing and connection for us as human beings,” said Grant Oliphant, Prebys Foundation CEO. “By investing in this initiative, we are working with an exceptional array of organizations to harness San Diego’s unique natural and artistic resources on behalf of resilience and well-being. At a time when our society faces unprecedented mental health challenges and the apparent inability to keep pace with them, we believe that building a community of practice here rooted in new applications of this ancient wisdom will not only strengthen the lives and wellness of San Diegans but also inform a vital national conversation about the importance of reconnecting with each other and with our essential humanness.”
Grantee Highlights
There are a diverse set of grantees providing spaces and practices to reconnect with our inner voice and needs. Examples include:
- S&S Friendly Ranch a 10-acre Black-owned and ‑operated neighborhood ranch in the Tijuana River Valley. Workshops and experiences include cooking with food from the farm, land stewardship, civic engagement and cultural relevancy in nature
- ArtReach ignites youth creativity through visual arts expression and community connection. In collaboration with the International Rescue Committee San Diego, this program will address the
mental health impact of social isolation in refugee populations, 40+ women and their children will participate in 10 hands-on, social-emotional wellness art workshops at IRC’s Women’s Resilience Center. Participants and ArtReach will end the program by designing and painting a large-scale community mural at the Center. - Via International’s Somos La Voz (SLV) provides culturally responsive art and cultural heritage programming led by teaching artists with lived experience to Chicano and Mexican youth in San Diego, culminating in three live pop-up events/performances. SLV improves youth mental health by helping youth access their voice and leadership potential, bridging generational divides, offering a safe space to explore self-expression and creativity, and fostering pride and ownership in youth cultural roots/identity.
- Mission Trails Regional Park Foundation Since 1988, the Mission Trails Regional Park Foundation has worked to preserve, protect, and improve Mission Trails, one of the largest urban parks in the United States. Among its current initiatives is land acquisition to continue to grow the park, a multi-year brush and invasive plant removal program for fire resiliency, and an expansion of its youth education programs to cultivate the next generation of environmental stewards.
Full List of Grantees
| Healing Through the Arts Organization Name | Amount Funded |
|---|---|
A Step Beyond |
$100,000 |
African American Writers & Artists Inc |
$40,000 |
Art Of Elan |
$66,000 |
ArtReach |
$36,000 |
Arts Education Connection San Diego |
$55,100 |
CCAE Theatricals |
$150,000 |
Dreams + Ducats |
$50,000 |
Fern Street Community Arts Inc |
$125,000 |
Hill Street Country Club |
$50,000 |
Ilan-Lael Foundation |
$60,000 |
Imagine |
$148,800 |
Malashock Dance |
$65,000 |
Playwrights Project |
$45,300 |
Project PAINT: The Prison Arts Initiative |
$58,000 |
Resounding Joy Inc |
$148,500 |
Rosin Box Project Inc. |
$35,000 |
San Diego African American Museum of Fine Art |
$100,000 |
San Diego Craft Collective |
$29,000 |
San Diego Dance Theater |
$38,500 |
Synergy Arts Foundation |
$31,000 |
San Diego Urban Warriors |
$100,000 |
Space 4 Art |
$138,000 |
The Aja Project |
$125,000 |
The Veterans Art Project |
$100,000 |
Timken Museum of Art |
$60,000 |
Via International Inc. |
$110,000 |
Viet Voices |
$126,000 |
Villa Musica |
$72,200 |
Total |
$2,262,400 |
| Healing Through Nature Organization Name | Amount Funded |
|---|---|
Agua Hedionda Lagoon Foundation |
$50,000 |
Botanical Community Development Initiatives |
$150,000 |
City Heights Community Development Corporation |
$149,300 |
Coastal Roots Farm |
$100,000 |
Depositing Empowerment Through Outreach and Urban Redevelopment (DETOUR) |
$100,000 |
Emilio Nares Foundation |
$127,100 |
Hearts and Hooves Therapy |
$10,000 |
Kumeyaay Community College |
$150,000 |
Lakesides River Park Conservancy |
$50,000 |
Mid-City Community Advocacy Network |
$142,000 |
MiraCosta College |
$116,500 |
Misson Trails Regional Park Foundation |
$50,000 |
Outdoor Outreach |
$150,000 |
Paddle for Peace |
$75,000 |
Pala Band of Mission Indians-Learning Center |
$100,000 |
Project New Village |
$150,000 |
Resource Conservation Foundation of Greater San Diego |
$50,000 |
San Diego Canyonlands |
$50,000 |
San Diego Children’s Discovery Museum |
$85,500 |
San Diego City College Foundation |
$90,100 |
San Diego Second Chance Program |
$100,000 |
San Diego Natural History Museum |
$150,000 |
Serving Every Soul via S&S Ranch |
$149,500 |
Slavic Refugee and Immigrant Services Organization |
$100,000 |
STAR/PAL |
$45,000 |
Surprise Farm Retreat Center |
$75,000 |
The Escondido Creek Conservancy |
$50,000 |
The Queer Sol Collective, Inc |
$50,000 |
UCSD Department of Urban Studies and Planning - Black Like Water |
$150,000 |
Un Mar De Colores |
$100,000 |
San Diego Armed Services YMCA |
$50,000 |
Total |
$2,965,000 |
