Archstone Foundation is pleased to announce eight new grants approved by the Board of Directors this quarter. The funding will help seven organizations build infrastructure around community mobilizing, internal operations, and technology improvements, and will continue support for the Community-Based Organization Medi-Cal Coalition.
Improving Technology Services for Resource Connections
Affordable Living for the Aging (ALA) has been awarded a $50,000 capacity building grant to improve technology systems that connect formerly homeless and at-risk older adults to critical benefits and services. Founded in 1978, ALA is a BIPOC-led nonprofit dedicated to advancing housing stability, health equity, and dignity for vulnerable older adults in Los Angeles.
With this investment and through the Senior Stability Pilot with Goodwill Southern California, ALA will build a centralized Service Navigation Hub, standardize internal systems, and align referrals with existing networks such as 211 LA and the Aging and Disability Resource Center. These improvements will strengthen coordination, reduce duplication, and improve follow-up for older adults navigating complex service systems.
Creating an Aging Coalition for Advocacy
Los Angeles Coalition for Aging (LACA), received a $16,500 capacity building grant to support the development of a sustainable countywide aging coalition. Currently composed of 25 agencies and 14 aging leaders, LACA seeks to move from an informal working group to a coordinated advocacy entity.
Rooted in their broader mission to promote well-being, lifelong engagement, and independence for older adults, the coalition seeks to ensure that aging services and policies reflect the lived experiences and priorities of older Angelenos. By uniting diverse stakeholders, LACA aims to strengthen advocacy for systems that support aging in place with dignity, stability, and choice. During the six-month planning phase, the coalition will conduct an environmental scan of successful coalition models, establish inclusive governance and accountability structures, and develop a long-term sustainability and fund development roadmap. This work is co-funded by The SCAN Foundation and positions LACA to advocate independently for the needs of older adults in Los Angeles County.
Increasing Civic Engagement and Leadership Opportunities for Older Adults
Alliance on Aging received a $50,000 capacity building grant to launch the Aging and Disability Community Leadership Network in Monterey County. The project expands civic engagement and leadership opportunities for low-income, rural, and BIPOC older adults and people with disabilities in Salinas, Soledad, and Marina.
Grounded in recommendations from the Salinas Valley Local Aging and Disability Action Plan, the network will transform community input gathered through local “Solution Summits” into action. Alliance on Aging will partner with the Center for Community Advocacy and Community Builders to provide bilingual training in advocacy leadership, group facilitation, working with civic leaders, and local governance processes.
By establishing sustainable community action groups aligned with city and departmental decision-making structures, the project centers lived experience and amplifies the voices of older adults and people with disabilities in shaping policies that affect their quality of life, furthering Alliance on Aging’s mission aimed at making sure older adults can live safely, independently, and with dignity in their own homes.
Strengthening Older Adult Engagement
Healy Senior Center received a $24,000 capacity building grant to strengthen engagement and communication with older adults in rural Humboldt County. Located in the town of Healy, the Center serves as a vital gathering place for older adults, offering social connection, meals, activities, and access to information in a geographically isolated and under-resourced region.
As a trusted hub, the Center will use this support to formalize strategies for listening to community needs and sharing information more effectively. Activities include strategic planning sessions with the board, redesigning the “Healy Happenings” newsletter, hosting four community town halls, and producing short video vignettes that highlight older adult voices and available services. Together, these efforts will create consistent feedback loops between older adults and local leadership. This grant helps build Archstone Foundation’s understanding of how community power is built in rural regions that are often under-resourced, while supporting locally driven approaches to engagement and resilience.
Building Communications Infrastructure in Immigrant Communities
Korean Immigrant Workers Advocates of Southern California (KIWA) received a $50,000 capacity building grant to strengthen its communications infrastructure and outreach to older adults in immigrant communities. As a long-standing advocacy organization with deep community trust, KIWA plays an important role in mobilizing older adults around labor, immigration, and economic justice issues.
With this support, KIWA will conduct a comprehensive communications assessment, develop a strategic plan focused on reaching older adults, and pilot new outreach methods such as expanded phone and text updates and multilingual digital engagement. The organization will also build systems to track and evaluate communication reach and effectiveness across channels. This investment supports learning about how older adult political power can be built through partnerships with non-aging-specific organizations, while expanding access to in-language information and leadership opportunities.
Expanding Equitable Health and Social Care for Older Korean Immigrants
The Korean Community Center of the East Bay (KCCEB) received a $50,000 capacity building grant to support its transition to a Medi-Cal Enhanced Care Management and Community Supports provider under CalAIM. Serving more than 3,000 older adults annually, the organization offers culturally rooted services for low-income, limited English proficient older Asian immigrants. For more than 50 years, KCCEB has served as a trusted community anchor, providing culturally and linguistically responsive services to Korean and other Asian immigrant communities across the East Bay.
With support from Heller Consulting, KCCEB will implement integrated data and case management systems, train staff in Medi-Cal billing and service delivery and strengthen internal infrastructure. This work positions the organization to generate sustainable earned income while expanding equitable access to health and social care for older Korean immigrants in the East Bay.
Enrolling Older Adults in Medicare
San Ysidro Health has been awarded a $50,000 capacity building grant to develop a Patient Outreach and Engagement Strategic Plan aimed at supporting adults approaching Medicare eligibility. Serving more than 134,000 patients across urban and rural San Diego County, San Ysidro Health primarily supports Hispanic and multilingual communities with nearly one-quarter of its patients age 60 and older.
The plan will establish systems and workflows to proactively identify 64-year-old patients and assist them with Medicare enrollment and Medicare Savings Programs. By strengthening enrollment infrastructure and staffing strategies, this project will improve continuity of care for older adults while allowing the organization to better allocate resources for patient services.
Bolstering Advocacy on Behalf of Medi-Cal Members
The Ceres Community Project received a $25,000 grant to support the continued convening of the Community-Based Organization (CBO) Medi-Cal Coalition, a statewide alliance of CBO coalitions and member agencies delivering services under California’s Advancing and Innovating Medi-Cal (CalAIM) initiative. The Coalition represents 15 statewide coalitions and 11 CBO member agencies, collectively reaching 685 organizations across all 58 California counties.
Community-based organizations are essential to CalAIM’s vision of addressing social determinants of health and supporting Medi-Cal members at risk of institutionalization, yet many face barriers to sustainable participation, including contracting uncertainty and reimbursement challenges. The CBO Medi-Cal Coalition strengthens shared advocacy and enables CBOs to engage with a unified voice. In the final year of the CalAIM waiver, the Coalition will deepen policy engagement through statewide convenings, legislative education, and strategic communications with state leaders. Guided by Ceres’s leadership and partners, this work will elevate the experiences of CBOs, particularly those serving older adults, and support more equitable, sustainable participation in Medi-Cal.
Archstone is co-funding the Coalition with the California Health Care Foundation, The California Endowment, The California Wellness Foundation, and Prebys Foundation.
