I'm a big believer in supporting amazing leaders, and you find them in this work.
That's one of the wonderful things about working locally. You get to know these terrific leaders and help them grow and have an even greater impact.

- Susan Ford Dorsey, Class XI,
President, Sand Hill Foundation

From an interview with ALF Class XXII Senior Fellow Emmett Carson, President & CEO of Silicon Valley Community Foundation, in One: Innovation through Philanthropy (Spring 2013) about her passion for philanthropy and the impact of community collaboration.

Despite being one of the wealthiest regions of the world, Silicon Valley is struggling to attract local philanthropic resources to local causes at a rate that keeps pace with other major metro areas in the United States.

- Alexa Cortes Culwell, Class XVI,
Founder & Managing Director, Philanthropy Futures

From a post on the Stanford Social Innovation Review blog (5.8.13) on the disconnect between Silicon Valley wealth and philanthropic giving.

We are becoming a community where
our teachers, our police, our firefighters,
our nurses, they can’t live with us. They
have to come in from other places.
Healthy communities have all these people living together.

- Russell Hancock, Class XX,
President & CEO, Joint Venture
Silicon Valley

From an article in The New York Times (5.2.13) on class divisions in Silicon Valley.

They go there as strangers and they leave at the end of those four days as family.

- Pat Mitchell, Class XXI,
Executive Director, Silicon Valley FACES

From a Palo Alto Online article (4.30.13) on the record-breaking 19th Annual Palo Alto Weekly Holiday Fund; Silicon Valley FACES received a grant for Camp Everytown, a diversity retreat for high school students.

When you get a call from the Palo Alto police that says there's a mother that has a two-year-old daughter and a six-year-old son in the rain over at Cubberley Community Center and you're able to give them a place to stay, it makes it that much rewarding.

- Paul Bains, Class XVI,
Founder & President, Project WeHOPE

From a Palo Alto Online article on the record-breaking 19th Annual Palo Alto Weekly Holiday Fund; Project WeHOPE received a grant to help fund the HVAC system in The Warming Shelter for the homeless in East Palo Alto.

I'm getting the impression from people in the community that they understand the police are doing the best job they can under some very difficult circumstances. At the same time, there's always room for improvement.

- LaDoris Cordell, Class VIII,
City of San Jose Independent
Police Auditor

From an article in the San Jose Mercury News (4.22.13) on a new report showing that the San Jose Police Department received 7% fewer complaints despite a decrease in the number of officers and a rise in crime.

This is the field where I found my life’s calling, applying technology to meet critical needs of society, where the market is likely to fail.

- Jim Fruchterman, Class XXI,
Founder & CEO, Benetech

From his remarks to the American Foundation for the Blind’s National Leadership Conference on receiving the 2013 Migel Medal for exemplifying exceptional accomplishments in service to the blind and visually impaired.

We really want to retain the Mercury News headquarters in San Jose. And we want to see a jobs-related use at their current site. We would not want to see housing there.

- Kim Walesh, Class XVIII,
Director of Economic Development and Chief Strategist

From an article in the San Jose Mercury News (4.16.13) on the sale of the Mercury News property.

This great law has been greatly abused.

- Carl Guardino, Class XII,
CEO & President, Silicon Valley Leadership Group

From an article in the San Jose Mercury News (4.8.13) on the stalled momentum of the California Environmental Quality Act (CEQA).

If you have everyone thinking like an owner, you have better company.

- Iris Harrell, Class XXIV,
CEO, Harrell Remodeling

From a story in the Mountain View Voice (4.4.13) on Iris Harrell's plan to have her employees eventually own her company.