damian trujillo: hello, and welcome to "comunidad del valle." i'm damian trujillo, and today, carmen castellano of the castellano family foundation, find out about latinos in philanthropy on your "comunidad del valle." male announcer: nbc bay area presents "comunidad del valle" with damian trujillo. damian: we begin today with the festive celebration el dia de los tres reyes magos. actually, we're making 2 days out of it coming up here in january. jessica torres is with the children's discovery museum here at san jose, and michael mu lea? michael mu lea: mu lea. damian: mu lea will be here to sing at the children's discovery museum during the festivities. welcome to the show. now, talk about the festivities. this is an annual event, and you're talking about tradition and culture. jessica torres: it's a wonderful event. it's the 18th annual year that we've had the dia de los reyes event.

it's 2 days on saturday, january 9th, and sunday, january 10th. and we have wonderful activities, we have performances, we have great art-making activities, and we also have some tres reyes that will be walking around for photo ops and giving out little regalitos. damian: nice, now, for those who might not know about the tradition of los tres reyes magos, briefly tell us what that is all about. jessica: sure, it's the celebration of the three kings following the star to the manger and the birth of jesus. and it's--in many cultures, in mexico in particular and other latin american countries, it's also a bigger celebration than christmas time. so there's also regalitos, there's also presents that are given out. there's big celebrations. and we're just excited to have it as part of our-- one of our community celebrations. we have year-round celebrations celebrating different cultures, and we're really excited to have this one for so long since we started with a community advisory group, and we're offering wonderful activities to the families. damian: very cool.

no, i know that when we used to travel at mexico a lot when i was in grade school and high school, and on christmas day, we would not get our presents. we would wait until january 6, until it was-- so that's, you're right-- jessica: and did you put your shoes out? damian: no, i didn't do that. jessica: oh. in some cultures, they put their shoes out. damian: i put my shoes on. jessica: i'm sure you got regalitos go in your little shoes. damian: now, you're going to be a part of the festivities. tell us what you're going to be doing there. michael: i will be--i will be singing. and i'm more a--i'm trying to get it, to get really connected with my cultural roots in the latin side. and coming out and seeing just the festivity of tres reyes magos and seeing the community gather together there, it's a very warm experience. i can't phrase it any other way, just yeah, so i would really love to be a part of that one day. damian: what will you be singing? michael: i will be singing--i have yet to finalize four songs, but i will for sure be doing "my girl" by the temptations.

i will for sure be doing "can you stand the rain?" by--and perform boyz ii men. damian: well, let me do this to you. last year, gabriela, who was on the telemundo show promoting the same event, she did a little 15 seconds of a cappella, okay? so, i'm going to ask you to kind of see what you want to do a cappella for about 15 seconds while i ask another question, if that's cool. you'd do it for us? michael: perfectly fine. damian: all right. now, you talk about-- jessica: he's in finals week, so he's ready, he's ready. michael: yeah, i'm ready, i'm already alert. damian: talk about the importance, especially here in the silicon valley, of celebrating the multitude of cultures that we have here. jessica: yes, we have so many wonderful cultures here in the bay area. and so, the children's discovery museum really strives to reach out to the different cultures and have different celebrations, so people can not only honor their own culture, but also learn about their neighbor's culture. so, it's a wonderful opportunity to share the different traditions and cultures that we have throughout the bay area. damian: now, last week, we had the mariachi group from

gilroy here, and they saw your event on our calendar, "hey, we're going to be there." so it's music, it's dance, it's everything. jessica: we have mariachi, we have dancers, we have music, we have lots of hands-on activities. and we also have a very special membership deal. for $99, we can have--people can, for those two weekends, buy a family membership, which includes two adults and all the children in their family, so it's a wonderful opportunity. damian: now, i know that the tres reyes event is a religious event, but this goes beyond religion, right? this is more traditional and cultural. jessica: it goes beyond religion. it really is about tradition, and it is about culture, and it's about celebrating family and being together, and celebrating music and art, and also learning and sharing with each other. damian: all right. now, we had gabriela on the telemundo side. michael is here. tell us about michael and what we can expect there. he's going to give us a quick sample. jessica: he's going to give us a quick sample. we're really excited, he's performed for us before, an up and coming performer at the children's discovery museum. we really love to feature our young artists in the area, so

we're really excited that michael's going to be able to join us. damian: mike, if you want to be a big star in this world, you've got to perform on the spot. that's kind of what we're doing here, it's on the spot. so, go ahead, give us about 15, 20 seconds of something a cappella. michael: would you want me to stand? damian: if you would like to stand, you can stand. if that--is that your diaphragm, is that--okay, go ahead. michael: just the power. ♪ and if i say that i'll be your one and only, ♪ ♪ promise that you'll never me lonely. ♪ ♪ i just want to be the one you need, oh baby. ♪ damian: wow, hey. well, you know what? have you tried out for any of the shows that we have, "the voice" on nbc, you tried for any of those? michael: i have yet to. i'm hoping to. damian: do it. michael: thank you. damian: all right, nice job. all right, there is the web address for more information if you'd like to attend. it's 2 days, january 9th and 10th at the children's discovery museum right here in the heart of downtown san jose. any final thoughts before we let you go? jessica: well, we hope you join us for one or both of the two days, and enjoy the celebration with us.

damian: all right. well, thank you so much, and good luck. and up next on "comunidad del valle," carmen castellano of the castellano family foundation. stay with us. why let someone else have all the fun? the sometimes haphazard, never boring fun. the why can't it smell like this all the time fun. the learning the virtue of sharing fun.

why let someone else have all the fun? that's no fun. unleash the power of dough. give it a pop. of the castellano family foundation. with me on "comunidad del valle" is carmen castellano. welcome to the show. carmen castellano: oh, glad to be here, damian. damian: now, you were president for a long time. carmen: yes, i was the founding president when we founded the foundation in 2001, until 3 years ago, when al became the emeritus board member. i continued on, and our children joined the board. and i was the president for the first 2 years. and last year, our daughter carmela castellano-garcia became the president. so, i am now the vice president, still on-- still sit on the board. and i've supported the decision-making. damian: i think a lot of us who are warm-hearted in giving want to give more and more. what's it feel like to know that you have the ability to give to

worthwhile organizations who deserve it, who do the hard work out in the community? carmen: well, we're fortunate that here in santa clara county, we have some great nonprofit organizations we can support, for one. and it--and it's just very heartening to be able to do that. and sometimes, i have people come up to me and thank me for the work we do. i'll have a student who received a scholarship say, "thank you so much. if it weren't for that, i wouldn't be able to stay in school and finish." so it's--you know, we get those affirmations from community people. and it just feels very good. damian: oh, i bet. when you hit the jackpot, was that one of the automatics was that, "we're going to establish a foundation and we're going to give back"? carmen: well, it was for me. you know, you know, when al didn't tell me for an hour. he knew for an hour, and then finally he woke me up. damian: al wanted to see if he could hide it from you, that's what he was trying to do. carmen: my goodness. oh no, we're married. california laws, we can't do that. so, when he told me, i said, "oh my god, we won the lotto."

and i sat there, and then i got a line tablet, and then i started writing names. he said, "what are you doing?" i said, "well, macla, somos mayfair, los openos, these are organizations we're going to give this money to." he says, "we haven't even gotten the check and you're giving it away?" but it was very automatic because we've been doing so much community work, you know, volunteer work. so, it just felt just glorious to be able to know we could go beyond that. damian: now, talk about foundations in general, and the roles that latinos play in foundations, whether it's a small role or if it's a growing role. what do you see as a board member? carmen: well, nationally, there are very few. i know the first time we went to a national conference in 2002, there's the national family foundation organization. so, they're all family foundations. and we looked at the directory, like, you know, 400 to 600 people, and we were the only latinos listed in the directory outside of two that were from south america.

and so, that was shocking to me. but the other shocking information is that hip did a study about 4 years ago, a survey of latino giving nationally, what percentage of money, philanthropic money goes into the latino-serving and latino-led institutions in this country. and the result is less than 1.5%, less than 1.5%. and we're 13 million people in this country. damian: you're not a researcher, but why do you think that is? carmen: we're an unknown element. we're in the background. we aren't--we aren't thought of as a meaningful part of the population. and so, you know, al and i try to be very public, say, "we're here, we're here to stay, we're accomplished, and we also have needs." but we're just so much in the background.

and part of it is i think culturally, we don't--you know, we're modest, we're humble, we don't brag, so that's part of it. damian: how hard is it to establish a foundation, to maintain it, and to keep it going? carmen: well, fortunately, we had very good counsel. we went to an attorney, he's still our attorney, and we saw him in june right after we won the--found out we had won. and by december, we had established the foundation. it's a legal process. and when it's done, i went to--i met with herman gallegos, who is like the godfather of latinos in the philanthropic world. he was on the--first latino on the ford foundation. and he was in san francisco, so i met with him for several hours, we both did. very full of advice. that was very, very helpful. and it was, you know, through that kind of mentoring that we were able to do this. and i was an administrative secretary for 40 years,

so i knew how to run an office, i know how to write letters, i know how to generate reports, so all of that just really helped us to just be up and running pretty quickly. damian: and i mean, to this day, you're still giving. i mean, are there annual applicants, or how do you decide on an annual basis? or your board decides? carmen: well, at this point, we've just really expanded and really gotten a lot more sophisticated. we're no longer a mom and pop doing board meetings at the kitchen table. we have an office on the alameda. angie briones is our director of operations. she works 25 hours a week. and so, it's just more systematic. we have a website. people can apply online. and so, it's just more sophisticated. damian: all right. well, if you'd like more information on the castellano family foundation, it did flash up on your screen just a short while ago, and there it is again. and log on and find out more about the foundation, and who they help, and who they continue to support.

we'll be back with carmen castellano when we'll continue, stay with us. [music]

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of the castellano family foundation. so, to date, how much--over the years, how much money do you think you've given in grants and in scholarships? carmen: since we were established in 2001, we've given well over $4 million, probably like $4.2, 4.3 million dollars. probably 600 to 700 grants or more. and i have the data for it, the last full year, 2014-15, june to--july 1st to the end of december--till the end of june. and we gave a total of 35 grants, 300 in 2000. but above and beyond that, we have discretionary grants, so

each board member does additional grants. so, when you add that in, we gave over $357,000 last fiscal year. damian: wow, i mean, did you ever imagine, when you were working at san jose city college, and al, who is here in the studio but not in the show, when he was cutting meat, did you ever imagine that this would be? carmen: no, never, never. you know, the world of philanthropy was not known to me. you know, because, as i said, we were volunteers, you know, at nonprofits. i sat on nonprofit boards, and that helped. damian: and you saw the need. carmen: yeah. so, i was aware that that work was there, but not in any kind of meaningful way. so, i had a lot to learn. damian: so, how can we change the status of latinos in philanthropy? what do we need to do, us who might not be millionaires, but who want to do something about it? carmen: well, you know, there are a lot of very--foundations

that have very small amount, that give less than $100,000, that give $50,000. and there are more than one avenue. you don't have to have your own foundation. you can what's called a donor-advised fund, where you park your money in another organization, like a silicon community foundation, silicon valley. and you park your money there, and they do the paperwork for you. so, there's more than one avenue. and so, any of us can be philanthropists in any amount. so, the opportunities are there. damian: so, when you go through a foundation like that, it'll show up as a latino philanthropist when you're talking about the national participation of latinos in philanthropy? carmen: no, you know, in fact, i had to really dig to find out because when we started out, i wanted to know, "where are the other latino philanthropists?" so, i went to silicon valley, that organization. at that time, it was 15 years ago. and i said, "who are the latinos?" and they had to get that data for me. they weren't tracking that, what latinos they were giving to.

so, you know, it wasn't being tracked. and i'm not sure if there's been much improvement since then. you know, we just--we aren't like mainstream. damian: sure, do you think some agencies or community groups might have folded by now if it wasn't for your help? because you came in, you're big on the arts. and we know that when there's a recession-- carmen: arts, the latino ts and culture, leadership development, and educational opportunities for youth and youth of color. those are our three main areas. and i think i can say that there have been a couple of organizations that we helped save from going under. damian: because when a recession--through any cycle, the first thing they cut is the arts. and that's what's near and dear to you, and that's what you kind of help. carmen: and that's happening in the schools, where they're cutting back in the arts. so, you know, i think that, you know, in some ways we've been a godsend for some of those organizations

that wouldn't still be here. and so, there's always lots to do, lots of organizations to support. and we have a lot of really small grassroots organizations that are under the radar, but they're doing great work, all volunteer. and they can also get a fiscal sponsor. that's another way an organization can get funding. so, macla does several of those. so, you have a fiscal sponsor, the money goes to them. so, people can make--it's a donation people can-- it's tax-deductible. so, there are avenues to do that. damian: and on a personal level, you also open your home to small--well, not necessarily small fundraisers for causes. carmen: oh, we've had dozens and dozens of fundraisers at our home for nonprofit organizations. damian: tireless work. carmen: small and big, yeah, yeah. we had a large one recently to raise funds for el teatro campesino. he wants to bring-- louis wants to bring his latest play to san jose. that's very costly.

so, we had this huge fundraiser, probably one of the largest we've had, and we raised $60,000, most we've ever raised at a fundraiser. so, that's going to help him bring his play here to san jose, which has always been one of his goals. damian: anyway, we can help. just let us know. again, the castellano family foundation, they're giving grants and scholarships, and everything to help the latino community culture here in the bay area. any final thoughts, carmen, before we let you go? carmen: well, we latinos have big hearts and are capable of giving. and so, please consider giving in some way, in some avenue, volunteer or monetarily. damian: all right, thank you so much for your community work. thank you very much. and up next here on "comunidad del valle," the bravo band. stay with us.

in your comunidad on que pasa. [music]

[music] damian: and our saludos to those celebrating a special day. felicidades. [music] damian: and here's our address for next week's saludos. you can also follow me on twitter. my handle is @newsdamian. you can also pick up a copy of "el observador" newspaper and support your bilingual weeklies all across the bay area. you can also watch us on channel 48 telemundo every saturday at 5:30 p.m. that's your "comunidad del valle" on telemundo 48. we leave you now with the sounds of san jose's own bravo band. buenos dias. [music]

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[music] [music] [music] [music] why let someone else have all the fun?

the sometimes haphazard, never boring fun. the why can't it smell like this all the time fun. the learning the virtue of sharing fun. why let someone else have all the fun? that's no fun. unleash the power of dough. give it a pop.

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