Parasol Foundation

The Parasol Tahoe Community Foundation is the oldest and largest community foundation located at Lake Tahoe. It is a non-profit public charity that is dedicated to supporting the Lake Tahoe region – now and into the future—building a more prosperous community by partnering with donors to make their charitable giving more meaningful, by supporting quality programs provided by local non-profit organizations and by providing community leadership on emerging issues.

History

Founded in 1996 by community members, Parasol is a donor-centered organization that, through the generosity of its donors, has granted over $33.6 million to charitable causes since its inception.

Due to its rural nature, the North Lake Tahoe region, especially Incline Village and Crystal bay, does not receive basic services that county agencies might normally provide. Non-profit organizations thus found it necessary to take responsibility to make sure that the community's essential needs were met. The Parasol Foundation was created to ensure that such efforts would be successful by allowing the individual agencies and charities to work together—allowing them to combine resources and avoid working to cross-purposes.

The Donald W. Reynolds Community Non-Profit Center

In 1999, Parasol received a construction grant from the Donald W. Reynolds foundation to build a non-profit foundation center. This building, the Donald W. Reynolds Community Non-Profit Center was completed and dedicated in 2002.

The DWR Center is a model in philanthropy. It not only provides non-profits with valuable grants that support operational costs, it also promotes collaboration, rather than competition, among organizations. In 2013, the DWR Center housed 16 non-profit residents and has provided local non-profit organizations with grants valued at $6.5 million for the DWR Center office space, storage space and meeting room space.

Parasol AmeriCorps Program

The Incline Village/Crystal Bay community has also benefited over the past 12 years from the Parasol AmeriCorps Program. The members focus on education, basic services, public safety and the environment. In 2011, over $1,054,265 in volunteer value was provided to the community through the Parasol AmeriCorps Program. Members served 29,269 hours in 2011 as well as recruited and managed 2,088 community volunteers that served an additional 19,114 hours.

Education and Youth Development
Environment
Social services
Arts and culture

About Parasol

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