Hermanowski Family Foundation Initial Request Form<\/p>\n
Organization Name: West Slope Foundation
\nLegal Name (if Different): West Slope Foundation, Inc.
\nAlso Known As: WSF
\nMailing Address: PO Box 521
\nCity: Somerset
\nState: CA
\nPostal Code: 95684
\nMain Phone: 530-287-4710
\nMain Fax:
\nOrganization Website: www.westslopefoundation.org
\nEmployer ID Number: 88-3095707
\nOrganization Tax Status: 501c3<\/p>\n
Proposal Information<\/p>\n
Today’s Date: 02\/23\/2026
\nRequested Amount: $10,000<\/p>\n
Project Title: Youth Rural Community Disaster Readiness and Response Teams
\nProject Description:<\/p>\n
West Slope Foundation prepares young people on El Dorado County\u2019s Western Slope to protect themselves, their families, and their neighbors before, during, and after disasters. Our youth-centered model\u2014Teen Community Emergency Response Team (Teen CERT), Youth Readiness Ambassadors, and Disaster Readiness Workshops\u2014builds practical skills, confidence, and leadership in a rural context where professional resources can be stretched during emergencies.<\/p>\n
Teen CERT develops capable teen leaders who can act safely until responders arrive and support school and neighborhood preparedness. The curriculum covers local hazard awareness and personal safety; fire behavior, extinguisher use, and utility control; disaster medical operations including triage and bleeding control; light search and rescue with scene size\u2011up, safe lifts and carries, and team communication; and foundational incident organization and radio etiquette. Training is delivered through a focused sequence culminating in a realistic capstone exercise with role\u2011players and timed objectives. Safety is paramount: screened instructors, clear scope of practice, and documented risk assessments guide every evolution. Graduates support school safety efforts, assist at community events, and help run age\u2011appropriate drills under supervision.<\/p>\n
The Youth Readiness Ambassadors program normalizes preparedness across households and neighborhoods while creating meaningful leadership roles for children and teens. Elementary\u2011age participants learn personal safety, household contacts, and kid\u2011friendly go\u2011bag essentials. Middle\u2011school youth practice evacuation planning, pet preparedness, basic first aid, and hazard spotting at home and school. High\u2011school Ambassadors step into facilitation and mentorship\u2014leading peer talks, canvassing neighborhoods with simple checklists, and supporting drills\u2014often co\u2011enrolling in Teen CERT. Adult Community Ambassadors reinforce youth efforts by hosting block\u2011level planning nights and coordinating communication trees.<\/p>\n
Disaster Readiness Workshops translate skills into family action. One\u2011day sessions cover core planning, alerts and warnings, evacuation timing, and go\u2011bag basics; two\u2011day sessions add tabletop scenarios, evacuation simulations, shelter\u2011in\u2011place decision\u2011making, and recovery steps such as documentation and navigating resources. Workshops are offered at no cost with youth\u2011friendly stations, multilingual materials, and accommodations to promote participation. Together, these integrated programs create a clear pathway from awareness to action and service\u2014cultivating trained, motivated teens who strengthen resilience across our wildfire\u2011prone rural communities.<\/p>\n
Total Project Budget: $85,000<\/p>\n
Other Funding
\nSources For The Project (Committed & Potential): Committed: $65,000 (Pioneer Fire Protection District, Latrobe Fund, Listos California) Potential: $20,000 ($10,000 Charles and Joan Hermanowski Family Foundation Grant, $10,000 Sacramento Regional Community Foundation)<\/p>\n
Project Duration: On going but the big expansion to reach more youth will be within the next 12 months.
\nGeographical Area Served: Primary focus on Western Slope communities centered around Somerset\/Mt. Aukum, Outingdale, Omo Ranch, Fairplay, Mt. Aukum and Grizzly Flats, with services extended to surrounding unincorporated areas across the county as programs and partners require (workshops, CERT trainings, drills, and survivor support). During larger incidents, assistance may reach adjacent foothill communities when Western Slope residents are impacted or evacuated
\nAge Group To Be Served: Youth\/Young Adult: 6 – 18 Adult: >18<\/p>\n
Contact Information<\/p>\n
Contact Prefix (Mr,Mrs etc.): Mrs.
\nContact First Name: Jennifer
\nContact Last Name: McKim-Hibbard
\nContact Title: Deputy Director
\nContact Phone: 530-391-3140
\nContact Email: jennifer@westslopefoundation.org<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
Hermanowski Family Foundation Initial Request Form Organization Name: West Slope Foundation Legal Name (if Different): West Slope Foundation, Inc. Also Known As: WSF Mailing Address: PO Box 521 City: Somerset State: CA Postal Code: 95684 Main Phone: 530-287-4710 Main Fax: Organization Website: www.westslopefoundation.org Employer ID Number: 88-3095707 Organization Tax Status: 501c3 Proposal Information Today’s Date: […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":5,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[3],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-9460","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-grants"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"http:\/\/hermanowskifoundation.org\/members\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/9460","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"http:\/\/hermanowskifoundation.org\/members\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"http:\/\/hermanowskifoundation.org\/members\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/hermanowskifoundation.org\/members\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/users\/5"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/hermanowskifoundation.org\/members\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcomments&post=9460"}],"version-history":[{"count":1,"href":"http:\/\/hermanowskifoundation.org\/members\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/9460\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":9461,"href":"http:\/\/hermanowskifoundation.org\/members\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/9460\/revisions\/9461"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"http:\/\/hermanowskifoundation.org\/members\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fmedia&parent=9460"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/hermanowskifoundation.org\/members\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcategories&post=9460"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/hermanowskifoundation.org\/members\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Ftags&post=9460"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}