To enhance the quality of life in the Sacramento area through innovative and effective educational youth programs

The Arata Brothers Trust was formed by three brothers, Andrew, Charles, and Frank Arata, who benefited from the Sacramento community through their successful grocery operation, Arata Brothers Grocers. This grocery business existed in the Sacramento area from the early 1900's until 1967. The trust began in 1979 after the death of the last of the brothers. Their two primary preferences were: 1. Grantees be located in the Sacramento area since the equity in the trust was from profits made in the Sacramento community, and 2. Granting benefits to children should be a primary focus To date, the grants exceed $16,000,000, primarily to the Sacramento region.


Current Programs Funded 2024

Sierra Nevada Journey's - Grizzly Creek Ranch

delivering innovative outdoor, science-based education programs for youth to develop critical thinking skills and to inspire natural resource stewardship.

916 Ink

916 Ink is Sacramento’s arts-based creative writing and literacy nonprofit that provides workshops and tutoring to transform Sacramento youth into strong readers, confident communicators, and published authors.

Project Lifelong

Sacramento based non-profit that strives to empower Sacramento's youth by offering distinctive, experiential programs that nurture leadership abilities, enhances prospects for lifelong success, while promoting well being and good health.

Improve Your Tomorrow

Improve Your Tomorrow (IYT) was founded in 2013 with the mission to increase the number of young men of color (YMOC) to attend and graduate from colleges and universities. 

CiE Foundation 

Born out of the Sacramento Regional Builders Exchange which was founded in 1901, CIEF works to introduce and engage high school students and young adults to the rewarding careers available in the built environment. In 2023-24, CIEF will serve more than 10,000 students through our programs and award more than $145,000 in academic and summer program scholarships.

Society For The Blind

Society for the Blind is committed to providing young people with vision loss or blindness the opportunities to pursue their educational, social and personal goals. Our programs and services are designed to enhance and expand upon the blindness skills young people learn through the school system.

Women's Empowerment

The mission of Women’s Empowerment is to educate and empower women who are experiencing homelessness with the skills and confidence necessary to get a job, maintain a healthy lifestyle, and regain a home for themselves and their children.

Soil Born Farms

Soil Born Farm’s Youth Education program creates a space for curiosity, learning, and empowerment. By connecting youth to food, community and the natural world, we cultivate leadership, stewardship and healthy futures for all.

Yolo Basin Foundation 

Yolo Basin Foundation's principal goal is to facilitate environmental education about the Yolo Bypass Wildlife Area. Yolo Basin Foundation's largest program and main focus is Discover the Flyway, an environmental education program for K-12 schools.

Grant Application Guidelines

It should be noted that, if Arata Brother's Trust denies your grant request, it is in no way a reflection on the request or your organization. We get an enormous number of requests each year so denials are required, sometimes even to organizations that we have previously funded.

Policies:

  1. Grant requests need to focus on the broad social value expected to be achieved with our grant funds.

  2. Accountability that the broad social value was met must be documented in a report within 12 months of the grant identifying specific results from the use of our grant funds. Recipient organization is responsible for initiating this report.

  3. Trustees meet and make decisions at the end of every quarter. In general, requests will be granted or denied within each quarter.

Application Procedure:

  1. Since it is imperative that we limit our operating expenses, all grant requests must be submitted through our website rather than through the mail.

  2. There is no specific grant application. Grant requests should cover these basic points:

Mission of the organization

Description of the project

Amount of money requested

Measurable results to be achieved

Justification of why this measurable result has a high probability of success

Brevity is preferred.

All grant applications must include a copy of the applicant's IRS tax exemption letter.

Email a brief cover note to info@aratabrotherstrust.org and attach the grant application and IRS letter to this email. In the subject line of the email state: "Your Organization's Name GRANT APP". A physical address to which a grant check could be mailed must be included for application consideration.