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Non-profit

Vera R. Campbell Foundation

Location:

LOS ANGELES, CA
Tax ID:

42-1719658
Tax-Exempt Status:

501(c)(3)-PF

Budget (2019):

Revenue: $2,887,456
Expenses: $2,185,941
Assets: $37,945,236
Website:

None
Location:

Los Angeles, CA
Type:

Grantmaking Foundation
Formation:

2007
President & CEO:

Vera R. Campbell

Vera R. Campbell Foundation is a grantmaking foundation located in Los Angeles, California. Its grants are allocated primarily to left-leaning Los Angeles-based organizations that focus on education, the arts, social services, and public policy. The foundation has no full-time employees. 1

InnerCity Struggle

Vera R. Campbell Foundation is listed as a partner with InnerCity Struggle, a left-leaning advocacy and social services organization that advocates for changes to public policy, immigration policy, encourages community organizing, and conducts community training for children and students. 2 InnerCity Struggle worked to gain permanent renters’ protections in Los Angeles County that restricts evictions and rent increases and pushed for the elimination of “willful defiance,” defined as students disrupting school activities or defying authority of school staff, as grounds for suspension in public schools across California. 3

In 2018, Vera R. Campbell Foundation gave $15,000 to InnerCity Struggle. 4 It has given at least an additional $10,000 to the group, which is part of the Check the Sheriff Coalition. 5 Check the Sheriff Coalition is a group of left-leaning organizations, including Black Lives Matter-Los Angeles, ACLU of Southern California (ACLU SoCal), Black Alliance for Just Immigration (BAJI), Reform L.A. Jails, InnerCity Struggle, and Brothers, Sons, Selves Coalition, that oppose the Los Angeles Sheriff’s Department. 6 The coalition accuses the Los Angeles Sheriff’s Department of corruption and abuse, 7 demands that Sheriff Alex Villanueva (D) resign, and seeks an investigation of the department by the state’s Attorney General. 8 9

InnerCity Struggle is also a member of Brothers, Sons, and Selves Coalition, a left-leaning organization that helps young people of color. 10 Brothers, Sons, and Selves Coalition has worked to defund school police, reallocating those funds to black students, and to cut the Los Angeles Police Department’s budget. 11

Finances and Grantees

In 2020, the Vera R. Campbell Foundation gave a grant to the Natural History Museums of Los Angeles County for the acquisition of an 80-foot-long mural by Barbara Carrasco, “L.A. History: A Mexican Perspective,” 12 that was originally commissioned by the Los Angeles Community Redevelopment Agency in 1981 and was previously censored. 13

During 2019-2020, the foundation allocated $270,000 to Inner-City Arts, an art program in Los Angeles that has also received support from the left-of-center Rosenthal Family Foundation and has a theatre named in honor of the family. 14

In 2018, the foundation allocated money to several left-leaning organizations, including $10,000 to Whole Woman’s Health of Austin, Texas, which provides abortion services, and $17,500 to Community Partners, a nonprofit partnership between the Los Angeles County Department of Health Services and the Los Angeles County Department of Health that helps entrepreneurs in Southern California focused on left-progressive civic and social change. 15 The foundation provided $200,000 to City Year, a member of the AmeriCorps program. It also gave $175,000 to Proyecto Pastoral Dolores Mission, an organization focused on community organizing, social policy change, and educational programs. 16

The foundation supports the arts by allocating money to several organizations, including $80,000 to the Natural History Museum of Los Angeles, $174,500 to the Institute of Contemporary Art Los Angeles, $50,000 to the Getty Museum, and $287,500 to Inner-City Arts. 17

Through the Vera R. Campbell Promise Scholarship, the foundation provides three students a year from California State University up to $4,000 in scholarship funds to attend an Institute for Field Research archaeological field school. 18

The foundation is a Benefactor Fellow of the School for Advanced Research (SAR) located in Santa Fe, New Mexico, providing between $500,000 to $999,999 in cumulative giving. 19 20

People

Vera Campbell was the former president and owner of KWDZ Manufacturing, a Los Angeles-based children’s apparel manufacturing company, founded in 1982. It supplied clothing to large retailers, including J.C. Penney, Macy’s, Kohl’s, Nordstrom, and Bloomingdale’s, 21 22 importing the products from China, Central America, or southeast Asia. 23 In 2007, Campbell acquired Mamba LLC, now La Mamba, a clothing manufacturer, located in Los Angeles. 24 In 2020, KWDZ Manufacturing was acquired by Byer California. 25

Campbell was a founding board member of Inner-City Arts. 26 She has been involved with the Assistance League of California. She has participated on the executive board of VisionAware (formerly Junior Blind of America) and is a founding member of California Fashion Association and the California Fashion Foundation. 27

Vera R. Campbell contributed $6,225,000 to the foundation in 2018. 28 29  Her contribution was the only contribution to the foundation for the year. 30

References

  1. Vera R. Campbell Foundation. Cause IQ. Accessed September 15, 2021. https://www.causeiq.com/organizations/vera-r-campbell-foundation,421719658/
  2. Mission and Vision. InnerCity Struggle. Accessed September 9, 2021. https://www.innercitystruggle.org/mission_vision
  3. Victories. InnerCity Struggle. Accessed September 9, 2021. https://www.innercitystruggle.org/victories
  4. Vera R. Campbell Foundation, Return of Private Foundation Exempt From Income Tax (Form 990-PF), 2018, Part XV, Line 3. Accessed September 5, 2021. https://projects.propublica.org/nonprofits/display_990/421719658/01_2020_prefixes_42-45%2F421719658_201812_990PF_2020012317059148
  5. Data compiled from FoundationSearch subscription service, a project of Metasoft Systems, Inc., from forms filed with the IRS. Queries conducted July 2021.
  6. About. Check the Sheriff. Accessed September 10, 2021. https://www.checkthesheriff.com/about
  7. Open Letter to Attorney General Becerra. ACLU Southern California. October 21, 2020. Accessed September 10, 2021. https://www.aclusocal.org/sites/default/files/open_letter_to_ag_becerra_re_lasd.pdf
  8. Open Letter to Sheriff Alex Villanueva. ACLU Southern California. July 29, 2020. Accessed September 10, 2021. https://static1.squarespace.com/static/608642aec0f6531f1411b0a8/t/608afe7e46956138f6ca45dc/1619721860680/AdiosVillanueva+Letter+final+sign-on.pdf
  9. About. Check the Sheriff Coalition. Accessed September 19, 2021. https://www.checkthesheriff.com/about
  10. Coalition Partners. Brothers, Sons, Selves Coalition. Accessed September 19, 2021. https://brothers-sons-selves.webflow.io/about
  11. “Policing in SoCal: Activist, Former Sheriff Discuss Future of Law Enforcement.” CBS Los Angeles. June 4, 2021. Accessed September 19, 2021. https://losangeles.cbslocal.com/2021/06/04/policing-in-socal-activist-former-sheriff-discuss-future-of-law-enforcement/
  12. Press Release. “NHMLAC Acquires Barbara Carrasco’s Mural.” Natural History Museums of Los Angeles County. March 31, 2020. Accessed September 15, 2021. https://nhmlac.org/press/nhmlac-acquires-barbara-carrascos-mural
  13. Recinos, Eva. “After 40-Plus Years, Barbara Carrasco’s Censored Mural Finds a Permanent Home.” KCET. July 20, 2021. Accessed September 19, 2021. https://www.kcet.org/shows/artbound/after-40-plus-years-barbara-carrascos-censored-mural-finds-a-permanent-home
  14.  Supporters. Inner-City Arts. Accessed September 9, 2021. https://inner-cityarts.org/who/supporters/#donor-roll
  15.  History. Community Partners. Accessed September 19, 2021. https://communitypartners.org/history
  16.  Vera R. Campbell Foundation, Return of Private Foundation Exempt From Income Tax (Form 990-PF), 2018, Part XV, Line 3. Accessed September 5, 2021. https://projects.propublica.org/nonprofits/display_990/421719658/01_2020_prefixes_42-45%2F421719658_201812_990PF_2020012317059148
  17.  Vera R. Campbell Foundation, Return of Private Foundation Exempt From Income Tax (Form 990-PF), 2018, Part XV, Line 3. Accessed September 5, 2021. https://projects.propublica.org/nonprofits/display_990/421719658/01_2020_prefixes_42-45%2F421719658_201812_990PF_2020012317059148
  18. National and International Scholarships and Fellowships Program. Cal State LA. Accessed September 15, 2021. https://www.calstatela.edu/nisfep/caitlin-zarate-2018-vera-r-campbell-promise-scholarship
  19. Benefactor Fellows – Supporters. School for Advanced Research. Accessed September 15, 2021. https://sarweb.org/about/supporters/
  20. “The Pandemic Shift.” Annual Report. School for Advanced Research. 2019-2020. Accessed September 15, 2021. https://sarweb.org/wp-content/uploads/2021/03/SAR-AR-2019-2020-web.pdf
  21. Asch, Andrew. “Fashion Industries Guild Raises $1.1 Million for Cedars-Sinai.” California Apparel News. October 10, 2013. Accessed September 9, 2021. https://www.apparelnews.net/news/2013/oct/10/fashion-industries-guild-raises-11-million-cedars-/
  22. KWDZ Manufacturing LLC. California Fashion Association. Accessed September 9, 2021. http://calfashion.org/kwdz-manufacturing-llc/
  23. David, Chelan. “Knitworks Design Zone.” Retail Info Systems. December 5, 2008. Accessed September 9, 2021. https://risnews.com/knitworks-design-zone
  24. David, Chelan. “Knitworks Design Zone.” Retail Info Systems. December 5, 2008. Accessed September 9, 2021. https://risnews.com/knitworks-design-zone
  25. “MMG Acquires KWDZ Manufacturing.” Fashion Manuscript. February 27, 2020. Accessed September 9, 2021. https://www.mannpublications.com/fashionmannuscript/2020/02/27/mmg-acquires-kwdz-manufacturing/
  26. David, Chelan. “Knitworks Design Zone.” Retail Info Systems. December 5, 2008. Accessed September 9, 2021. https://risnews.com/knitworks-design-zone
  27. David, Chelan. “Knitworks Design Zone.” Retail Info Systems. December 5, 2008. Accessed September 9, 2021. https://risnews.com/knitworks-design-zone
  28. Vera R. Campbell Foundation, Return of Private Foundation Exempt From Income Tax (Form 990-PF), 2018, Part XV, Line 1. Accessed September 5, 2021. https://projects.propublica.org/nonprofits/display_990/421719658/01_2020_prefixes_42-45%2F421719658_201812_990PF_2020012317059148
  29. Vera R. Campbell Foundation, Return of Private Foundation Exempt From Income Tax (Form 990-PF), 2018, Schedule B, Part I. Accessed September 9, 2021. https://projects.propublica.org/nonprofits/display_990/421719658/01_2020_prefixes_42-45%2F421719658_201812_990PF_2020012317059148
  30. Vera R. Campbell Foundation, Return of Private Foundation Exempt From Income Tax (Form 990-PF), 2018, Part I, Line 1. Accessed September 9, 2021. https://projects.propublica.org/nonprofits/display_990/421719658/01_2020_prefixes_42-45%2F421719658_201812_990PF_2020012317059148
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Nonprofit Information

  • Accounting Period: December - November
  • Tax Exemption Received: February 1, 2007

    • Available Filings

    Period Form Type Total revenue Total functional expenses Total assets (EOY) Total liabilities (EOY) Unrelated business income? Total contributions Program service revenue Investment income Comp. of current officers, directors, etc. Form 990
    2019 Dec Form PF $2,887,456 $2,185,941 $37,945,236 $2,000 $0 $0 $0 $0
    2015 Dec Form PF $1,873,855 $1,562,854 $25,830,673 $2,000 $0 $0 $0 $0 PDF
    2014 Dec Form PF $2,376,417 $1,425,020 $24,656,359 $2,000 $0 $0 $0 $0 PDF
    2013 Dec Form PF $3,644,482 $1,212,914 $23,721,274 $11,032 $0 $0 $0 $0 PDF
    2012 Dec Form PF $2,907,068 $1,145,302 $21,119,514 $18,742 $0 $0 $0 $0 PDF
    2011 Dec Form PF $5,304,309 $662,950 $19,336,899 $17,249 $0 $0 $0 $0 PDF

    Additional Filings (PDFs)

    Map image for Vera R. Campbell Foundation

    Vera R. Campbell Foundation

    337 S ANDERSON ST
    LOS ANGELES, CA 90033-3742