The interns hired through the California City Management Foundation’s first inaugural grants from the Judy L. Kelsey Memorial Fund are hard at work in the Cities of Gustine and Petaluma this summer.
The Judy L. Kelsey Memorial Fund offers two $5,000 grants to local governments to fund summer internships. Half the funding for this program comes from the estate of Judy Lyn Kelsey, a longtime California city manager with a passion for uplifting others. At the beginning of her career, Kelsey interned in the City Manager’s Office in the City of San Dimas and participated in a grant program for the Los Angeles Police Department. She saw great value in these experiences and donated part of her estate to enable internships for individuals with a passion for local government. Her estate funds one $5,000 grant annually. CCMF is matching her gift to provide a second $5,000 grant.
The City of Petaluma was able to hire Janelle Barazza using the Judy Kelsey award. Janelle started on June 30, 2020. She has been supporting the city’s Climate Action Commission’s project to develop a Climate Emergency Framework. Additionally, she is helping out in the Economic Development and Open Government Division. Janelle’s assistance on the Climate Action Commission has been very valuable since staff resources to support the project have been limited.
In the City of Gustine, Grant Dunford was selected out of a pool of nine candidates. Grant, a senior at Cogswell Polytechnic University in San Jose, is working with Gustine’s finance manager and human resources director. He is currently helping pull necessary documents for the FY 2019-2020 audit.
Please visit the Judy L. Kelsey Memorial Fund webpage for more information or contact jon@tripepismith.com with any questions about the grants.