Ose Family Community Service Award

Generations of Giving

Enlow and Melena Ose have given generously to the community they love. Over and above their financial contributions, Ose family members have logged hundreds of hours of board service to a long list of local organizations, in the knowledge that it takes engaged boards to build strong nonprofits. Recognizing the importance of growing philanthropy generally in the region, the Oses were early supporters of the Sacramento Region Community Foundation, and Melena joined the board to help promote the work of the Foundation. Through the charitable funds they established at the Foundation—the Ose Family Fund, the Enlow and Melena A. Ose Endowment Fund, and the Ose Fund for the Arts—Enlow and Melena have supported their passions for the arts and culture, education, and numerous nonprofits that contribute to a thriving community. “Our Foundation endowment funds will continue to support nonprofits in our community far into the future,” said Mrs. Ose. 

The Oses have passed along their values of giving back to the community to their children, grandchildren, and now great-grandchildren. Their desire to extend the habits of giving and serving to new generations led the Ose family to envision and support a program that recognizes local youth who are active in the community. In 2014, the Foundation launched the Ose Family Community Service Award at area high schools to encourage, promote, and establish a culture of sustained volunteerism and community service. Each spring, participating high schools select a graduating, college-bound senior who has demonstrated outstanding commitment to community service, and the Ose Family Community Service Award helps defray the awardee’s college expenses.

Always the champion of the Sacramento Region Community Foundation, the Ose family continues to find ways to use the Foundation to achieve wide-ranging philanthropic goals. As Mrs. Ose remarked, “You make it possible to do so much for so many.”