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This gathering convened by California Community Foundation, Jewish Community Foundation of Los Angeles, Southern California Grantmakers, & Youth Philanthropy Connect, was designed to develop, enhance, and catalyze youth & next gen philanthropy in our region and among participants. Attendees ranged greatly in experience, from those already deeply engaged in grantmaking to those just looking to get started! YPC was excited to provide this event for participants to connect, share experiences, and learn together! 
avatar for Gus Baden

Gus Baden

Team Kids & Baden Family Trust

Gus Baden’s involvement with Team Kids began when Hurricane Katrina struck New Orleans in 2005. He, and his friends, decided to participate in a city-wide LemonAid Stand to benefit the children that had been affected by nature’s destruction. His concept was that rather than having a neighborhood LemonAid Stand, it would be more efficient if they hosted a LemonAid stand at the local Albertsons. The manager there welcomed them because Gus and his friends told him that 100% of what they raised was going to go to the Boys and Girls Club of New Orleans and the Children’s Hospital of New Orleans. He applied his early aptitude for business by not charging a fixed price per glass, rather he asked for a donation. Imagine his surprise when some customers gave him $20.00 for a glass of lemonade! When he was 10, he went with his family and the Team Kids Youth Council to Mexico City to partner with a local philanthropy there, Debujano un Menanjo, to provide a day of sporting events, holiday toys, and most importantly, lunch to over 350 children that lived in the notorious “Dump City of Mexico City.” His teen years found him focused on his studies, but he always found time to mentor a friend or help out an elderly neighbor. As a Cal Poly Pomona student, Gus is studying International Business and continues to support worthy causes.

Currently, he is serving as a Team Kids staff member and involved with the Baden Family Trust. At Team Kids, he organized and implemented his first five-week Team Kids Challenge Program at Morse Elementary in Placentia, CA. In Fullerton he hopes to inspire even more kids to give back to their own communities.