b'Dear Friends of Puente, Thank you for supporting us and the South Coast community during 2020! This has been the most challenging year in our 22 years of service. The unprecedented pandemic and the CZU Wildfire affected individuals and families emotionally and economically, leaving no one unscathed. We live in a beautiful rural community that offers many opportunities, but also presents complex challengesparticularly for low-income families, first-generation college students, low-wage workers, senior citizens, farmers and farmworkers, and those limited by their immigration status. The requests for services and support from Puente doubled in the last eight months. Despite these challenges, the people we are privileged to support have enormous strengths. It is their collective engagement that makes Puente a vibrant organization.What makes us the proudest:Throughout the COVID-19 pandemic, we have adapted our programs to keep our partici-pants safe while innovating ways to provide as many services as possible. We have also created new programs to meet the needs of our community, including delivering groceries and medications for our 55-and-older community members and those with compromised immune systems. We distributed personal protective equipment to farms, ranches, and families. We provided groceries, meals, and financial assistance to those infected by the virus, and we partnered with San Mateo County to conduct COVID-19 testing.We launched a COVID-19 Relief Fund to provide support for undocumented immigrants and mixed-status families who were excluded from the Federal CARES Act and to support individuals who lost their jobs or had reduced work hours due to the pandemic. Since April, Puente has provided $252,857 in financial and rental assistance through its COVID-19 Relief Fund and has assisted a total of 277 households. During the CZU August Lightning Complex Fire, Puente assisted the San Mateo County Human Services Agency and the Red Cross to staff the evacuation centers. We registered evacuees for hotel vouchers, provided essential items for evacuees, and distributed gift cards for restaurants, clothing stores, and grocery stores. Puentes Fire Relief Fund raised over one million dollars. Puente is still providing financial assistance to those who lost their homes and replacing lost wages for those who were unable to work during the evacuation.We led the South Coast Census campaign, surpassing the 2010 response rate of 33 percent, reaching 51 percent until the pandemic forced us to curtail our efforts.Our Behavioral Health and Recovery Services Team saw 35 percent more households and 17 percent more individuals than the previous year.We invite you to volunteer your time and expertise and to invest in a better future for all the residents of Pescadero, La Honda, San Gregorio, and Loma Mar. Puente relies on you to continue building the bridge to a community with equitable access to education, health, and economic security. On behalf of all of us at Puente, thank you! Rita Mancera,Executive DirectorMark Velligan,President of the Board Directors2'