Open Letter to Community: A Joint Statement from Juntos Community and The Denver Foundation

Our two organizations met recently in the spirit of healing and collaboration and are proud to come together to deliver this open letter to the community. We met to address disagreements between our organizations that had surfaced following a new due diligence process the foundation instituted in response to the challenging environment we are all facing. Unfortunately, this caused significant distress to the undocumented communities served by Juntos Community and the organization’s program operations. 

Over the past year, our two organizations have been challenged by threats to our city and state, to our nonprofits and foundations, and to our country’s foundational values of free speech and freedom – threats that ultimately affect all the communities we serve in Metro Denver. This is a particularly difficult moment for immigrant communities. It is in this context, with the unanimous support of The Denver Foundation’s Board of Trustees, that the foundation reaffirmed its commitment to standing with our immigrant neighbors. The foundation provided resources to immigrant-serving organizations and, with legal counsel’s advice, developed a due diligence process to mitigate any legal risks posed by these growing threats. These efforts resulted in expectations that Juntos Community conform to preemptive compliance standards that do not reflect its role as a community-rooted organization led by and accountable to directly impacted people. Juntos Community and The Denver Foundation both affirm that this experience reveals a critical tension between institutional risk management and community self-determination. This moment underscores the need for philanthropy to empower immigrant communities to resist systems of control.

The implementation of this evolving process caused a significant delay in getting needed resources to Juntos Community. The Denver Foundation apologizes for this delay, and the resulting inconvenience, disruption, and harm it caused. This process is now streamlined and should be a more seamless experience for our nonprofit partners. Maintaining the right relationship requires honoring the self-determination of community-led organizations, whose work must remain responsive to community. Each organization must choose for itself its risk tolerance and how to respond to changing political climates. The Denver Foundation’s funding decisions are not based on those independent choices.

The Denver Foundation commits to sustained and transparent efforts aimed at rebuilding trust with our communities. To move forward in right relationship, The Denver Foundation and Juntos Community will co-host a convening for immigrant-serving nonprofit partners in the coming weeks to engage in open dialogue, share what they are seeing on the ground, and inform philanthropic practices rooted in lived experience rather than institutional risk alone. This convening will also intentionally invite funders and philanthropic leaders in a shared conversation about the role of philanthropy in standing in solidarity with community-serving organizations—beyond dollars—through relationship, trust, advocacy, and public alignment with community needs. Together, we will discuss a structure for necessary resources so we are prepared to help immediately if we see increased federal activity in Metro Denver. 

Within the next six months, the foundation will activate its regular, community-informed feedback and listening processes, articulate guiding principles that affirm nonprofit independence and community self-determination, and continue clarifying internal practices to ensure legal and compliance considerations take into account programmatic partnerships and community trust. As part of this listening work, the foundation will also dedicate additional resources for technical assistance to nonprofit organizations to navigate the threats, informed by community input gathered through convenings and listening sessions with nonprofit partners. As part of this commitment, the foundation’s senior leadership, including the CEO, will continue to engage and grow relationships with nonprofit partners—spending time in community, visiting programs, and building relationships without funding decisions on the table. These commitments are enduring practices that reflect the foundation’s responsibility, as a community foundation, to stand with the community over time and across political climates.

We are living in uncertain and dangerous times. We see it in Los Angeles, Chicago, Minneapolis, and other cities. We see it every day right here in Denver as ICE uses more aggressive strategies that involve forceful enforcement actions, violate due process rights, and separate families. Now is the time for unity. The Denver Foundation and Juntos Community commit to working together to protect our communities and ensure they are getting the resources they need. Together, we can confront any threats our community faces and build a more inclusive and equitable city and state. 

Sincerely, 

Javier Alberto Soto, President and CEO, The Denver Foundation 

Luis Antezana, Founder and CEO, Juntos Community  

Lisa Zúñiga Ramírez, Immediate Past Board Chair, The Denver Foundation 

Jose Martinez-Castellanos, Board Chair, Juntos Community