Carlos Santana's Milagro Foundation will receive a three-year grant of $720,000.00 from the W.K. Kellogg Foundation of Battle Creek, Michigan, "to support low-income communities around the United States in their development of healthy alternatives for children in the areas of food, nutrition and health."

The Milagro Foundation will support programs serving some of the most vulnerable children in the United States. Milagro staff will seek out communities and community stakeholders who are undertaking a comprehensive approach to ensuring their children thrive by increasing access to Good Food -- food that is simultaneously healthy, green, fair and affordable, as defined by the Kellogg Foundation -- while also supporting nutrition education and fitness.

The Milagro Foundation chose to work on their first project in Marin City, California. Without a large grocery store or market in the community, The Marin Farmer's Market is currently in negotiations to start a weekly Marin Farmer's Market in Marin City in May. The Marin Farmers' Markets are non-profit and benefit farmers and the community.

The second part of the Marin City project is the development of a nutrition and health curriculum for children and their families in the schools as well as the establishment of school gardens to support the curriculum. Planning is underway with the collaboration of several Marin City and other Marin County agencies.

Other funding priorities for the Milagro Foundation through the Kellogg grant include the still devastated New Orleans/ Gulf Coast region, and American Indian communities. Some of the deepest pockets of childhood hunger and nutrition-related health problems in the country exist among American Indians residing on rural reservations.

The W.K. Kellogg Foundation was established in 1930. The organization supports children, families and communities as they strengthen and create conditions that propel vulnerable children to achieve success as individuals and as contributors to the larger community and society. Grants are concentrated in the United States, Latin America and the Caribbean, and in southern Africa. For further information, please visit the Kellogg Foundation website at www.wkkf.org.

Milagro Foundation Receives Grant

This month Carlos Santana made a rare and special visit to Eastside College Preparatory School, located in East Palo Alto, California. The visit took place on a beautiful sunny day, enabling Eastside students and their state-of-the-art campus to shine even brighter. Touring classrooms and talking with students was truly an inspiring experience for Mr. Santana. In a circle discussion Carlos and the kids shared views on impacting the world with love, light and compassion.

Eastside College Preparatory School is committed to opening new doors for students historically underrepresented in higher education.

Eastside's challenging and engaging curriculum enables students to discover their intellectual strengths, sharpen their academic skills, and embrace new opportunities in a culture of learning that supports the potential of every student to enter and succeed in a four-year college and beyond.

Eastside students who are the first in their families to go to college create a ripple effect, changing their own lives, the lives of their families, and the life of their community.

Carlos - Eastside College Prep Site Visit

People are what make Milagro special. People are what inspire us to give year after year. We have met so many angels who dedicate their lives to changing the world for children.
Angels like Carmen from Circulo de Vida who started the only cancer support program for Latino women and their families in the country;

Pediatrician Dr. Astrid Heger, an angel who began the Violence Intervention Program in East Los Angeles�we began funding Dr. Heger in 2000 when VIP was her glimmer of hope for the child who came to her when he had no one else to turn to. What began in a small portable as a respite from the horrors these children lived at home, has now grown into a full campus of permanent buildings with wrap around services for the 600 abused children each month that come to their clinic.

Angels like Jeannie Kortum who began Home Away from Homelessness in San Francisco; Geri Brooks from Sunburst Projects who was determined that underserved children with HIV/AIDS would have a summer camp experience like all other children and this would help them realize they aren�t living with this disease in isolation;

Angel Marilyn Price who started Trips for Kids when she saw that inner-city children rarely got to enjoy the outdoor open space pleasures of riding a bike along the Marin County mountain trails.

Angels like Dr. Ann Dean in South Africa who began a program to build a community for all of the AIDS orphans spread out over 200 miles; and Asha Pandy in Varanasi, India who began a school on the rooftop of her apartment building for a few street children, now numbering more than 300;

Chris Bischof is an angel who dreamed of a school for inner city children in East Palo Alto. Starting with eight students under a tree, Eastside College Prep now educates and mentors 250 students from 8am to 6pm and Saturdays. In a community where the highschool drop out rate was horrific, Eastside boasts 100% high school graduates and 100% acceptance to 4 year universities.

Milagro is 10 years old this month! Over the past 10 years, Milagro has supported children and youth in 35 states and 34 countries by granting $3,766,284.00 to 333 agencies working with children and youth. In every one of those 333 agencies, there are bright, dedicated, visionary people who are making the difference�

We are proud of our friends and the agencies they have created. We are proud to be Carlos Santana�s Milagro Foundation. Carlos lends his name, his voice and his presence to raise funds to help make a difference in the lives of children around the world. Together, along with all of you who have been supporting us, we CAN be the change in these children�s lives�Thank you for sharing our dream�

Shelley Brown, Executive Director and Ruthie Moutafian, Program Associate

Milagro Foundation Turns Ten!

On the evening of October 23rd, music icon and legendary performer Carlos Santana was honored with the ONEXONE Difference Award. Santana, an accomplished social activist and humanitarian, co-founded the Milagro Foundation with founding Board member Deborah Santana, to support organizations promoting the welfare of vulnerable children in the areas of health, education, and the arts and is deeply involved with Artists for a New South Africa, working to fight the African AIDS pandemic and care for children orphaned by the disease. For his work with these organizations and his decades-long history of profound dedication and personal generosity to charities around the world, ONEXONE is proud to honor Carlos Santana with the Difference Award.

The ONEXONE Foundation was founded in 2005 by Diesel Canada President, Joelle Berdugo Adler, to celebrate the life of her late husband Lou Adler.

Spearheading the U.S. initiative are Marc Joubert, President, and Skylar James, Managing Director, both formerly of LivePlanet, the production company founded by Matt Damon and Ben Affleck. The addition of Joubert and James will allow ONEXONE to have increased presence in the States, greater visibility for the issues, and to grow as an organization, supporting two new fundraising events in 2008; Ben Affleck hosted a benefit event in Calgary on June 14th, and Matt Damon brought the charity to American soil with the fundraising gala in San Francisco on October 23rd.

ONEXONE has made headlines for a good cause with an annual star-studded benefit gala held in Toronto during the Toronto International Film Festival. Matt Damon hosted the event in 2006, 2007, and hosted again on September 8, 2008. Last year’s event raised more than $3.5 million dollars in a single night, supporting ONEXONE’s charitable initiatives and philanthropic partners throughout the year.

Matt Damon has been a dedicated frontman for the foundation, not only acting as master of ceremonies for three years running, but taking an active role in both fundraising and fact-finding. Damon’s own charity, H2O Africa, which he founded in 2006, is a major philanthropic partner of the ONEXONE umbrella organization. And Damon has made two trips to Africa to visit the local children and communities in Zambia, Tanzania, and South Africa, and to gain first-hand knowledge of the crises ONEXONE works to alleviate.

“I want people to know that these problems can be solved, that it’s not impossible and it can be solved in our lifetime,” stated Damon when interviewed. “If we don’t do it, the outlook for the world is extremely bleak, and if we do, it will be truly wonderful as this is about the world that we’re leaving behind for our kids.”

Wyclef Jean has also demonstrated unwavering commitment to ONEXONE, serving as the music ambassador at the Toronto fundraising gala three years running and this year’s San Francisco event. Wyclef’s own Yéle Haiti is a philanthropic partner of ONEXONE, working to make a difference in the fields of education, health, environment, and community development. “The objective of Yéle Haiti is to restore pride and a reason to hope, and for the whole country to regain the deep spirit and strength that is part of our heritage” says Wyclef Jean.

In just three years ONEXONE has raised over $7 Million for its charitable partners, including H2O Africa, Yele Haiti, Millennium Promise, War Child, and Spread the Net. With its U.S. operations established, ONEXONE is committed to spending a portion of all funds raised on its American charitable partners.

ONEXONE

On October 16, 2008, Samsung's Four Seasons of Hope and retail partner Best Buy were joined by music legend Carlos Santana and San Rafael Mayor Al Boro as they donated $100,000 to Santana’s Milagro Foundation. The funds are being raised through a national retail program with Best Buy throughout the month of October. For every Samsung product sold at any Best Buy store, a portion of the proceeds are being donated to The Milagro Foundation to support under-represented and underprivileged children and youth in the areas of arts, health and education. The event garnered more than 14.3 million media impressions and more than $790,000 in PR Value!

The event on October 16 was held at Davidson Middle School in San Rafael, CA. The entire student body was invited to a special assembly where the Performing Stars of Marin, a Marin city organization that benefits from The Milagro Foundation, performed several routines for Santana & other special guests.

In addition, Steven Cook of Samsung and several area representatives from Best Buy presented the $100,000 donation to Carlos Santana and The Milagro Foundation. Local media outlets KGO-ABC and KNTV-NBC joined CNET/CBS Interactive, San Francisco Chronicle, SF Post Newspapers and 98.1 KISS FM on-site at the event and spoke with Carlos Santana about his relationship with Samsung’s Four Seasons of Hope and Best Buy.

Special thanks to Best Buy, Samsung’s Four Seasons of Hope team,Susan Knapp of IMS and Santana Management for planning and implementing this special event and making it such a success!

The Milagro Foundation Supports Aide for Recent Disasters: Save The Children, Doctors Without Borders and The American Red Cross

The Milagro Foundation Supports Save The Children’s immediate response to the children and families affected by Cyclone Nargis. Save the Children is one of the largest nongovernmental organizations at work in Myanmar and the first to respond to the disaster. Join The Milagro Foundation by supporting the efforts of Save the Children by donating today.
To learn more about Save The Children please visit the website: http://www.savethechildren.org

The Milagro Foundation believes in and supports the work of Doctors Without Boarders/Médecins Sans Frontières (MSF). MSF has worked in Myanmar since 1992. At present, 250 MSF staff are working in the Irawaddy Delta in the areas of Pyanpon, Bogaley, Haingyi, Pyinsalu, Tongwa, Labutta, Thingangon, and Chaungzu.
To learn more about Doctors Without Borders, please visit the website: http://www.doctorswithoutborders.org

Milagro attempts to heal people of China with the help of The American Red Cross. The American Red Cross has provided an initial contribution of $10 million to support the relief efforts of the Red Cross Society of China. These funds will be used to provide immediate relief including the purchase and distribution of relief supplies, coordination of logistics and transportation of disaster workers to the hardest hit areas.
To learn more about The American Red Cross visit the website at: http://www.redcross.org/

Bid on an Ultimate Santana package that will include 2 tickets and backstage passes to the Carlos Santana concert in San Francisco, 1st class round trip tickets to SFO, a 3 night stay, and an autographed PRS quitar, plus much more...

“IFS Spring Luncheon – Save the Date”
IMAGE FOR SUCCESS, a local clothing program for low-income women, children, and men, is announcing DEBORAH SANTANA, author of Space Between the Stars, will be the keynote speaker at the spring luncheon.
“Deborah Santana, through the Milagro Foundation, has supported the IFS KIDS program in the past.” says Deirdre Sheerin, IFS executive director. “We are thrilled to have her presence at our fundraiser.” The 6th annual luncheon will be held Friday, May 23, 2008 at the Embassy Suites in San Rafael. Two former clients will be honored. There will be a silent auction, lunch, raffle prizes and the keynote address. Early bird tickets $60 to May 5th, $65 to day of event. Reservations encouraged.
Donations of new and clean nearly-new clothing, shoes, and accessories are be accepted on Mondays, Wednesdays, and Fridays from 9:00 a.m. to noon, or by appointment. The program provides wardrobes to clients referred by over 60 social services agencies and schools in Marin County. For more information, call 472-5855 or go to www.imageforsuccess.org.

Legendary musician and philanthropist Carlos Santana will be the special guest performer for Samsung's seventh annual Four Seasons of Hope gala dinner on June 16, at New York's Cipriani Wall Street. The event will raise funds for Santana's non-profit Milagro Foundation - which serves under-represented children worldwide in the areas of health, education and the arts - and other charities affiliated with Samsung's Four Seasons of Hope.

Santana will help Samsung's Four Seasons of Hope honor sports legends Dan Marino, Boomer Esiason, Joe Torre, Arnold Palmer and Wayne Gretzky, as well as former New York City Mayor Rudy Giuliani for their continued philanthropic efforts with their respective charities.

"Santana brings such excitement and passion to every performance, we are thrilled to have him join us at our 7th annual gala," said D.J. Oh, President and CEO of Samsung Electronics America. "Samsung's Four Seasons of Hope applauds Carlos Santana for his passion and dedication to the Milagro Foundation. We are so proud to support his efforts and help raise money for such a wonderful cause." "I am honored to have been invited by Samsung to participate in the Four Seasons of Hope gala," Carlos Santana said. "Hope is something that we all truly cannot live without, and having the opportunity to help bring more of it into the world by performing for the important charities benefited by this event is a blessing.

Knowing that so many children and families will receive much needed support is inspiring to me, and I hope others are encouraged to give back as much as they possibly can." Samsung's Four Seasons of Hope gala attracts a star-studded roster of celebrities from the worlds of sports, entertainment and politics. The event will feature a silent auction of sports memorabilia and other items to raise funds for each participating celebrities' charities and foundations.

Guests and fans will have the opportunity to bid on an "Ultimate" Santana package that will include tickets and backstage passes to the Santana concert in San Francisco, three night stay in the Carlos Santana Suite at The Hotel Triton and an autographed Santana Guitar from Paul Reed Smith Guitars, which will be on display at the Samsung Experience in the Time Warner Center at Columbus Circle.

The highest bidder will also receive Carlos Santana strings, picks and an amp to complete the Santana experience. For those not attending the gala, you can bid online at www.gocharity.com/samsung until June 16.

Information about purchasing tickets for the seventh annual Samsung Four Seasons of Hope gala can be found on www.fourseasonsofhope.com.

About Samsung Electronics America, Inc.

Samsung Electronics Co., Ltd. is a global leader in semiconductor, telecommunication, digital media and digital convergence technologies with 2007 consolidated sales of US$103.4 billion. Employing approximately 150,000 people in 134 offices in 62 countries, the company consists of five main business units: Digital Media Business, LCD Business, Semiconductor Business, Telecommunication Business and Digital Appliance Business. Recognized as one of the fastest growing global brands, Samsung Electronics is a leading producer of digital TVs, memory chips, mobile phones and TFT-LCDs. For more information, please visit www.samsung.com.
About Samsung Electronics America, Inc.
Headquartered in Ridgefield Park, NJ, Samsung Electronics America, Inc. (SEA) markets a broad range of award-winning consumer electronics, information systems, and home appliance products; and oversees Samsung's North American operations, including Samsung Telecommunications America, LP, Samsung Semiconductor Inc., Samsung Electronics Canada, Inc. and Samsung Electronics Mexico, Inc. Its parent company, Samsung Electronics Co., Ltd., ranks #5 in the 2006 Consumer Electronics segment of the Fortune Magazine "America's Most Admired Companies," and ranks # 20 in the BusinessWeek "The Best Global Brand 100 2006." Samsung Electronics Co, Ltd. is a top patent holder, ranking second overall in the U.S. in 2006. Please visit www.samsung.com for more information.

The Milagro Foundation was established in 1998 by Deborah and Carlos Santana to globally serve under-represented and underprivileged children and youth in the areas of the arts, education and health. Milagro means "miracle," and the image of children as divine miracles of light and hope - as gifts to our lives - is the meaning of the name. Since its inception, the Milagro Foundation has granted nearly $3 million to non-profit programs making a difference in the lives of children in the Bay Area, across the United States, and around the world.

On October 9th, Shelley and Carlos along with Gerald Jampolsky and Diane Cirincione visited with Milagro supported families at National Hispanic University. NHU is the only accredited Latino college in the United States. President, Dr. David Lopez' vision is to want to grow the tiny, 600-student college on the East Side of San José, California and turn NHU into an elite school for the nation's future Hispanic leaders Milagro awarded $5000 scholarships to four deserving students.

Shahram and Brittany Bijan were married September 23, 2007. In lieu of wedding gifts Brittany and Shahram asked their wedding guests to donate to Deborah and Carlos Santana's Milagro Foundation. Their guests have donated over $5000 to date. The Bijans are the owners of Ora & Toast Restaurants in Mill Valley, CA. They also own the wine bar, First Crush in San Francisco. The Milagro Foundation is grateful for the Bijan wedding guests' generosity. We thank Brittany and Shahram for their compassion for children and their thoughtfulness in helping to make this donation happen. Congratulations Shahram and Brittany!

Carlos Santana believes in universal compassion. Deborah and Carlos Santana's Milagro Foundation partners with child-and youth-based programs in the U.S. and abroad to help at-risk and vulnerable populations receive what they need to survive and thrive. Right now, critical focus is the AIDS crisis in South Africa, where 1600 people are dying every day, and Los Angeles' Violence Intervention Program, which rescues child victims of abuse and neglect.

CARLOS SANTANA TO SPEAK AT THE CHALLENGE FUTURE PEACE CONFERENCE JUNE 30 AND PERFORM AT THE BENEFIT CONCERT ON JULY 1 IN BOCHUM, GERMANY CONFERENCE PATRONS ARE ARCHBISHOP DESMOND TUTU, ISRAELI VICE PREMIER SHIMON PERES AND BOCHUM LORD MAYOR OTTILIE SCHULZ PROCEEDS TO BENEFIT MILAGRO FOUNDATION AND DESMOND TUTU PEACE CENTRE June 30, 2007: Musician, philanthropist and world citizen Carlos Santana will attend the first annual Challenge Future Peace Conference in Bochum, Germany on Saturday, June 30 and perform at a special benefit concert the next day, Sunday July 1. Conference patrons are South African Archbishop Desmond Tutu, Israeli Vice Premier Shimon Peres – both Nobel Laureates – and Dr. Ottilie Scholz, the Lord Mayor of the City of Bochum. The Challenge Future organization and its sponsors will bequeath donations to, and concert proceeds will benefit, the Bay Area-based Milagro Foundation, founded by Carlos and Deborah Santana, and the Desmond Tutu Peace Center in Cape Town, South Africa.

Beginning at #AM on June 30, the Challenge Future Peace Conference takes place in the historic Jahrhunderthalle in Bochum, a city in the Federal State of North Rhine-Westphalia in western Germany’s Rhine-Rhur region. The Conference was conceived to stimulate multi-cultural and inter-faith dialogues and address global issues including initiatives to end poverty, spread social justice, strengthen children’s and women’s rights and protect the environment. Discussions will also center on Europe’s role in the world and the role of artists as peacemakers internationally. The intent is to make this the first of a yearly series of prestigious forums. In addition to the aforementioned patrons, among the dozens of dignitaries and world leaders whose attendance is confirmed are Mikhail Gorbachev, Lech Walesa, U.N. Secretary General Boutros Boutros-Ghali, Prince Hassan of Jordan and German Parliament President Norbert Lammert.

Carlos Santana, who will introduce Archbishop Tutu at the Challenge Future Peace Conference, said, “I am deeply grateful and supremely honored to be part of this superbowl of consciousness. To be in the company and in the presence of all these luminaries and entities of compassion, mercy and forgiveness fills my heart with hope that the Supreme One has a divine master plan for the highest good of life, people and the planet.”

Challenge Future’s benefit concert is set for 8PM on July 1 at Bochum’s Ruhr Congress. Rock and Roll Hall of Famer Carlos Santana will sit in with acclaimed Beninese singer-songwriter Angelique Kidjo and German music superstar Peter Maffay. Yusuf Islam (Cat Stevens) is also scheduled to perform, among other acts. Both the concert and main conference are under the direction of Challenge Future founder Sascha Hellen, who is partnering on logistics with World Vision, an international charitable organization overseeing projects globally.

Concert proceeds benefit The Desmond Tutu Peace Centre, a landmark institution aimed at using the experience of the South African people and the example of Desmond Tutu to inspire a new generation of visionary peace builders, and the Milagro Foundation. Since the Santanas established Milagro in 1998, it has granted over $2 million to agencies and programs worldwide serving children and youth in the areas of health, education and the arts.

For more information, log on to www.santana.com

Solving medical and ecological problems by bringing fuel-efficient stoves to the indigenous people of Guatemala

The Milagro Foundation Board voted to fund 10 of our existing agencies and 3 new agencies by granting $137,580.00 this month.

These are some of the agencies we have funded: Hand in Hand- bilingual bicultural schools for Jewish and Arab children in Israel; Loving Paws-provides trained dogs for disabled children; the Canal Alliance Youth Development tutoring and mentoring program; Felecia Gaston's Performing Stars in Marin City; the Duffy Hughes Memorial Stove Project in Guatemala which builds safe ventilated stoves inside the huts of poor families; Shared Hope which buys back children who are sold into prostitution and sexual slavery by their families, educates and houses them in India, the Dominican Republic, Fiji, Jamaica and South Africa.

New grantees include Ingwavuma Orphan Care in South Africa which Deborah and Carlos visited. We are supplying them with 100 water rollers. Circulo Vida in the Bay Area provides counseling services for Latino children who have parents with cancer.