The nonprofit supports families in Santa Barbara and San Luis Obispo County 

CENTRAL COAST — The James W. Brabeck Youth Legacy Fund (JWBYLF) Buyer’s Coalition is seeking financial support for this year’s purchases.

The JWBYLF’s mission is to serve agriculture-related and at-risk youth in our community through scholarship and capital campaigns that will assist in influencing their futures. Through the JWBYLF Buyer’s Coalition, community members can make a difference by supporting local 4-H, FFA, and Grange, junior livestock exhibitors, and at the same time, help families in need of nutritious meals. 

The Buyer’s Coalition is seeking financial support in strengthening this fund which serves two direct purposes: 1. Purchase livestock projects from junior livestock exhibitors to provide economic assistance and a positive close to their fair experience. 2. Donate the meat to local charities to support families in need. 

Committee Chair of the Buyer’s Coalition, JoAnn Wall, said, “This group’s focus is to assist exhibitors by purchasing projects and also assist local families in need by putting this student-raised protein right back into our local food supply.”

All livestock meat purchased through the Buyer’s Coalition at both the Santa Barbara County and Mid-State Fairs will be donated to local charities, including Meals that Connect. The collaboration will put more than 60,000 pounds of protein into the hands of those helping others. 

“The seniors will be delighted with the gift of this meat,” said Elias Nimeh, Director of Meals that Connect. His team provides upwards of 1,000 daily meals to those in need. 

Tax-deductible charitable donations can be made at jwbylf.org. 

About James W. Braebeck Youth Legacy Fund

Since its inception in 2017, the JWBYLF has been instrumental in funding exhibitors at the California Mid-State Fair (CMSF) whose project animals have not been able to participate in the Junior Livestock Auction. In 2018, the JWBYLF donated more than $90,000 dollars to the CMSF Heritage Foundation in the name of Hugh Pitts, a longtime supporter of both agriculture and the CMSF. These funds are designated for capital building projects to benefit youth in agriculture. In 2019 the JWBYLF established the CMSF Legacy Project. This is the first time in the 76-year history of the CMSF there has been a fund established allowing for youth scholarship, capital campaigns and hardship funding for exhibitors. This is a monumental project that will live in perpetuity, funding these three major areas for years.