Nonprofits, Service Organizations & Committees
The three pillars of the Fairfax community – town government, local nonprofit organizations and the town’s business community – work cooperatively to foster the well being of the community.
Sustainable Fairfax
Sustainable Fairfax is a nonprofit educational organization supporting the philosophy that we must attend to the needs of the present without sacrificing the ability of future generations and the natural world to provide for their own needs.
The organization fosters educational programs to teach home-scale sustainability practices, hosts panels and forums on topics like landfill reduction, environmental practices, and clean energy, and provides support for collaborative projects like the FairBuck, Fairfax Zero Waste, the Plastic Bag Ban project, and GMO labeling.
Sustainable Fairfax also partners with other town organizations to provide community events like Streets for People and the Sustainable Fairfax-FOCAS Craft Faire.
www.sustainablefairfax.org
Fairfax Volunteers
Fairfax Volunteers is a town-sponsored group that meets town and community needs requiring volunteer effort. To date, projects have included:
construction of the Playground in Peri Park; various community events and celebrations; coordination of a Volunteer Flood Response Team after the Flood of 2006; annual creek cleanups; the Stream Life Awareness campaign; renovation of bridges throughout town; renovation of the Community Center; facilitation and support of Neighborhood Groups; administration of the Community Garden; installation of people and pet friendly doggie bag stations; coordination of CERT training; fostering the Fairfax Trails Project; and more.
www.fairfaxvolunteers.org
Circle Center
Circlecenter is dedicated to the discovery, development and delivery of our true gifts in service to others.
www.circlecenter.com
FOCAS
Fairfax Open Circle Arts and Sports (FOCAS) is a community program sponsored by Town of Fairfax. FOCAS offers baby, toddler and preschool programs; after school activities; teen & adult programs; and a kid’s summer camp.
www.fairfaxfocas.com
Fairfax Moms
Fairfax Moms is a local. grassroots group for parents of young children. Partnering with Fairfax FOCAS and the Town of Fairfax, the organization offers a streamlined way for new parents to connect with the established community of parents locally. New parenthood is an opportune time to invest in community and to build local networks.
www.fairfaxmoms.net
The Fairbuck Program
The FairBuck is a joint project of Sustainable Fairfax, the Town of Fairfax, and the Fairfax Chamber of Commerce . In the form of a coin, these trade tokens help create a more vibrant local economy while empowering residents and visitors to invest in Fairfax. Their purpose: promote shopping locally while creating a pool of surplus funds for micro grants supporting community projects.
Fairbuck on Facebook
Fairfax Open Space Committee (FOSC)
Our goal is to provide sanctuary for indigenous flora and fauna for future generations. We work to preserve the visual and environmental values of our community through the purchase of undeveloped land in and around Fairfax.
www.fairfaxopenspace.com
The Food Pantry
Held Saturday mornings at the Fairfax Community Church and sponsored by the Fairfax Volunteers, the Food Pantry originally developed as an extension of the San Francisco Food Bank. The Food Pantry – “with as little paperwork and as much fresh produce as possible” – provides some food security to those who need it in the community.
www.fairfaxvolunteers.org/the-food-pantry
Marin County Bicycle Coalition (MCBC)
Headquartered in Fairfax, the Marin County Bicycle Coalition has been steadily improving Marin County’s road and path facilities for walkers and bikers since 1998. Some of the impacts of MCBC advocacy are visible throughout Marin: permanent bike racks, bike lane striping, green-and-white bike route signs, road resurfacing, ‘Share The Road’ stencils, and so much more.
MCBC’s work improves our quality of life in many ways: increased opportunities for daily physical activity, teaching our children to be skilled and safe bike riders, reduced road congestion and greenhouse gas emissions, and transportation equity for our low-income neighbors.
www.marinbike.org
Ross Valley Rotary
Rotary’s main objective is service – in the community, in the workplace, and throughout the world. The Rotary Club of Ross Valley was chartered on May 21, 1925 and is one of the oldest clubs in Marin County. We have over 88 Years of Service. There are 34,416 Rotary clubs in over 200 countries & geographical areas. This is one of them!
www.rossvalleyrotary.org
Fairfax Library
The recently renovated Fairfax Library offers wi-fi access, comfortable chairs for reading or studying, free internet tutoring, book clubs, weekly storytimes, and a variety of programs for all ages. A large, up-to-date collection of books, books on CD, large-type books, DVDs, music CDs, magazines and newspapers is a valuable community resource. Spanish language materials for children, teens and adults are available, and some Spanish-speaking staff are available to assist.
The library hosts reading clubs, programs for children, and meeting rooms for organizations or tutoring.
www.marinlibrary.org/library-location/fairfax-library
Marin Museum of Bicycling
The Marin Museum of Bicycling is a bicycle history museum and cultural center. It also will be the new home of the Mountain Bike Hall of Fame. The Museum, slated to open in Spring 2014, is located in a 3,000 square foot facility in downtown Fairfax.
On display at the museum are bicycles from the earliest days to the present, with a focus on American-made bikes. Featuring bicycle-oriented events of all kinds, the Museum will host lectures, movies, and live TV coverage of events worldwide with the main hall seating up to 90 people.
www.mmbhof.org
Cittaslow
Cittaslow towns contain fewer than 50,000 people, and must meet specific requirements in these areas:
Environmental protection and sustainability
Local products
Hospitality
Infrastructure, road safety, bicycle paths
Historic buildings
New technology
Cultural and historical values and diversity
Unique town identity
www.cittaslowusa.org/chapter/fairfax-ca
Fairfax Chamber of Commerce
Not affiliated with either the national or state chambers, the Fairfax Chamber of Commerce reflects the values of the local community which in general has a much greener, more sustainable, less toxic and more organic approach to its community. The Chamber promotes a vibrant economic base while fostering community values, in cooperation with other local nonprofits and town government.
www.fairfaxchamberca.com