​An early Happy Valentine’s Day to all. Remember to do something extra nice for someone on February 14th. February is a bittersweet month for our community as this year marks the third anniversary an arsonist torched our Community Center. We lost our dear building, but the real center of our community is the people, and true to form, our community has responded and is in the process of planning and constructing a new building for our community. 

 Community Center Rebuilding Update The Gualala Community Center (GCC) was awarded a $1,000,000 federal grant in November 2025 for the rebuilding of the Community Center. This Federal Community Project Grant is administered through the Rural Development division of the Agricultural Department of the federal government (USDA). The grant has been appropriated and passed into law, and we are now preparing an application that describes what we plan to build and what we expect it to cost. Reef Atwell-Smith, the Community Programs specialist at the USDA Rural Development office in Santa Rosa was in Gualala on Wednesday, February 4th, for his first site visit. Volunteers had staked out the footprint for the new building and the container corral so everyone could see the actual building site and imagine a new Community Center arising from the ashes. After a tour of the site, Reef met with members of the GCC Board and the Rebuild committee to answer questions about the next steps in having the grant awarded. There are many documents to complete and questions to answer before GCC gets a green light to begin the actual construction. Everyone who attended was encouraged by Reef’s comments and offers of help at every step of the way.

GCC Membership Update 
 As of Dec 31, 2025, GCC had 663 members. Memberships run from January 1st through December 31st. So, people need to renew in January to continue their membership. As of February 6, 2026, GCC had a total of 277 paid memberships. That means that 386 members did not renew! GCC depends on members for the success of the organization and help in supporting a variety of philanthropic projects from funding scholarships for High School Seniors to funding for three local Food Banks. If you have not renewed your membership, please do so. Print and complete the form below and mail it with a check to GCC at P.O. Box 263 Gualala CA 95445 or drop it off on any Tuesday morning at Pay N Take or the 1st and 3rd Saturdays of the month during the Pay N Take sale. Volunteer Opportunities The paid staff of GCC includes a part-time bookkeeper, a part-time facilities manager, and a part-time janitor. However, GCC is an organization managed and run by volunteers. There is a seven-member Board of Directors who is responsible for the fiscal and operational management of the GCC Corporation. Volunteers are the key to the success of GCC’s programs, and they provide all the “people” hours for the major fundraising activity, Pay ‘n’ Take. 

Volunteer Opportunities
Volunteers have also taken the lead in the rebuilding efforts with all the principles donating their time and expertise which amounts to thousands of hours and thousands of dollars saved. How can you help? GCC is looking for volunteers who can take an active role in making GCC the best 501 (c) 3 organization it can be. We are looking for volunteers to form and serve on the following committees: Membership; Marketing, Media & Publicity; Fund Raising, Finance, and someone to serve as Volunteer Coordinator. Please consider helping your Community Center grow and prosper. 

Website Update The new GCC website is almost ready to launch. We are fine tuning it and making sure we exterminate all the bugs. We anticipate it will be up and running by February 15th.

February GCC Board Meeting As always, we invite you to attend our next Board meeting on Wednesday, February 11th at 2:30 at the Gualala Baptist Church, 37300 Church Street, Gualala. We are interested in your ideas, feedback, and participation.

Best wishes from your Gualala Community Center Board of Directors.
Janet Pierucci, President, Gualala Community Center Board of Directors.
GCC Board Members: Vice President, Darla Buechner Secretary: Laverne Hancock
Treasurer: Colby Bibb,  Member: Paul Cupich,  Member: George Provencher, Member: Whyte Owen

​Happy New Year to all Gualala Community Center (GCC) Members!  Wild weather kicked off the New Year but now the coast is drying out, and the sunny days are back.

Rebuilding update:
Although the GCC physical site at Center Street has not changed in the last few months, that doesn’t mean work on the rebuilding project has stopped.  During this phase of the project, most work being done is paperwork.  Please be assured that GCC is striving to move the rebuilding project forward without delay.  Click to read the rebuilding update.

Federal Grant:
GCC was contacted by a representative of USDA Rural Development office in Santa Rosa on January 5th who explained the next steps in securing the GCC grant of one million dollars which has been funded by Congress and fully allocated.  GCC Board members are in the process of completing the next phase of the paperwork.

Donations and Account Balances:
Our community has been very generous in their support of the rebuilding of the Gualala Community Center building.  Recently we received a $300,000 matching grant and so far, $225,000. has been received toward that grant.  We currently have $2,394,554. in the rebuild fund and $814,522 in the general fund some of which may be transferred to the rebuild fund.

Website:
The revised GCC website will likely be up and running by February 1st.  Karen Wilder, our web designer, has been working diligently to produce a user-friendly and welcoming site.

January GCC Board meeting:
As always, your GCC Board of directors invite you to attend our upcoming Board meeting on January 14th at 2:30 pm at the Gualala Baptist Church, 37300 Church Street, Gualala, CA.
Best wishes for 2026 from your Gualala Community Center Board of Directors.

Janet Pierucci, President, Board of Directors, Gualala Community Center
GCC Board Members:
Vice President: Darla Buechner         Member: Paul Cupich
Secretary: Laverne Hancock               Member: George Provencher
Treasurer: Colby Bibb                          Member: Whyte Owen