Bill and Barbara Tellman

Tellman Family Fund

From the moment that Bill and Barbara met at Stanford University, where he was studying to be a doctor and she to be a nurse, they have held a shared compassion to help others that has lasted throughout their 51 years of marriage. Over the years they both have volunteered for and given to causes where they saw a need.

Bill and Barbara continue to volunteer locally, including the Auburn Ravine Terrace assisted living facility, where Bill is a current board member, and the Interfaith Food Closet, where Barbara is a former board member. They have also traveled afar spending time in Anchorage, Alaska to work at the VA hospital there and volunteered nearly a year in Afghanistan working for CARE.

In 2014 Bill and Barbara opened the Tellman Family Fund at Placer Community Foundation after learning about PCF from some friends. Before this they would try to work out where their philanthropic dollars should go and it was rather hodgepodge and difficult to know if they were doing the best with what they had to give.

“We always talk about my father,” explains Bill, “because he must have given to a hundred different organizations. He would send five dollars to anyone who asked with no homework first and we don’t think that was the best way of making your donations work.”

Bill and Barbara like the concept of giving to PCF because it can consolidate their giving in a way that makes it more meaningful. They have confidence that PCF has removed the guesswork for them and it makes wise use of their funds, providing maximum impact on the community.

“We’ve given to the Community Needs Fund and the money is well spent where PCF identifies the needs, which works great for us.” says Barbara, “We feel that, with their excellent staff and board, PCF is very well managed and they magnify what we can do in the community.”

Compassion for others is what led Bill and Barbara to the medical field, it’s one of the things that drew them together, and it’s what leads them to the philanthropy they are involved in today. With the Tellman Family Fund, they make conscientious, caring partners for the work that PCF does in the community.