-President Trump's recent order to freeze federal funding is highlighting the vulnerability of nonprofits that rely on federal assistance.

And for those that don't, like the Mayor's Fund for Las Vegas Life, it can mean that their donors will face increased pressure to give from the nonprofits that now need to fill their budget gaps.

Former Las Vegas Mayor Carolyn Goodman established the Mayor's Fund for Las Vegas Life as a means for businesses, foundations, and individuals to invest in programs that address the city's challenges and improve residents' quality of life, but now that Shelley Berkley is Mayor, what happens to that fund?

It's one of several questions we asked Sallie Doebler, CEO of the Mayor's Fund.

I want to start with the transition of a new mayor into the city of Las Vegas and how that impacts this fund.

Are there concerns about how people are going to view it?

(Sallie Doebler) I think that's kind of the misinterpretation sometimes of the Mayor's Fund.

So the fund was started in 2017 by Mayor Carolyn Goodman, who came back from a mayor's conference in Philadelphia, who also has a Mayor's Fund, and introduced this vehicle that would help the City with some of their budget gaps and to help expand their programming for the residents.

However, we are now a separate 501(c)(3).

We have our own board.

We have our own advisory committee.

They're all community leaders.

And so the the mayor is really somebody we work with, don't work for.

So we work with the mayor, the city council, the departments.

We find what their needs are, but we do know that the mayor is going to be very, very supportive of the Mayor's Fund because she is deeply committed to making sure we can do everything we can to benefit the residents.

-What is the funding that's involved in this fund?

-Well, so we really work off donations.

And so we can use cash donations.

We can use in-kind.

We rely on the private sector--foundations, philanthropic groups, corporate foundations.

We like to work very holistically and find out what's going to be important to our donors.

The City has a vast array of different initiatives, programs that they execute very, very well.

So we're almost like matchmakers.

We take what's important to our donors and then we match it up with what the City really has need to do and can execute well.

And that's really how we match up our initiatives and our donations.

-And these are programs that cannot be funded by the city entirely?

-Yes, correct.

You know, there was a significant change with the ARPA fund sunsetting, which has affected many municipalities, many nonprofits, and there's always budget gaps.

It also allows us to create some programs that we think could be important that the City would like to execute but couldn't because of budget issues.

-I imagine that some people may hear, Mayor's Fund for Las Vegas Life, why would I want to give any money to that mayor?

I didn't vote for her.

Some people might think that.

Do you come across that?

-You know, we do when they don't understand the purpose of our organization.

And the reality is, is that no matter who the mayor is, there are kids that need help.

There are still people that are homeless.

And so we're not focused on the political.

We're very apolitical with all that.

We're focused on making sure that we help people.

-What do you believe some of the biggest accomplishments of this fund have been?

-Well, when you look at the past even like six, seven years, multiple.

I'm particularly proud of what we've done at the Courtyard Homeless Resource Center.

There's an animal kennel facility down there.

It's unique because, as we know, homeless folks, sometimes the only companionship they have is that animal, and they won't leave their animal on the street if that means that that's what they would have to do to get resources.

So it's unique in that they're able to bring their pets in.

We upgraded that facility.

So we installed a shade covering for the turf, cooling in the summer, heating in the wintertime, and so now they can come in and leave their pets, feel secure.

And holistically, now they can go in and get the resources that they need to try to change their lives.

We've done, you know, many other things, like the hockey clinics.

I'm very excited about having accomplished that, because I think that we're looking at things that are important to changing people's lives.

And particularly with kids, we have a big focus on that.

One of the things that we've done recently is we got a large donation of used computers from the Hard Rock, Mirage before they closed down, which the City repurposed.

AT&T Foundation gave us a significant donation, so we were able to load them with software, and now the City is giving those computers for free to students, seniors, organizations, families that otherwise would not have that opportunity to be able to have that digital connection.

-I want to go back to the hockey camps.

These are not just any hockey camps.

They are specifically for girls.

-The grant as we proposed it to the Golden Knights was for girls, which is the ultimate end result that we'd like to see for the girls league.

Of course, we want to be inclusive, so we did allow the boys to be in the clinics and within the big clinic that we did at Lorenzi Park.

But as far as the girls league, that will be for girls.

I'd like to be doing that with some of the other sports, like WNBA sports, and that's what we're looking forward in the next year is trying to find ways to make that even more inclusive with some of the sports.

-We talked about this off camera, but will you elaborate on how this helps businesses as well, in addition to the philanthropy that is being provided.

-The issues that we have in our community affect all of us.

And in many cases, we're working with employees of these businesses.

We're giving them services that the businesses themselves cannot do.

We give the opportunity for business and public entities to work together for the good of the community.

So holistically, we all benefit because, at the end of the day, we're helping people who need help.

-Can you break that down what that looks like in the case of the Golden Knights, for example?

How does this, these clinics and this league, impact them as a business?

-You know, Kerry Bubolz, the president of the Golden Knights, will tell you that this is a community sport, being involved in the community.

And so they're very engaged with making sure that they make their mark and show that they're out there helping the community.

And at the same time, we're also helping to promote the sport of hockey.

So when you look at it from that standpoint, we touch those things that they care about, which is making sure that they show that they care about the community, and then we also help them with promoting the sport that's done so much for our city.

-And create a pipeline, perhaps, to a future hockey player or someone who buys tickets to the game.

-100%.

So they may-- these girls may turn out to be hockey players.

Who knows where it will be in 10 years?

At the very least, they will probably want to go to a lot of games.

-I want to go back to the Courtyard Homeless Resource Center.

A lot of funding has come from the Mayor's Fund for that.

Now, the current mayor has mentioned that she does not think that that resource center is doing enough to address homelessness, in particular, with the mental health aspect that's part of this issue.

How does that impact your fund and its future funding in this area?

-You know, homelessness is a huge problem for most of the major cities in this country, and there's always improvements that can be made in any program.

The Courtyard has been servicing 6,500 people every year, but this is just not a city of Las Vegas problem.

So we really welcome, I think, as a community, we welcome the additional support that's going to be coming in with the support of the State, Clark County, and the Resort Association as they build additional facilities, because this is just not in the city of Las Vegas.

You know, we think that we will look for anything that we can do.

The numbers for homelessness are staggering, and so the City has done what it can within the budget that it can.

We'll continue to find those small projects.

We can't cure homelessness, but we could certainly make sure those animals were comfortable and created a kind of a safety valve for those guests coming in that needed help.

-So if I'm interpreting it correctly, you'll listen to what she's saying, but it doesn't ultimately impact whether you will continue to fund the Courtyard.

-Well, we definitely want to support the City of Las Vegas, and that is a City of Las Vegas facility.

So our job would be to find what we can do to help them with that facility and how can we help improve and be part of the solution.

But recognizing it's a huge problem, we're a small nonprofit, we'll look for ways that we can make an impact where we really feel like we're making a difference.

-Perhaps the most recent impact that this fund has made is in the sculpture of the Goodmans, former Mayor Oscar Goodman, former Mayor Carolyn Goodman, in front of City Hall, 11 feet tall, bronze, beautiful.

-Larger than life.

[laughter] -As the Goodmans are.

-Absolutely.

-Now, to those who would say, Maybe that money could have gone to something else, to the homeless, perhaps.

Why is that part of this fund?

What would you say?

-This was a really unique project.

I think it's a good example about why it's important for the fund to be an independent entity from the city.

The city employees cannot solicit donations.

We can solicit donations and then grant it back to the city.

This was a tribute project, and so we went to the folks that were the close friends of the Goodmans, and it gave them an opportunity to do something for them to show their appreciation.

So this is going to be a testimony for in perpetuity, as long as City Hall is standing there, and the donors were very clear that this was the purpose of this entire project.

And I will tell you, this is the easiest and the most fun fundraising project I've ever had, because everybody wanted to honor the Goodmans.

And where would we be without the Goodmans here for 20 years, 25 years?

What does-- what would our city look like without them?

-And this will certainly serve to remind future generations of their contributions.

And there is an argument for public art and its value in a community.

Now, in terms of art and its importance in Las Vegas, how do you make people aware of how Las Vegas compares to the rest of the country, other cities, about this presence, its presence, and is this something that you will be talking to legislators about this upcoming legislative session?

-Yeah, public art is really important.

It's also important to the city.

It's important to the state.

Obviously, there's a huge movement in the Arts District to kind of get that back to the state, where you have artists down there making it a thriving creative opportunity.

We feel very strongly about it, and we're going to be more engaged with it this year, as far as the public art, for so many reasons.

Psychologically, art improves a community.

People feel prouder about their communities when they have art.

There are so many benefits.

And I think, philanthropically, we just need to make that community aware of how important it is to be able to create that kind of beauty within our community, in our city.

-So what will your message be up in Carson City?

-That's really important to be able to-- while we look at all those issues, and everything's important.

I mean, there's so much need in our region, but it's also important to do things that start to beautify the community, because that's the beginning of so many other things that will really help that population.

-Sallie Doebler with the Mayor's Fund for Las Vegas, thank you for joining Nevada Week.

-It was a pleasure.

Thank you for the opportunity, Amber.