Altura Foundation Awards $80,000 to Eight Riverside County Small Businesses Through 2026 Small Business Empowerment Grants
Record applications led the Foundation to grow this year’s awards from five grants to eight, bringing the program’s total community investment to $280,000 since 2020
(Riverside, CA) November 9, 2026 – The Altura Foundation, the charitable arm of Altura Credit Union, has awarded $80,000 in Small Business Empowerment Grants, $10,000 each, to eight locally owned businesses across Riverside County. This year’s awards bring the Foundation’s total investment through the program to $280,000 in 28 local small businesses since it launched in 2020. The recipients were honored on October 22 at an awards night at Route 30 Brewing Company in Riverside, itself a past grant recipient.
The Foundation had planned to award five grants this year. After receiving more than 170 applications, the most in the program’s history, the Foundation board approved eight awards instead. Applications came in from across every area Altura serves throughout Riverside County.
“No matter what the economy looks like, small businesses always need more support, and this year our community showed up in a big way,” said Abby Ulm, director of the Altura Foundation. “We were blown away by the stories in these applications. These owners are pouring their hearts into their businesses and their neighborhoods, and we just couldn’t stop at five.”
The 2026 Small Business Empowerment Grant recipients are:
- Casa de Luna – Riverside
- Gracie Jiu-Jitsu – Indio
- Herbert Healing Marriage and Family Counseling – Temecula
- Medgracia – Hemet
- Old Oak Sourdough – Murrieta
- Raul & Family Farms – Riverside
- Salt Studios – Riverside
- Victoria Community Counseling – Riverside
This year, the Foundation set out to make the grants more accessible than ever. It replaced its paper application with a simpler online process and promoted the program through presentations to chambers of commerce, city agencies, and entrepreneurial associations across the region, along with direct outreach to Altura members.
Grants were open to for-profit businesses with 10 or fewer employees, and each applicant submitted both a written narrative and a video. The Foundation examined each business’s financials for stability and profitability, and a panel of Altura board members and executives scored each one on its overall strength, its alignment with the Foundation’s values, and the intended use of funds.
“At its heart, the Altura Foundation exists to serve the underserved and to promote wellness in every sense: financial, social, and overall well-being,” noted Ulm. “That mission runs through this year’s class of recipients, including two counseling practices caring for the emotional health of individuals and families, a family farm partnering with local elementary schools, and a jiu-jitsu gym helping its community stay strong and healthy. Together, all eight businesses show that a thriving community and thriving small businesses go hand in hand.”
The Foundation launched the program in 2020 in response to the impact of COVID-19 on small businesses. Now running every two years, it awarded 10 grants that first year and five each in 2022 and 2024. Recipients over the years have spanned food service, fitness, early childhood education, and more.
Route 30 Brewing Company, host of the awards ceremony for the past two grant cycles, is one of those businesses. Its grant helped it survive the pandemic. Over the following years, the brewery expanded, now partnering with Altura for their events, and created El Plano—a Mexican lager that raises funds directly for the Altura Foundation.
“This program has opened our eyes to so many incredible small businesses right here in our region, and we love connecting them to our employees and members,” said Ulm.
The Altura Foundation is the charitable arm of Altura Credit Union, dedicated to serving the underserved and promoting financial, social, and overall wellness throughout Riverside County. The Foundation carries out that mission through two signature programs: college scholarships and the Small Business Empowerment Grant.
Founded in 1957, Altura Credit Union is a member-owned financial cooperative serving Riverside County with more than 220,000 members across 23 branches. As a certified Community Development Financial Institution (CDFI), Altura is committed to expanding access to fair, affordable financial services for underserved individuals and communities throughout the region. In addition to providing accessible loan products, deposit accounts, and personalized financial guidance, Altura reinvests in the community through financial education and initiatives that expand economic opportunity for its Members, employees, and neighbors. Membership is open to anyone who lives, works, worships, or attends school in Riverside County, as well as U.S. military, government, and civilian personnel at March Air Reserve Base and retirees of the U.S. Armed Forces. For more information, visit www.AlturaCU.com or call 1-888-883-7228.