In an unprecedented act of giving, the San Manuel Band of Mission Indians will be donating the most money it has ever donated at one single time, $7.3 million, to 25 nonprofit organizations.

The donations will be meted out during the tribe's Forging Hope Community Luncheon at the National Orange Show in San Bernardino on Jan. 6.

Charities and other nonprofits have seen a significant decline in donations this year due to the flagging economy, so San Manuel decided to step up to the plate and help fill some of that gap, tribal Chairman James Ramos said.

"This is not the time to disengage and start pulling from these nonprofits," Ramos said.

Locally, St. Bernardine Medical Center, the American Red Cross Inland Empire Chapter and Aquinas High School, all based in San Bernardino, are receiving the biggest donations with $1 million, $500,000 and $200,000, respectively.

"We're extremely grateful," said Steven Barron, president of St. Bernardine Medical Center, which employs nearly 3,000 people and is one of two hospitals operated under the umbrella of parent corporation Catholic Healthcare West. The other hospital is Community Hospital of San Bernardino.

"We're part of a large company, and like most large companies, we're not able to borrow money right now to fund our operations," Barron said. "This million dollars will be extremely important to the operations of the medical center."

The hospital plans to use the money to support several of its programs, primarily its heart program, Barron said.

"We hope to provide some leading-edge technology that's not available anywhere else in our community," he said.

The tribe's biggest donation of $2.5 million is going to Northwest Indian College in Bellingham, Wa.

Supporting and promoting education in the Indian community is essential in fostering belief in oneself and an ability to accomplish whatever one sets out to do, Ramos said.

"Education is really an area that starts to set you apart and lift you out of certain economic conditions," said Ramos. "Once you have an education, nobody can take that away from you."

One San Bernardino-based nonprofit that has taken a drastic financial hit this year is the Time for Change Foundation, which operates two homeless shelters for women and their children in San Bernardino, Ramos said.

San Manuel is donating $100,000 to the nonprofit.

"It couldn't come at a more perfect time," said Kim Carter, executive director of the Time for Change Foundation. "Right now, with the economic chaos our whole country is in ... we're struggling to maintain our current operations."

She said the money will be used to maintain operations at the two homeless shelters and help fund the new Time for Change Foundation Counseling and Education Shelter on Arrowhead Avenue, which provides drug and alcohol treatment and trauma counseling services to homeless women.

"This opportunity from San Manuel, it's a godsend," Carter said.


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San Manuel beneficiaries

The following is a list of the other nonprofits that will receive donations, and the amount of each donation:

• Operation Safehouse: $10,000

• Highland Senior Center: $10,000

• Southern California Indian Center: $10,000

• National Indian Child Welfare Association: $10,000

• Trinity Children's Foundation: $10,000

• Olive Crest: $15,000

• Boys & Girls Club of the Victor Valley: $20,000

• YMCA of the East Valley: $20,000

• Moreno Valley Chamber of Commerce Military Action Committee/March Air Force Base: $25,000

• Operation Phoenix Foundation: $25,000

• Redlands Council PTA: $40,000

• Mary's Mercy Center: $50,000

• Sherman Indian High School: $50,000

• Juvenile Diabetes Research Foundation: $100,000

• Second Harvest Food Bank of San Bernardino and Riverside County: $100,000

• American red Cross Black Hills Chapter: $100,000

• Children's Fund: $100,000

• Northern Arizona University: $2 million

• Crafton Hills College Foundation: $150,000

• San Bernardino Valley College Foundation: $150,000