Early Executive Director Bob Miner Led with Warmth, Humor, and a Love for People
- Alfredo Camarena
- Feb 1
- 2 min read
Updated: 4 days ago
In 2006, the Fresno Regional Foundation, as it was then known, marked 40 years of serving the community. At an event to celebrate this accomplishment, former executive director Bob Miner looked at the hundreds gathered and said, “Is this our little foundation?” It was a full-circle moment for Mr. Miner, the Central Valley Community Foundation’s executive director from 1975 until 1991.
In 1975, Mr. Miner retired from the Fresno Unified School District, where he served for 35 years as a teacher, principal of Roosevelt High School and later as the district’s assistant superintendent. His daughter, Missy Jeffers, remembers this time. “When dad announced his retirement, we all laughed and said it won’t last,” she said.
His family was right. Within months of retiring, Mr. Miner was enlisted by Lewis Eaton to become part of the Foundation’s Executive Board. When the need for an executive director arose, Mr. Miner was a natural fit, with his integrity, diplomacy, and vast people skills.
“My dad was a connector,” said Mrs. Jeffers. “He was one of those people who liked everyone, and everyone liked him. He was amazing!”
As executive director, Mr. Miner oversaw the Foundation’s evolution from a modest community trust into a regional leader in philanthropy and social impact. Under his leadership, the Foundation welcomed its most substantial contribution at the time: McClatchy Newspapers donated the former Fresno Bee building at Van Ness and Calaveras in December 1977. The building was intended to be a cultural arts center.
In addition to his work for the schools and the Foundation, Mr. Miner advocated for the Central Valley in many other ways. For example, Mrs. Jeffers remembers her father getting to know college football coaches from around the state.
“They would always recruit from the big schools in San Francisco and Los Angeles, and my dad would say, ‘There’s a player here in Fresno you really should look at,’” said Mrs. Jeffers. Because of this commitment, Mr. Miner was responsible for many Central Valley athletes getting college scholarships.
He also created the Rotary Club of Fresno’s Camp Royal to empower youth through leadership training, team-building, and service projects at Sequoia Lake in the Sierra National Forest. This idea impacted generations of young people, and was replicated by neighboring Rotary Clubs.
Miner’s blend of warmth, intelligence, and wit built trust among board members, partners, and recipients. His legacy—rooted in kindness, a commitment to the Central Valley, and belief in the power of philanthropy to transform lives—continues to shape the Foundation’s mission and the very fabric of the Central Valley.
This story is part of the Central Valley Community Foundation’s “Sixty Stories That Shaped Us” initiative to help mark 60 years since our founding. We invite you to join us in celebrating this milestone as well as this special place we call home. To learn more, visit us at centralvalleycf.org and follow us on Facebook, Instagram and LinkedIn @centralvalleycf.
