Auction includes Gregory Kondos’ limited-edition artwork, a cozy cabin retreat, Sacramento Kings packages and 50 other items. About 1,500 people have been helped by the JB Brown Fund since 2011
Bidding for limited-edition artwork from one of the state’s best-known landscape painters, a trio of ticket packages for Sacramento sports teams, or even a getaway to the happiest place on earth can help change and improve the lives of low-income residents.
Just ask the 1,500 people, including many throughout California, who have benefited from the JB Brown Fund since 2011.
The JB Brown Fund has helped residents attend college and earn degrees, children to participate in youth sports with little or no cost for their parents, and families and seniors deal with an unplanned financial emergency, such as the death of a family member, health issue or a job loss.
The JB Brown Fund is about helping residents achieve dreams, develop new skills or get through tough times.
The JB Brown Fund is holding its annual gala with a live auction 5 p.m. Thursday, Oct. 15, at the Officers’ Club at McLellan Park. Tickets are $150 per person.
Bidding for a weeklong silent auction starts Oct. 8 with about 50 items available for those unable to attend. A preview of the auction items is at https://lifestepsusa.ejoinme.org/2026auction.
Learn more about the JB Brown Fund, the gala and the live and silent online auctions at https://lifestepsusa.ejoinme.org/JBBF2026. All proceeds benefit the JB Brown Fund.
“It’s an evening of fun with a life-changing purpose,” said Geoff Brown, President of USA Properties Fund and committee member of the JB Brown Fund. “The JB Brown Fund is about opening the door to new opportunities and possibilities, developing lifelong skills like good sportsmanship and teamwork, and making life a little easier for residents during a traumatic period.”
What is the JB Brown Fund and who does it help?
The auctions offer affordable items – from handmade dolls to wine baskets – to the limited-edition artwork by the late Gregory Kondos, a world-renowned painter and Sacramento resident. Other high-profile items include a tickets package for an Athletics’ game during the team’s final season at Sutter Health Park in West Sacramento before moving to Las Vegas in 2028, a weeklong stay at a cozy mountain cabin and a couple days at Disneyland Park in Anaheim.
Just a few of the numbers since 2011
College tuition scholarships
556
Youth sports scholarships
1,009
Awards for financial assistance
943
Many companies and individuals have donated the auction items. And more than a dozen companies are sponsoring the gala, including Capital City Drywall Inc., Cooper Housing, Majestic Life General Contracting and Merchants Capital. Bank of America, Citibank and JPMorgan Chase – frequent lending partners of USA Properties Fund affordable apartment communities – are also sponsors.
USA Properties Fund is the title sponsor for the event.
The JB Brown – a partnership between USA Properties Fund and social-services provider LifeSTEPS – has awarded college and trade-school scholarships to 185 residents and helped about 500 children play youth sports since 2011. Almost 800 residents have received financial assistance, from helping with medical bills and rent to buying eyeglasses or hearing aids, through the JB Brown Fund.
“I am very thankful and grateful for the help that I received,” said Jo, a senior who lives in the Sacramento region. The JB Brown Fund covered much of the cost of dental work she needed this year. “It took a large weight off my shoulders.”
The JB Brown Fund is available to residents of USA Properties Fund-owned and -managed affordable apartment communities, including 36 in the Sacramento region. The Roseville-based company has about 12,500 residents in the region, from Auburn to Woodland.
The JB Brown Fund has raised more than $2.3 million during the past 15 years, including about $95,000 during the first half of this year.
The JB Brown Fund has helped 25 residents graduate from college, most with little – or no – debt for their education. Residents can apply for college and youth sports scholarships multiple times.
“The JB Brown Fund is really about a helping hand,” said Brown, whose father founded USA Properties Fund and is the namesake of the JB Brown Fund. “It’s also about investing in the future of our residents and their families, and our communities. The JB Brown Fund has a far-reaching effect that helps future generations.”