James P. Reber
Executive Director of Silicon Valley Umbrella Project
Biography
James P. Reber has been a leader in the Bay Area's nonprofit community for decades, founding a handful of nonprofit organizations in different fields. Mr. Reber was raised in Santa Clara County and is a graduate of Cupertino High School. He served four years in the U.S. Navy and received a BA in Sociology from UC Berkeley.
He began his career with performing arts. He was an actor with the Berkeley Shakespeare Festival, acting in minor roles in three productions. A year later, he moved into producing with his tenure as Berkeley Shakespeare’s first employee, serving as Managing Director for three seasons. He transformed the community endeavor into a professional theatre.
Mr. Reber moved back to San Jose, where he founded and served as Executive Producer of San Jose Repertory Company, producing over 50 plays. His producing continued with such events as the first San Jose Jazz Festival, the Opening of the Fairmont Hotel, the Opening of the San Jose McEnery Convention Center, the New World Festival 1990,the Walk For AIDS and the Opening of the New San Jose City Hall Mr. Reber produced 14 State of the City events, as well as two San Jose Mayoral Inauguration ceremonies, over 50 concerts, numerous festivals and special events.
James Reber has served as an Executive Director multiple times for various organizations and has been a pro bono consultant to over 2 dozen San Jose Arts groups, was a co-founder of the San Jose Arts Roundtable. He has performed with Opera San Jose, Children’s Musical Theatre San Jose, and in many of the Shakesbeerience productions.
Most recently, he founded San Jose Parks Foundation for the City of San Jose and served as Executive Director for 15 years. In 2000 James Reber was listed by the San Jose Mercury News as one of "The Silicon Valley 100", a compendium of persons from the 20th century who made significant contributions to life in Silicon Valley.
Projects
Silicon Valley Umbrella Project has supported a wide range of community initiatives through fiscal sponsorship, enabling groups to raise funds, organize efforts, and deliver meaningful impact.
Fiscal sponsorship supported two community-led groups dedicated to cleaning local waterways. By enabling early fundraising and grant eligibility, these efforts helped establish South Bay Clean Creeks Coalition and Keep Coyote Creek Beautiful as impactful and lasting environmental organizations.
A neighborhood-led initiative transformed an unused area of Thousand Oaks Park into a completed trail within eight months. With over $70,000 raised and support from volunteers, city staff, and donated contractor services, the project demonstrated the power of community collaboration.
During the COVID-19 pandemic, fiscal sponsorship enabled a rapid-response effort to provide meals for hospital workers. In just one month, over $40,000 was raised to deliver food to frontline staff, offering both practical support and community encouragement during a critical time.
Following severe flooding in 2017, a grassroots fundraising effort evolved into a long-term restoration initiative for the Japanese Friendship Garden. Initial donations quickly grew into a sustained campaign that ultimately raised over $100,000 to support recovery and improvements.
In response to the challenges faced by farmworkers during COVID-19, a community-led initiative organized supply caravans delivering food, medical items, and essential goods. With fiscal sponsorship support, the effort raised approximately $300,000 over two years, providing vital assistance to workers and their families.
