Our Mission
To be of SERVICE, give HOPE, FAITH and INSPIRATION to the future of children and families in need in our local communities.
Our Story
The inspiration and vision for Keep the Faith Foundation actually was inspired in the face of tragedy and took place in four stages and a recent resurrection with a fourth stage.
On January 17, 2008 the life of a great young man, Craig Alaniz, was taken by a rare form of brain cancer at the age of 23. Craig was not only one of the best baseball players, HAAL Pitcher of the Year 2001 and 2001 for San Leandro High School, but one of the best young men I have had the honor to coach. I contacted my Son, Chris Gomez, who was also on the Coaching Staff at SLHS, and we started the process to ensure that Craig Alaniz would always be remembered. In June of 2008 we presented the First Annual Craig Alaniz Baseball Scholarship. Craig’s Baseball Scholarship continues to be given early to a deserving Senior on the SLHS Baseball Team.
The name of our organization also started, and was partially created, in the storms of adversity and fear. In January of 2010, my pregnant Daughter was told that there was a very good chance that her unborn Daughter had Down Syndrome. Through many medical tests and procedures, and an abundance of prayers from family and friends, my beautiful and perfectly healthy Granddaughter was born in June. My Daughter named her Faith.
The impetus for taking action, establishing the Keep the Faith Foundation and becoming totally committed to our Mission Statement once again started in the throes of fear and adversity. In December of 2011, my eldest Granddaughter Leia Rose was struck right above her temple at a Varsity Baseball practice by an errant throw. She was diagnosed with blood on the brain and spent two nights in the ICU at Children's Hospital in Oakland. Today she is perfectly healthy and shows no adverse effects from the injury. Through those sleepless, and prayer filled, nights and days we had to Keep the Faith.
On June 1, 2020 my Granddaughter Faith was diagnosed with a cancerous Wilms tumor and has gone through 2 long surgeries, the removal of a kidney and weekly Chemo sessions. Quite honestly this stoked the fire and was quite the incentive to resurrect KTF. We have a brand new Board of Directors and commitment from what we affectionately call the Dream Team to get KTF back on track.
Board of Directors
Gary G. Gomez
President
Gary was born and raised in San Francisco and received his education at Notre Dame des Victoires, Saint Ignatius High School and the University of San Francisco and is a proud Father and Grandfather.. His service work began while in College when he started coaching at the local Catholic grammar school in his neighborhood and working part time as a relief counselor at a residential treatment center for teenage boys to help pay his way through college.
Gary continued coaching for the better part of 40 years from grammar school, high school and adult teams. Coaching, teaching and mentoring is a true passion of his.
He is a former business owner and recently retired after 25 years in Management in the Food and Beverage field with the last 12 years spent in Healthcare and Senior Living.
He truly believes that being of service to God and to others is his true purpose and is honored and blessed to spearhead the selfless actions of those involved with the Keep the Faith Foundation.
Chris Gomez
Vice President
Chris is a Physical Education teacher in the Bay Area, where he has spent his entire Life. Chris helped C0-found Keep the Faith with his Dad, Gary, in 2012. In 2014, Chris started KTF Baseball, a travel ball organization with kids ages 8 to 19. Chris has a passion for Kids, Family, God and sports. He started his Varsity baseball coaching career in the year 2000. 19 years later his team at Fremont Christian won the NCS Championship. When Chris is not Coaching, he enjoys spending time with his Wife and two Children. In December of 2019 Chris was baptized at his Church with his kids and Wife. He called that one of the best days of his Life. Chris’s Son recently accepted a Division 1 scholarship to play Baseball in Alabama, while his Daughter has been a part of 4 Varsity teams in High School, including her Varsity Basketball team that finished Undefeated in league and BCL Champions. Chris is also the Head coach of that Varsity Basketball team. Chris finds it his goal in Life to give back to others, and always Keep the Faith!
Allison Nolasco
Secretary
Allison is a Senior Executive Assistant at a high tech company and loves to use her organizational and office skills to help others. Allison has served on the Fremont Christian School Board and currently serves on the Fremont Youth Soccer Club Board Advisory Committee. She is a 3rd generation San Francisco Bay Area native and currently resides in Fremont with her husband and two kids. She loves the Bay Area and California and wants to give back to the community around her. Much of her time outside of work is spent volunteering in various capacities with her daughter’s sports teams.
Marie Guiab Harvey
Communications & Marketing Director
Marie has spent a lifetime in service to others. It is her passion. It is the thing she does very naturally, like breathing. Marie accredits her love for volunteering, social justice, and community involvement to her late grandparents who exposed her to “giving back” at a young age. She is a firm believer of “utilizing your God-given talents”.
Marie is currently self-employed, a business owner, and active with various organizations and ministries. She has worked for both the non-profit and for-profit sectors over the last 3 decades including iconic companies such as Susan G. Komen Breast Cancer Foundation, HP, and Google.
While obtaining her B.S degree at SJSU, Marie was very involved in social and community groups including being a Lifetime Member of Alpha Phi Omega, a Co-Ed Multicultural International Service Fraternity. She also holds an MBA from the University of Phoenix.
In her free time, she enjoys Polynesian dancing, traveling, spending time with friends and family, wine-tasting, and being a “foodie”. Marie resides in the Bay Area with her husband, two children, and two pups.
Gina Maya
Treasurer
Gina Maya comes to us with a strong background of giving of her time and talents. She inherited her heart of a servant from her parents who modeled the importance of serving the Lord. In 2017 she was awarded the Alumni Achievement Award which is the highest honor awarded to a Mariner alumni who has achieved distinction through exceptional contributions to the school community through: Service to the School, Outstanding Achievement, Service to the Community, or Service to Humanity.
Gina was educated in the bay area in the parochial school system at St. Leonard and Moreau Catholic, she continued her education at Santa Barbara, School of Business. Gina is an Office Manager at a forensic laboratory and uses her business/accounting background to manage all aspects of the business.
Gina has raised two independent strong men who also follow in the family tradition of serving the Lord. She has always been involved in her children’s youth and high school activities volunteering in various capacities at her sons’ schools, on their sports teams and in church activities.
Gina was a volunteer with the original Keep The Faith foundation and looks forward to continuing to serve her community with the rebirth of Keep The Faith in the capacity of the Treasurer.
Ezekiel Harvey, Jr.
Marketing & Communications
An Alabama native, Ezekiel has spent the last 20 years as a sales, marketing, and business professional in Silicon Valley prior to joining the Keep The Faith team. He is a follower of Jesus Christ, serves on the Elder Board at his church, and lives by the motto of “Faith, Family, and Everything else”. Ezekiel is also a veteran (West Point Class of ‘95) who honorably served his country and looks forward to continuing selfless service by partnering with people and organizations to serve the needs of those in the local community. He resides in the South East Bay with his wife, 2 children, and 2 fur-kids.
Larry Maya
Youth Advisory Director
Larry was born and raised in Fremont, California where he attended Catholic school at Our Lady of Guadalupe in Fremont and Moreau Catholic High School in Hayward. He further went on to earn his B.S. in Kinesiology from California State University, Sacramento.
Larry developed his passion for service while in Sacramento as interned for Coaching Corps, where he recruited volunteer coaches and coached teams for after school programs for surrounding underserved communities. His service continues today in the field of physical therapy where he is a Physical Therapy Aide at Mission Peak Orthopedics at the Fremont Surgery Center.
As the head of the Youth Advisory Board, he hopes to develop a network of young people passionate and dedicated to serving their communities. By connecting people to different organizations that coincide with their values, he hopes to spark the light of service in as many people as possible.