Gerson Bakar Foundation

The foundation is governed by a three-person board: Barbara Bass Bakar as president, Anne Bakar as director, and Richard L. Greene as director. Greene was Gerson Bakar's long-time legal advisor and likely plays a significant role in investment oversight, though the foundation does not publicly disclose a dedicated investment committee or CIO.

Gerson Bakar built his fortune as a Bay Area real estate developer starting in the 1950s. His firm developed and held thousands of apartment units and commercial properties across San Francisco, San Mateo, and surrounding counties. Public record identifies signature holdings including Levi's Plaza, Northpoint Apartments, and Woodlake — all of which remain in the foundation's asset base.

The foundation participates as a limited partner in outside venture capital funds rather than making direct startup investments. Public filings categorize its strategy under general venture capital allocations, consistent with the approach of a foundation that deploys venture exposure through established managers rather than an in-house direct-investment team.

The foundation holds legacy residential and commercial properties directly, managing them as an ongoing portfolio rather than disposing of them. In addition to the Bay Area apartments, the portfolio includes a position in the Heartwood Forestland REIT III and the Resorts at Aliso Viejo, suggesting a mix of direct ownership and REIT exposure.

Gerson Bakar was a member of the UCSF Board of Overseers and a major donor whose gifts helped shape the university's Mission Bay campus. The foundation continues that relationship, with UCSF identified as a primary philanthropic partner. The Bakars' daughter Anne runs Telecare Corp, a mental-health provider, creating a natural thematic link to healthcare philanthropy.

Anne Bakar serves as a director of the foundation while simultaneously running Telecare Corp as its CEO. The extent of her involvement in investment decisions is not publicly broken out, but the dual role — foundation director and operating-company CEO — is consistent with family-office governance models where family members oversee both the charitable entity and the operating businesses that generate its endowment.

The foundation does not publish an investment policy statement or exclusion list. Given its venture fund-of-funds posture and direct real estate ownership, it operates with the broad latitude typical of a single-family-wealth vehicle embedded in a charitable structure, rather than the more rigid constraints of a public endowment.