FOCUS Honored With Port Of San Diego Anchors Of Excellence Award | Coronado Island News

FOCUS, the Friends of Children United Society, has just been recognized with the Port of San Diego’s prestigious Anchors of Excellence Award for its longstanding service to vulnerable children across San Diego County.

FOCUS President Peggy Duncan, an attorney who has lived in Coronado for almost 20 years, has spent the past two decades volunteering on school boards and nonprofit organizations. She currently leads the all-volunteer nonprofit, which operates with “the singular goal of improving the lives of children in need in San Diego County,” she said.

Founded in 1982 by a group of dedicated women from the Coronado Cays who shared a commitment to improving life for abused and vulnerable children, FOCUS has grown steadily over the decades. “In 2009, FOCUS expanded its membership to include men, further strengthening its reach and impact,” Duncan explained. “Through steady membership growth, successful major fundraisers, and countywide recognition, FOCUS has broadened its scope, fulfilling larger requests, funding vehicle purchases, and responding to the most critical needs of our charity partners.”

Today, FOCUS includes approximately 240 members, the majority of whom reside in Coronado, and all of its Board members are Coronado residents.

Unlike many nonprofits, FOCUS does not provide money directly to families or children. Instead, it “partners with other nonprofit organizations that assist children and provide them with the items they need to do their work,” Duncan noted, explaining that the volunteer shoppers purchase and deliver those items. Over the past year, FOCUS collaborated with more than 50 agencies, sourcing essential items such as food, bedding, diapers, baby care products, shoes, backpacks, and more.

“As an all-volunteer organization, FOCUS operates with impressively low overhead, ensuring that over 90% of the funds raised are allocated directly to our nonprofit partners each year,” Duncan added.

The Port of San Diego’s Anchors of Excellence Award recognizes local nonprofits, businesses, and individuals making significant positive impacts around San Diego Bay.

According to Duncan, the award specifically honors organizations aligned with Port values and promotes a healthier, more connected region. “This ties in very directly with the mission of FOCUS: raising funds for the comfort and betterment of battered, abused, homeless, disabled, disadvantaged, military, and foster children within San Diego County.”

Duncan believes FOCUS was recognized because of its expanding and lasting impact. “We are proud of FOCUS’s growth over the past few years, working with more agencies and making a greater impact in our community,” she began. “By filling critical service gaps and fostering connections among nonprofits dedicated to improving the lives of children, FOCUS continues to strengthen its reach.” Duncan also explained that the organization’s work is focused exclusively in San Diego County, with an emphasis on the Port Cities, including downtown San Diego, Chula Vista, Coronado, and Imperial Beach. “As our impact has grown, we are honored by the increased recognition our work has received,” she added.

For Duncan and the rest of FOCUS, the Anchors of Excellence Award is deeply meaningful, reflecting the continued impact their work has on the youth of San Diego. “Our members, volunteers, and Board are exceptionally generous, united by a deep commitment to helping children,” said Duncan. “We are proud of the difference we are making for kids in our community.”

Recognition such as this also helps raise the organization’s profile, which in turn helps more children. “For many years, FOCUS was the best-kept secret in Coronado. It is a wonderful organization, led entirely by volunteers, but many people had not ever heard of us,” Duncan explained. “We’ve worked hard to bring awareness about FOCUS. This type of recognition helps us to attract more members and more donors, ultimately allowing us to assist more children.”

Twenty-twenty-five has been a milestone year for the group, with membership increasing by 20% and an extremely successful fundraising gala that raised more funds than ever before. “Thanks to our dedicated volunteers, FOCUS continues to operate with no paid staff,” Duncan added. “FOCUS truly is a treasure in Coronado.”

Among its recent accomplishments:

• Monthly food distributions “provided vital nutrition and dignity to hundreds of low-income families across the county.”

• FOCUS assisted “an amazing program that mentors at-risk boys and teens who don’t have fathers,” helping the group acquire a van to transport participants to their camp program.

• The organization purchased 22 computers to help children excel in school and 24 graphing calculators for middle school students.

• FOCUS purchased 2,800 books in support of several organizations that teach children a love of reading.

• It provided emergency relief for families displaced by a plane crash in San Diego military housing and for a teen shelter dealing with a bed bug issue.

• Most recently, the group supplied 3,000 beanie hats and 2,000 yoyos for an organization that ensures every foster child in San Diego County receives a holiday gift bag.

Looking ahead, Duncan says she is honored to lead FOCUS for another term as President, starting in January. The organization is always accepting new members and is already planning its next major fundraiser. FOCUS hopes the community will support its 2026 fundraising gala, “a Disco Fever Fundraiser” on the USS Midway on August 1, 2026. For more information about FOCUS, please visit https://focus-sdkids.org/.

VOL. 115, NO. 52 – Dec. 24, 2025