Harlan See: A Legacy Gift That Will Keep on Giving
Photo courtesy of the Harlan See Estate.
As community needs soared in the spring of 2025, Horizons’ board of directors approved an additional $1 million in Community Issues grant funding to be awarded in 2025 and 2026 thanks to a legacy gift from Harlan See, a San Francisco real estate businessman and regular at Castro’s Peet’s Coffee on Market Street and Twin Peaks Tavern. This was only a part of the transformative impact his gift has had on Horizons Foundation and the Bay Area LGBTQ community since it first appeared unexpectedly three years ago.
As unrestricted funding, See’s legacy gift gave Horizons flexibility to strengthen its internal capacity in a critical moment — supporting strategic investments and enabling the hiring of essential staff. It also helped ensure Horizons could grow sustainably while deepening its long-term commitment to the LGBTQ community. And, at a crucial moment for our community, the additional Community Issues funding significantly expanded resources available to LGBTQ organizations and programs. Harlan’s generous gift will also establish the Harlan See Endowed Fund, a component fund of Horizons’ LGBTQ Community Endowment Fund.
As the second-largest gift in Horizons’ history, Harlan See’s legacy continues to shape the foundation’s impact and future in profound and lasting ways, and both his generosity and his memory will live long into the future.
