Smoke signals. (Grand Ronde, Or.) 19??-current, September 15, 2023, Page 11, Image 11

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SEPTEMBER 15, 2023
11
Fund awarded 3,259 grants in 26 years
COMMUNITY FUND
continued from front page
saria Haugland, who believed that
prevention-based services dedicated
to helping girls ages 10 to 18 make
healthy life choices through empow-
erment, education and support were
essential. She and her family remain
involved with the organization in
various ways.
The organization has three lo-
cations – Eugene, Junction City
and Albany – where it provides
after-school drop-in services, so-
cial-emotional learning activities,
therapy, parent education and re-
ferrals.
The $50,000 grant from the Com-
munity Fund will go toward in-
creased access to behavioral health
resources for girls and teenagers at
the Albany location through site-
based and school-based resources.
These services will include in-
dividual therapy, therapy groups,
empowerment groups, classroom
presentations for all youth, and
after and non-school day activi-
ties and workshops. Services are
offered on a sliding scale or free of
charge, including at local school
districts.
“We believe that cost should never
be a barrier to any girl who wants to
come here,” Executive Director Lau-
ra Sanchez said. “That goes for our
school district partnerships, too.”
The organization opened its Alba-
ny location in 2022.
“There is a real unmet need for
youth services there,” Sanchez said.
“My primary goal is to reach the kids
who are the hardest to reach and
we’re looking at ways to make our
programs more equitable in general.”
Since most of the organization’s
funding comes through donations
and grants, being a $50,000 bene-
ficiary of the Community Fund is
extremely helpful to achieving their
mission, Sanchez said.
“I want to give a huge thank you
to them for supporting our work,”
she said. “We can’t do of it without
funders like these. Specifically in
Albany, we’re still trying to get our
foot in the door and let the commu-
nity know who we are, so this grant
is really important. … There’s a big
benefit for the girls knowing there is
a space just for them, and coming to
a space that is open and welcoming.
The hope is that all who come here
feel hopeful, validated and safe.”
Check presentation
Community Fund Director Angie
Sears welcomed the approximately
50 attendees to the event.
The check presentation opened
with a prayer and flute song from
Tribal Council member Jon A.
George.
Tribal Council member Kathleen
George, who is a former director of
Spirit Mountain Community Fund,
said that the Community Fund
continues the Native tradition of
potlatch of sharing the bounty.
“These quarterly check presenta-
tions are such a joy to us, celebrating
you and your work,” George said.
“The work that you do in your com-
munities is what Spirit Mountain
Photo by Michelle Alaimo
Transformations by Salem Angels Executive Director Brooke Goldsby, right,
shakes hands with Tribal Council member and Spirit Mountain Community
Fund Board of Trustees member Brenda Tuomi during the fund’s quarterly
check presentation held in the Governance Center Atrium on Wednesday,
Sept. 13. The nonprofit received a $20,000 grant to recruit mentors for youth
in foster care in Marion and Polk counties.
Community Fund is all about. …
These quarterly get-togethers are
some of our absolutely favorite
days.”
Sears introduced Community
Fund employees: Program Co-
ordinator Angela Schlappie, Ad-
ministrative Assistant Pamala
Warren-Chase and Grants Coordi-
nator Jesse Knight.
The approximately 50 attendees
then watched a video on the history
of the Tribe. After the video, repre-
sentatives from three organizations
– Neurotherapeutic Pediatric Ther-
apies, Transformation by Salem
Angels and Vision to Learn – gave
brief descriptions about what their
organization seeks to do in the com-
munity.
Neurotherapeutic Pediatric Ther-
apies works with children with
development disabilities through a
nature-based program while Trans-
formation by Salem Angels supports
the foster family community in Mar-
ion and Polk counties by recruiting
mentors to help provide foster youth
with more normalcy and stability in
their lives.
Vision to Learn National Director
Damian Carroll said his organiza-
tion will use its $75,000 Community
Fund grant to outfit its 51st mobile
vision clinic that will visit schools
and provide free eye exams, vision
care and glasses to youth in need.
After the three presentations,
Knight and Schlappie announced
the grant recipients.
During the check distribution
portion, the Community Fund
awarded 10 small grants worth
$65,000, 15 large grants worth
$707,000 and seven Tribal grants
worth $700,000.
Additionally, $25,000 in annual
Youth Grantmaking grants were
awarded at a check presentation in
August by the Community Fund’s
summer youth interns. The organi-
zations selected were Hearts with a
Mission of Newport, CASA-Voices
for Children of Benton & Lincoln
Counties, A Family for Every Child
of Eugene, Center Against Rape and
Domestic Violence of Corvallis and
Willamette Riverkeeper of Oregon
City.
Small grant recipients were:
• Admire Teachers of Portland,
$6,000, for resources for Title 1
students and staff;
• Bloomin’ Boutique of Oregon City,
$7,500, for clothing and supplies
for children from low-income fam-
ilies in distress;
• Center for Community Counseling
of Eugene, $7,500, for child abuse
prevention;
• Connecting from the Heart of Lane
County, $3,000, for its Surviving
and Thriving in Times of Darkness
program;
• Kindred Matters of Salem, $4,000,
for the Lane County KINnect pro-
gram;
• Multicultural Integrated Kidney
Education Program of Portland,
$7,000, for creating opportunities
for underserved youth through
health education;
• Neskowin Valley School, $7,500,
for its Tech for Teachers program;
• Network Charter School of Eu-
gene, $7,500, its outdoor credit
recovery adventure program;
• Solid Strides of Eugene, $7,500, for
equine facilities learning training;
• Unlock the Arts of Portland,
$7,500, for its writing kinship
program.
Large grant recipients were:
• AC Portland, $35,000, for its
STEM to Engage and Empower
Girls for Success program;
• Adelante Mujeres of Forest Grove,
$50,000, for ensuring school read-
iness in Latino children;
• CASA for Children of Multnomah
County, $50,000, for more CASAs
for children in foster care;
• Family Justice Center of Wash-
ington County, $25,000, for family
support services;
• Hearts With a Mission of Lincoln
County, $50,000, for its safe fam-
ilies for children program;
• Neurotherapeutic Pediatric Ther-
apies Inc. of Canby, $50,000, for its
nature-based therapy expansion
project for children and families;
• Open School Inc. of Portland,
$50,000, for its workforce and life
skills program;
• Ophelia’s Place of Eugene, $50,000,
for its Albany partnership pro-
gram to promote positive female
youth development;
• Oregon Mind Body Institute of
Eugene, $10,000, for a mindful-
ness-based mental health video
series;
• Oregon Native American Chamber
of Portland, $50,000, for its clean
energy and green construction
program;
• Reality Kitchen Nonprofit of Eu-
gene, $30,000, for its Indigenous
home cooking project;
• St. Vincent de Paul Society of
Lane County Inc., $100,000, for
its Green Lane trauma-informed
services of veterans with mental
illness project;
• Transformations by Salem Angels,
$20,000, for mentorship for youth
in foster care;
• Vision to Learn of Multnomah
County, $75,000, for vision care
access for Multnomah Education
Service District students;
• Yakona Learning Center of New-
port, $62,000, for its Creating
Connections program.
Tribal grant recipients were:
• Burns-Paiute Tribe, $100,000, for
its economic development build-
ing;
• Confederated Tribes of Coos, Low-
er Umpqua & Siuslaw, $100,000,
for its Native Language Enhance-
ment Program;
• Confederated Tribes of Siletz,
$100,000, for operationalizing
Ghii Dee-Ne Dvn, A Place for the
People;
• Confederated Tribes of Grand
Ronde, $100,000, for its nature
playground project;
• Coquille Indian Tribe, $100,000,
for a behavioral health suite re-
model at its Ko-Wel Wellness
Center;
• Confederated Tribes of Warm
Springs, $100,000, for the renewal
of its museum’s HVAC system and
support for 2024 Camp Naimuma;
• Klamath Tribes, $100,000, for its
public safety headquarters infra-
structure project.
Three beaded necklaces made by
the Community Fund’s summer
youth interns were raffled off to
Hearts With a Mission, Network
Charter School and Unlock the Arts.
An Ikanum saddle blanket designed
by Travis Stewart went to Multicul-
tural Integrated Kidney Education
Program.
Cherry gave closing remarks after
the grant awardees were announced.
“This is one of my favorite pre-
sentations to do,” Cherry said. “And
I want to thank you all for your gift
of time and gift of service.”
During the past 26 years, the Com-
munity Fund has awarded 3,259
grants totaling more than $95.9
million.
Includes information by Publica-
tions Coordinator Dean Rhodes.