Marked for Love joins NeighborImpact to expand supportive services
BEND, Ore. (KTVZ) -- Marked for Love, the organization known locally as Every Child Central Oregon, has joined NeighborImpact to form a new Supportive Services department. The transition integrates the group's staff, warehouse operations and family support services into NeighborImpact's existing regional infrastructure.
Every Child Central Oregon is one of KTVZ's 21 Cares for Kids partners.
The new department will continue managing a diaper bank and providing direct support for families involved in foster care. It also administers the Medicaid-funded Health-Related Social Needs program, which connects eligible residents with food and housing supports. To date, that program has helped 546 clients access nearly $1.5 million in assistance.
The department recently utilized its local partnerships to deliver supplies to families affected by the Bench and Beachcomb fires in Warm Springs. After a child welfare partner was placed under a Level 3 evacuation notice, the team delivered children's clothing, diapers, wipes, portable baths and Pack 'n Plays to the Warm Springs Child Protective Services office. A second delivery provided diapers to families at an evacuation shelter, while the NeighborImpact Food Bank donated five pallets of water to the community.
Melissa Lovemark serves as the Supportive Services director and continues to lead the program's operations. She emphasized that the merger allows the team to maintain existing service levels while expanding their reach.
“This transition protects the relationships and services our partners already know while giving the program a stronger foundation,” Lovemark said. “The work continues, but the team now has more capacity to support families, coordinate resources and respond when community needs arise.”
The department works with child welfare staff to provide furniture, hygiene supplies, car seats and other essentials intended to help families care safely for children. Lovemark noted that the ability to provide these items quickly relies on established trust within the community.
“Much of this work happens quietly because it is built on relationships developed over years,” Lovemark said. “When partners tell the team that families need clothing, diapers or a safe place for a baby to sleep, the response does not need to be complicated. The team looks at what is available and gets it where it needs to go.”
Scott Cooper, executive director of NeighborImpact, said the integration provides the new department with the infrastructure of a larger organization. NeighborImpact is a private nonprofit that has served Central Oregon since 1985.
“The strength of this work has always been in the relationships and the ability to respond quickly to what individuals and families actually need,” Cooper said. “As part of NeighborImpact, Supportive Services can continue that approach with the added infrastructure and resources of the larger organization.”
NeighborImpact provides services including food security, housing, energy assistance and financial empowerment. The agency primarily serves Crook, Deschutes and Jefferson counties, as well as the Confederated Tribes of Warm Springs.
