Meyer Memorial Trust makes four C.O. grants

At its September program meeting, Meyer Memorial Trust’s board of trustees awarded 33 grants plus a program-related investment, totaling $4.5 million for organizations and initiatives across Oregon and Southwest Washington.

The latest awards support projects as varied as free dental services for underserved children in Lane and Douglas counties, general operating support for a multi-ethnic immigrant and refugee rights organization based in Portland and emergency utilities assistance to help residents through the coming winter statewide.

Twenty-nine of the grants are Responsive Grants, awarded for a wide array of activities in the areas of human services, health, affordable housing, community development, conservation and environment, arts and culture, public affairs, and education. Generally ranging from $40,001 to $300,000, with grant periods from one to three years, Responsive Grants help support goals that include projects to build and renovate facilities, fortify core operating support and strengthen organizations.

Some awards stand out. A $180,000 grant to help the Port Orford Ocean Resource Team promote sustainable fisheries and marine biological diversity, a $40,610 grant to KIDS Center for a new pilot program to support children who have witnessed domestic violence in Bend and a $500,000 grant to support warming shelters through Community Action Team in St. Helens.

There’s also funding this month for two initiatives: three awards totalling $406,585 for grants under the Willamette River Initiative and one grant awarded through the K-12 Education Initiative, for $120,000.

Meyer Memorial Trust, established in 1982, is one of the largest private foundations in Oregon, with current assets over $802 million. Over its lifetime, MMT has awarded nearly $643 million via 8,080 grants and PRIs to organizations in Oregon and Southwest Washington.

The Board of Trustees — which includes Debbie Craig, John Emrick, Orcilia Ziga Forbes, George Puentes and Charles Wilhoite — meets monthly to make grants.

Here’s how the September grants break down by category and region:

By category:

Seven of the grants, totaling $753,850 fall under the categories of Arts and Culture, including $200,000 to buy and convert a former hardware store and lumber yard into a state-of-the-art collection storage and conservation facility for the Columbia River Maritime Museum in Astoria, $35,000 for Arts Midwest, a collaborative pilot project to build public will for the arts in Oregon, California and Minnesota, and a $150,000 program related investment for Eugene’s Lord Leebrick Theatre Company, also known as the Oregon Contemporary Theatre, to restructure a bridge loan for the theatre’s capital project.

Seven grants totaling $1,169,785 are focused on Conservation and the Environment, including $196,585 for the Marys River Watershed Council, which is restoring a floodplain forest at Luckiamute State Natural Area near Independence and $100,000 to help the Pew Charitable Trusts protect railroad lands in western Oregon.

Meyer awarded a single education grant in the amount of $120,000, to support Foundations for a Better Oregon to support the Chalkboard Project’s Oregon School Leaders Initiative.

There are three health-related grants this month, amounting to $247,133. Among the grants is one for the South Lane School District, in the amount of $140,133, to expand free dental services for underserved children in Lane and Douglas counties, and another for $100,000 to help to Addictions Recovery Center in Medford to buy a new electronic health records system.

There are 13 Human Services-related grants in September, totaling $2,195,805: including $15,000 to support board development and an executive transition at Community Alliance of Tenants in Portland, $500,000 to help the Oregon Food Bank purchase and distribute food statewide, and $200,000 for the Society of St. Vincent de Paul Redmond Conference, to purchase the building that houses the organization’s thrift store and offices.

Two Social Benefit grants, totaling $35,000, round out the awards, including a $25,000 grant to State Voices in Detroit, to support civic engagement, and $10,000 to provide technical assistance during a leadership transition at Albina Opportunities Corporation in Portland.

Grants by region:

Central Oregon — $324,205:

High Desert Museum, Bend

Awarded: $59,000

To invest in visitor services improvements to streamline the admissions process and better orient visitors at this Deschutes County museum.

J Bar J Youth Services, Bend

Awarded: $24,595

To provide technical assistance in branding and donor communications.

Kids Intervention and Diagnostic Service Center, Bend

(Doing business as KIDS Center)

Awarded: $40,610

For “A Voice for Kids,” a new pilot program to support children who have witnessed domestic violence.

Society of St. Vincent de Paul Redmond Conference, Redmond

Awarded: $200,000

To purchase the building that houses the organization’s thrift store, social service office and administration.