Pacific Power announces new grants to support Willamette Valley communities this spring

Grants were awarded to food security, safety and wellness initiatives aimed at strengthening the region as the COVID-19 pandemic and rebuilding from the Labor Day Storm continues

STAYTON, Ore. (May 6, 2021) — Even as COVID-19 vaccines roll out across the country, many communities are still facing challenges from the pandemic and the organizations that support them are still seeing unprecedented demand. For organizations that are also supporting the rebuilding efforts from last year’s Labor Day Storm, the demand is even greater.

In spite of the odds, local programs that address critical issues such as food insecurity, homelessness, domestic violence, child abuse, elder issues, mental health and community safety have continued to find creative new ways to deliver help quickly and safely, even while facing additional budget constraints.

As part of the company’s commitment to supporting its communities, PacifiCorp Foundation, a nonprofit arm of Pacific Power, is donating more than $525,000 across the six states it serves. The funding goes to support a total of 209 safety and wellness grants as part of the most recent round of quarterly grants provided by the foundation each year. The next grant cycle is now open through June 15; organizations may apply online.

“We celebrate these heroic organizations that have continued to reinvent and reimagine ways they can help our communities’ most vulnerable,” said Cooper Whitman, Pacific Power regional business manager for the Stayton and Santiam Canyon area. “Although we see brighter days ahead, Pacific Power remains deeply committed to supporting the work of these organizations, helping to fortify our communities, so they are strong and resilient.”

The following grants were given to Willamette Valley organizations providing critical safety and wellness programs:

• Boys and Girls Club of Albany for kitchen upgrades so the facility can efficiently and safely feed as many children as possible while schools are closed.
• Boys and Girls Club of Corvallis for support of a no-fee, drop-in teen center for low-income teens during the pandemic, which will provide a safe space for distance-learning support and tutoring, mentoring, meals, health services and workforce development.
• CASA of Marion County to support adapting recruitment and training of volunteers to a virtual model to ensure every foster child in the county has access to a trained, compassionate court appointed special advocate even during the pandemic.
• Community Outreach to support the Transformational Housing program that provides men, women and families with children a safe, warm place to sleep as well as medical care, mental health and substance abuse counseling, childcare, like-skills classes
• Dallas Food Bank – Emergency Food Corp. for replacement of a commercial freezer to help the food bank reliably meet the growing need for food assistance in the Dallas area.
• Family Building Blocks to support the relief nursery therapeutic early childhood program in Santiam Canyon, which ensures children at high-risk of abuse and neglect receive the supports needed to meet developmental milestones and also helps parents.
• Hand in Hand Farm for the purchase of a wood chipper that will help in providing vocational-skills training to youth and adults. 
• Liberty House to ensure mental health support is available to meet the escalating numbers of Polk County children who have been the victims of sexual and physical abuse.
• Old Mill Center for Children and Families for cleaning and safety supplies so that, during the pandemic, the center can continue to safely provide in-person mental health services, which is especially important for younger children dealing with trauma.
• PeaceHealth Cottage Grove Community Medical Center Foundation for their Patient Dignity Fund, which supplies critical support to patients with limited resources by helping pay for medical supplies, equipment, medication other expenses not covered by insurance.
• Polk Adolescent Day Treatment Center for STEM equipment and furnishings to be used in two new classrooms, which will allow the center to expand their capacity to assist more youth.
• South Lane Mental Health Services for mental health care for vulnerable, low-income clients, many of whom have been disproportionately affected by the pandemic.
• Volunteer Caregivers to help cover the cost of medical transportation for low-income seniors in Linn County.

“Family Building Blocks is grateful for the generosity of the Pacific Power Foundation. Their most recent gift of $2,000 is supporting families in the Santiam Canyon through our recently certified Relief Nursery Satellite. Our programs strengthen the bond between parent and child, while providing support to parents who are able to identify and accomplish goals that lead to self-sufficiency and a thriving family unit,” said Nikki Paxton, donor relations manager for Family Building Blocks. “We could not do this work without the strong community support from partners like Pacific Power. Thank you for helping us keep children safe and families together.”

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About the Pacific Power Foundation:

The Pacific Power Foundation is part of the PacifiCorp Foundation, one of the largest utility-endowed foundations in the United States. The foundation was created in 1988 by PacifiCorp, an electric utility serving 2 million customers in six western states as Pacific Power (Oregon, Washington and California) and Rocky Mountain Power (Utah, Wyoming and Idaho). The foundation’s mission, through charitable investments, is to support the growth and vitality of the communities served by Pacific Power and Rocky Mountain Power. For more information, visit www.pacificpower.net/foundation.