BCF Announces Community Grant Support
The Benton Community Foundation Board of Directors recently approved community grants totaling $90,000, as well as an additional $72,000 for other local initiatives. The Foundation’s community grants are awarded annually, and this year will benefit eighteen local organizations with programming in the areas of basic needs; youth services; arts and culture; capacity building; and science, technology, and the environment.
The recipients include:
- Old Mill Center for Children and Families - $10,000 for the relief nursery in Monroe
- Casa Latinos Unidos - $10,000 for building youth leadership
- Corvallis Environmental Center - $5,000 for Connecting Youth and Food program
- Community Outreach, Inc. - $5,000 for childcare for families experiencing homelessness
- South Benton Food Pantry - $3,600 for plant-based nutrition classes
- Alsea Community Effort - $2,500 for Alsea Emergency Operations Center
- Benton County Historical Society - $2,378 for Corvallis Museum children’s interactive station
Community grants comprise approximately 12% of the Benton Community Foundation’s annual distributions in Benton County. The Foundation also administers grants to nonprofits and charitable organizations using Donor Advised Funds, in which donors recommend grants to charities of their preference, and Designated Funds, which are endowed to support specific local organizations.
“Community grants are a key part of what we do,” said Chris Quaka, Benton Community Foundation President/CEO. “These grants allow flexibility in our grantmaking, and help us stay responsive to community needs, year after year.”
Learn more about BCF community grants
Making an Impact
The Benton Community Foundation works to build and invest resources across the whole of Benton County. In 2017, we funded a project for Philomath Community Services, an organization that provides food, clothing, basic needs, and social services to families and individuals across western Benton County. With funding from BCF, Philomath Community Services was able to install a lift for their food pantry, making it easier for volunteers to move crates of canned food donations in the two-story facility.
Over the next year, we’ll be spotlighting projects in Alsea, Monroe, and throughout rural Benton County that have received support from BCF funding. Many of these projects are made possible because passionate community members have started endowments to ensure the well-being of their communities.
If you are interested in establishing an endowment to support a cause that’s meaningful to you, please don’t hesitate to reach out to us at (541) 753-1603.
2018 Annual Report
In 2018, the Benton Community Foundation distributed more than $720,000, including grants to 76 local agencies and nonprofit organizations, and scholarships to more than 70 students. BCF grants supported food banks, parks, youth programs, adult care, and services for people experiencing homelessness.
We're proud to share with you how philanthropy is making an impact for local kids and families across Benton County!
Click here to read the report.
Clemens Pool Updates
The Philomath School District and the Benton Community Foundation are exploring all options to keep the children of the greater Philomath community swimming. Following a donation last fall from BCF to renovate the Clemens Community Pool, builders hired by the school district uncovered new information about significant structural challenges to the pool’s tank, or vessel – the part that holds the water.
Given the new scope of repairs needed, plans to renovate the pool have been put on hold while community leaders research interim and long-term options. A letter to the community from PSD Interim Superintendent Philip Brazeau and BCF President and CEO Chris Quaka is available here.