Sean C. Morgan
The Sweet Home Community Foundation awarded $12,343 in Alice Blazer Endowment Grants to seven nonprofit projects Thursday evening, April 6, at the conclusion of its annual grant cycle.
In addition, the foundation transferred $18,000 to its long-term endowment, said Police Chief Bob Burford. The long-term endowment provides interest money to be used to fund projects. The endowment totals a little more than $500,000.
The foundation collects donations primarily from those who live and work in the east Linn County area and money from fund-raising efforts to add to the endowment. The Sweet Home Economic Development Group created the Sweet Home Community Foundation 20 years ago as a long-term mechanism to funnel proceeds from the Oregon Jamboree to community projects.
“We’re not a direct-action group,” foundation President Bob Burford told representatives of the nonprofits receiving the grants. “Instead, we support groups such as yours.”
Each of the grants represents a project or entity that makes Sweet Home a special place to live, Burford said.
In random order, Burford presented awards to the following organizations:
– Oregon Cascades West Council of Governments, $2,500, for its Senior Meals and Meals on Wheels programs.
COG Program Manager Randi Moore accepted the funds.
The program provides hot meals to seniors and persons with disabilities, Moore said. The program provides three hot meals a week at the Senior Center, and it delivers meals to housebound seniors and disabled persons. The program also includes frozen meals for use on days it doesn’t deliver.
Federal and state sources provide about half of the funding, Moore said, so the COG seeks donations. It receives about 85 cents per meal in donations from Sweet Home, and the meals cost about $9 each.
– East Linn Museum, $600, for its Child, Youth, Adult Interactive History Class.
ELMS Executive Director Lana Holden accepted the funds.
The funds will provide interactive courses to bring more younger children into the museum, Holden said.
Last year, the museum held several programs and hikes, and this year, Holden is planning a variety of hands-on activities for children through the eighth grade.
“We’ll have costumes for them to act out period pieces,” Holden said. Children will participate in plays, learn to make rope, churn butter and more, she said.
– Harvest Christian Center, $1,000, for the Back-2-School Bash.
The church gives away backpacks filled with school supplies each year before school starts, said Wendy Woody, part of the pastoral team. Last year, the church gave away 535 packs.
It’s not just a giveaway, she said. The church provides different fun activities and feeds them cotton candy, hot dogs and popcorn.
“We’re not just a church,” Woody said. “We’re part of the community. It’s our pleasure to be able to use these funds to purchase supplies and backpacks.”
– Little Promises, $2,500, for playground safety.
Eric Duncan, chairman of the Little Promises Board of Directors, accepted the funds.
The money will be used to build playground fencing that will allow Little Promises to meet state regulations and be recognized for using “best practices.”
Little Promises provides daycare and preschool programs, Duncan said. Its goal is to provide an exceptional program for people who are not necessarily able to pay the rates seen in other areas.
– South Santiam Watershed Council, $2,500, for natural resource education and the Stewards Outdoor School.
SSWC Youth Coordinator Angela Clegg accepted the funds.
The SSWC and U.S. Forest Service started the annual Outdoor School for Sweet Home students in 2007, Clegg said.
“Funding has gotten more difficult, and it’s hard to ask parents for more money.”
During the program, the SSWC and Forest Service provide three days of hands-on activities, from dissecting fish to compass training, at Camp Tadmor.
– Sweet Home Genealogical Society, $1,625, for its “Keep Your Memories Alive” project.
Teresa Riper, president of the Board of Directors, accepted the funds.
Among the items in its collection, the library has every edition of The New Era from 1947 to present, Riper said.
“We were talking about keeping the memory alive,” Riper said, noting that “negatives just get shoved back.”
The funds will be used to purchase a scanner, Riper said. Volunteers will scan them and digitize and preserve items that need to be preserved.
– Sweet Home Pregnancy Care Center, $1,618, for a baby safety project.
Karlene Stutzer accepted the funds.
The organization will use the funds to purchase car seats and to replace its DVD library. It also will purchase vitamins to help ensure that children receive proper nutrition.