The Oregon Community Foundation awarded $120,000 in grants to 11 nonprofits across the state in honor of the Labor Day fires five-year anniversary.
Half of the money will be distributed to six organizations in the Rogue Valley to support the continued recovery from the Almeda Fire.
Kim Koenig, OCF’s director of statewide community programs and disaster resilience, said all of the money came from donations to the Disaster Readiness and Response Fund.
“It really proves that Oregonians are not just here to remember the anniversary of the fire,” she said, “but that they really are reimagining, alongside us and nonprofits, how we want to show up for each other.”
The Oregon Community Foundation awarded $10,000 each to Coalición Fortaleza in Medford; Firebrand Resiliency Collective in Ashland; Jackson County Community Long Term Recovery Group in Talent; Rogue Food Unites in Ashland; Talent Maker City in Talent; and United Way of Jackson County in Medford.
Alli French is the founder and executive director of Talent Maker City. She said the nonprofit hadn’t applied for the grant, but that OCF had handpicked the organizations.
“It’s to honor those that are here in the community in the space between disasters,” French said. “That’s the spirit of this grant.”
French said it’s critical that the money is being distributed prior to a disaster rather than in the midst of one, as it gives the community more time to prepare.
It’s also cost effective to invest in preparedness, as investing $1 in emergency preparedness can save up to $13 in response.
“This reminds us that we will come together in times of disaster,” Koenig said, “but the more that we can also come together to prepare for the future, the better.”
Matthew Havniear of the Jackson County Community Long Term Recovery Group said the funding will increase the nonprofit’s resilience as well as the community’s.
“We can use these funds to ensure when we need to show up to a shelter to work with community and survivors there, we have the power and the internet and all the infrastructure needed to do the job,” he said.
Dee Anne Everson, the CEO of United Way of Jackson County, said the grants “remind us all that our work isn’t done, and their contributions make help possible.”
“We continue to meet to hear unmet needs cases on Thursday mornings,” she said. “Just last week, we invested more than $12,000 into home repairs.”
Rogue Food Unites said in a statement that the grant will support the continuation of its Neighbors Unite Farmers Markets in Talent, Medford and Eagle Point. The markets are mobile and provide fresh produce to the community for no cost.
French said Talent Maker City will use part of its grant money to fund free community workshops in honor of the Almeda Fire. Workshops this week will guide people through making a go bag, evacuating pets and creating safety signs for emergency responders.
