Liaison Report on WomenFirst Transition & Referral Center

Elizabeth Fraser, liaison to 2022 Impact Partner WomenFirst Transition & Referral Center, recently shared some exciting updates from the organization. WomenFirst has significantly enhanced its housing preparation classes within its life skills training program. This has resulted in a notable increase in participants becoming dependable tenants. This improvement is substantiated by positive feedback from landlords. Building on this success, WomenFirst has expanded its support infrastructure by securing a new residential facility in Southeast Portland. This facility will accommodate women for up to a year, supporting them as they engage in employment and continue with life skills management classes. Read more here

In addition, WomenFirst recently organized a leadership skills class led by former Portland City Commissioner Jo Ann Hardesty. This initiative is designed to equip women to effectively advocate before county and state government officials. Encouraged by the success of this program, plans are already in place to offer it again.

Further boosting their efforts, WomenFirst is the recipient of a three-year, $210,000 Dream Big Grant from the Women’s Foundation of Oregon! This grant will enable the expansion and enhancement of their programs, ensuring continued support and empowerment for women in the community. The organization is growing and recruiting as well – seeking a broad range of roles including a housing retention specialist, financial manager. See their job listings here and spread the word! 

ROSE HAVEN

Rose Haven invites the community to their International Women's Day Celebration at their home (1740 NW Glisan St.) on Friday, March 8 from 5:30pm-7:00pm. This event also commemorates the two-year anniversary of opening the doors to their beautiful new facility, and kicks off the start of registration for their annual Reigning Roses walk! RSVP at this link.

FRIENDS OF NOISE

Friends of Noise is thrilled to kick off their first-ever Spring BreakFest, a two-day, ALL AGES event featuring an epic bill of 16 teen and adult bands March 29 & 30 at Oregon Contemporary (8371 N. Interstate Ave.)! As Friends of Noise loves to do, they have pulled together a multi-genre lineup, so come check out one of your favorite bands and stick around to discover someone new! Full lineup and advance tickets are available here.

Opportunities to Support CARES Northwest

• CARES Northwest has shared their Amazon wish list.

• They are looking for outreach marketing ambassadors – they could use some publicity and connections to potential donors. 

• Volunteer opportunities interacting with families in the waiting areas - this will include some training. 

If you’re interested in either of these volunteer positions, contact Jenny Gilmore, Executive Director, or Teresa Baker, Admin Assistant at 503-276-9000.

LIAISON REPORT FROM ANDREA ALLISON

Girlfriend Andrea Allison is a liaison with Impact Partner CARES Northwest. Following is her report from her February site visit.

CARES Northwest expressed their gratitude for ninety-nine girlfriends and the Impact Awards they have received that helped them expand their services to Beaverton. Right now, they have a one-person office there that staff use to see clients. It is only large enough to see one child at a time versus four children here in Portland. They are in the process of building a 10,000-square-foot facility in the Hillsboro/Cornell area, tripling the size of their current space, which will open in January 2026. Next month they will be working on the design!
CARES Northwest is accredited and uses evidence-based practice for child abuse intervention. They not only evaluate children but also treat them with a staff of therapists, physicians, and case managers as well as outside contractors. They are working hard to dig out from under the COVID lockdown. The cases they are now seeing are increasingly severe and complex with more no-shows, increased trauma, and instability that further impacts the children. The court system is backed up for two years! The staff had hoped it all would return to a normal level, but it has not happened. It takes a toll on the staff, and they are working on self-care and focusing on successes and resiliency to not burn themselves out. They have continued success though. They were working with Legacy Hospital and the State of Oregon to bill health insurance for mental health services and that has now become a reality!

Girlfriend Andrea Allison pictured with Hollie and Jenny of CARES Northwest. The quilt in this therapy room will be gifted to a client.

IMPACT PARTNER HIGHLIGHTS FROM THEIR REPORTS

As we wrap up 2023, we hope you will take a moment to join us to celebrate the incredible work and accomplishments of our Impact Partners, who work in the ever-changing landscape of the nonprofit sector, where challenges seem ever-present. We invite you to review their impact reports now on our website. As you browse these reports, we hope you will join us in taking pride in our tangible impact. Our Impact Partners have submitted various testimonials that speak to the scope, depth, and overall impact of their work – and demonstrate the value of our collective support in bolstering their efforts. 

We look forward to another year of standing together – not only in our contributions to grantmaking but also in our collective commitment to making a difference in our communities! Continue reading here.

To quote our various Impact Partners, our awards have helped organizations increase capacity, empower workers, foster intergenerational equity through art and activism, increase the depth of their services for youth, hone internal communications, return to in-person programming, build financial security, bring women hope, and so much more. 

Here are just a few highlights: 

• Black Food Sovereignty Coalition’s regenerative urban farm put on its largest CSA, distributing over 4000 pounds of produce (and serving 50 families who are a part of WomenFirst Transition & Referral Center!).

• WomenFirst Transition & Referral Center provided critical services to women who need access to vision care resources, storage fees for program participants, and furnishings for those transitioning into permanent housing.

• Constructing Hope graduated 42 community members and placed them in new careers with an average starting wage of $23.51/hr.

• Portland Opportunities Industrialization Center + Rosemary Anderson High School (POIC+RAHS) have enrolled and graduated two cohorts of trainees from The Culinary + Hospitality Emergent Fellowship Academy. During the graduation ceremony, Chef Kiara Hardy, the Culinary Director of the POIC Kitchen, congratulated the graduates and emphasized that they can now work "as  professionals in any kitchen you set foot in." 

• Trash for Peace’s Ground Score program launched a new website, providing the project with a vital fundraising and marketing tool.

• Voz Workers Rights' Education Project offered 35 training opportunities in habitat restoration, forestry, arborism, invasive and noninvasive plants, and general green jobs skills in different languages.

• Dr Martin Luther King Jr School Museum of Contemporary Art (KSMoCA) is starting to use the school's windows as a giant canvas to display some of the student artworks, making their work more accessible to the broader King neighborhood. 

• BRAVO Youth Orchestras provided three incredibly robust summer music camps supporting ~150 students who otherwise may not have had access to music and the arts. They also gave a shoutout to their liaison, Anne Castleton, who will be playing with the BRAVO Community Orchestra Winter Concert on Friday, Dec. 15 at Buckley Center Auditorium!

• Wisdom of the Elders has been working to build capacity – from bringing in an Indigenous Traditional Ecological Knowledge (ITEK) Admin/Outreach Coordinator, to supporting multiple cohorts of BIPOC interns and individuals in developing skills in ITEK-informed environmental restoration.

BRAVO YOUTH ORCHESTRAS

Have you been yearning to sing in community or keep your talent on an instrument sharp? BRAVO Youth Orchestras has two opportunities for community members of all ages to join them in making music!

Bravo Community CHOIR welcomes and accepts all people from ALL walks of life to come together with one sole purpose: Spreading Love Through Music! The choir has an eclectic repertoire and rehearses on Thursdays from 7:00 p.m.-9:00 pm at Bakery Block, Suite 110, 2222 NE Oregon Street in Portland. No one is exempt from participating in this choir! BRAVO welcomes anybody and everybody. If you have questions, please contact Choir Director Joshua Sommerville at joshua@oregonbravo.org.

BRAVO Community ORCHESTRA offers the opportunity to students, BRAVO staff, and community musicians to play and learn new repertoire in an orchestral environment, developing listening skills, fostering respect for others, and a sense of belonging. They rehearse on Fridays from 6:00 p.m. - 8:00 p.m. at the Buckley Auditorium on the University of Portland campus, 5000 N Willamette Blvd in Portland. For more information, please contact Orchestras Manager Marian Gutierrez-Curiel at marian@oregonbravo.org. 

You can also catch two Bravo Youth performances later this year:

• BRAVO Winds SUN Showcase – at 4:45 pm, Thursday, December 7, 2023, at James John Elementary School, Featuring the BRAVO Wind Students from Cesar Chavez and James John.

• BRAVO Community Orchestra Fall Concert – at 7 pm, Friday, December 15, 2023, at the University of Portland, Buckley Center Auditorium. 

WISDOM OF THE ELDERS

In their latest newsletter, Wisdom of the Elders highlighted the work they’re doing through Wisdom Work Force, LLC – “a vital arm of Wisdom of the Elders, dedicated to habitat restoration and environmental conservation in the Portland area. Our team plays a crucial role in restoring the natural environment, applying Indigenous Traditional Ecological Knowledge (TEK) to create sustainable landscapes. We also specialize in removing invasive species and collaborate closely with the Portland Parks and Recreation and Forestry Department to safeguard local ecosystems. If you're passionate about making a positive impact on the environment, consider joining our team.” To explore opportunities and be part of this meaningful work, please get in touch with Adrienne at adrienne@wisdomoftheelders.org 

Wisdom of the Elders also offers a paid multimedia internship program, serving Native American & BIPOC students in the Portland area with a passion for multimedia and storytelling. Through this program, interns will have the chance to contribute to various projects and get hands-on experience in film and video field production, post-production editing, photography, archival work, and more! Do you know someone who would be a great candidate for this opportunity? You can share the program website and application with them with this link!

IMPACT PARTNER HIGHLIGHTS

Wisdom of the Elders is one of many community partners coming together with Portland Parks and Recreation to celebrate the 75 years of one of our city’s prized outdoor spaces, Forest Park! On Saturday, Sept. 23, join them and other community members to volunteer, learn, and celebrate together at this event, which kicks off at 8:30 a.m.! Wisdom of the Elders is offering a basket weaving workshop at the Lower Macleay trailhead from 9:30-11:30 a.m., led by Celeste Whitewolf, Confederated Tribes of the Umatilla Indian Reservation elder; and Lise Gervais, a basket weaving instructor. More information on the event and the workshop can be found on this website – including a registration link for the workshop. You can also register for the workshop directly here. 

We’re digging back into the archives of KSMoCA’s work to highlight a fun way for folks of all ages to engage in an art moment together! If you haven’t already, check out KSMoCA’s Conceptual Art at Home project – a series of art prompts designed for K-8th grade students, but open for anyone to do! Prompts are written by artists who have worked with KSMoCA, and some of the organization’s broader community of friends. Make a drawing with one of their prompts, connect with a family member through a thoughtful interview, or learn about the work of an artist you didn’t know before!

Impact Partner Highlights

Black Food Sovereignty Coalition

Earlier this summer, The Oregonian highlighted the work that the Black Food Sovereignty Coalition is doing in the community in this great write-up on the Black Futures Farm and other programs – including a collaboration with another Impact Partner, WomenFirst Transition & Referral Center! BFSC is bringing them fresh produce to support their programming.

WomenFirst Transition and Referral Center

WomenFirst Transition & Referral Center is hiring for a number of FT and PT positions, including a Financial Manager, Family Resource Navigator, Administrative Assistant, Childcare Coordinator, and Domestic Violence Advocate. For more information, contact the organization’s executive Director, Shannon Olive, at shannono@rebuildwomenfirst.org. Please share with your network.

Rosemary Anderson High School

Rosemary Anderson High School just launched its Prep program for the upcoming school year! This tuition-free pilot program for an initial enrollment of 60 students builds upon the alternative, community-based model at RAHS, adding increased post-secondary prep schooling through advanced classes, an entrepreneurship program with local business partners, and an athletics program that includes boys' basketball and girls' volleyball. You can read more about the program here in an article from The Skanner! 

Constructing Hope

Constructing Hope has launched a project called “Building Legacy: Construction Industry Community Builders of Color,” documenting the historical contribution of BIPOC Pioneers in Oregon’s construction industry through storytelling. The site links to the biographies of these honorees, including Marcela Alcantar, Faye Burch, Shirley Minor, and James Posey. You can also find a set of moving interviews with these trailblazing community members on Constructing Hope’s YouTube page. They are also hiring right now for a part-time Fundraising Manager.

Impact Partner Highlights

Wisdom of the Elders

Wisdom of the Elders, a 2022 Impact Partner, is searching for an artist to design their new logo. They seek someone who will lend their expertise in bringing Wisdom a new logo and visual identity that reflects the organization’s new mission-driven focus. Could that be you or someone you know? Portfolios can be submitted to multimedia@wisdomoftheelders.org, along with a design proposal and suggested budget for consideration. 

Voz Workers' Rights Education Project

2022 Impact Partner Voz Workers’ Rights Education Project is hosting its Annual Dinner on June 23rd, and there are multiple ways for members of ninety-nine girlfriends to get involved. Tickets are available for purchase here: https://www.eventbrite.com/e/vozs-annual-fundraising-dinner-tickets-593154911307. Voz is also seeking sponsors at various levels for the event. More information is available through this link:  bit.ly/VozSponsors. Lastly, Voz is seeking volunteers – please contact Tanya Macedo via email at tanya@portlandvoz.org for opportunities to help.