91 grants & PRIs for $14.3 million
Since inception in 1982:5,674 grants & PRIs for $463.4 million
Meyer Memorial Trust will be open regular hours (8:30 a.m. to 5 p.m.) over the holidays except:
Closed after 12:30 p.m. on Friday, Dec. 23
Closed Monday, December 26
Closed after 12:30 p.m. on Friday, Dec. 30
Closed Monday, January 2, 2006.
Happy Holidays to one and all!
At the December program meeting, Meyer Memorial Trust awarded 63 grants for more than $2.4 million. Twelve of the awards were made in the Responsive Grant Program, accounting for $1,875,241. Those grants are listed below.
The 51 Grassroots Grants will be added to the website soon.
December 2005 Responsive Grant grants (for one year unless otherwise noted):
Adelante Mujeres
Forest Grove
$170,000
To hire staff to help Latina women with job and leadership development.
3 years
Arts Umbrella
Eugene
$51,000
For a capacity building project to support expansion of programs serving young rural musicians in the Eugene–Springfield area.
2 years
Centro Latino Americano
Eugene
$152,000
To hire an executive director and to restructure this organization that focuses on improving lives in the Latino community of Lane County.
3 years
Friends of Champoeg
St. Paul
$63,500
To build the capacity of the organization to increase local fundraising and hire a part-time executive director to preserve and interpret cultural and national history of the Champoeg State Heritage Area.
3 years
Juliette’s House
McMinnville
$107,000
To increase the organization's fundraising capacity to expand child safety workshops and the counseling program at this child abuse assessment center.
3 years
The Library Foundation
Portland
$750,000
To expand children's literacy programs and launch a donor challenge for Multnomah County Library.
6 years
Metropolitan Affordable Housing Corporation
Eugene
$61,241
To add staff to build the capacity of the organization.
Mt. Hood Community College
Gresham
$100,000
To help low income and minority women prepare for health career training.
3 years
Planned Parenthood Health Services of Southwestern Oregon
Eugene
$200,000
To implement a public education initiative fostering healthy sexual attitudes and behaviors among teens.
2 years
Portland Baroque Orchestra
Portland
$113,000
To increase ticket sales and contributed income with a development assistant and enhanced marketing.
3 years
Serendipity Center
Portland
$47,500
To establish a life skills training program for young adults with mental illnesses and developmental disabilities.
2 years
Student Conservation Association
Seattle
$60,000
To hire college interns to work with students, volunteers, and civic groups to reconstruct Fort Clatsop.
Last Friday we said goodbye to Charline McDonald, program officer at MMT for more than 22 years. In many ways, she represented the heart of the Trust. There are few nonprofit organizations in our region Charline did not touch during her more than two decades of service. Fortunately for us all, Charline has agreed to continue to represent MMT in Oregon Small Schools Initiative and other special projects as needed. She continues to be listed among our staff members.
As you may have heard, Charline MacDonald is retiring this year. We're wondering if you would like to send a quick and short email with some parting thoughts you'd like us to share with Charline... Many of you have worked with her over the years, and she will be missed! We'd like her to know just how much.
Please do so by replying to this message by 5 p.m., Tuesday, Nov. 29th. Short is good. We want to compile a list of parting words from the nonprofit community.
Thanks so much,
Marie
At the November meeting, our trustees awarded 12 grants for $1,499,376, bringing the total amount awarded this fiscal year to $21,742,320. Since it began operating in 1982, MMT has awarded 4,846 grants for $376,931,687. (MMT awards grants monthly.)
November grants include:
Ecumenical Ministries of Oregon
Portland, OR
$82,000
To complete renovation of an assisted living residence by adding a community center space.
2 years
The Food Alliance
Portland, OR
$180,000
To support expansion of the organization's certification capacity to increase its earned income.
3 years
Grant Action Partners
John Day, OR
$35,000
To help develop a skate park for the youth of John Day, Canyon City, and Grant County.
Juvenile Rights Project
Portland, OR
$325,000
To reduce crime and improve educational outcomes for foster children and delinquent youth through school-based advocacy.
3 years
Linnton Community Center
Portland, OR
$166,400
To renovate the gymnasium at the community center.
Northwest Youth Corps
Eugene, OR
$89,076
To accelerate vehicle replacement and to accommodate larger crews.
Oregon Environmental Council
Portland, OR
$155,000
For a major gifts officer to enable this organization to increase its financial base.
3 years
Portland Symphonic Choir
Portland, OR
$119,700
To increase the organization's fundraising capacity and for administrative support.
3 years
REAP
Portland, OR
$7,500
For technical assistance for this mentoring program.
Ross Ragland Theater
Klamath Falls, OR
$28,000
For sound, lighting and other equipment.
Southwest Community Health Center
Portland, OR
$185,000
For paid staff for this safety-net health clinic.
3 years
Well Arts Institute
Portland, OR
$126,700
For the first paid staff for an organization that creates therapeutic arts experiences with patients, their families, health care workers and the public, and promotes the arts in health care.
3 years
Meyer Memorial Trust announced today a partnership with the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation to invest nearly $11 million in reforming and improving Oregon schools and instruction. Of the total amount, the Oregon Department of Education will receive $1.75 million over two years and Portland Schools Foundation will get $8.9 million over three years.
MMT's contribution is $750,000, which will be used by Portland Schools Foundation for a comprehensive redesign of Portland Public Schools' central administration and to mobilize Portland citizens in improving and supporting Portland Public Schools.
MMT and Gates Foundation already work together in supporting the Oregon Small Schools Initiative. MMT is a founding member of the cooperative effort by five Oregon foundations to address important issues in K-12 public education in Oregon through the Chalkboard Project. The Gates Foundation is also supporting that effort.
"It's very satisfying and rewarding to see our efforts to reform education attract interest and support from major national foundations." MMT Executive Director Doug Stamm said. "Education reform is the most difficult, yet potentially the most important, work we are involved in with respect to the long term health of our state."
Penguin Day - an event to help raise awareness of and knowledge about Open Source Software (OSS) among nonprofit organizations - was a resounding success! A range of nonprofit representatives attended, from those who had no idea what Open Source is to IT professionals already implenting OSS at their organizations.
One of the day's highlights was a presentation by Paul Nelson from Riverdale High School, who developed the K-12 Linux Terminal Server Project. Riverdale might well be the most affluent public school disctrict in Oregon. As Paul pointed out, what isn't provided in public funding can be purchased by parents. Let's face it. This is a school district that can afford the best technology money can buy. Isn't it interesting that it determined that the best system money can buy is the free one? Hearing Paul describe the project's background was fascinating and inspiring, especially when he told how he was able to shift from full time IT person to full time teaching as a result of adopting LTSP. He reported that it has been downloaded more than 500,000 by users from all over the world.
The K-12 LTSP motto: "It's free. It works. Duh."
Meyer Memorial Trust is increasingly aware that Oregon is the epicenter for Open Source development in the world and is interested in exploring ways to help OSS help area nonprofit organizations.
We invite you to visit the wiki where the day's proceedings have begun to be reported.
Special thanks to Oso Martin at Free Geek and many other local partners in helping make this event a success. Look for more events of this nature in the future.
Happy Halloween,
Marie
P.S. My nomination for the most interesting invitation to a nonprofit Halloween party this year:
HOWL
At the October program meeting, MMT awarded 16 grants for $1,995,800 and one Program-Related Investment for $1 million. These awards bring the total amount granted since MMT began operating in 1982 to nearly $375 million!
The awards included:
Agness Community Library
Agness
$3,300
To improve the cataloging and circulation systems of the Agness, Langois, and Port Orford public libraries.
CASA of Lane County
Springfield
$80,000
To support acquisition of the organization's office site.
Cascade AIDS Project
Portland
$175,000
For an education outreach and support program for HIV-affected children, youth and their families.
Children’s Dental Clinic of Jackson County
Medford
$7,500
For digital radiographic equipment.
Eagle Point School District
White City
$25,000
To complete the track at White Mountain Middle School to serve as a school and community resource.
Ecotrust
Portland
$100,000
To help the organization acquire timberland in low-income communities using New Market Tax Credits.
Head Start in Lincoln County
Corvallis
$75,000
To buy and renovate a site in Newport for a Head Start program.
Human Solutions
Portland
$1,000,000
For a program related investment loan to buy a 50,000-foot facility in east Multnomah County to develop a multicultural, multi-service center to increase access to services for low-income area residents.
Illinois Valley Senior Center
Cave Junction
$85,000
To build an addition to the center to expand services to a growing senior population and the community.
Kids on the Block Awareness Program
Portland
$97,000
To provide health and safety programs to serve 20,000 additional children in outer Clark, Multnomah and Washington Counties.
Oregon Community Warehouse
Portland
$150,000
To support expansion of the organization's capacity to receive donations, distribute furniture, and raise funds.
Oregon Somali Family Education Center
Hillsboro
$28,000
To support a program manager to help volunteers meet the needs of Somali youth and families in Washington County.
Portland Classical Chinese Garden
Portland
$150,000
For a cultural education director for an outreach program.
Portland Schools Foundation
Portland
$750,000
For a comprehensive redesign of Portland Public Schools' central administration and to mobilize Portland citizens in improving and supporting Portland Public Schools.
Providence Community Health Foundation
Medford
$37,000
For a modular building health center at Jackson Elementary School in west Medford.
Somali Community Services Coalition
Portland
$83,000
For a case manager to assist new Somali community members and families to become self sufficient.
Three Rivers Community Hospital - Asante,
Grants Pass
$150,000
To help construct a low cost residence for patients and families receiving care at the hospital.
Meyer Memorial Trust has adopted a policy that asks each grant applicant seeking assistance with technology to have considered Open Source Software as part of its technology assessment leading to its grant request. Because Open Source has no advertising budget, it is generally less well known than commercial software.
But Open Source is rapidly gaining traction and going mainstream at corporations and government agencies worldwide.
Will nonprofit organizations be left behind?
Have you ever thought about how your use of technology might align with your organization's mission and values?
Are you curious about what open source software can do for your organization?
Have you ever wondered about what free and open source solutions exist that can help you in your work?
Penguin Day Portland Registration Page is Open and Waiting for you to sign up....
Penguin Day Portland, Oregon will take place on October 15th from 9 a.m. to 5:30 p.m.
University Place near Portland State University in downtown Portland
Registration fee: $50 if your organization foots the bill, $25 if you have to pay from your own pocket...
Registration includes lunch and other refreshments. Macforce has donated an iPod as a doorprize!
******What is Penguin Day Portland?******
Penguin Day brings together nonprofit staff, tech providers, geeks, consultants, and open source software developers for a day of learning and conversation. Together, we'll demystify open source for nonprofits, frankly address the challenges of developing open source tools, and learn about specific promising open source applications for nonprofits.
****** Who is behind Penguin Day Portland?******
Meyer Memorial Trust, Aspiration, Free Geek, TACS/NPower Oregon, and many other local partners.
****What will I take away from Penguin Day?******
Penguin Day Portland features a packed agenda of interactive workshops, round tables, and "speed geeks." Topics include:
* Introduction to Free and Open Source Software for Nonprofits
* Local resources and who's-who in the Portland Free/Open Source community
* Helping techies and non-techies communicate and cooperate
* Overview of Free and Open Source desktop applications
* e-Advocacy platforms
* The Economics of Open Source: How free is "free?"
* Podcasting with Open Source: Telling Your Organization's Story
* Selecting an Open Source operating system
* Migrating your organization to Free and Open Source software
* Funding, financing and sustaining an Open Source project
* Hardware recycling using Free and Open Source Software
* Creative Commons and Open Content
* Speed Geek (a lively tour of projects and tools)
For more info on Penguin Days in cities all over the country, see www.penguinday.org.
**** What Are Others Are Saying About Penguin Days? *****
"Penguin Day was great - I had an excellent day - made new friends, put a lot of faces to email addresses, had a whole load of fun - and got introduced to some new applications and distributions! Thanks again to everyone who organised the day, ran sessions etc - it made my 4,500 mile trip worthwhile!"
Ian, from London, UK
"Penguin Days are a fantastic opportunity to get together with a wide variety of people and understand more about the issues that surround open source. Unlike a lot of conference/gatherings, the emphasis in these is on meeting people and making connections that you carry out of them room. And that works.
Marnie from San Francisco
"Now on to Penguin Day... Wow. For my part I was impressed by the international scope of the audience, folks from Great Britain, Canada, Kenya, Turkey, Ghana, Chicago and all points in between. The energy was great and the range of topics on the agenda meant there was something for everyone....suffice it to say Penguin Day set the mark against which all other events will be measured in my mind."
John from Chicago
**** I Love It! How Can I Get Involved? ********
Register now:
If you would like to talk to us about facilitating a session on a topic you are passionate about, email us at agenda@penguinday org! If your organization is interested in helping sponsor Penguin Day Portland, please contact info@penguinday.org or call 413-884-0094 (Aspiration).
***Questions?****
Don't hesitate to contact us at info@penguinday.org or by calling 413-884-0094 (Aspiration).
We look forward to seeing you at Penguin Portland
for the Portland Penguin Day Working Group
Penguin Day Portland is made possible by the generous support of Meyer Memorial Trust, SpikeSource, Opensolutions Partners, Free Geek, TACS/NPower Oregon, other local partners, and Aspiration.
Chalkboard announces an initiative to provide up to 12 challenge grants for middle and high schools in Oregon to work with their existing software technology to increase participation and involvement of parents. Programs like EdLine (www.edline.com) allow parents to access attendance, homework assignments and grades on a real-time basis. Some schools in Oregon are experimenting with this technology and parents are responding very positively. More information and the grant application is available from Chalkboard's website.
Chalkboard Project is a joint effort by five foundations in Oregon, including Meyer Memorial Trust, uniting Oregonians to make our public schools among the nation's best.
Meyer Memorial Trust seeks an experienced finance team member with a commitment to excellence. Responsibilities include financial statements, general ledger, accounts payable, reconciliations, and account analysis. Qualified candidate must have BS in Accounting and four years of accounting experience. Individual must have strong computer skills and advanced knowledge of Excel. Must also be detail oriented, organized, and have solid communication and analytical skills. Send succinct letter of interest with resume to: accounting@mmt.org
Applications due October 19, 2005. E-mail only; no phone calls please.
At their September meeting, MMT's trustees awarded 17 grants for $6,081,810.
September is one of the two monthly meetings each year devoted to capital
requests for more than $200,000. In addition to capital awards, MMT
allocated $400,000 as an initial contribution from MMT to help people recover
from Hurricane Katrina.
The September grants have been added to the list of recent Responsive Grant grants.
Office dynamo Ann Lininger came up with an idea that infused a boxed set of fun into our office this summer. She asked all staff at Meyer Memorial Trust (and those who share office space with us) to select a song for a Summer 2005 compilation CD we call "Taking Liberties." So we decided to publish it as an iMix. (Actually, we had to divide it into two iMixes to fit in all our justifications.)
To locate them, go to iTunes Music Store (you can download iTunes for free if you don't have it), and search iMixes for (or directly link from here) Taking Liberties--MMT & Friends Summer 2005 Pt. 1 and Taking Liberties--MMT & Friends Summer 2005 Pt. 2. We've identified each song's nominator and the reason each gave for her/his choice. We hope you give it a listen...
Here's a preview (without the music, of course):
Taking Liberties--MMT & Friends Summer 2005, Pt. 1
1. Talking Heads, This Must Be the Place. Selected by Phoebe because "it was in my car (and it reminds me of a fun trip I took to the Bahamas). "
2. Bebel Gilberto, August Day Song. Selected by Stef of the Chalkboard Project because "we all deserve to feel sassy & sophisticated for 2 minutes during our day. "
3. Delbert McClinton, Old Weakness. Selected by Joyce of Grantmakers of Oregon and Southwest Washington because "Delbert is hot. "
4. Diana Krall, East of the Sun. Selected by Donna because "it's soooooooooo mellow."
5. Gipsy Kings, Somos Gitanos. Selected by Cathie "this great music with Latin flair reminds me of Grupo Boriken (not on iTunes!?), a local Latin group that made my son's recent winter wedding reception sizzle -- Salsa, anyone?"
6. Mariah Carey, We Belong Together. Selected by Selam because "it was a really famous song then and because I liked the lyrics to it. P.S. And it was the first song that came to me!"
7. The Isley Brothers, For the Love of You. Selected by Victor because "the song reminds me of simpler and mellower times. "
8. Les McCann & Eddie Harris, You've Got It In Your Soulness. Selected by Sandy because "I was half asleep in traffic on my way to work when this song came on the radio and not only woke me up but made me want to dance!"
9. Regina Spektor, Ghost of Corporate Future. Selected by Amy of the Chalkboard Project because "I don't like to wear shoes, either. "
10. Tom Jones, It's Not Unusual. Selected by Sam because "what's to explain about Tom Jones?"
Taking Liberties -- MMT & Friends Summer 2005 Pt. 2
1. Toots and the Maytals, (Take Me Home) Country Roads. Selected by Barbara because "John Denver-meets-reggae makes me smile, and so do country roads."
2. Phil Collins, In The Air Tonight. Selected by Terry because "I just like the song--(I can't print the real reason!) "
3. Mary Chapin Carpenter, Passionate Kisses. Selected by Sue of the Chalkboard Project because "what is life without passion? Whether its kisses or a perfect glass of
wine... "
4. Ciara, And I. Selected by Tanika because "to be determined."
5. The Presidents of the United States, Dune Buggy. Selected by Pam of Grantmakers of Oregon and Southwest Washington because "it's wacky and wonderful.....just like MMT and friends!"
6. The Temptations, My Girl. Selected by Wayne because "to be determined."
7. Cake, Short Skirt/Long Jacket. Selected by Ann because "I, too, want a car with a cup holder armrest."
8. Smokey Robinson, Just to See Her. Selected by Doug because "it's the heart and soul of Motown...dubbed 'America's greatest living poet' by Bob Dylan...a hip swooning love machine for over 50 years...does it get any better? "
9. Eminem, Lose Yourself. Selected by Marie because "this is an under-represented genre in our group and I'm a sucker for an inspirational 'wasn't born with a silver spoon in my mouth but made it up anyway' story with a great backbeat."
At the August program meeting, our trustees awarded 10 grants for $1,243,846. The largest grant was for $300,000 over three years to Extraordinary Young People to help establish a youth center on the Warm Springs Indian Reservation.
The most recent statistics summarizing our grantmaking are always available on our news page and a list of Responsive Grant grants made this year can be found here.
Each year MMT has an outside audit conducted, and we make the results available on our website. Our most recent audit has now been completed, and can be viewed here.
Doug Stamm has posted his most recent message, which reports on changes underway here at MMT. There is a lot going on now, with even more changes coming in the future. Stay tuned, as Doug plans to update his message every four months.
Our trustees awarded $929,696 to nine non-profit organizations at the July program meeting. The largest award was a Program Related Investment (loan) to Deschutes Resources Conservancy to help restore streamflow in the middle Deschutes River. The largest grant was $180,000 over three years to the Oregon Paleo Lands Institute in Fossil to help it develop the educational and economic opportunities of the John Day fossil beds. The July grants have been added to the current year's list of Responsive Grants and PRIs.
MMT awarded 54 grants for $2,093,078 at its June 8th meeting. Nine of the grants were made under the Responsive Grant program (for $1,597,949), while 45 of the grants were Grassroots Grants (totaling $495,129).
The Responsive Grant grants have been added to the list of recent grants, and the Grassroots Grants have been added to the Grassroots Grants list.
As one of the Oregon foundations behind the Chalkboard Project, representatives from MMT are among those announcing today the findings and recommendations of Chalkboard's civic engagement and best practices research efforts over the past year. Press conferences are being held at several locations around the state. For the latest update, check the Chalkboard Project's website.
Many individual Oregonians, organizations and communities have put a lot of time and energy into this attempt to advance the quality, accountability and funding stability of K-12 public education in Oregon. MMT joins others in hoping these efforts are successful in contributing to a better Oregon.
There's a lot going on at MMT these days! Here are a few of the highlights:
A grant decision day has come and gone once again! We awarded 88 grants for $2,411,923 at the May program meeting. Twenty-one grants for $2,138,320 were made under our Responsive Grant Program, with 67 awarded under our once-a-year consideration of Support for Teacher Initiatives. The STI Program grants distributed $273,603 to 33 districts and/or schools.
Three more schools were selected for the Oregon Small Schools Initiative, funded jointly by MMT and the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation. A total of 15 high schools in Oregon are now part of the project.
The Chalkboard Project is preparing to release findings on June 7th, we'll keep you posted and linked with that effort. MMT is one of the foundations supporting the Chalkboard effort.
We continue our interest in and support of Open Source Software projects that can be useful to nonprofit organizations. Most recently we began developing a grants managment system that we plan to license under General Public License so that other foundations and grant making institutions are free to use what we learn and grow.
We said goodbye to dear Desi, our financial assistant, who moved on to a position in human resources at an area bank. We miss her very much!
We'll be announcing more about each of these issues -- and more -- over the coming weeks, so please stay tuned.
Have a wonderful holiday weekend,
Marie
Cathie Glennon and I had the pleasure of touring A.C.T. (Arts, Communications & Technology) High School, P.O.W.E.R. (Pursuit of Wellness & Education at Roosevelt) Academy, and S.E.I.S. (Spanish-English International School) High School this week. These schools are all housed in the former Roosevelt High School building in north Portland, which was broken down into three small schools last year.
If one bases their opinion on a school only by news reports and statistics, it’s impossible to fully understand and appreciate what’s going on there without stepping inside yourself. What we saw this week was a school led by dedicated professionals; teachers who knew how to engage their students; administrators who knew the names of students passing them in the hall (especially if they didn’t have a hall pass!); significant support services for teen parents and students of multicultural backgrounds; and, most importantly, amazingly bright and creative students who could perform and explain algebraic equations better than I ever could in college.
While none of our public schools have an easy path ahead, it’s wonderful to see such enthusiasm in the face of adversity. Thank you Sue Ann Higgins and Principal Andrew Kelly for inviting us in and sharing your story.
-Phoebe O'Leary
We entered fiscal year 2005-06 like a lion, awarding 19 grants and 1 program related investment for a total of more than $3 million. The $1 million program related investment (loan) was to Ethos for bridge funding to renovate the Masonic Temple in north Portland as a regional music academy. A list of all the grants made at the April 2005 meeting is included in Recent Grants, which is updated monthly.
We have not been posting messages on our blog as often as we'd like recently because, in addition to our regular program schedule of work, we have been intensely engaged in creating a bold and detailed business plan for the coming year. We will soon be including a lot more information about our internal planning on our website. Please keep checking back often, we will have a lot to talk about.
We will also be adding new features to our website in coming weeks, another good reason to keep dropping by.
Until then,
Marie
The Grassroots Grants awarded during March 2005 have now been added to the Recent Grants list on our website. There were 37 grants totaling $380,451 awarded during March, bringing the total amount for the Grassroots Grants program for Fiscal Year 2004-05 (April 1, 2004 to March 31, 2005) to $1,162,640. This is the largest annual amount ever granted in the Grassroots Grants Program.
The Grassroots Grants Program was established in 1988 to support small projects of special importance to organizations that did not complete well within MMT’s other grants programs. Most of the awards have gone to small organizations. Since the program began, we have awarded 1,633 Grassroots Grants for $11,638,232.
During FY 2004-05, Grassroots Grants went to tax exempt organizations in 28 of 36 counties across Oregon. In addition, 4 of the Grassroots Grants went to organizations in Clark County, Washington.
At the March program meeting, MMT awarded 22 grants for $9,766,000. This was one of our twice-a-year considerations of large capital projects. The largest award was $1.5 million to the Armory Theater Fund for renovation and construction costs of transforming the historic 1891 Portland Armory into a performing arts center for Portland Center Stage. The smallest award was $40,000 to Head Start of Yamhill County to help build a Head Start facility in Newberg. Both of these capital projects are noteworthy for their "green design" features.
The trustees also decided to raise the amount of what MMT considers a large capital project to more than $200,000. See our policy announcements for a full explanation.
In addition, we awarded two PRIs (Program Related Investments) for $800,000.
All new grants and PRIs have been added to our Recent Grants lists for 2004-05. All grants have been awarded for MMT's 2004-05 Fiscal Year.
Marie
Today we added a new section to our website. We call it LFAQs (Less Frequently Asked Questions), a complement to the customary FAQs that we also include. Because we want our website to be an increasingly interactive place, we created a way for visitors who don't find answers to their questions to ask us directly. Each question we receive is assigned to someone on our staff, who composes a personal response. Both questions and answers are added to our LFAQ archives to grow our collective wisdom.
We encourage visitors who have questions about MMT to start with our FAQs, then check our LFAQs, and if questions remain unasked and unanswered, to send them our way. There are very few questions that only one person has, so this can be one way you can contribute to our website and to our growing body of shared knowledge. After all, we're all in this together.
We look forward to hearing from you!
Marie
One of the ways we as a staff keep ourselves aware of interesting people and activities in our community that don't relate to the work of making grants is through what we call our Food for Thought Lunch Bunch. On the third Friday of every month, we invite someone to come have lunch with us and talk about an interesting event or aspect of his or her life. For example, our February speaker was OPB reporter Kristian Foden-Vencil, who told us about his experience being embedded with the Oregon National Guard in Iraq.
We all enjoyed talking with Kristian, who was very personable and frank in answering our many questions. Hearing from him and seeing the dust on his laptop made us feel a bit closer to what is happening on the ground in Iraq.
Past speakers have included a refugee from Afghanistan, a college professor who does basic scientific research, a Portland attorney who got to attend the week-long Nobel Prize activities in Sweden when her friend was awarded a Nobel Prize, a prize-winning author of detective novels, a former internee at a World War II Japanese internment camp in Wyoming, a representative from public access media, etc. Would you agree that's a lot of food for thought?!
In March we are looking forward to a visit with a 74-year-old woman who was the first person to sail alone across the Pacific Ocean! We're certain she will give us a lot to chew on...
Marie
On February 1, 128 applications were submitted online to MMT's Support for Teacher Initiatives program.
For those who like to track numbers, there were:
– 107 applications from 70 public schools in 35 districts
– 13 applications from 9 private schools
– 7 applications from 5 charter schools
– 1 from an Education Service District.
Proposals were submitted from 16 Oregon counties and Clark County, WA.
The 128 applications represent:
– 37,147 students served
– in 50 elementary schools, 41 middle schools, 34 high schools, and 3 K-12 schools
– by 435 teachers.
Over the past 10 years MMT has received more than 2,000 proposals, awarding more than 700 grants for more than $3 million, involving more than 100,000 students and nearly 3,000 teachers.
For those who are really into numerology, the number of proposals we've received has varied over the past 6 years:
2000 – 106
2001 – 173
2002 – 142
2003 – 125
2004 – 102
2005 – 128
We welcome teachers and anyone else interested to submit your best speculation about what accounts for the variation.
Sandy
At the February 8th meeting, our trustees awarded 11 grants totaling $1,582,227. The largest grant was a three year award of $750,000 to the SMART (Start Making A Reader Today) program to help it increase fundraising and expand to schools in all Oregon counties.
Our February meeting includes MMT's annual consideration of Habitat for Humanity proposals. This year we made 5 grants for $395,520. The smallest award ($30,000) was to Grande Ronde HfH to help the affiliate build a home, while the largest grant ($150,000 over 3 years) went to Mt. Hood HfH to help it become the first affiliate in Oregon to achieve a 50-house-per-year goal. Until a few years ago, Habitat affiliates submitted proposals throughout the year. To help us better compare often similar proposals and to make it easier for affliates to negotiate our application process, we decided to adopt an annual deadline. Since then, we have made 45 grants for $2,086,685 to affiliates across Oregon and in Clark County, Washington.
All grants made in February are included in the list of recent grants on this website.
Our grantmaking and financial statistics are updated monthly on our website as well.
Marie
Today we hear sighs of relief in the office. The board book we provide our trustees to help them prepare for their monthly meeting is finished! The week before the board book is issued is usually pretty hectic, as there are a lot of tasks that have to fall in place for the book to be completed.
Our foundation is a bit unusual in that our trustees meet monthly to make decisions about awarding grants. We have a fairly rigorous process for reporting on grant proposals. Each and every eligible proposal submitted to MMT is described to our trustees in a written summary prior to their monthly meeting. If any trustee wants to hear more about a particular proposal, it gets moved to the “further study� category and is assigned to a program officer, who conducts a site visit and undertakes whatever other investigation the proposal warrants. (See the “What We Look For� section of this website to get a better idea of what we investigate.) Program officers write up their findings in a report that is then circulated to all other program officers and our executive director. We hold a “peer review� meeting to go over each report to identify strengths and weaknesses and any remaining questions. The program officer uses that input to improve the report. The reports are then proofread, formatted, and otherwise made right! When completed, all the reports are bundled into the board book that is delivered to our trustees a week before they meet.
Now you know why we feel relieved today. But there’s no rest for the weary, because there is a stack of new proposals that have been collecting over the past month waiting to be read to begin the cycle all over again… we look forward to discovering exciting projects and worthy programs among them!
Marie
We are grateful to student teacher Linda Glodt for sending us letters that Kelly Elementary students wrote after studying Fred Meyer, among other famous Oregonians. In fact, we enjoyed reading the letters so much we decided to share them with our website visitors... Thanks to Andrea, Harvey, Cristian, Logan, Jaime, and Valeriy for their sentiments and interest in philanthropy. Keep up the good work!
Here are the letters:
Dear Sir,
In my 4th grade class we’ve been studying about famous Oregonians. My favorite Oregonian is Fred Meyer. I want to do something like him, like open a store and open a trust fund.
Sincerely,
Andrea
Dear Fred Meyer,
I am studying famous Oregonians. He made Fred Meyers. I hope to make a difference in my community donating money to an orphanage.
Sincerely,
Harvey
Dear Fred Meyer,
My class studied you and other people because you started out small and now your one of Oregon’s largest one stop shopping centers. I want to help my community by planting trees and removing non-native plants.
Sincerely,
Cristian
Dear Fred Meyer,
My class is studying timelines and right now I’m studying Fred Meyer. I hope to make a difference in my community by helping the world by picking up garbage and donating money to schools.
Sincerely,
Logan
Dear Fred Meyer,
In my 4th grade class, we’ve been studying famous Oregonians. I like Fred Meyer because he helps people. I want to help community by buying stuff.
Sincerely,
Jaime
Dear Sir,
In my 4th grade class we’ve been studying famous Oregonians like Linus Pauling, Tom McCall, Chief Joseph, Bertha Holt, Abigail Scott Duniway, and Fred Meyer. I especially liked Fred Meyer because he helped people live and shared his store with people. I hope to make a difference in my community by helping people and giving them things. That’s what I want to do.
Sincerely,
Valeriy
At the January meeting, MMT awarded 7 grants for $742,310. In recognizing that the world is closely connected these days, two of the grants related to the recent global tsunami disaster. MMT awarded $300,000 to Mercy Corps and $100,000 to Northwest Medical Teams to support increased costs at their respective international headquarters, both located in Oregon, to facilitate these organizations' tsunami disaster relief efforts. Each month the grants MMT awards are added to our list of recent grants, also located on this website.
Yesterday evening several members of our staff went to the Salvation Army Moore Street Community Center in north Portland to watch one of our administrative assistants play basketball with her team from De La Salle North Catholic High School. Rashida and the Lady Knights played hard, and lost by only one point in overtime. We all thought Rashida was a standout on her team! We hope our enthusiastic audience participation did not embarrass you, Rashida... go Lady Knights!!
With the beginning of the new year, Meyer Memorial Trust is once again on the move. Well, this time it's just a small move. We've extended our office space to better accommodate the other two organizations we host in our office space: Grantmakers of Oregon and Southwest Washington and the Chalkboard Project. We enjoy having these projects in our midst and gain a lot from our proximity to these resources and their wonderful staff members.
If you haven't visited us for a while, we invite you to drop by and see how we're looking these days.
