A Black child lays on top of a Black adult in a hammock. The child looks up, smiling.

In 2021, much like 2020, we witnessed firsthand amazing work led by frontline communities across the Pacific Northwest. While our meeting rooms collected dust and grantee introductions were held via Zoom, BIPOC-led organizations continued to support community members hit hard by the pandemic, advocated for safer working conditions, built capacity for narrative work, and so much more!

Thank you to everyone who was a part of our work in 2021. Here’s what we accomplished together.

 

Launching Civic Health

In 2021, we officially kicked off the first year of Civic Health’s Cohort Program. Thirteen organizations joined the cohort:

  • Asian Pacific American Network of Oregon

  • Ebony Collective Coalition

  • Imagine Black

  • Latinx Power Table

  • Native American Youth and Family Action Fund

  • OneAmerica Votes

  • Pacific County Voices Uniting

  • SW Washington Communities United for Change

  • Unite Oregon Action

  • UNITE Warm Springs 

  • Washington County Ignite 

Civic Health groups were each paired with a coach, developed thoughtful and detailed work plans, attended trainings and online convenings. Civic Health groups also received supplemental grants to acquire technology, fund get-out-the-vote text banking, support temporary digital field programs, provide resources to campaigns, etc. 

In May, NWHF invited three groups from Civic Health—Unite Oregon, Imagine Black and PCUN—to join a pilot program with the Progressive Multiplier Fund who has a unique model of helping organizations grow their resource base. Gray Family Foundation and Yarg Foundation, who are eager to understand how their 501(c)(3) dollars can support fundraising for 501(c)(4) organizations, joined us in funding this pilot. 

NWHF lent our lobbying capacity to a Ranked Choice Voting campaign with guidance from grantees APANO and Next Up Action Fund. While the bill we lobbied for ultimately did not pass, conversations about our current system of voting were beneficial, and we were able to secure funding to upgrade voting systems across the state if/when Oregonians change how they vote. 

The Oregon Donor Alliance (ODA) launched this year with NWHF’s support. ODA is an emerging statewide organization (aka a “donor table”) for doers and donors to learn together and align funding. 

 

Health and Education Fund

A two by two grid of four professional photo portraits, three of Latinx people, one of a white person.

Newly elected Salem-Keizer School Board members María Hinojos Pressey, Osvaldo Avila, Ashley Carson Cottingham and Karina Guzmán Ortiz

In 2021, we wrapped up the Health and Education Fund. In the last year of this initiative, our funding supported voter outreach efforts in the Salem-Keizer School District. Pineros y Campesinos Unidos del Noroeste (PCUN) convened a coalition (Community for Salem-Keizer Schools) focused on the Salem-Keizer School Board, the second-largest school district in the state, with a board of directors that was not representative of their community despite many past attempts by PCUN to change that. 2021 ended that streak. All four of the coalition's endorsed candidates secured a seat on the school board, including the first three Latino/a representatives ever elected to Salem-Keizer.

 

Organizational Identity & Capacity

We welcomed four new board members, all with unique lived experience and professional expertise that make the work of NWHF even stronger: Jamie McLeod-Skinner, David Sáez, Corinne Sams and Nico Serra.

Matthew Jordan joined the team at the start of the year as the Center for Philanthropy’s Building Manager, bringing facility management expertise and a sincere commitment to building community. 

We launched a new website that is significantly easier to navigate and more accessible to people with disabilities. 

We took a deeper look at the demographic questions we ask on our grant applications and updated the language.

We welcomed two new tenants to the Center for Philanthropy: Partnership for Safety and Justice and City Club of Portland. We also took advantage of the quiet to discuss amongst ourselves and tenants what does the center mean to you? Feel like to you? Stay tuned for an updated vision and mission statement.

 

Advancing Disability Justice

In 2017, Northwest Health Foundation established the Advancing Disability Justice program. This program recognizes and supports disabled BIPOC leaders and disability-led programs in our region. Community advisors and NWHF staff selected six Advancing Disability Justice grantees to receive a total of $46,600. The funding for these grants came from our partner, The Collins Foundation. 

Groups selected:

A person of color sits in an Adirondack chair writing in a journal. They wear a mask and headphones. Flowers sprout around them.
  • Asian Pacific American Network of Oregon Communities United Fund

  • Black & Beyond the Binary Collective

  • Disability Refugee Community

  • Disability Art and Culture Project

  • El Programa Hispano Católico

  • The Ebony Collective CDC

We were also proud to sign the Disability & Philanthropy Forum Disability Inclusion Pledge and continue to improve our internal systems and policies to align with our values.

 

Narrative Fellowships

Northwest Health Foundation partnered with ReFrame, a nationally recognized organization focused on growing narrative infrastructure to shift common sense towards liberation. Together, we designed a six-month program to build the capacity of community-led organizations to engage in narrative work.

Groups selected:

  • Imagine Black

  • Native American Youth and Family Center

  • Partnership for Safety and Justice

  • Interfaith Movement for Immigrant Justice 

  • Rural Organizing Project

  • Verde

  • Planned Parenthood Advocates of Oregon 

  • Centro Cultural de Washington County

  • Oregon Futures Lab

  • Building Power for Communities of Color

  • Centro Latino Americano

 

Grantmaking

In 2021, we made grants to incredible organizations and initiatives throughout Oregon and Southwest Washington. Examples include:

$15k to Oregon Voice
to strengthen the collective political impact of a broad network of community and advocacy organizations. One pillar of their work is to train and support BIPOC 501(c)(3) organizations to build data-informed civic engagement infrastructure. 

$250,000 to Seeding Justice for their new building, the Center for Social Enterprise. The Center for Social Enterprise (CSE) Project will be located on historic Mississippi Avenue in Portland with more than 1,000 square feet of storefront. CSE will feature an innovative investment and management structure that focuses on building organizational stability and social connectedness for community-based organizations. CSE will be a home for 12-15 nonprofits and business enterprises.

$9,360 each to FACT Oregon, Adelante Mujeres and Consejo Hispano
who are working together on an ambitious and intersectional legislative agenda. These three organizations are all Health and Education Fund Impact grantees. They represent three communities: disability, Washington County and North Oregon Coast communities. These organizations were identified by Foundations for a Better Oregon staff as organizations that need additional capacity to participate in the 2021 Oregon Legislative Session.

 

2021 Funded Partners

This list includes grants from both Northwest Health Foundation and our affiliated 501(c)(3), Northwest Health Foundation Fund II.

Advancing Disability Justice

  • Asian Pacific American Network of Oregon (APANO) Communities United Fund

  • Black & Beyond the Binary Collective

  • Disability Refugee Community (fiscal sponsor: Cascade Pacific Resource Conservation & Development)

  • Disability Art and Culture Project

  • El Programa Hispano Católico

  • The Ebony Collective CDC

Civic Health: C4 Power Program

  • Ebony Collective Coalition

  • Imagine Black

  • Latinx Power Table

  • NAYA Action Fund

  • OneAmerica Votes

  • Pacific County Voices Uniting

  • SW Washington Communities United for Change

  • Unite Oregon Action

  • UNITE Warm Springs 

  • WashCo Ignite 

Civic Health: Culture Shifting

  • CASA in Action

  • Oregon Futures Lab

  • PushBlack

  • Texas After Violence Project

Community Sponsorships

  • 7 Waters Canoe Family

  • Adelante Mujeres

  • Airway Science for Kids

  • APANO

  • Basic Rights Oregon

  • Bienestar

  • Black & Beyond the Binary Collective

  • Building Blocks 2 Success

  • Cascade AIDS Project

  • Centro Cultural de Washington County

  • Comunidad y Herencia Cultural

  • Edúcate Ya

  • Familias en Accion

  • Girls Inc. of the Pacific Northwest

  • IRCO
    KairosPDX

  • Komemma Cultural Protection Association

  • Kukatonon

  • Latino Community Association

  • Latino Network

  • Micronesian Islander Community

  • Minoru Yasui Legacy Project

  • NAYA

  • Old Town Community Association

  • OPAL Environmental Justice Oregon

  • Oregon Progress Forum

  • Papalaxsimisha

  • PCUN

  • Pendleton Community Action Coalition

  • Philippine American Chamber of Commerce of Oregon 

  • Play, Grow, Learn

  • Red Lodge Transition Services

  • Rogue Climate

  • Rural Organizing Project

  • Safety & Justice Oregon

  • Seeding Justice

  • Southwest Washington Equity Coalition

  • Street Roots

  • The Black United Fund of Oregon

  • Urban League of Portland

  • Virginia Garcia Memorial Foundation

  • World Stage Theatre

Health and Education Fund 

  • Adelante Mujeres

  • Consejo Hispano

  • FACT Oregon

  • PCUN

  • Social Venture Partners Portland

Narrative Fellowship

  • Imagine Black

  • NAYA

  • Partnership for Safety and Justice

  • Interfaith Movement for Immigrant Justice 

  • Rural Organizing Project

  • Verde

  • Planned Parenthood Advocates of Oregon 

  • Centro Cultural de Washington County

  • Oregon Futures Lab

  • Building Power for Communities of Color

  • Centro Latino Americano

President’s Fund

  • African Youth & Community Organization

  • Albina Vision Trust

  • August Wilson Red Door Project

  • Basic Rights Oregon

  • Billy Webb Elks Lodge 1050 Fundraiser

  • Black & Beyond the Binary Collective

  • Black Food Sovereignty Coalition

  • Black Joy Oregon

  • Brown Girl Rise

  • CAIR Oregon

  • Central Oregon Black Leaders Assembly

  • Community Alliance of Tenants

  • East County Rising Community Projects

  • Equitable Giving Circle

  • Esperanza Spalding’s BIPOC Sanctuary

  • Forward Together Action

  • Jennie Kamau Fundraiser

  • Jenoah Donald Fundraiser

  • Native Arts & Cultures Foundation, Inc.

  • Next Up Action Fund

  • OPAL Environmental Justice Oregon

  • Oregon Black Pioneers

  • Oregon Center for Public Policy (OCPP)

  • Oregon Community Health Workers Association (ORCHWA)

  • Oregon Justice Resource Center

  • Oregon Native American Chamber of Commerce (ONACC)

  • Oregon Student Association

  • Pendleton Community Action Coalition

  • Portland Opportunities Industrialization Center (POIC)

  • Reaching and Empowering All People (REAP), Inc.

  • Red Lodge Transition Services

  • Rural Organizing Project

  • Safety & Justice Oregon

  • Southern Oregon Coalition for Racial Equity

  • The Black United Fund of Oregon

  • The Numberz.FM

  • United Way of Jackson County

  • Wild Diversity

  • Willamette Valley Development Officers (WVDO)

  • Word is Bond

 
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