Article Provided Courtesy of The Times, Brownsville OR
The Brownsville Community Foundation Board approved six grants this year, 2016 and will be acknowledging the recipients during the upcoming Pioneer Picnic on the evening of Friday, June 17 just before the Queen’s Coronation.
The grants were awarded to the Brownsville Garden Club, the Calapooia Food Alliance, Central Linn Gleaners, the CFA Snap Program, Stand By Me, and the Calapooia Watershed Council. Four other grant requests were not funded. The awarded grants totaled $4,800.
The Brownsville Garden Club is using the $1100 BCF grant funds for the 13 planters along Main Street and Spaulding Avenue and for the materials to build a watering system for the flower beds along the Flower House in Pioneer Park.
The Calapooia Food Alliance is using the $1,000 BCF Grant to build a new structure at the Community Gardens on the south side of town. The new building will replace an older structure and will provide shade and storage and will improve the visual effect of the gardens. It is expected to be built this summer.
The Central Linn Gleaners is using the $1000 grant to provide food for the Gleaner members, with includes children, seniors, disabled adults, and families who need food assistance. It will help offset transportation costs of members as they glean and gather food for distribution of the membership.
The CFA Snap Match program is funded again this year at the cost of $300 to be used for a minimum of 10 families each month at the Thursday evening Brownsville Farmers Market. This will supplement the Oregon Trail Card and promote the use of fresh local produce. In this program low-income single mothers will bring their children to the Farmers Market to learn to purchase healthy foods. Also included is the “Power of Produce” program which allows children from age 3 to 15 to receive a token to buy $2 worth of Market food.
The BCF Grant of $500 to the Stand By Me 30th Anniversary event on July 23 is used to assure a community welcome in greeting all the movie fans who visit that day. This is a community wide effort and BCF is supporting this program with this grant and the specific use of the funds will be reported.
Finally, the $900 BCF grant to the Calapooia Watershed Council will help cover the cost of the outdoor, hands-on educational component for Central Linn High School students. This is a cooperative effort of CWC and the Central Linn School District. Students in the Environmental Sciences class are working on a project at the Thompson’s Mill State Heritage Park, restoring native prairie vegetation while learning about watershed health and natural history.
The Brownsville Community Foundation has been offering grants yearly now for five years. The purpose of the organization is to support and promote educational and charitable activities that improve the health, vitality and quality of life in Brownsville and the surrounding areas. Donations can be made to the organization at BCF, PO Box 4, Brownsville, OR, 97327 or by contacting Don Ware at 541-466-5311 or email at president@bvillecf.com or the website at brownsvilleoregoncommunityfoundation.org. The BCF Board is composed of Lori Garcy, Scott McDowell, Jennifer Meltzer, Wendy Parker, Chenoweth Robertson, Kathy Rogers, Mark Running, Jan Schilling, and Don Ware.