Amigos Multicultural Services Center

The mission of Amigos Multicultural Services Center is to promote respect for human rights and to advocate for the needs of immigrants from Latin America whose dignity and capabilities have been challenged by poverty, unjust treatment, and social exclusion.

HELIOS GRANT DATE: 2005

REQUEST:

For over a decade, Amigos Multicultural Services Center (formerly Amigos de los Sobrevivientes, or Friends of the Survivors) has been a volunteer-driven, Eugene-based organization aiding victims of political violence, including torture survivors. Most have arrived here from Latin America. In response to emerging needs in the Eugene/Springfield area, we revised our organization’s mission in early 2005. While continuing to serve victims of political violence, Amigos is extending support services and advocacy to other immigrants, refugees, and asylum-seekers, irrespective of their national origin or ethnicity. In addition, while maintaining key programs in Eugene (a residence for families undergoing healing; transitional housing for young adults; and Juventud Faceta, a youth group), we are shifting our main office to Springfield to better serve that community’s immigrant population. It is vital that we prepare new and updated brochures that describe Amigos’ revised mission and services. Our movement into Springfield must be widely communicated to effectively reach people there who can benefit from Amigos’ programs. Amigos also wishes to increase general public awareness of its programs and the contributions they make to the community. Informational brochures are vital in helping to attract community support, raise funds for the organization, and recruit Amigos volunteers. Amigos is seeking a grant in the amount of $500. We will pay a bilingual consultant a $100 stipend to design new brochure materials and use $400 for paper and printing. Public donations, when matched by Helios, will enable Amigos to obtain the brochures that we need.

Another Way Enterprises (AWE)

A value-driven entrepreneurship, combining skills, knowledge, information, intuition and imagination to successfully create and implement cutting-edge coaching and marketing strategies, that empower, prosper and enhance individuals, businesses
and organizations.

HELIOS GRANT DATE: 2005

REQUEST:

AWE is a grassroots effort to build a stronger community and promote an environmentally and socially sustainable local economy for Cottage Grove, Oregon. Driven to find another way to live in society, and inspired by the creative and resourceful community in Cottage Grove, AWE believes in supporting our neighbors by buying as locally as possible. In 2004, AWE published the first Made in the Grove Directory, a listing of more than 100 environmentally and socially conscious local businesses, non-profit groups working to build community, and individuals with skills to offer their neighbors. 1000 copies of the directory went fast and dozens of folks called to say what they are doing for a sustainable Cottage Grove. AWE is now preparing the next edition which will include many new listings and serve even more of the community. We plan to distribute at least 2500 copies this year. More directories should equal more Grovers connecting with each other and buying local, sustainable goods and services.

Artists4Action

Our Vision is the creation of an effective Environmental Advocacy Group that harnesses Star-power and Science to effect positive change on the planet, by using Entertainment & the Arts to focus Public Attention on the best scientific answers for a broad array of important environmental challenges.

HELIOS GRANT DATE: 2011

AMOUNT: $1,000

REQUEST:

Our Vision is the creation of an effective Environmental Advocacy Group that harnesses Star-power and Science to effect positive change on the planet, by using Entertainment & the Arts to focus Public Attention on the best scientific answers for a broad array of important environmental challenges. We intend to create a unique and effective way to empower audiences, and inspire people into taking action to help create a paradigm shift that moves us toward a more sustainable world. Each particular Environmental Action Project we undertake will be accompanied by a major Public Outreach & Advocacy Campaign centered around our ‘Artists4Action’ website platform. Viewers are offered Educational Background information on the campaigns and specific ‘Action Steps’ they can take to bring about positive change.

Even such major environmental challenges as Endangered Species, Toxic Pollution and Global Warming can be addressed by focusing public visibility on urgent problems and ‘do-able’ solutions. We hope to attract a broad array of Artists to help by contributing their time and various talents to support our on-going efforts and move our Environmental Action Campaigns into the ‘Center Stage’. Visitors to our website will also be able to see what actors, writers, musicians and other artists are getting involved with our Collaborative Artworks, and we can offer viewers a way to directly support the worthwhile causes that some of their favorite artists are already supporting.

RESULT:

Our Salmon Campaign is a collaborative effort between artists and environmentalists, who want to highlight the dire state of all species of Pacific salmon and what needs to be done to save them. The screenplay we are promoting was designed to educate audiences about how very endangered the Salmon are. Our ‘inhouse’ film is designed to advocate for the biologically-sound steps that need to be implemented in order to bring the Salmon ‘Back from the Brink’. Our group has the specific goal of “Giving a Voice” to Artists who want to speak up for preserving the natural world, like saving Endangered Species. Toward that end, we have designed a Public Education campaign that viewers will want to learn about! This project has two major components to help speak up for the Salmon and hope that you will help, too!

BENEFIT CD – “Songs for the River”

“Songs For the River” is a compilation of some the the best musicians ‘Best Songs’. We would like to eventually use them on the film’s Soundtrack. Each song helps paint the picture of why our Rivers need protecting. This musical collaboration is composed of songs by individual ‘green’ musicians and groups who want to help speak up for the Salmon. We appreciate their support.
Each of the ‘Contributing Aritsts’ (see Sidebar) has volunteered their music to help the Public Outreach of the Columbia Riverkeepers, who will receive ‘all profits’ from the sale of this music-packed CD to further their Salmon Advocacy Campaign.

Contributing Artists

• ALICE DI MICELE
• AMOS LEE
• ANI DI FRANO
• CARBON LEAF
• CURTIS SALGADO
• DANNY BARNES
• DAVID JACOBS-STRAIN
• DON HENLEY
• THE DUHKS
• JACKSON BROWNE
• LEFTOVER SALMON
• LEROY BELL
• PETE SEEGER
• RAILROAD EARTH
• STRING CHEESE INCIDENT
• TIM REYNOLDS

CALC (Community Alliance of Lane County)

The mission of CALC is to educate and mobilize for peace, human dignity and social, racial, and economic justice.

HELIOS GRANT DATE: 2004

REQUEST:

With Measure 36 and a strengthened religious right, lesbian, gay, bisexual, and trans (LGBTQ) people live amid hostility. CALC will intensify gay rights support, challenging bigotry and institutionalized oppression experienced by LGBTQ people. Objective: greater safety, acceptance for LGBTQ community. Implementation plan: 1. What Does Family Look Like? — CALC’s new photo exhibit portrays diverse loving families, including LGBTQ families. We’ll schedule ten locations in 2005. Outcome: Broader acceptance of LGBTQ, other non-traditional families. 2. LGBTQ-friendly Schools CALC’s Springfield Alliance for Equality and Respect (SAfER) is building a Safe Schools Network (with PFLAG, students/staff). Personnel from 12 Springfield schools involved already; we want contacts in each school. Objectives: offer support, safety for students/staff, information, resources, workshops, briefings; support Gay/Straight Alliances; link community groups with school personnel; ensure appropriate responses to harassment. Outcome: More support for LGBTQ students. 3. Understanding of Gender Identity Issues CALC’s Back to Back: Allies for Human Dignity (B2B) will build understanding of transgender issues, reduce trans phobia through presentations, workshops; collaborate with City’s Gender Identity Work Group; organize a transgender group to gain a strong voice; push to amend Eugene city code to protect transgender individuals. Outcome: A safer environment for trans individuals. 4. Counter Hate Activity CALC will counter and lessen impact of hate groups with information, education, hot line, email reporting, research, counter-leafleting, media. Stop Hate! enlists local businesses as Hate Free Zones, individuals as “eyes and ears.” Stop Hate! will mobilize responses when haters target LGBTQ community. Outcome: Less room for hate. This grant will cover costs for printing program flyers and for the Stop Hate Hot Line and Springfield phoneline.

Cascadia Wildlands

Cascadia Wildlands educates, agitates, and inspires a movement to protect and restore Cascadia's wild ecosystems.

HELIOS GRANT DATE: 2004

REQUEST:

CWP works to protect and restore the forests, waters and wildlife of the Cascadia Bioregion, with a particular emphasis on the central Oregon Cascades. We use a variety of tools to advance our conservation goals, including monitoring and litigation, outreach and education, and advocacy work. The CWP’s Community and Workforce Program is an important part of our outreach and education efforts, which highlights successful examples of natural resources management on federal forests, creates dialogue between traditionally hostile constituencies, helps resolve long-standing controversy surrounding the implementation of the Northwest Forest Plan, and builds support for innovative new forest practices on federal lands in Oregon. Its goal is to simultaneously protect the ecological integrity of Oregon’s irreplaceable old-growth forests and to preserve the economic and social integrity of rural communities.

In 2003 we made a number of in-roads with traditionally hostile constituencies through outreach in rural areas. We also built relationships with organized labor by working in coalition with the AFL-CIO, Carpenters Union and Western Council on the Oregon Quality Jobs InitiativeÑa successful legislative effort to encourage high-skill, high-wage jobs in the state of Oregon through restoration contracts.

The centerpiece of our Community and Workforce Program, and the main focus of our work in 2004, will be field tours that we sponsor and plan in conjunction with partners that we’ve identified through our outreach work. Partners and participants typically include agency representatives, representatives from the timber industry and organized labor, watershed councils, local community economic development organizations, elected officials, the media, and others. In 2003 we sponsored two different field tours and community forums that highlighted watershed restoration and restoration forestry on federal forests in western Oregon. In 2004, we hope to sponsor 3 to 4 field tours. One of these tours is already tentatively scheduled at a restoration forestry project on the Willamette National Forest for June.

This grant will help us in our efforts to outreach in rural areas, with a special emphasis on eastern Lane County, build relationships with labor unions that have traditionally opposed forest protection, and engage stakeholders in a vision that works by showing them how restoration forestry can move agencies away from conflict associated with old-growth logging and get forests back to work.

Celebrate Sustainable Climate 350.org

HELIOS GRANT DATE: 2009

AMOUNT: $1,300

REQUEST:

Goal

To fund a community-wide event, CSC-350, to be held at the Hult Center lobby on October 24th,
2009 as part of an international day of community actions organized by 350.org.
Purpose
To bring public awareness through music and dance to the importance of climate change, both
locally and globally, and to promote effective government responses to climate change.
Background
One year ago, NASA’s climatologist James Hansen and his team produced a landmark series of studies.
They demonstrated that if we allow the amount of carbon in the atmosphere to top 350 parts per million,
we cannot have a planet “similar to the one on which civilization developed and to which life on earth is
adapted.” Weare currently at 390 parts per million and rising. This level of carbon in the atmosphere is
already causing significant melting in the Arctic, drought and increased storm activity in other areas of the
planet, and outbreaks of diseases like dengue fever and malaria occurring in greater frequency and
geographical scope.
Our performance event will be just one of more than a thousand other events held by over one hundred
nations under the auspices of “350.org”, an organization made up of scientists, authors and community
leaders. Each event will use the number 350 as a central motif to bring focus to the bigger picture of
climate change. Three examples of other planned events include: school children planting 350 trees in a
region of Bangladesh, scientists hanging banners labeled “350″ on the statues on Easter Island, and 350
scuba divers converging underwater at the Great Barrier Reef. As events take place around the world,
pictures will be linked together electronically via the web. By the end of the day on October 24th,
citizens from nations around the world will have a powerful visual petition that can be delivered to the
media and world leaders who will be meeting in Copenhagen in December to reach agreement on a new
climate treaty.
Current Sponsors
The city of Eugene is an official sponsor of this event. As a result, the administration of the Hult Center
has waived nearly $2000 in rental fees for use of its lobby space on Saturday, October 24th. The
University of Oregon School of Music is a co-sponsor of this event. Some of its ensembles will be invited
to perform. Sanipac and EWEB have offered to provide free services, including the use of a mobile solar
powered.grid and trash pick-up on the day of the event.

The Hult Center Lobby as a Performance Venue for World Music and Dance

We propose to contact petfomring groups representing:

• Resident ensembles at the Hult Center, including members of the Eugene Symphony, Eugene Opera, Mozart Players and Eugene Ballet

• Petforming groups from the University of Oregon and Lane Community College (e.g. U.O. jazz bands and combos, University Wind Ensemble, Gospel Choir, etc.)
• Performing groups representing music and dance traditions from different world cultures (e.g. Javanese gamelan, Brazilian percussion and dance, NativeAmerican pow wow, Irish music, etc.) Student choirs and instrumental ensembles from participating public schools in the area.
• We hope to procure one “headliner” group of a popular musical style intended to be a draw for public participation.

With the assistance of Hult Center personnel (ushers, security, custodial and technical crew), we will
organize a two-hour event that will involve a series of 6 to 8-minute music and dance petformances from
participating ensembles, to be done concurrently under our direction. Instrumental and choral groups and
dancers will be assigned performance areas on the lobby ground floor, stairs and mezzanine. In addition,
two guest speakers will address global climate change issues. The public at large will be invited to sit,
stand or walk through the Hult Center lobby spaces during the duration of the event. A table of
informational materials on climate change issues will be provided by participating environmental groups.
Event parking will be made available free of change to the public at the adjoining parking garage.
Funding Request
We have already signed a contract for use with the Hult Center administration and have paid $600 up
front. A total of approximately $1200 will cover the services of ushers, technical support, security and
custodial support.
We are requesting $500 from Helios Resource Network, with the understanding that we will raise $500 or
more to match the grant. Our funding needs include: · Use of Hult Center lobby personnel (see above) · promotional costs in local media outlets

RESULT:

from a letter 11-2009

Brian McWhorter, myself (Paul Bodin) and a supporting team of organizers produced a two-hour event in the Hult Center for the Performing Arts lobby on October 24, 2009 called “350!  Artists for Climate Action” involving 12 performing ensembles and speakers from the city, county and U.O. school of law.

The event was a huge success.  Along with significant coverage in the print media, hundreds of community members attended; many of them expressed an interest in becoming involved with climate change issues.

Civil Liberties Defense Center

The Civil Liberties Defense Center’s (CLDC) mission focuses on defending and upholding civil liberties through education, outreach, litigation, and legal support and assistance. The CLDC strives to preserve the strength and vitality of the Bill of Rights and the U.S. and state constitutions, as well as to protect freedom of expression.

HELIOS GRANT DATE: 2007

AMOUNT: $1,025

REQUEST:

Development and production of two new “know your rights” resources, (1) “Know your Rights
for Juveniles” which will be in a comic book format we believe, and (2) a know your rights
publication for non-U.S. citizens. $250 will be paid as stipends for artistic and graphic design
work for both publications. In addition to the matching grant aspect of this request, we will also
seek additional funding for the printing and distribution costs associated with these new
materials. For your information, we will also make these materials available on our website as
soon as completed.

RESULT:

We created 2 new “Know Your Rights” brochures – for non-english speaking people and juveniles.  We conducted 5 trainings using these materials and mailed some to groups that requested them.  We also created 2 powerpoint presentations so that others can give the trainings without Lauren.  We will continue to give the trainings and make the resources available as needed.

HELIOS GRANT DATE: 2011

AMOUNT: $1,080

REQUEST:

We wish to receive a matching grant for our public education program, “Dissent and Democracy,” which is a well-established part of our larger operations. Our “Dissent & Democracy” program uses education to proactively challenge attacks on our civil liberties and rights. Our “Know Your Rights” training is our most regular and widely held educational event, with each workshop tailored to the needs of the participants. We have substantially increased the diversity of trainings we provide, including but not limited to, youth rights, parental rights, immigration rights, landlord-tenant rights, workers’ rights, explanation of the arrest-to-sentencing procedure in the criminal courts, activist rights, and trainings for future trainers. Additionally, under our “Effective Communities Campaign,” we pair with individual activist groups to walk them through their First Amendment rights and the rights of the entities they are protesting. In addition to the “Know Your Rights” workshops, we frequently give workshops and presentations on topics such as legal observation of public events, grand jury procedure and history, public access to government documents, and contemporary police misconduct issues. We also provide education presentations on federal and state laws, or pending bills, with the potential to restrict the constitutional rights and liberties of activists or at-risk communities. Recent examples include presentations on USA PATRIOT Act, the Military Commissions Act, the Real I.D. Act, and the Animal Enterprise Terrorism Act. In addition to providing educational presentations, we also provide media interviews, newspaper editorials, and email action alerts to inform the public and our members regarding these issues.

RESULT:

from a letter on 02-2011

In process of conducting monthly know your rights trainings on the following topics:

• Workers’ rights
• Know your rights for adults
• Know your rights for teens
• Immigration rights
• Renters’ rights

Free to the public in Spanish and English, located at Centro in Eugene.  Trainings will continue until September 2011.  Great so far! from CLDC website on 06-2012Occupy Eugene, in collaboration with the Civil Liberties Defense Center, presents a multi-week organizer training series for social justice activists. Come learn everything you need to know to be a strategic, confident organizer! When: Every Wednesday from 6:30-8:30pm, starting March 14, including some 8-hour sessions held on a weekend. Where: Occupy Eugene V (1274 W. 7th Ave., Eugene). The trainings will be led by expert trainers from various progressive social change movements. Each session is designed to build upon prior sessions. One of the end goals of this training series will be to create a draft strategic campaign plan for the Occupy Eugene movement and empower activists to step up their organizing and actions. Everyone is welcome. Donations are accepted but no one is turned away for lack of funds. Bring a folding chair, notebook and pen. We are planning to have each session video recorded and live streamed so that activists outside of Eugene can participate via the internet as well. A sampling of some of the training sessions include:

• Fundamentals: Direct action organizing— doing the political work
• Strategic campaign planning & organizing—8 hr session
• Economic context of organizing
• Choosing Problems & Issues
• Action guidelines: planning events, campaigns
• Preventing cooption/infiltration
• Developing clear and winnable campaign goals,
• Building and using organizational power
• Recruitment: broadening and deepening membership
• Building and working with coalitions
• Identifying and researching targets
• Creating tactics that will have a direct impact on chosen target
• Media guidelines, press releases, press conferneces, public speaking
• Accountability sessions: how to meet/advocate to politicians/officials

HELIOS GRANT DATE: 2012

AMOUNT: $500

REQUEST:

In light of the current events in and around Lane County, the Civil Liberties Defense Center (CLDC) wishes to receive a matching grant to continue our public education program, “Dissent & Democracy.”   Our “Know Your Rights” training is our most regular and widely held educational event through this program.  Each workshop is tailored to the needs of the participants. We have substantially increased the diversity of trainings we provide, including but not limited to, youth rights, immigration rights, tenant rights, workers’ rights, activist rights, and trainings for future trainers.   Additionally, under our “Effective Communities Campaign,” we pair with individual activist groups to walk them through their First Amendment rights and the rights of the entities they are protesting.

This year, in light of the Occupy movement, we are providing KYR and other related activist trainings more than ever. Occupy Eugene has attracted many brand new activists and there is a need to supply these trainings more often and often with specific areas of focus.  We have also been providing pro bono activist representation in the courts when Occupy Eugene folks engage in civil disobedience as part of their grassroots activism (over 35 activists represented for free by CLDC thus far!).  This funding will assist us with providing legal representation and related litigation costs, educational presentations, media and outreach work, and email action alerts to inform the public and our members regarding civil rights issues that arise in conjunction with the Occupy movement.

RESULT:

DESCRIBE YOUR HELIOS FUNDED PROJECT:

It has been an incredibly busy year for the CLDC! Helios helped support CLDC’s integral role in providing legal education, strategic advice, and legal representation for over 50 Occupy activists engaged in civil disobedience, as well as working with various committees in planning and implementing protests, public meetings and events. CLDC provided 15 Know your rights trainings geared toward activists participating in OE events, 2 trainings specifically geared for homeless folks involved with OE; and 8 Legal Observer trainings to provide trained volunteers to monitor and assist with protestor/police interactions at demonstrations. CLDC also coordinated Legal Observers and Police Liaisons for all OE demonstrations, marches, and protests. We also assisted several OE activists with the filing of police misconduct complaints resulting from the unlawful and excessive use of force upon nonviolent activists.

DESCRIBE THE PROGRESS:

As noted above, we have already accomplished a ton of work for the OE movement, but our work is ongoing. We are currently in the midst of a precedent setting federal case on behalf of an Occupy protestor (US v. Semple, US District Court of Oregon), we are also about to file a federal lawsuit on behalf of OE and unhoused members of our community to challenge the inhumane and unconstitutional treatment of homeless folks in Eugene. OE campaigns are ongoing, and we continue to provide legal support, legal observers, and KYR trainings whenever we are asked.

DESCRIBE THE IMPACT:

I don’t think OE would have been as successful as a local movement without the support of CLDC. If you google Occupy Eugene and CLDC (or Lauren Regan), you will find dozens and dozens of media articles, youtube videos, and of course the OE and CLDC websites highlight a lot of the work we have contributed to this cause (see attached via email). The turnout and attendance at our KYR trainings and Occupation Education organizer training series were phenomenal. Between 15 to 75 people attended our various events over the last several months. We believe we have empowered new activists and provided additional strategic skills to more seasoned veterans as well. We also assisted in bringing many of our ally organizations and groups into OE to support and provide solidarity on many of the causes OE took on.

OUTLINE EXPENSES SUPPORTED BY THIS GRANT:

EXPENSE ITEMS  >>> AMOUNT

Duplication of existing training materials >>> $136.18

Creation of OE specific training materials >>> $149.79

Discovery fees for OE defendants >>> $161

Legal representation (court & meetings)

5 hours Sep., 4 hours Oct., 7 hours Nov. >>> $700

KYR & legal observer organization, media broadcasts >>> $240

TOTAL EXPENSES: $1386.97

(Grant was $500, donations $500)

Community Rights Lane County (Lane Community Organizers)

To teach current pesticide activists the Community Environmental Legal Defense Fund (CELDF) method of both creating local ordinances to address community concerns, and how to organize a community around a pressing issue. To use these skills to form a cohesive group of pesticide activists who will be able to create a long-term public education campaign, and strategize the best way to approach pesticide spray issues in Lane County.

HELIOS GRANT DATE: 2012

AMOUNT: $1,000

REQUEST:

This grant will help us learn how to form and preserve a dedicated group that is knowledgeable in both community organization and public education techniques.  The group’s goal is to then create a cohesive, long-term pesticide education program for Lane County.

Education topics we plan to address include:

Simple, affordable pesticide alternatives you can use.

What are the health risks of pesticides to your family and pets?

What are the economic impacts of pesticide use?

Helping businesses learn about and afford alternatives to pesticides.

The outcome of this project will be a well-informed public who has the information necessary to make knowledgeable choices about pesticide use in our community.

The Outcome

The outcome of the project is to organize a knowledgeable, cohesive group of pesticide activists, who are educated in the CELDF local ordinance and community organizing method.  This group is working to create a long-term public education strategy to help raise public awareness surrounding pesticide use.

The CELDF local ordinance method appears to create a way for a community to choose to eliminate harmful corporate practices, whether or not those practices are currently regulated by the government.  We believe the CELDF method provides the capacity for a community to create significant social change – when the community as a whole has united around an issue.  This has already been demonstrated through the use of CELDF ordinances in over 150 communities around the United States.

This type of social change will first require educating the public to realize that they are less dependent upon pesticides than they believe, and to understand the greater costs to society that chemical contamination creates.

We realize that creating this group will require significant skill-building for everyone involved.  The workshop will help us focus our efforts through enhancing our knowledge of local ordinance creation and community organization techniques.

Emerald Biodiversity Council

HELIOS GRANT DATE: 2004

REQUEST:

The project at hand is the first phase of the development of a biodiversity council. We have solicited input and interest from over thirty organizations in the Eugene-Springfield area in order to develop the framework for an initial workshop to take place in October 2004. This workshop will feature two speakers who are highly experienced not only in issues related to biodiversity, but also in starting networks such as the one we are proposing. A workshop organizing committee has been formed and has already completed many of the tasks that are necessary for the workshop to be a success. We are designing the program to include two key speakers as well as both small and large group discussion. By the end of the workshop we will have consensus on the underlying structure of the biodiversity council and concrete assignments to facilitate next steps in the council’s establishment.

The outcome of this first phase is agreement on a structure for the biodiversity council and actions for next steps. The biodiversity council will greatly improve the ability of local groups to find information, share resources, develop collaborative plans, and magnify their own capacity to promote and conserve the natural heritage of the area.

Essentially all these funds will be used to pay for travel expenses for Laurel Ross, one of the presenters at the October workshop. The funds will be used to supplement contributions by organizations that participate in the October workshop.

Eugene Chapter of Northwest Earth Institute

Since 1993, NWEI has been leading the curious and the motivated to take responsibility for Earth. Our proven process of connection, reflection and action changes you for good. Through discussion courses and the annual EcoChallenge, we help you engage your community in meaningful conversations that lead to “Aha!” moments about the way you live, work, create and consume. The result is a life that is simpler, richer, and better--for you and for Earth.

HELIOS GRANT DATE: 2005

REQUEST:

The Eugene chapter of the Northwest Earth Institute offers a series of six discussion courses in workplaces, homes, centers of faith, education centers, and other locations. The courses include: (a) Choices for Sustainable Living, (b) Discovering a Sense of Place, (c) Voluntary Simplicity, (d) Exploring Deep Ecology, (e) Globalization and Its Critics, and (f) Healthy Children – Healthy Planet. Total course enrollment in the US has now surpassed 60,000. The courses build awareness, inspire change on a personal level and engagement on a social level, create connections among like-minded people, and build a critical mass for larger social change. The grant will help pay for a part-time coordinator to ensure continuity and build up a volunteer base. Local volunteers will help start up courses through contacting potential initiators, help with promotion, give presentations to groups interested in joining a course, assist with facilitation at the first meeting, and stay in contact with and assist the group if/when needed. The Eugene chapter receives training, advice and other (non-monetary) support from the Northwest Earth Institute in Portland. See more information at www.nwei.org.

Eugene Peace Choir

The mission of the Eugene Peace Choir is threefold: excellence in singing; the support of peace, social justice, and environment; and the maintenance of a choir community based on these principles.

HELIOS GRANT DATE: 2009

AMOUNT: $1,025

REQUEST:

The Eugene Peace Choir requested support for a workshop on the gospel, spiritual, and blues roots of songs of the American Civil Rights Movement. John Gainer, former U of O music professor and director of the Inspirational Sounds Gospel Choir, will gave this workshop. Open to the public on a donation basis, it  took place January 9^th and 10^th, 2010, at the First Christian Church in Eugene. Workshop sessions Friday evening and Saturday during the day were followed by a public performance on Saturday evening by participants. We made a CD of the workshop, which can be used in subsequent years as a teaching tool.

Our objective was to deepen awareness of movement music, increase appreciation of its history and context, and further its use by the entire community. The Peace Choir sought to become a community resource for this music, strengthen our relations with the community we serve, and increase our diversity.

The outcomes we anticipated were greater awareness and appreciation of movement songs within the whole Eugene community, enhanced community connections, and an increase in the ability and diversity of the choir.

We held the workshop precisely as described above. More than 85 people attended, and the enthusiasm was so great that we decided to make it an annual event.

We made a CD of the concert, of which we sold about 2dozen, primarily to participants, and a CD set of the entire workshop, of which we sold two. In addition, there was a DVD made of the concert which was broadcast repeatedly on public access TV. The following year, on the basis of the concert CD, we were invited to have the workshop provide the music for the City Of Eugene’s Martin Luther King celebration at the Hult. Through these means, the workshop served to increase community awareness and appreciation of movement singing.

Our community connections were enhanced in the following ways: We found new donors through our campaign to meet the matching grant. The Workshop raised the general public profile of the choir. Workshop participants led songs at a march following the event organized by Peg Morton. The Eugene Peace Choir partnered for the next workshop with the Eugene Chapter of the NAACP and the City’s Martin Luther King Celebration Planning committee.

Four new stalwart activist-minded musically talented choir members joined the choir as a direct result of the workshop, our singing became stronger as a result, and we became more aware of the sound and spirit of Black Gospel Music.

HELIOS GRANT DATE: 2012

AMOUNT: $1,100

REQUEST:

The mission of the Eugene Peace Choir is threefold: excellence in singing; the support of peace, social justice, and environment; and the maintenance of a choir community based on these principles.

The Eugene Peace Choir would like your help in our efforts to encourage the work of community choirs supporting peace, justice, and the environment in Eugene and the Pacific Northwest. We are putting together an exciting multi-choir concert in Eugene on February 19, at the United Methodist Church. It will bring nearly 100 singers to Eugene, and feature the Eugene Peace Choir, the In Accord choir, the Rogue Valley Peace Choir, the Portland Peace Choir, and the Val Rogers African Movement and Song Workshop. Any funds remaining after expenses will be divided between the EPC scholarship program and the funding of new choral arrangements of songs on peace, justice, and environmental themes. Our multi-choir concert will be open to the public on a donation basis: no one turned away. Our goal is to offer a great singing experience, and to encourage exchange of repertoire among choirs, as well as communication and cooperation in support of community causes. We expect it will substantially improve networking among the various choirs and singing groups, benefiting their morale, energy, and effectiveness in supporting progressive activism. Exchanging repertoire, and adding new arrangements of peace and justice songs, results in more musical diversity for all progressive community choirs. Support for the scholarship fund means we can continue to include people of all income levels on an equal basis. The overall result is furthering the maintenance of an active and diverse community of choirs supporting peace, environment, and economic and social justice.

Eugene PeaceWorks

We support a commitment to world peace, social and environmental justice issues through nonviolent grassroots action, education and mutual empowerment to show that peace works. We provide office space and community organizing resources to community members, promote nonviolent strategies for direct action, and campaign against militarism and its use to preserve and promote other institutions of social and environmental oppression.

HELIOS GRANT DATE: 2007

AMOUNT: $1,132

REQUEST:

Eugene PeaceWorks seeks funds for our Alternative Media Project (AMP). The Alternative Media Project produces and promotes alternative forms of media. AMP is the local producer for Amy Goodman’s award winning news program: Democracy Now! Because of AMP’s efforts, Democracy Now! can be watched daily on local Community Television. Also, EPW’s AMP continues to fill a void for local, alternative news with the publication of The Peace Pages.

The Alternative Media Project will publish local views on pro-peace/anti-war and social justice message of The Peace Pages:

• 8-page newsprint with a professionalized layout.
• EPW news as well as articles from other local groups/individuals and international articles that challenge and reflect community views.
• Mailing of 800+ copies and distributed in local business throughout Eugene area.

War is a nightmare for social, economic, and environmental justice.  War is disproportionately waged on the backs of the poor and people of color.  In the course of the war, the national economy is drained of resources that could be used to help people in need, both in this country and abroad.  And, of course, war is the perfect mechanism for transferring money we all pay in taxes to those who own and work for the war industry, bleeding the world economy of money that could be put to constructive purposes.  The environment is the dumping ground for all manner of chemical, biological, and radioactive wastes, with negative effects lasting for generations.  All this is in the service of expediency and the sense of urgency created by the carefully orchestrated drive toward war.

Eugene Peace Works addresses this cascading series of injustices by informing, involving, and organizing our local community. Some major accomplishments in recent years:

• We worked with the Shoshone people to resist nuclear testing and waste storage there.
• Within weeks of 9/11, we organized the Peace, Justice, and Globalization Conference, featuring 80 workshops and 3 national speakers.
• In November, 2005, we were lead organizer for the Peace, Justice, and Civil Liberties Conference at the University of Oregon, with 30 workshops and 12 national speakers.
• Eugene PeaceWorks has also sponsored numerous marches and rallies for peace in Eugene and other Oregon communities, as well as concerts and film presentations and trainings in non-violent civil disobedience.
• Worked actively in supporting local environmental efforts including non-violent, direct-action in forest defense.

Eugene PeaceWorks has been instrumental in a variety of community organizing efforts – supporting and helping found Justice Not War, Eugene Media Action, CopWatch, Food Not Bombs, the Subversive Pillow Theater, Lane County American Peace Test, etc.  We are often at the heart of local peace and justice organizing efforts, supplying energy and financial support to projects that are coordinated and carried out by community members.

We are especially active with our partners Community Alliance of Lane County (CALC) in our joint project, the Committee for Countering Military Recruitment.  Together CALC and Eugene PeaceWorks sponsored the “Not Your Soldier” camp, which trained 21 area youth in counter-recruitment, campaign organizing, and nonviolent direct action.

Partnering with CALC gives us a stronger presence in predominantly rural Lane County, Oregon.

Eugene Springfield Solidarity Network/Jobs with Justice

Eugene Springfield Solidarity Network (ESSN) is a grassroots organization that brings together workers, religious congregations, students and community groups to support the civil and economic rights of all people, particularly the right to a decent standard of living, the right to a stable job, and the right to freely associate, organize and collectively bargain. ESSN works to increase the economic and political power of poor and working class people by educating about, organizing for and promoting the concept of economic social justice through campaigns, each designed to focus on a different approach to building power for all workers in Oregon. ESSN works to increase the political and economic power of all people through coordinated action and strategic objectives. ESSN often focuses on labor and class issues but lately has focused more energy on working to create an effective social justice coalition.

HELIOS GRANT DATE: 2012

AMOUNT: $1,035

REQUEST:

Since 2010 ESSN has been developing a grass roots campaign focused on health care as a human right. ESSN has focused its efforts on connecting with young adults, at universities and community colleges, spreading the message that together we can create a just economic system that serves the common good. Declaring health care a human right, ESSN hopes to engage new and established allies in supporting health care coalition work throughout the state. ESSN will install a visual representation of the cost of our current health care system in the US: 500 deaths per year in Oregon, foreclosures on your street, bankruptcies, etc. ESSN will focus the event on the theme “Health Care is a Human Right” and the physical installation will support that message.  Early ideas for this project include 500 tombstones and other symbols that depict the true cost of our current system. ESSN will seek mainstream media press coverage, as well as use social media and perhaps some street theater. Early discussions with student members of the Student Labor Action Project and members of Occupy Eugene Medical have yielded ideas like holding our event to coincide with the ASUO Fall Street Faire and doing the installation at the U of O Quad for maximum effect. Discussions have also included reinstalling the project, or a smaller version at other venues, throughout the year. Along with the installation, ESSN will ask people to sign a petition declaring health care a human right, as well as to have their picture taken to be used to promote the campaign on our website and fb pages.

This campaign will be based on story-telling, citizen participation and involvment, and coalition building. Lessons from Vermont indicate that it is very effective to mobilize individual people to empower themselves to petition their government, directly, rather than to simply rely upon casting a vote and hoping that the winner will make good decisions. ESSN has chosen to focus on connecting with younger adults as a way to bring diversity to the movement.

ESSN will host events throughout the year in a wide a variety of settings throughout Lane County. These events will be designed according to the target audience, context or environment. ESSN is already working collaboratively with Health Care for All, Oregon and Mad as Hell Doctors in Corvallis to launch a comprehensive, grass roots effort to pass single payer legislation within the next 3 years in Salem. ESSN’s focus will be to focus on, connect with and engage youth within this larger campaign. ESSN will recruit heavily among groups that represent young people (such as students groups, Occupy Eugene, and others.) ESSN will also recruit from within the labor movement and in the faith community as well, hoping to create a truly representative guiding board that will help shape the events chosen and venues used.

ESSN has been working in Lane County to create a fair economy and support the rights of workers through educational campaigns and direct action for over two decades. ESSN is a coalition of faith, labor and community groups. We draw from a diverse community and are dedicated to advancing workers’ rights through supporting human rights and building a just society and a fair economy. This year ESSN has three active campaigns: Health Care as a Human Right, Sweat Free, Eugene! and Grass Roots Action for Jobs and a Fair Economy. All are inter-related yet all stand alone. ESSN believes that a truly grass roots movement must include the youth, the under-represented, and the dispossessed.  With a matching grant from Helios, we will have resources dedicated to advancing this goal.

Low income, poor and disabled individuals, people from different racial and ethnic minorities, women, gay men, lesbians, bisexuals and transgendered people, youth and the elderly often earn less income, have little or no benefits, experience less job security and are often chronically under or unemployed. They commonly face inequality in their civil rights, are subject to greater danger of violence, greater social stigma attached to their actions and presence in the public sphere and experience many other tangible and common harms.

ESSN believes that one of the hurdles preventing oppressed populations in society from achieving social and economic equity and in securing their civil rights is the lack of a framework by which they can lift up one voice in unity. Forces opposing social equity are commonly unified and speak with one voice against feminism, queer rights, civil rights, labor rights, brown people, immigrants and others.

ESSN supports decent work, living wages, health care for all, the right to freely associate, organize and collectively bargain, and other programs designed to build power for workers and their allies. ESSN recognizes that people of color, immigrants, women, disabled individuals, poor people, and the homeless are more likely to be exploited and underpaid in the workplace.

Inequality and oppression impact ESSN’s work because they impact the struggles of others. ESSN’s campaigns and programs help to dismantle oppressive structures by giving voice to previously voiceless individuals and groups. ESSN is also committed to increasing diversity, by participating in the struggles of others.

ESSN leaders have been regularly attending meetings of other organizations as active participants for the past two years. As well, one church and a social justice nonprofit are now represented on the ESSN Steering Committee. ESSN supports the struggles of others and remains open to following the lead of other groups representing disadvantaged individuals. Over the past two years ESSN has partnered with a wide variety of groups, turning out its members in solidarity, to support human rights, the DREAM Act, Comprehensive Immigration Reform, Full and Fair Employment, Single Payer Health Care, union workers, unemployed workers, people losing their homes to foreclosure, and tax fairness.  ESSN has partnered with Occupy Eugene since mid September 2011 in an attempt to increase capacity and raise awareness in our community about the need for human rights and worker rights.

Huerto de la Familia

The mission of Huerto de la Familia is to offer Latino families a place to connect to the earth and their root by growing their own food. The vision of Huerto de la Familia is to cultivate community integration and economic self-sufficienty through opportunities and training in organic gardening, farming and the creation of micro-businesses.

HELIOS GRANT DATE: 2004

AMOUNT: $515

REQUEST:

Huerto de la Familia is located in Eugene, Oregon at the Churchill Community Garden operated by Food for Lane County. This year we will provide space and services for eight to ten families. Each family may choose to garden in either a 15′ by 10′ plot or a 30′ by 20′ plot. Families prepare, plant and tend their gardens and harvest their fruits and vegetables for their own use.

Our New Children’s Program In the previous five gardening seasons Huerto de la Familia has focused on reaching the adults and has only occasionally provided their children with activities at the garden. This year our goals include a structured, ongoing children’s program to be implemented at the garden during the time that their parents are meeting for classes and tending their gardens. The new children’s program would include:

• Age-appropriate gardening activities including their own garden
• A ‘house’ made of living sunflowers
• An area in their garden for digging
• Garden based art activities
• Bilingual stories and educational activities

The four outcomes of the children’s program will be that the children will learn:

• Basic organic gardening skills
• The life cycle of a garden
• The ecosystem of the site
• Fresh fruits and vegetables taste good and are good for you

Huerto de la Familia and the children’s program will benefit the participants in the following ways:

• Provide organic produce at no cost with high nutritional value
• Appreciation of vegetables and fruits families have grown themselves
• Reduced family stress
• Child centered gardening activities while parents garden
• A safe place to spend time outdoors
• Less isolation as multiple families work toward a common goal
• A sense of control, feelings of pride and increased self-esteem

HELIOS GRANT DATE: 2008

AMOUNT: $1,145

REQUEST:

The overarching goal of the project is to enable the Small Farmers Project of Lane County to attain food security and learn methods of organic agriculture. Families will manage and demonstrate a profitable farm business, which will increase each family’s income.

Objectives/implementation/outcomes

The above mentioned goal is supported by five objectives:

1. To secure at least 6 acres of farmland that can be certified organic in 2009, is fertile land for growing a variety of crops, and is in close proximity to Eugene; and to develop initial farming infrastructure for it in 2008. outcome: Contracts signed by both parties; organic certification in 2009.  Infrastructure installed and number of acres prepared and cultivated.  Note the families have already secured land and have a contracts signed.
2. To identify and select crops to plant together; plant these crops in 2008, 2009 and 2010; and to develop a written plan to sell crops, including securing a commitment from buyers, by 2009.  outcome: number of families profiting; number of raspberry, strawberry and mixed vegetables planted; number and variety of buyers; a written plan for selling crops.
3. To raise 20 turkey poults in 2008 for home consumption and evaluate enterprise potential for raising 100 turkeys in 2009 and 2010. outcome: number of families participating; number of turkeys; rate of turkey mortality; rate of gain.
4. By 2011, the Small Farm Project families are able to run their own farm (including production, marketing, and business components) and manage their group on their own. outcome: Are families making money? Are they able to manage their own group? Number of families that: attend trainings, number/type trainings offered, meeting attendance, smooth transition to leadership, percentage of women in leadership positions, clear and agreed upon bylaws.
5. By 2011, Huerto de la Familia will have increased its organizational capacity in strategic planning, fundraising and created a volunteer program. outcome: Strategic plan in place, increase in revenue, number of volunteers, number hours committed to training, number of people invested in strategic planning process.

The families participating in the Small Farmer’s Project of Lane County live at or below the poverty level.  There is a need for the families to increase their food security, as well as to increase their earnings. The garden sites where families have grown food with Huerto de la Familia do not allow gardeners to sell their produce from these plots and their scale of production is limited by the community garden format.  A driving motivation for this project is that families in the Small Farmeroduce both to provide food for their families and to make additional income.

The Willamette Valley is Oregon’s richest agricultural region.   It is home to a number of small farms.  However, there are very few Latino-owned farms.  And yet, a study on the viability of small-scale family farming in the Portland area by Mercy Corps Northwest found that through hard work small farms can particularly help refugees and immigrants build assets.  Heifer International is providing some funding for this project for training, a farm consultant, agricultural and horticultural supplies and equipment, and capacity building for Huerto de La Familia.

The project meets the criteria of sustainability by training farmers to grow crops using organic methods; the project addresses economic justice by providing underserved farmers an opportunity to start their own farm business with the support of both

Huerto de la Familia and Heifer International; and provides food security to families living at or below the poverty level.

RESULT:

The funding helped purchase a pump and irrigation equipment for a cooperative farm.

The irrigation system was successfully installed over a period of several months.  The ground on the farm was developed in stages.

Installing the system was a true community effort.  Helios funding purchased a pump and irrigation pipe; the Collins Foundation and Heifer International helped to fund the well drilling effort and John Deer Landscape provided free training on setting up the water lines to the well.

HELIOS GRANT DATE: 2001

AMOUNT: $1,085

REQUEST:

The purpose of this application is to request funding for training for two separate projects:
1. To provide training for the Executive Director in micro enterprise creation in order to develop a micro enterprise program related to food and agriculture.

• Goal: to enable the Executive Director to have more in-depth understanding of micro enterprise programs and resources in order to assist low-income Latino families to obtain knowledge and start-up capital to create their own small businesses related to agricultural products.
• Method A) To secure training for the Executive Director in micro business development. Outcome: the Executive Director will receive this training via local and regional workshops, and courses at Lane Community College. As a result, the current participants of Huerto de la Familia (55 families) as well as others in the community will have access to this expertise and knowledge.
• Method B) The program will provide case management services and organize trainings for five families in 2011.
• Outcome: five families will begin to receive business training and case management that will enable them to start their own businesses.

2. To provide additional cooperative business training for members of the Small Farmers’ Project.

• Goal: the Small Farmers Project (SFP) are able to run their own farm (including production, marketing and business components) and manage their group on their own by June 30, 2011.
• Method: farmers will receive quarterly trainings in cooperative business development and management and ongoing training in leadership
• Outcome: the farmers are able to operate independently of Huerto in the summer of 2011.

Sustainability
The project meets the criteria of sustainability by training one individual who will, in turn, train a large network of individuals and families, with whom she has already worked and formed bonds of trust and understanding. The project addresses economic justice by providing families living at or below the poverty level with the start-up capital and expertise necessary to open their own business.

Lost Valley – Ecovillage and Permaculture Institute

We are a learning community creating catalysts for joyful ecological, social and economic regeneration.

HELIOS GRANT DATE: 2005

AMOUNT: $1,000

REQUEST:

The DELVE Children’s Program will provide primary school aged children with a rich environment in which to grow in mind, body, and spirit. At Lost Valley Educational Center in Dexter, Oregon, children will have access to three unique gifts that are not commonly found in early childhood education programs. These are direct access to nature, participation in projects focused on sustainable living, and the context of an intentional community. Lost Valley Educational Center is home to 87 acres of land, including a recovering forest and creek and their wildlife inhabitants. Children in DELVE learn directly from nature through stewardship, restoration, habitat building, exploration, meditation and play. LVEC has agreed to allow DELVE children to participate in portions of the adult programs offered which may include such projects as natural building, organic gardening, and non-violent communication. LVEC is also the home of 25 intentional community members and interns who model a way of life that is consensus-based and committed to sustainability. Several members have expressed an interest in developing ongoing one-on-one relationships with children in the form of mentorship. Both as a model and as an interactive experience, the community creates a tribe-like setting in which to encourage children to develop their own places within a sustainable societal structure. Children in the DELVE Program will have ample opportunities to explore their surroundings and follow their own natural curiosities, which many agree to be the most effective form of learning.

HELIOS GRANT DATE: 2008

AMOUNT: $1,295

REQUEST:

The DELVE Children’s Program will provide primary school aged children with a rich environment in which to grow in mind, body, and spirit. At Lost Valley Educational Center in Dexter, Oregon, children will have access to three unique gifts that are not commonly found in early childhood education programs. These are direct access to nature, participation in projects focused on sustainable living, and the context of an intentional community. Lost Valley Educational Center is home to 87 acres of land, including a recovering forest and creek and their wildlife inhabitants. Children in DELVE learn directly from nature through stewardship, restoration, habitat building, exploration, meditation and play. LVEC has agreed to allow DELVE children to participate in portions of the adult programs offered which may include such projects as natural building, organic gardening, and non-violent communication. LVEC is also the home of 25 intentional community members and interns who model a way of life that is consensus-based and committed to sustainability. Several members have expressed an interest in developing ongoing one-on-one relationships with children in the form of mentorship. Both as a model and as an interactive experience, the community creates a tribe-like setting in which to encourage children to develop their own places within a sustainable societal structure. Children in the DELVE Program will have ample opportunities to explore their surroundings and follow their own natural curiosities, which many agree to be the most effective form of learning.

The DELVE Children’s Program encourages children to find their unique paths toward excellence in being who they are most meant to be. Based on the theory that all children are gifted in some area, the goal of DELVE is to allow the children to reveal that strength through a self-guided education model. The job of those staffing the program is to recognize each child’s gift and to make it an avenue to master yet other areas of learning.  Individual and group community service projects will provide opportunities for children to grow in understanding and to share their understandings with others. DELVE kids will become aware of their local community through field trips inspired by their own questions. The environmental actions that we have incorporated into the curriculum benefit the local community by protecting our watershed, fostering wildlife, and restoring our local creek. Interns in the program also gain applicable skills in alternative educational philosophies. Ultimately, we believe that the very act of allowing children to discover themselves and the world around them will positively impact not only the local community, but also the planet.

The DELVE Children’s Program is a unique offering to elementary school children of a rich package of comprehensive education that is fun and applicable to an ever-changing world of social, economic and environmental complexity. Inspired by a team of parents who have committed their own lives to positive change by joining Lost Valley Educational Center, we chose DELVE as an ideal learning environment for our own children, and we hope to garner support to extend the experience to other children as well. We acknowledge that this generation was born into a society whose prevalent economic, social, agricultural, and interpersonal practices and values are not sustainable and are frequently destructive. We see it as both our responsibility to these children and as an investment in the well-being of future generations to guide them and to provide an environment in which they can construct new sustainable lifestyles.

Loving Kindness Yogathon

Disbanded

HELIOS GRANT DATE: 2004

REQUEST:

It is our intention to raise awareness about the power of Loving Kindness. In a world where isolation and violence have become too commonplace, we will gather together in joy and open-heartedness to celebrate the generosity and gentleness of the human spirit. The twelve hour marathon of yoga practice and meditation embodies compassionate service in action and will raise funds to benefit two local charities. The Loving Kindness Yogathon is a completely volunteer supported event.

On October 2, 2004 the yoga community of Eugene will participate in twelve hours (7am-7pm) of yoga and meditation. This interdisciplinary event’s is to be held at St Mary’s Catholic Church at 1062 Charnelton (11th and Charnelton – map) . The goal is to raise $10,000 to be divided between two local non profit organizations. This year’s recipients are Healing Harvest and Birth to Three.

We plan to use the Helios and matching grant to help pay for printed promotional material. The $10,000 dollars will be raised through pledges acquired by folks participating in the twelve hour event.

Mani Shimada Memorial Fund

The Mani Shimada Memorial Fund is dedicated to continuing the spirit of Mani Shimada and supporting the development and growth of the students at Wellsprings Friends School.

HELIOS GRANT DATE: 2004

REQUEST:

ManiFest: Celebration and Reflection on Life, Death and Transformation ManiFest is the first annual celebration to commemorate the passing of Mani Shimada (Feb.8, 1987-Sep. 26, 2003). It is a celebration and manifestation of Mani’s enduring qualities of compassion, courage and being in the moment. Honoring Mani’s love of music and life, we would like to manifest Mani’s spirit by being fully present in an event that has fun at its heart. ManiFest is also about those who have lost loved ones. We want a chance to remember our loved ones and express our sense of loss and its transformation. ManiFest will be a one-day event that will have music, various activities focused on healing, an open mike, poetry, theater and much more. Courageous Kids, a grief support program for children and teens, will bring us a theatrical presentation. A thoughtful celebration and open mike session is aimed at exploring the depth and meaning of life through openly expressing feelings of loss and transformation. We will learn ways of dealing with the death and grief through the sharing of individual stories and various activities led by experts. This portion of the event will also feature spiritual leaders, therapists and counselors from our community who have experience dealing with death issues and teenagers. We will learn how different traditions deal with death, and we hope to gain insights on how to approach life, death and transformation. All events will be aimed at teens, but people of all ages will be included and will benefit. ManiFest Celebration is Saturday, September 25, 11 am – 4 pm, at the Wellsprings Friends School, 3590 W. 18th, Eugene, 541/686-1223. The ManiFest Concert is Friday, October 8th at 7 pm, at the WOW Hall.

MECCA (Materials Exchange Center for Community Arts)

MECCA is dedicated to diverting scrap materials from the waste stream and into the creative endeavors of our community. MECCA provides access to low-cost arts programming in an inclusive environment that enhances the cultural life of Lane County.

HELIOS GRANT DATE: 2012

AMOUNT: $1,000

REQUEST:

MECCA is dedicated to diverting scrap materials from the waste stream and into the creative endeavors of our community. MECCA provides access to low-cost arts programming in an inclusive environment that enhances the cultural life of Lane County.

Last year MECCA launched our pilot summer day camps program with a focus on art as well as reuse/recycling. It was well received and this year we’ve further developed this program, expanding to 9 weeks of camps. We’re offering 4 different camps inspired by reuse artists, Nick Cave and Andy Goldsworthy and providing education and encouragement of sustainable practices by teaching DIY skills and opportunity to become a Recycle Scout. Our week long camps are for children age 8-12, cost $150/week and run from 9am-3pm, Monday through Friday. This grant, and community support, will allow us to provide scholarships for our camps, both full and partial, thereby giving more Lane County children the opportunity to attend one of our uniquely creative camps. Part of MECCA’s mission to to provide high-quality, low cost arts programming that provides opportunities for our youth to explore and develop creative problem solving skills, especially as they pertain to the stewardship of earth and the sustainability of our culture. The funding provided by this grant will help us to fulfill this part of our mission.

RESULT:

from a letter on 03-2012

This grant allowed us to start our scholarship program which we have been able to continue through store and studio revenue sources.  In the last two years we’ve given 8 workshop scholarships and 7 individual and 12 family membership scholarships.

MindFreedom

MindFreedom International is a nonprofit organization that unites 100 sponsor and affiliate grassroots groups with thousands of individual members to win human rights and alternatives for people labeled with psychiatric disabilities.

HELIOS GRANT DATE: 2008

AMOUNT: $1,335

REQUEST:

More and more citizens have heard about sustainability when it comes to energy conservation, recycling, organic gardening, public transport, and much more.

But what about sustainability when it comes to mental and emotional wellness?

It is time to apply sustainability principles to the urgent issues of mental and emotional well being for our whole community, especially for youth and emerging leaders in the mental health field.

Green your mind!

Let’s explore wholistic, humane, empowering non-chemical approaches for mental and emotional recovery.

Youth have few rights when it comes to mental health care. They are often pressured or forced to take pills or injections for their mental and emotional problems. MindFreedom is pro-choice about personal health care decisions by families, but there are often few wholistic choices offered for those with a family member in crisis.

The empowerment and self-determination of mental health clients is especially important to the future of mental health care. As a first step, we need to hear the diverse opinions of those on the receiving end of mental health care, especially youth.

The Lane County Green Your Mind Fair will use:

* Skits to encourage youth and others to speak in their own voice about mental and emotional well being issues.

* Forums to help the community speak to one another, and find resources.

* Videos of these events for distribution via Community Access TV, Youtube & DVD.

MindFreedom’s Youth Committee, headed by Martin Rafferty, provides the leadership.

Measurable outcomes:

• At least one to two free public fairs/forums in a public location including speakers, exhibit tables, and skits about wholistic alternatives for mental and emotional well being.

• MindFreedom Lane County Youth Committee increases to 20 active leaders and volunteers, and will help organize the forum and guide the message of the forum.

• At least two to three skits will be created by the Youth Committee on the topic of changing the mental health system.

• One main video (25 to 55 minutes) will be created, edited and shown on community cable TV, and three small videos will be created, edited and placed on YouTube, and advertised. Both will also be distributed as DVD’s. Advertising will include MindFreedom alerts to 1,000 Oregonians and 10,000 outside of Oregon.

In the family of social change movements this past few decades, there is a member of the family that is often left out, marginalized, silenced and ignored: People diagnosed with mental disabilities, including psychiatric disabilities, especially youth. However, since 1970 in Oregon, there have been groups organized of, by and for psychiatric survivors and allies. This group tends to be among the poorest and most unemployed in our society.

MindFreedom encourages the leaders of people diagnosed with psychiatric disabilities. While we are all open to all who support human rights, the majority of our members, board and staff are psychiatric survivors. In addition, we focus on especially marginalized groups, in this case youth. We have a special youth outreach project that has already made strides in organizing youth and helping them speak out. This is a gap in social change work in general, and MindFreedom is unique in filling that gap.

We could fill pages with information about the harm caused by the current system, such as lack of information, lack of non-drug choices, disempowerment, marginalization, discrimination, solitary confinement, even electroshock.

But this proposal is about solutions for sustainability. Values such as empowerment, self-determination, and supporting the whole person are crucial. Our group has a campaign VOICES FOR CHOICES in mental health, to encourage the voice of psychiatric survivors, and a youth campaign to make this effective.

Neighborhood Leaders Council Committee on Sustainability

The Eugene Neighborhood Leaders Council Committee on Sustainability helps Eugene residents explore durable and responsible ways of living. Our charge is as follows: 1) to provide a city-wide forum for the exchange of ideas and recommendations for more sustainable practices within neighborhoods; 2) to create recommendations for implementing such practices that can be distributed to all neighborhood associations as well as to the NLC; and 3) to foster connections among the NLC, neighborhood associations and community groups for promoting sustainable practices.

HELIOS GRANT DATE: 2011

AMOUNT: $1,120

REQUEST:

As of Autum 2011, this is an emerging group. Donations to this group are not tax deductible.
The charge of our committee is as follows (approved by the NLCCS, City of Eugene):

• To provide a city-wide forum for the exchange of ideas and recommendations for more sustainable practices within neighborhoods;
• To create recommendations for implementing such practices that can be distributed to all neighborhood associateions as well as to the NLC; and
• To foster connections amoung the NLC, neighborhood associations and community groups for promoting sustainbable practices

This is our vision statement:

• To mitigate the garm of the global crisis of resource depletion and climate change
• To live sustainably in our neighborhood and on our planet, and
• To strengthen the bonds within and between neighborhoods by learning to meet more of our needs closer to home

Neighbors 4 Responsible Growth

Neighbors 4 Responsible Growth is a charitable and educational
organization composed of Veneta and area residents. Our mission is to
promote the welfare of the citizens of Veneta by providing education and
assistance to citizens in: (1) monitoring development, (2) protecting
natural areas: trees, wetlands, and greenways, and (3) retaining
Veneta’s livability by encouraging innovative development, drainage, and
transportation solutions. We champion citizen involvement and work to
make the public process more responsive and accessible to all.

HELIOS GRANT DATE: 2008

AMOUNT: $525

REQUEST:

Neighbors 4 Responsible Growth (N4RG) has been working in the Fern Ridge Area for over two years to modify the negative impacts of the surge of development in our area.  In July, our President, Joan Mariner, attended a conference at Kah-nee-ta supported by the Ford Family Foundation.  The focus of the conference was assisting those in rural areas to promote more community involvement in their home areas. As a result, we now see a solution to what can we do to get more people involved in shaping the future of their community.

Our plan is to have monthly meetings where we provide educational programs to the community. The first will be on January 31, 2008 and will provide information and instructions about rain harvesting.  People will leave with detailed instructions for setting up a rain barrel on a downspout. We also plan on going door to door in areas that have particular needs or concerns relevant to the quality of life in their neighborhoods.  Our purpose is to assist people to know how to make their voice hear within the community.  After personal conversations that help us to determine people’s interests, we will provide them with the information that shows them how to make the best use of their efforts. The funds for this grant will permit printing and copying of educational materials.  There will be a pamphlet describing our activities and goals, individual sheets detailing the meeting times and purposes of city organizations, lists of key people with email addresses and phone numbers, and advice concerning giving public testimony. (231 words; must have 250 or fewer)

The outcome of this project will be increased community participation in Veneta’s development during this critical time of rapid expansion.  The City recently updated its Strategic Plan with a Ford Institute Grant and participated in a Downtown Development project with Urban Development funds.  Many good ideas are under discussion, and the more people who get involved in their community, the better the outcome will be.  Veneta needs involved citizens, and Neighbors 4 Responsible Growth hopes to increase that involvement.

Opportunity Village Eugene (Community Supported Shelters)

To establish an efficient, simple, solution-based small model housing program
supported by the local community.

HELIOS GRANT DATE: 2013

AMOUNT: $1,000

REQUEST:

Houselessness is on the rise. There is a growing need in our community for simple safe legal housing. Community Supported Shelters (CSS) works with other organizations to build small spaces, called Conestoga Huts, and site them in the community to support the disadvantaged population. Our goal is to build 20 Conestoga huts, Winter 2013, in collaboration with Opportunity Village Eugene.

Oregon Toxics Alliance

Oregon Toxics Alliance is a grassroots, community-based organization dedicated to identifying and eliminating the root causes of toxic pollution in Oregon. Our current areas of focus are: reducing pesticides, air quality, and environmental justice.

HELIOS GRANT DATE: 2003

REQUEST:

Oregon Toxics Alliance is a grassroots organization working to eliminate contamination and unnecessary toxics use and the harm they cause to human health and the environment. OTA supports citizens’ efforts to avert the dangers of toxics use in their communities throughout Oregon.

Toxic rail yard contamination exists here in Eugene where initial investigations by the State’s Department of Environmental Quality (DEQ) in 1995 led to the discovery of groundwater contamination from chemicals Ð diesel fuels, solvents and heavy metals – that can cause severe health problems. OTA has brought together a coalition of concerned Eugene residents from River Road, Bethel, Trainsong and Whiteaker neighborhoods to understand and address health hazards caused by contamination at the Eugene rail yard. This coalition represents over 20,000 people. The objective of the OTA’s work is to assist Eugene residents to play an active role in key decisions about protecting the health of local families threatened by toxic contamination from the rail yard. OTA believes that Eugene residents should have a role at the table along with state agencies, the City, and Union Pacific Railroad to develop a viable clean-up plan for the Eugene rail yard.

Support from Helios and our matching donors will enable OTA to prepare plain-language summaries of the lengthy and complex health risk assessment prepared by Union Pacific Railroad for review by the Rail Road Pollution Coalition and the neighbors. The coalition can use these summaries to determine if the assessment truly measures the health threats to the neighborhood. OTA will then assist the coalition make scientifically sound recommendations to the Department of Environmental Quality for additional air and water sampling to safeguard human and environmental health.

HELIOS GRANT DATE: 2005

REQUEST:

In 1996, Eugene voters said “YES!” to a Community Toxics Right-to-Know program that would track toxics chemicals that are imported and released within the city limits. The Oregon Association of Industries lashed out in fear at the emergence of a community program that gave the public information on levels of air and water emissions from major polluters. They acted by convincing then Governor Kitzhaber to issue an executive order to BAN any other Oregon city or county from implementing a Toxic Right-to-Know law. OTA came into existence in 1999 as a progressive response to the Governor’s unwarranted decision to restrict the ability of citizens to understand the nature of possible contamination in their neighborhoods. Again, Eugene’s Toxic Right-to-Know program is under attack from members of the “old guard” as evidenced in a Register-Guard editorial “Unfairness is Toxic Too” (January 18, 2005). The editors question whether the law has any value and should continue to exist! The objective of OTA’s project is to do outreach to Eugene citizens about the benefits of the Toxic Right-to-Know law. Our goal is to create grassroots community support for expanding the program to include a more realistic spectrum of businesses that use and emit toxics. OTA must create strong community support as a bulwark against those forces that would like to keep the public ignorant about emissions to our local air and water. OTA will accomplish this outreach through a capacity-building media project that makes use of a letter-writing campaign, opinion pieces, a newsletter and flyers that will go out to members and non-members alike. OTA must gear-up now in order to build the necessary level of support for public hearings and a possible voter referendum.

HELIOS GRANT DATE: 2008

AMOUNT: $1,050

REQUEST:

We are requesting funding to implement our existing Garden Improvement Projects at our eight Partner School gardens. Because our staff is so busy recruiting and coordinating volunteers, teaching kids in the garden, leading garden maintenance work parties, raising funds, and running our organization, they seldom have time to focus specifically on improving existing garden sites.

By providing for an extra 35 hours of staff time and additional financial resources to upgrade existing garden infrastructure, this project will make these school gardens more sustainable, thus ultimately reducing the amount of staff and volunteer time the gardens require by lowering the maintenance needs for weeding and watering.  With better compost, improved soil fertility, better irrigation, and fewer weeds, garden plants will be healthier, repelling pests and diseases and producing more food.  Installation of automated drip irrigation will also result in a 50% water savings over sprinklers.  Garden sheds will keep dirt out of the school hallways, allow for more efficient use of class time, and allow volunteers to work in the garden when the school is closed.

SGP staff time will be used to solicit and coordinate community resources to accomplish as many of the following garden improvements as possible:  large-scale non-toxic weed control at two gardens, construction of a garden shed at one school, installation of automated drip irrigation at two schools, building raised beds at three schools, and improving soil fertility at all schools.

The outcome of our project will be that we will utilize the in-kind donations we have already received to implement the Garden Improvement Plans we have already made.  The eight Partner School Gardens will become more productive, functional, sustainable, and beautiful, thus increasing the excitement of students, the participation of teachers, the commitment of our volunteers, and the support of school neighbors.  We will conserve water by using drip irrigation and reduce waste by making compost and re-using materials donated by BRING and Weyerhauser.  This project will provide even more opportunities for community members to volunteer at local schools than we already provide.

At our eight partner schools, we teach students the environmental consequences of buying non-local, non-organic food out of season and of disposing of food wastes in landfills.  As a solution to these environmental problems, we teach students how to grow and eat their own organic food and make their own compost.  In addition to solving environmental problems, this knowledge is also a solution to the social problem of food security and the health problem of childhood obesity.

As school funding is cut, and teachers are saddled with larger classes and increased responsibilities, few schools have the resources to create a garden on their own or to effectively maintain an established garden.  Also, schools have difficulty organizing and communicating who is doing what in the garden.  In our year-end evaluations, many teachers said that without our staff support, they wouldn’t have incorporated gardening into their teaching.  With a seven year history of working with teachers at 50 local schools, SGP is the only non-profit organization in Lane County which is solely focused on creating learning gardens on school grounds.

We primarily serve underprivileged students, providing them with experiences most of them wouldn’t get to have otherwise, as many live in apartments.  Seven of our eight Partner Schools have a poverty level of more than 40%, and three of them are above 85%, including a high percentage of students of color.

Prout Institute

HELIOS GRANT DATE: 2009

AMOUNT: $1,180

REQUEST:

Project Description
The PROUT Institute promotes a vibrant, equitable, and sustainable economy in Lane County.
Our approach emphasizes that local resources should be used primarily to meet local needs, that
all should have work opportunities for expressing their creativity and providing for themselves
and their families, and that the local economy should maintain balance with the ecosystems
supporting it. We feel such an economy also builds local self-reliance and resiliency that will
help our communities address the deepening consequences of climate change, peak oil, and
resource depletion.
To support our goal, we are developing a comprehensive regional economic planning framework
that:

• presents a solution-oriented vision of economic development which emphasizes use of the local resource base by local and regional enterprises, primarily for local consumption;
• provides a holistic set of design principles which balances concerns for economic dynamism, social equity, and ecological sustainability; and
• outlines a strategic planning process which facilitates a participatory and regional-wide planning effort.

With the help of this grant, we will be able to complete development of the framework, promote
it to public officials, academic researchers, business entrepreneurs, social activists, and the larger
community, and place it online to facilitate public dialogue.
Our project fills a critical void in our county for a comprehensive, democratic planning process
that is guided by a solution-oriented vision and promotes local ingenuity, equity, and
sustainability. Through promotion of a balanced economy and citizen-led economic planning, the
PROUT Institute helps people empower themselves, realize their potentialities, and build vibrant
communities.
Project Outcomes
Because our project provides a framework for initiating and facilitating a coordinated,
participatory county-wide planning effort, it has the potential to benefit everyone in Lane
County, particularly those who are marginalized or underrepresented within the dominant
economic system and the prevailing public planning mechanism. Specifically, we anticipate the
following outcomes:

• The people of Lane County will have access to a comprehensive, visionary planning framework that balances economic dynamism, social equity, and ecological sustainability
• Those who are interested in sustainability or are already involved with existing projects and initiatives focused on sustainability will have access to a larger strategic framework through which they can collaborate more effectively in visioning and planning, sharing resources, and coordinating public outreach and advocacy efforts
• A citizen-led, democratic economic planning process that is guided by a substantive vision, innovative design principles, and a participatory process will be set in motion
• Lane County will be a state and national model for innovative, citizen-led planning and effective local preparation for meeting the deepening challenges of climate change, peak oil, and resource depletion

How We Meet the Funding Criteria
We feel our project and the noted outcomes align closely with the values and goals of Helios
Resource Network and the funding criteria set forth for the “Community Fund for Social
Change.” As noted, the approach of the PROUT Institute is solution-oriented, and we focus on
balancing concerns for sustainability, equity, and diverse creative expression. Moreover, our
project emphasizes the fundamental importance of providing people with a set of concepts and
tools for empowering themselves to participate more effectively in their community and take
charge of their own future. In addition, our project is designed especially to facilitate community
collaboration in the visioning and planning of our local economy, guided by core progressive
values and with reference to the serious social, economic, and environmental challenges we all
face. Finally, as explained already, our project fills a critical void in our locale – quite simply, we
need a guiding framework and participatory process for coming together to envision, plan, and
implement a new economy that meets everyone’s vital needs while maintaining balance with the
ecosystems that support all life.
How We Work in Cooperation with Other Local Organizations
The PROUT Institute works in cooperation with many local organizations through the
affiliations of our Associate Directors and other supporters, including the Eugene Permaculture
Guild, the Willamette Food and Farm Coalition, EWEB’s Earth Day event, the Lane County
Food Policy Council, LandWatch Lane County, Maitreya Ecovillage, ECOS-Environmental
Center for Sustainability, the Lane County Youth Farm, and the Climate Leadership Initiative at
the University of Oregon, among other organizations and green businesses.
We also cooperate with other local organizations through direct collaboration on specific
projects. For instance, we have helped organize a design consortium for re-envisioning the Lane
County Fairgrounds as a center for sustainable initiatives such as a year-round farmers market,
green building construction, and sustainability education, among several other examples. This
project also serves as a concrete realization of our planning framework in action, only at a
smaller scale than what we have envisioned for Lane County. Other examples of collaboration
include giving presentations on local economic planning for the “Sustainability in Business”
course at Lane Community College, and for the student-organized “Redefine the Dream” lecture
series at the University of Oregon, as well as helping the Eugene Permaculture Guild organize its
annual gatherings and various workshops.

Through our project we aim to increase the diversity of groups and interests with whom we
work, including public officials and academic researchers, as well as non-profit and other
professional and citizen organizations that have a stake in building a more balanced local
economy.

RESULT:

from a letter 7-2009

We are developing a local economic planning framework that outlines a vision, method and participatory process for developing a more sustainable economy system in Lane County.

We are in the process of drafting the framework in the form of a report, scheduled for completion in late August.  We will then present the report to government officials and begin giving public presentations to stimulate public dialogue and community involvement.

River Road Repair

Disbanded

HELIOS GRANT DATE: 2003

REQUEST:

The objective of the River Road Repair project is to beautify and “repair” a somewhat depressed neighborhood commercial strip. We hope it will inspire other similar improvements throughout our neighborhood. Why a mural? Beautifying the commercial strip benefits businesses, residents, and the neighborhood as a whole. Businesses benefit because the mural helps create a more desirable ambiance in the immediate area. Residents gain something nice to look at on their way home. The mural has already become a focal point for neighborhood pride.

The backdrop of the painting depicts a vision of River Road that we’d love to see made manifest: a pedestrian-friendly urban scene with a small cafe, neighborhood center, food store, bike shop, and light rail car. The picture includes food crops, flower boxes, fruit and vegetables for sale, and people shopping, eating, and visiting. In fact, nearly every person shown in the mural lives in the River Road neighborhood. Drop by and see if you recognize someone you know.

At this time, about two-thirds of the project is done. The grant from Helios will cover half the cost of the “local grocery” section of the painting. When completed, the mural will cover the entire south wall of the Goodwill building, approximately 15 x 100 feet. The artist, Jan Spencer, plans to continue work when the weather permits (next summer). Individuals or businesses who donate $100 or more can have their name on the wall as part of the “community bulletin board.”

School Garden Project

The School Garden Project is a 501(c)3 nonprofit organization that helps schools create and sustain gardens where hands-on learning connects students with their environment and local food system. We provide advice in school garden design and construction, train volunteers to work in gardens, distribute material resources to local schools, and coordinate garden-based education programs that serve more than 800 students annually.

HELIOS GRANT DATE: August 27th, 2004

AMOUNT: $525

REQUEST:

The School Garden Project of Lane County (SGP) supports over a dozen K-12 schools in the 4j, Bethel, and Springfield school districts. This support takes the form of garden design and development, staff trainings and workshops, curriculum development, instructional support, volunteer recruitment and coordination, work parties, and garden maintenance. This work is conducted by two part-time staff members. In the fall of 2004, the SGP is looking to add three to five new partner schools. Additional financial support is needed to fund staff hours for these specific projects:

• Implementation of a native plant courtyard garden at Gilham Elementary
• Facilitation of kid-centered design process for new gardens at Corridor and Ceasar Chavez Elementary
• Staff in-service training day on garden curriculum planning and implementation.

RESULT:

from a letter on 12-2010

I am writing to thank Helios Resource Network for supporting the School Garden Project once again through the Community Fund for Social Change grant program. The funding provided by the matching grant this summer allowed us to install a much-needed irrigation system at one of our most well-loved and long standing gardens, at Goshen School.

Goshen is a small rural school that SGP has worked with since 2001. Many of the eighth grade students we work with now have participated in SGP’s education program since they were in first grade! We visit Goshen every other Thursday and spend 1.5 hours gardening with students: leading an educational activity, doing garden work, and harvesting produce for the students to take home.

The installation of a timed, drip irrigation system in the school garden will greatly improve the functionality and productivity of this garden. Drip irrigation conserves water and is the preferable irrigation system for many garden crops, and having the system on a timer means that we do not need to find volunteers to water during the summer.

The total funding from the Helios Grant was $1,135. Total cost of this project was $1,150. The drip irrigation was installed by Sassone Irrigation, and we estimate that the system will last >10 years, serving the next ‘generation’ of Goshen students.

Many, many thanks to Helios for supporting the School Garden Project! Please do not hesitate to send me any questions you have about this report.

HELIOS GRANT DATE: 2007

AMOUNT: $595

REQUEST:

We are requesting funding to implement our existing Garden Improvement Projects at our eight Partner School gardens. Because our staff is so busy recruiting and coordinating volunteers, teaching kids in the garden, leading garden maintenance work parties, raising funds, and running our organization, they seldom have time to focus specifically on improving existing garden sites.

By providing for an extra 35 hours of staff time and additional financial resources to upgrade existing garden infrastructure, this project will make these school gardens more sustainable, thus ultimately reducing the amount of staff and volunteer time the gardens require by lowering the maintenance needs for weeding and watering.  With better compost, improved soil fertility, better irrigation, and fewer weeds, garden plants will be healthier, repelling pests and diseases and producing more food.  Installation of automated drip irrigation will also result in a 50% water savings over sprinklers.  Garden sheds will keep dirt out of the school hallways, allow for more efficient use of class time, and allow volunteers to work in the garden when the school is closed.

SGP staff time will be used to solicit and coordinate community resources to accomplish as many of the following garden improvements as possible:  large-scale non-toxic weed control at two gardens, construction of a garden shed at one school, installation of automated drip irrigation at two schools, building raised beds at three schools, and improving soil fertility at all schools.

The outcome of our project will be that we will utilize the in-kind donations we have already received to implement the Garden Improvement Plans we have already made.  The eight Partner School Gardens will become more productive, functional, sustainable, and beautiful, thus increasing the excitement of students, the participation of teachers, the commitment of our volunteers, and the support of school neighbors.  We will conserve water by using drip irrigation and reduce waste by making compost and re-using materials donated by BRING and Weyerhauser.  This project will provide even more opportunities for community members to volunteer at local schools than we already provide.

c.      Describe how your group meets any of the specific criteria described above, e.g. social change, sustainability, social and economic justice, environmental protection, encouragement of diversity, fills a gap, provides a solution to a problem, is unique.

At our eight partner schools, we teach students the environmental consequences of buying non-local, non-organic food out of season and of disposing of food wastes in landfills.  As a solution to these environmental problems, we teach students how to grow and eat their own organic food and make their own compost.  In addition to solving environmental problems, this knowledge is also a solution to the social problem of food security and the health problem of childhood obesity.

As school funding is cut, and teachers are saddled with larger classes and increased responsibilities, few schools have the resources to create a garden on their own or to effectively maintain an established garden.  Also, schools have difficulty organizing and communicating who is doing what in the garden.  In our year-end evaluations, many teachers said that without our staff support, they wouldn’t have incorporated gardening into their teaching.  With a seven year history of working with teachers at 50 local schools, SGP is the only non-profit organization in Lane County which is solely focused on creating learning gardens on school grounds.

We primarily serve underprivileged students, providing them with experiences most of them wouldn’t get to have otherwise, as many live in apartments.  Seven of our eight Partner Schools have a poverty level of more than 40%, and three of them are above 85%, including a high percentage of students of color.

In addition to the schools we work with, we have collaborated with 20 local non-profits and 10 local government agencies in the past year.  Our collaborations include sharing a booth at a community event, borrowing equipment, recruiting volunteers, fundraising, conducting educational events, and sharing knowledge, resources, and experience.

In implementing this project, we would likely be collaborating with the following organizations, agencies, and businesses: Willamette Farm and Food Coalition, Oregon Green Schools Association, City of Eugene Solid Waste and Recycling, Lane County Extension Service Master Gardeners and Compost Specialist Program, United Way of Lane County, BRING Recycling, Back to the Roots Landscaping, Dandilyon Gardening, Weyerhauser, Lane Forest Products, Rexius Landscape Services, John Deere Landscaping, and Aqua Serene.

RESULT:

Our project was to implement our Garden Improvement Plans at our eight Partner Schools.  the extra staff hours provided by the grant allow us to focus specifically on incorporating sustainable technologies and practices into school gardens.  In particular, staff time has been used to coordinate invasive weed removal and installation of drip irrigation systems at our Partner Schools.

SGP staff met with an irrigation contractor to develop a plan to install an automatic drip irrigation system at Applegate School.  We anticipate completing this project by 09-18.  SGP staff also coordinated large-scale non-toxic weed control projects at River Road and Chavez Schools.  This fall we will utilize the remaining hours to complete irrigation installation and improvements and to build soil fertility by sheet mulching at two schools.

HELIOS GRANT DATE: 2008

AMOUNT: $1,254

REQUEST:

The School Garden Project is a nonprofit organization that helps schools create and sustain gardens where hands-on learning connects students with their environment and local food system.

School Garden Project staff, University of Oregon BuildOn volunteers and Howard Elementary School students, families and staff will work together in a series of planning sessions and work parties to build a new school garden at Howard Elementary in the Eugene 4J School District over the summer 2012, so that the School Garden Project can implement after-school and “between the bells” garden sessions at the site. The goals of the project are to 1) To promote healthy eating and exercise through gardening activities; 2) To foster a connection to the natural environment; 3) To empower students by giving them the skills to grow their own food and provide food for others; 4) To extend and reinforce classroom ecological studies in the real-world garden setting.

The School Garden Project (SGP) will work with Howard Middle School Staff and buildOn members to design the garden. School Garden Project (SGP) will provide consultation on garden design and will secure materials needed. SGP will supervise the work party utilizing their experience with garden design and construction as well as volunteer coordination, ensuring that the garden at Howard Elementary is functional and ready for Howard Elementary students to use in the fall.

HELIOS GRANT DATE: July 23rd, 2012

AMOUNT: $1,445

REQUEST:

The School Garden Project is a nonprofit organization that helps schools create and sustain gardens where hands-on learning connects students with their environment and local food system.

School Garden Project staff, University of Oregon BuildOn volunteers and Howard Elementary School students, families and staff will work together in a series of planning sessions and work parties to build a new school garden at Howard Elementary in the Eugene 4J School District over the summer 2012, so that the School Garden Project can implement after-school and “between the bells” garden sessions at the site. The goals of the project are to 1) To promote healthy eating and exercise through gardening activities; 2) To foster a connection to the natural environment; 3) To empower students by giving them the skills to grow their own food and provide food for others; 4) To extend and reinforce classroom ecological studies in the real-world garden setting.

The School Garden Project (SGP) will work with Howard Middle School Staff and buildOn members to design the garden. School Garden Project (SGP) will provide consultation on garden design and will secure materials needed. SGP will supervise the work party utilizing their experience with garden design and construction as well as volunteer coordination, ensuring that the garden at Howard Elementary is functional and ready for Howard Elementary students to use in the fall.

Skipping Stones

Skipping Stones is a nonprofit magazine for youth that encourages communication, cooperation, creativity and celebration of cultural and environmental richness. It provides a playful forum for sharing ideas and experiences among youth from different countries and cultures. We are an ad-free, ecologically-aware, literary magazine printed on recycled paper with soy ink!

Currently in Helios Matching Grant Program!

Fundraising Period Ends: September 7th, 2013
Funds Raised: $0
Funds left to Raise: $500

Skipping Stones is now celebrating our 25 years. So far, we have published over 110 issues and over 2,000 students, as well as hundreds of adults from many parts of the world. Also, about 8 students intern at our office each year. We continue to promote diversity, creativity and ecological awareness. Our book awards program is in our 18th year. The economic conditions in the nation have taken toll on our financial situation. Subscriptions are down due to cuts in education spending as well. We had a deficit in the last few years. So we have reduced our spending. One way we cut our spending is staffing and the other, reducing the print run for issues. However the quality of the magazine and our work has not suffered. Skipping Stones gets better and better. We plan to have a big celebration on Oct. 5

With your grant, we would like to give 25 to 30 schools in Eugene and Springfield a TWO-copy subscription for the academic year 2013-2014. The subscription will begin with Sept-October 2013 issue and end after the school year. The objective is to:

• Increasing awareness of cultural diversity and ecological riches in the world. Writing and art published in Skipping Stones deal with peace and justice, cultural diversity (e.g.: African American and Latin American cultures), ecology and nature, etc. Although Skipping Stones is gentle and positive in its outlook, it is not afraid to probe the difficult issues facing our society. Some material is bilingual (with English translation). It is for and by children (some also by adults) from a variety of backgrounds and perspectives.
• Promoting creativity and self-respect in youth by offering them a forum for expressing their thoughts and experiences. We accept writings and art by youth of all ages and backgrounds. Having an avenue for sharing one’s feelings and work encourages creativity and higher self-esteem. In the most recent issue (May-Aug 2013), for example, we published about 50 Haikus by Lane County kids, and two other pieces by local students on Dr. King and his work in relation to our times.

The project will benefit students in communities of color and low-income schools, and families in many ways: an increased awareness of cultural diversity and environmental consciousness in (low-income) students in schools served; social responsibility and civic mindedness; encouraging interest in creative writing and visual arts, and languages. The presence of Skipping Stones in their schools will help promote self-respect in youth by empowering them with a forum for expressing their thoughts, beliefs and experiences. Having an avenue for sharing one’s feelings and experiences encourages creativity, positive self-esteem and critical thinking skills. We have received letters from educators and parents expressing appreciation. We know that teachers and librarians welcome our magazine issues for their students. We are like a beacon of hope for these students.

HELIOS GRANT DATE: 2004

REQUEST:

Skipping Stones promotes creative writing, multicultural awareness and nature appreciation in children and youth. When young people read our magazine, they realize that their lives, their challenges and successes, their ideas are worthy of consideration. When children begin learning about and communicating with people of different backgrounds at an early age, they incorporate that understanding into the way they treat others and carry it into their decision-making as adults. The Project: We propose Sept. 11th as a National Day of Intercultural and Interfaith Dialogue. We would like to see schools and communities everywhere remember Sept. 11th as a day to connect with each other, to understand our differences, to appreciate and respect the strands of diversity that exist in our human family. We’ll send out informative brochures to promote this and use them to build a cooperative, unifying world for our children and their children. We hope that schools, organizations and communities will organize diverse events–presentations, dialogues, discussion groups, get-togethers, writing contests, articles and poems, and salon-style interactions between people belonging to the diverse segments in the community– in their communities. We will help them by providing ideas and resources. Our website will also contain more information on the proposed National Day of Intercultural and Interfaith Dialogue. We’ll send publicity material and organizing information and encourage youth of diverse backgrounds to participate in the National Day of Intercultural and Interfaith Dialogue with their ideas, art and creative writing.

HELIOS GRANT DATE: 2008

AMOUNT: $1,000

REQUEST:

We propose 40 schools in Lane County be given a gift subscription with your sponsorship. Our usual rates are $35 a year for institutions. But with your funding, we can use the individual gift subscription rate of $25 a year. In other words, $1,000 will allow for 40 school subscriptions. It will be wonderful to have your support for the 2008 year.

We believe that children and youth as well as their parents and teachers will benefit from this project. The project will increase a feeling of community and cooperation as well as self-esteem.

We received the 2007 NAME Award for outstanding contribution to multicultural education earlier this month in Baltimore, MD.

We request a matching grant of $1,000 to cover our expenses related to this project.

RESULT:

40 gift subscriptions to Lane County Schools were given.  A few have renewed their subscriptions at the end of their terms, indicating that they like the issues.

The personnel costs include staff time attributed to the labor. (editing, office work, etc.)

The postage and shipping includes supplies needed in addition to postage and handling for one year subscription.

Copy/printing shows portion of printing cost of the 200 issues and 200 renewal requests.

HELIOS GRANT DATE: 2013

REQUEST:

With your grant, we would like to give 25 to 30 schools in Eugene and Springfield a TWO-copy subscription for the academic year 2013-2014. The subscription will begin with Sept-October 2013 issue and end after the school year. The objective is to:

• Increasing awareness of cultural diversity and ecological riches in the world. Writing and art published in Skipping Stones deal with peace and justice, cultural diversity (e.g.: African American and Latin American cultures), ecology and nature, etc. Although Skipping Stones is gentle and positive in its outlook, it is not afraid to probe the difficult issues facing our society. Some material is bilingual (with English translation). It is for and by children (some also by adults) from a variety of backgrounds and perspectives.
• Promoting creativity and self-respect in youth by offering them a forum for expressing their thoughts and experiences. We accept writings and art by youth of all ages and backgrounds. Having an avenue for sharing one’s feelings and work encourages creativity and higher self-esteem. In the most recent issue (May-Aug 2013), for example, we published about 50 Haikus by Lane County kids, and two other pieces by local students on Dr. King and his work in relation to our times.

The project will benefit students in communities of color and low-income schools, and families in many ways: an increased awareness of cultural diversity and environmental consciousness in (low-income) students in schools served; social responsibility and civic mindedness; encouraging interest in creative writing and visual arts, and languages. The presence of Skipping Stones in their schools will help promote self-respect in youth by empowering them with a forum for expressing their thoughts, beliefs and experiences. Having an avenue for sharing one’s feelings and experiences encourages creativity, positive self-esteem and critical thinking skills. We have received letters from educators and parents expressing appreciation. We know that teachers and librarians welcome our magazine issues for their students. We are like a beacon of hope for these students.

Skipping Stones is also used as a showcase by teachers to share exemplary work by students to encourage others.

Spencer Creek Community Growers’ Market

The Spencer Creek Grange in Eugene, Oregon, is a dynamic, local organization supporting: Education, Providing a local gathering place, Sustainable agriculture and Participatory democracy

HELIOS GRANT DATE: 2010

AMOUNT: $1,029

REQUEST:

The Spencer Creek Community Growers Market is committed to providing a venue for neighbors to sell their locally produced agricultural items with an emphasis on sustainable and healthy growing practices, while encouraging and supporting local food production efforts through the fellowship of community.

The goals of the Spencer Creek Community Growers’ Market are twofold: to provide a forum for local gardeners/hobby farmers to meet and share their knowledge and skill base with one another, and additionally, to provide fresh, sustainably raised produce to the local community at a low price. This market is unique in that the vendors are hobby farmers, and do not need to meet the often astronomic overhead costs associated with running a small commercial farm. In turn they can ask lower prices, encouraging a wider customer base. We intend to simplify and support the “buy local and sustainable trend” for our community, while encouraging and supporting local, small-scale food production efforts.

While the Spencer Creek Grange is providing its time-honored and historic venue at very low cost, funds are needed for: 1, an advertising campaign to recruit a wide base of growers, 2, a general liability insurance policy for the market, and 3, a state-inspected scale to be shared amongst the growers. The intended outcome of this project is a local market with a grower base of 50-100 growers, ensuring that there will always be 15-20 growers attending any given market day. The market will meet Saturday mornings from 10 a.m. to 1 p.m. from June 5th through October 9th. Through the spirit of voluntarism, sharing, and celebration, we acknowledge and honor our dependence on a healthy ecology, and endeavor to create food independence in our local community.

The Willamette Farm and Food Coalition

The Willamette Farm and Food Coalition facilitates and supports the development of a secure and sustainable food system in Lane County, Oregon.

HELIOS GRANT DATE: 2005

REQUEST:

LCFC plans a new edition of its Lane County Food Directory: where to find local foods in Lane County this April to coincide with Earth Day. An initial directory published in 2003 will be updated and expanded as part of the LCFC’s “Buy Local, Buy Lane” campaign. The food directory links consumers, restaurants and institutions to local farmers and food processors for their mutual benefit. The directory includes listings for farmers markets and farm stands, consumer supported agriculture (CSA) opportunities, and restaurants that feature locally grown items as well as listings of individual farms and their produce available to consumers and institutions. Many of the farms and products featured are organic and preserve genetic diversity. We currently are gathering information from growers, farm markets, wineries, restaurants, retailers and processors. The 32-page tabloid publication will be printed by the Eugene Weekly, with 10,000 copies distributed to its readers and another 15,000 placed at locations around Lane County and Oregon.

HELIOS GRANT DATE: 2007

AMOUNT: $1,027

REQUEST:

Since WFFC’s incorporation as a non-profit in 2000 we have drawn on our networking roots of a local food community that has been organizing for 20 years. Our largest accomplishments include:

• publishing a local foods directory – now in its fourth year, Locally Grown directly connects consumers to local growers and promotes the benefits of eating locally (30,000 distributed per year – county wide)

• partnering with FOOD for Lane County to hold a county wide Food Summit and to found a regional Food Policy Council in 2006

• pioneering a farm to cafeteria program that has successfully implemented school gardens, a garden-based nutrition curriculum, tasting tables and farm tours at the Applegate and Lorane Elementary Schools this year, and is poised to bring more nutritious locally grown and produced foods to the Eugene 4J district in the 2007/2008 school year as well as to the Lane County Heard Start program sites and the Eugene Relief Nursery

   a. Project Description:  Promoting Locally Grown on-line

The concept of “local food” is gaining attention both nationally and locally. The Willamette Farm and Food Coalition receives several calls a week from people wanting to know where to find anything from local grass-fed beef to organic u-pick berries. Our 4^th annual Locally Grown Directory, published in April of this year, is a fairly comprehensive listing of where to find locally grown, raised, and produced foods in Lane County and surrounding areas.

The directory provides descriptions of local farms and their products; detailed information on the 12 local CSAs (farms with Community Supported Agriculture programs); information on several farmers’ markets; restaurants, merchants, and processors that purchase from local growers; definitions of grower labels and certifications; and resource pages listing national, state and local community food and agriculture organizations. This year the directory also included a detailed product index as well as coupons for farm stands.

Since the first publishing in 2003, Locally Grown has become the “go to” resource for local food. A few supporters refer to the directory as their “food bible”. We print and distribute 30,000 copies around the county, but know that getting the information on-line would very quickly increase its influence. Several of our weekly e-mail and phone inquiries ask if this information is available on-line.

In conjunction with getting our Locally Grown directory on-line, we also want to make a concerted effort to research sources of some of the less obvious local foods like grains and flours, oils, and winter crops. A matching grant from Helios will help us on both of these fronts.

   b. Outcomes

Expected outcomes of the project include:

• press on local food in conjunction with posting Locally Grown on the site
• increased distribution of the information in the Locally Grown Directory
• increased business for local farmers and processors
• increased consumer awareness of local food resources

Getting Locally Grown accessible on the web will benefit the Lane County community by providing easy access to a wealth of information about local food resources, and will allow people to share this information more readily with others. Having Locally Grown on-line will make it easier for the WFFC to direct requests – and all of this translates to more business for local growers and processors.

   c. Criteria

The work of the Willamette Farm and Food Coalition promotes economic equity (access to local food for all, fair prices for farmers) and sustainability (sustainable agriculture and sustainable food systems).  Our efforts to promote locally grown foods address the root causes of several economic (outsourcing of money and goods) and environmental problems (farmland preservation, use of fossil fuels to ship food long distances). Our work with local school districts and the new Food Policy Council is affecting institutional change at the policy level. Through promotion of local food, the coalition engages consumers in pro-actively improving the livability and economic vitality of our community.

Our members represent a diversity of stakeholders in the local food system including farmers, farm workers, processors, retailers, restaurateurs, consumers, anti-hunger advocates, children’s health advocates, faith communities, agricultural scientists, and environmental activists.

   d. Collaborators

Collaboration with other community groups is key for our small organization.  We view coalition building as imperative in order to fully impact our local food economy.  Currently we work with:

Cascade Pacific RC&D – annual Farm to Chef Connection event

Ecumenical Ministries of Oregon, Interfaith Food and Farms Partnership – That’s My Farmer event and low income access to local, fresh foods

Eugene Relief Nursery – helping to procure locally grown foods for their snacks

EWEB’s Healthy Farms Program – helping to connect farmers and consumers in the McKenzie River Watershed

FOOD for Lane County – partner in co-sponsorship of Food Policy Council

Head Start of Lane County – helping to procure locally grown foods for their breakfast and lunch programs

Helios Resource Network – facilitating local food focused gatherings, and networking between food organizations

Huerto de la Familia (The Family Garden) – helping track member families’ use of Farmers’ Market Dollars from the That’s My Farmer Low Income Fund

Lane Coalition for Healthy Active Youth – on-going collaborative discussions on getting local food into school lunches and farmers’ markets into low-income neighborhoods

Lane County Extension Service – partner in Farm to Cafeteria program (nutrition education), they also actively distribute our Locally Grown directory

Lane County Food Policy Council – we serve as fiscal sponsor for the fledgling council and are viewed as their “project” arm (the council being the “policy” arm).

Lane County Farmer’s Market – facilitating on-going discussion of permanent farmer’s market concept, promote market and many member farmers in Locally Grown directory

School Garden Project of Lane County – partner in Farm to Cafeteria program

Slow Food: Eugene – share member lists and promote each other’s events

State-wide Farm to School Network – we are a member of this new network which actively promoted Farm to School legislation this spring

Ten Rivers Food Web – exploring collaborative fundraising for Farm to School curriculum design in the southern Willamette Valley

That’s My Farmer (Communities of Faith Supporting Local Farms) – we co-sponsor the That’s My Farmer event which promotes local CSA’s (Community Supported Agriculture)

Willamette Valley Sustainable Foods Alliance – share several business members in common, working to coordinate “buy local” efforts

Universal Healthcare for Oregon

HELIOS GRANT DATE: 2004

REQUEST:

The mission of Universal Healthcare for Oregon (UHCO) is to strive to ensure that people in Oregon have access to affordable, quality and comprehensive health care; particularly those populations who are under-served, such as low income families, members of minority groups, those who are uninsured or under-insured and those who have difficulty gaining access to health care.

To this end, we are requesting funds to pay for printing 5000 pamphlets. The original four-fold brochure was created by two of our Board member volunteers. it is informative and appealing, white with blue design. The cover has on it this quote by Martin Luther King, Jr.:

“Of all forms of inequality, injustice in healthcare is the most shocking and inhumane”.

Content includes a statement of the principles of health care which our organization promotes and other quotes about health care by people of note. There are also brief statements on affordability, accessibility, security, right of choice and quality, characteristics intrinsic to universal, single payer health care. There is a form for membership and a request for donations.

Our mission is to strive toward making it possible for everyone’s health care needs to be always covered.

We the People – Eugene

The mission of We the People Eugene is to create democracy by building social movements dedicated to:
Ending the excessive influence of corporations and other moneyed interests over our political and economic systems, and
Building peoples-based democratic communities founded on the natural rights of humans and the environment.

HELIOS GRANT DATE: 2012

AMOUNT: $1,035

REQUEST:

Our mission is to educate local activists and the general public about how to reclaim community sovereignty over local interests and to eliminate the excessive influence of moneyed interests that now govern our politics, distort our priorities and remove common sense from our domestic and foreign policies. We began our work hosting public teach-ins and circulating a petition for a non-binding resolution by the Eugene city council that reads, “Resolved, the City of Eugene calls for reclaiming democracy from the corrupting effects of undue corporate influence by amending the U.S Constitution to establish that: 1) Corporations are not entitled to constitutional rights granted to persons; 2) Therefore, regulating corporate political contributions and spending is not equivalent to limiting political speech.” This summer we will hold a retreat to establish future strategies including some binding resolutions and to restructure our mission statement to reflect our educational emphasis.

These funds will be used to pay fees and other costs related to our obtaining a 501(c)(3) tax-exempt status. Obtaining a 501(c)(3) tax-exempt status will open more foundation funding options to us as well as provide an added incentive for the public to contribute to our work. We are an educational organization with objectives to educate local, state and national activists and the general public about issues related to corporate rule including review of effective local ordinances nationwide that counter corporate rule and the history and mechanics of corporate personhood and the recent Citizens United Supreme Court ruling.

RESULT:

from a letter on 01/27/12

We the People Eugene intend to use the grant money for 501(c)3 application.  We have not yet spent most of the money, but intend to use it as follows:

$60 – Payment to our grant writer (6% of received grants)

$425 – One computer projector for public presentations

$50 – State Registration Fee

$400 – IRS tax exemption application fee (form 1023)

$100 – Legal Fees

… We intend to wait on the purchase of the computer projector, in case there are other costs associated with the 501(c)3 application that we did not foresee, or in case the legal review is more difficult…

We have completed our Articles of Incorporation, form 1023, our extra documentation for form 1023, form 8718, a Conflict of Interest Policy, and form 5768….

WETLANDS: West Eugene Transportation, Land and Neighborhood Design Solutions

WETLANDS is working to stop the West Eugene Parkway by monitoring the Environmental Impact Statement process and taking citizens on tours of the West Eugene Wetlands.