East Washingtonian - Your Hometown News Source

WALLA WALLA–The City of Pomeroy and Blue Mountain Artisan Guild are two of twenty-four non-profit organizations to receive a portion of the Blue Mountain Community Foundation (BMCF) $287,503.50 grants recently awarded in the Umatilla, Walla Walla, Columbia and Garfield counties.

The BMCF, under the leadership of its board of trustees and grant committee chair Barbara Roloff, awarded $287,503.50 in grants to local nonprofits based in and/or serving the communities of Umatilla, Walla Walla, Columbia and Garfield Counties. These grants are part of the BMCF’s annual competitive grant cycle available to eligible organizations throughout the four-county region. This round of grantmaking focused on providing general operating support to nonprofits rather than programmatic support.

Prioritizing unrestricted general operating funding is one way that the board and staff of BMCF are embracing Trust-Based Philanthropy–a grantmaking philosophy that puts the emphasis of grant funding on supporting the mission of the successful applicants rather than a transactional award based on administering a program.

“Unrestricted funding? This is going to be epic!” says Program Director Rodney Outlaw of Walla Walla Music Organization’s recent award. This excitement underscores the scarcity of and immense need for unrestricted general operating funding opportunities from local, regional and national grant makers. BMCF has embraced general operating support through active engagement with numerous community organizations to determine the best way to support the work they do: through operational support for trusted organizations to address their most urgent needs.

Ultimately, 57 eligible applications were received by the October 1, 2022 deadline and, of those, 34 proposals were awarded unrestricted general operating funding ranging from $1,100 – 20,000. Grants were awarded to: Arts Council of Pendleton; Athena Mainstreet Association; Athena’s Gem; Blue Mountain Artisan Guild; Blue Mountain Health Cooperative; Blue Mountain Heart to Heart; BMAC; Carnegie Picture Lab; Catholic Charities Eastern Washington; Children’s Home Society of Washington–Walla Walla; City of Pomeroy; Community Council; Confluence; Fort Walla Walla Museum; Legal Counsel for Youth & Children; Longmire Ranch; Made to Thrive; Milton-Freewater Downtown Alliance; Neighbor 2 Neighbor Pendleton Inc; Pendleton Children’s Center; Project Timothy Christian Aid Center; Skyline Adventures; Sustainable Living Center/Walla Walla Valley Farm to School; The Cardinals’ Nest; The Health Center; The STAR Project; Tri-County Partners Habitat for Humanity; Walla Walla Basin Watershed Council; Walla Walla Chamber Music Festival; Walla Walla Community Hospice; Walla Walla County 4-H Council; Walla Walla Public Schools–Business Office; Walla Walla Symphony; and Walla Walla Valley Bands.