Duck Race Beneficiary Presentations

On Tuesday, April 3rd 2018, we will be hearing presentations from charities who have applied to become beneficiaries of our club’s proceeds from the 2018 Great Duck Race. Last year’s beneficiaries included: Younity, Bethlehem Inn, Mountain Star Family Relief Nursery, The Center Foundation, DAWNS House Grandma’s House of Central Oregon, and Community Shower Truck.

The six finalists are as follows:

• The Assistance League – $10K for Operation School Bell to provide socks, underwear, shirts, pants, jacket and shoes (average cost of each wardrobe is $87) for 115 low-income at-risk K-12 students in Bend, La Pine and Redmond. Coordinated through Bend-La Pine Schools and FAN. Reduces economic stress to parents while growing self-esteem/confidence in children improving attendance and academic performance.
• The Giving Plate – Seeking $9K towards a new cargo van for daily food pick-ups and deliveries in Central Oregon. It is the largest food bank in Central Oregon and the first to offer a children’s food bank (likely to replace Backpacks for Bend requiring 600+ deliveries to students in elementary schools). Last year, they served of 6,000 families and 500,000 lbs of food (36% of clients are children under age 18). The current van’s reliability and safety are in question.
• High Desert Museum – Seeks funds to support an access initiative called Little Wonders created in partnership with Neighbor Impact benefiting Head Start’s low-income preschool participants and their families with a free annual membership. This program includes two family nights held in spring and fall in which guests enjoy a meal and special programming. Families additionally receive a $10 gas card on return visits. Aimed at closing the opportunity/achievement gap by providing hands-on informal learning opportunities to advance cognitive development.
• J Bar J – Seeks funds to establish a vocational program for adjudicated boys who perform significantly below grade level upon program entry. Advancing the boys academically and fostering critical thinking skills leading to better decision making are key areas of focus. This program would help participants to earn a living wage by providing technical skill building in woodworking, auto and small engine repair, culinary arts, technology application design and general computers. They will partner with area businesses to offer internships/apprenticeships.
• The Greater Bend Rotary Club Foundation – Giving benefits underserved local students through scholarships to COCC, OSU Cascades and Bend-La Pine Perseverance Awards. Duck Race funds would fulfill current commitments and matching funds would be sought to encourage growth of the endowment—increasing the ability to give in future years with the possibility of supporting other programs such as youth exchange. Primary sources of revenue are annual distributions from OCF supplemented by the club budget (no longer the recipient of wine raffle proceeds).
• Younity – To provide 4 local schools with Challenge Days (nationally recognized student empowerment and bullying prevention program) in the 2018/2019 academic year benefiting 400 middle and high school students and 100 adult volunteers with results ultimately benefiting the broader community.