The new year always brings a joyous energy of opportunity as we turn the page to open an untouched calendar, set forth on a fresh plan of action and draft goals for serving and working in the days ahead. This spirit of momentum and enthusiasm is also buoyed by the world outside our windows where, after months of growing darkness, we begin the slow return to longer days and more sunlight filling our lives.
Symbolically, our communities mark the end of the year by celebrating the holiday season across the myriad cultures and faiths that make their home in the Pacific Northwest with traditions that involve creating light in the darkness. The end of 2018 was no different. As our country reeled against moments of intense violence and an ongoing undercurrent of vitriol that soured our civic discourse, I was encouraged to see communities join together to literally and figuratively push against the darkness and bring light into their homes. Communities large and small honored the spirit of the season by lighting a Christmas tree, pausing to reflect in the flicker of a Menorah or joining in festivities of fellowship and friendship.
Light is always fighting to break through. This is something we see every year with the changing of the seasons, and it’s something we see in the work of individuals, families, volunteers and corporate partners who work to bring “light” into communities through service to nonprofit organizations working toward the common good. Who isn’t appreciative and warmed by the work of food banks, the Salvation Army, toy drives and countless others calling us to be generous of heart and spirit?
The Murdock Trust team is regularly reminded of this ongoing effort to bring light to those in need through the work of our grantees. We were fortunate to review a fresh collection of outstanding projects and programs at our most recent grants meeting near year-end 2018. At this meeting, our Trustees approved 48 grants totaling close to $11 million for nonprofits serving the Pacific Northwest and nearly $50 million in grants throughout 2018.
Below you’ll see a brief sample of just a few of the projects that we are honored to support across Alaska, Idaho, Montana, Oregon and Washington. These represent just a small portion of the efforts currently underway across our region to help serve and support our communities through the arts, education, health, human services and scientific research.
As we enter this bright new year filled with promise and hope, we are grateful to the countless nonprofit organizations, corporate foundations, funders, volunteers, community foundations and individual contributors who work tirelessly throughout the year to help individuals, families and communities across the Pacific Northwest flourish and thrive by bringing in the light through their critical work.
Steve Moore
Executive Director, Murdock Trust
Alaska
- Biological and environmental researchers at the University of Alaska Fairbanks will expand their capacity to conduct research following the acquisition of a Gas Chromatograph-Isotope Ratio Mass Spectrometer (GC-IRMS).
- The understanding and conservation of the musk ox and its potential contributions to agriculture and commerce will expand following the renovation of facilities overseen by the Musk Ox Development Corporation.
Idaho
- The Children’s Home Society of Idaho will be able to raise awareness of its mission and increase volunteer and financial support through the hiring of new staff.
- With increased capacity following a facility renovation and expansion, more rural families will be served by the creative programs of The Community Library of the Wood River Valley.
Montana
- The Grizzly and Wolf Discovery Center will expand its onsite exhibits and programs following a facility expansion.
- More Montana children will enjoy the benefits of a visit to Flathead Lutheran Bible Camp following the construction of a new ADA-accessible cabin complex.
Oregon
- The Chehalem Cultural Center will be able to provide a more robust offering of community events through the renovation of its Newberg arts center.
- Children, families and visitors of all ages will be inspired and engaged through the installation of a new Center for Innovation exhibit at OMSI, updating the existing Turbine Hall space.
- The historic music school of the John G. Shedd Institute for the Arts will be able to support more students in the mid-Willamette Valley following a facility renovation.
- Oregon’s historic locomotives, railroad equipment and artifacts will gain fresh life and longevity following a refurbishment by the Oregon Rail Heritage Foundation.
Washington
- Vulnerable children in the King County area will receive critical support and comfort as AMARA opens a permanent home for Grandese’s Place, a housing and administrative facility serving the foster care system.
- The longevity of the Northwest School of Wooden BoatBuilding will be reinforced following a critical infrastructure update.
- Hundreds of children and teens will receive support, inspiration and mentorship through the construction of a new clubhouse by the Boys and Girls Club of the Olympic Peninsula.
- More people will learn about the rich cultural history of Native artists through the hiring of new staff by the Native Arts and Cultures Foundation.
- A new Unity Care Northwest clinic will bring important medical services to rural patients.
- The Outdoor Discovery Center at the Hands On Children’s Museum will expand its exhibitions, introducing new opportunities for children to learn and grow.
