Overview
Donor Engagement & Gratitude
We learn a lot about community resilience and generosity in times of crisis.
In OCF’s 48-year history, nothing close to the cascading crises of 2020 has ever struck our communities. Our collective response reaffirms that Oregonians come together to support those in need.
Families, businesses and individuals with donor advised funds at OCF were especially generous in 2020, collectively giving $70 million to support nonprofits (an increase of 54% compared to the previous year). This continues our donors’ long-term pattern of giving during tough economic times.
We are incredibly grateful to our dedicated network of givers:
- Donors contributed $11M to the Oregon Community Recovery Fund.
- More than 62% of donors to this pooled fund were new to the OCF community.
- Donors from every part of Oregon participated in the recovery effort.
As donors learned more about the pandemic's disproportionate toll on marginalized Oregonians, they committed themselves even more deeply throughout the pandemic. Rob Hirschboeck and Deb Dryden are relatively new donors who initially created a testamentary fund with OCF. Inspired by OCRF’s impact, they used an IRA to contribute to this pooled fund. Wanting to be even more engaged, they also created a current DAF – all in 2020!
“We contributed to the Oregon Community Recovery Fund because so many of our artists friends were out of work and in precarious financial situations due to necessary COVID-related closures. We hoped that by joining with other donors we could bring relief to struggling Oregonians and communities.”
Rob Hirschboeck and Deb Dryden
Photo: SMART Reading Program
Donors saw an opportunity to support the needs of Oregonians across the state. They pooled their funding with other donors for OCF to redistribute to the greatest needs in the state as well as funded organizations directly.
Pandemic and wildfires prompt family fund to step up giving.
“I may have taken our fund out of grantmaking opportunities for a while, but was very happy to help with OCF’s COVID-19 fund, and am confident that it is doing a world of good around the state. I appreciate the effort you are all putting into that.”
Dick Jaffe, Jaffe Family Fund
Photo: Family Access Network
“I recommended a grant from our donor advised fund to the Oregon Community Recovery Fund because I have witnessed the way in which the pandemic has disproportionally affected communities of color and those who are lower income. As we often say in our family, ‘While the pandemic didn't create anything, it nevertheless revealed everything.’ One of the things it revealed is the huge divide between those who have the resources to both work from home and care for their family and those who don’t because they are already on the margins. We chose to give through OCF because we believe in the power of communities working together. Thus OCF can combine our support with the support."
Gary Powell, Goudy-Powell Fund
Photo: United Way of the Columbia-Willamette
Whether already established with OCF or new to working with us, over the course of the pandemic, our partnerships with philanthropically inclined Oregonians have resulted in an extraordinary outpouring of support for communities impacted communities.
“During the COVID-19 crisis, we were proud to support Oregon Community Foundation and its Oregon Community Recovery Fund, which leveraged pooled resources to rapidly deploy them to areas of greatest need. The scope of the pandemic and the inequities it revealed require deep listening, learning and unlearning to change the status quo. Working together through bold collective actions, we can empower all voices, eliminate disparities, and build the resilience needed to ensure the long-term health and well-being of our communities.”
Peggy Maguire
Photo: REACH
“When the pandemic hit Oregon last year, we knew that people in our state were going to be more in need than ever. We have been trying to pitch in however we can. We admire and appreciate the work the Oregon Community Foundation does on behalf of Oregonians, so we felt that contributing a portion of Outdoor Exposure Photography's income to OCF would be the best way to get resources to the people and communities that need it most.”
Sean and Jennifer Bagshaw