Gorge Community Foundation Grants for Oregon Nonprofits (Salvador Fund)

Gorge Community Foundation Grants for Oregon Nonprofits (Salvador Fund) is sponsored by Gorge Community Foundation. The Gorge Community Foundation's Salvador Fund provides grants to Oregon 501(c)(3) nonprofits serving low-income residents in the mid-Columbia region.

Community Grants | Gorge Community Foundation For nearly two decades, the Gorge Community Foundation has supported nonprofits through donor advised funds and community grantmaking, strengthening the fabric of communities across the Gorge. The Community Grants Program is now accepting proposals for its annual funding cycle. This program provides flexible funding to address the needs of the region’s nonprofits.

Grants are awarded by a committee composed of the Foundation’s board members and are available to a wide range of nonprofit organizations. The selection process is not limited to any single focus area or constituency. • A total of $18,800 is available in this cycle; requests may be made for any amount up to that total.

• Past awards have ranged from $650 to $4,000. • Grant recipients must complete required reporting to remain eligible for future funding. • Applicants must submit proposals by April 30, 2026.

2026 Eligibility and Proposal Guidelines The following projects received funding in 2025: Uplift Local: local journalism civic engagement program Gorge Grown Food Network: support for SNAP at Mid-Valley Farmers Market Friends of the Columbia Gorge: support of documentary film Salmon Scam Books for Kids: increase value of book awards in four counties Wylde Wind & Water: Sp/Eng water safety brochures OSU Extension: Eng/Sp first aid/farm safety training in Gorge WAGAP: support for mobile food bank Hutson Museum: support for videos on museum and its collection OSU Extension: Summer student nutrition camp GCF Community Grants Program The program is comprised of the Joan Burchell Fund, the Riddell and Athalie Lage Fund, the Florence E.

and Nobi Akiyama Fund, the Gorge Trust Fund and the Kate Leadbetter Mills Fund. Joan was born in New York City on April 25, 1923, and grew up in Chappaqua, N. Y.

As a young woman, she defied tradition by moving to Venezuela to work as a decorator and furniture designer. She traveled extensively in South and Central America before returning to New York to work for Reader’s Digest until retirement. Joan was an avid swimmer and kayaker who traveled and camped alone in Europe.

After retirement, she traveled the country looking for a retirement home. The fact that she chose the community of Mt. Hood in the Columbia River Gorge attests to her good judgment.

She lived there for 20 years. Joan loved the community, and the community loved her. She was self-educated, mechanically clever, and artistic.

Her spirit, humor, independence, and interest in all things endeared her to many people. Joan is a true example of living life on one’s own terms. She passed away peacefully, with friends at her side, on December 14, 2008.

Edward (Riddell) Lage and Athalie Miller were married in the Pine Grove Church in 1935 and raised three children in Hood River. Riddell, the son of 19 th century Oregon pioneers, ran and modernized his family’s farm, Lage Orchards Inc., which earned the Century Farm designation for 100 years of ownership by a single family. Riddell passed away in 1975, and Athalie was 103 at the time of her passing in 2020.

Both Riddell and Athalie were lifelong residents of Hood River and active in the community through business, youth and social activities. Their legacy fund commemorates their dedication to their community through service and philanthropy. Kate Mills was a fearless and untiring champion of Oregon’s natural beauty — most especially the Columbia River Gorge and Hood River Valley.

Born on Sept. 22, 1932 in Portland and educated at Catlin Gabel School and Stanford University, Kate and her husband Jack raised four sons and moved to the upper Hood River Valley in the mid-’70s, where in addition to family, they added seven horses, a burro, Bantam chickens, Muscovy ducks, barn cats and a dog to their household.

Along with her love of animals and the outdoors, Kate relished a soul-stirring play, whether in Hood River, Ashland or Broadway. Upon moving to the Gorge, Kate became active in her new community, helping found the Columbia Center for the Arts and start recycling programs in Hood River. She was a founding member of the Hood River Valley Residents Committee and Friends of Timberline.

She recruited friends, raised money, wrote letters and lobbied to help enact the Columbia River Gorge National Scenic Act. She served on boards of the Gorge Community Foundation, Thrive Hood River (formerly the Hood River Valley Residents Committee), the High Desert Museum, Maryhill Museum of Art, and the Hood River Classic Horse Show.

Nobi was born in Hood River on May 20, 1922 to Tomeshichi and Itsu Ono Akiyama, the third of five children, and graduated from Hood River High School in 1941. When he got out of the army he went to work in the asparagus fields his Dad had planted before the war. Then he went to mechanics school for two years and from there was hired by Knoll Motors, the Chrysler-Dodge dealership in Hood River.

In 1955 a local service station proprietor named Don Stone asked Nobi to buy in to the business and become the mechanic. He was an excellent mechanic, good problem solver, and meticulous about never replacing any part unless absolutely necessary. In 1957 Nobi bought out Don Stone’s share and it became Nobi’s, Atlantic Oil Company.

Florence became his partner in 1964. In 1976 Nobi and Florence purchased the Douglas/Eagle station on highway 281 two miles south of Hood River, 1380 Tucker Road. In Florence’s words, “Nobi was very creative and always made everything fun, too.

Nobi contributed to our community in many ways. Nobi looked for the good in each person, thereby inspiring them to be their best. He was a kind, gentle, and wise person.

” The Gorge Trust Fund was started by Jack Mills from The Gorge Trust and in conjunction with leaders from the Trust including Will Macht and Doug Crow. The key tenets of The Gorge Trust were to preserve, enhance and conserve the natural and cultural heritage of the Columbia River Gorge.

After Jack Mills’ passing in 2011, the assets of the Fund passed to the Gorge Community Foundation and became part of its general fund, available to support regional organizations and causes.