St. Charles Health System announced the first round of grant recipients aimed at reducing feelings of loneliness and social isolation while fostering a sense of belonging in the communities it serves. Eight local community organizations received more than $80,000 in grants as part of St. Charles’ Community Benefit grant, Celebrate, Together: Celbrando Juntos. This grant priority will continue for the next three years, and new recipients will be announced each year.
For the Council on Aging of Central Oregon, receiving a grant for $10,000 helped transform the nonprofit’s Caring Connections program, which started during the pandemic to combat social isolation among seniors. The program currently pairs 45 seniors with volunteers for weekly phone calls. Thanks to the grant, the council hosted the first of many in-person meetings for these pairs, some of whom had been talking to one another weekly for two years but had not met in person.
“Seeing those first hugs and moments of connection was incredible,” said Emma Fried-Cassorla, director of communication and programming for the council. “We can’t do these programs without this kind of funding. We rely on our partner organizations like St. Charles who understand the importance of connection and the powerful positive difference these programs can make in our community.”
Organizations receiving grants in this first round include:
- Council on Aging of Central Oregon, which received funding for in-person meetings of Caring Connections, which pairs participants with volunteers for weekly connections
- La Pine Middle School, which received funding to bring social connections through Challenge Day
- National Alliance of Mental Illness of Central Oregon, which received dollars to help fund the NAMI Gather program to help those with mental illness and their loved ones forge new social connections
- Oregon Adaptive Sports, which received funding to help individuals with disabilities to participate in a variety of summer programs
- Redmond Senior Center, which received funding to increase opportunities for social engagement and interaction
- Shepherd’s House Ministries, which received funding to support community and connection activities for individuals who are experiencing homelessness
- SriPonya Collective, which received funding for a variety of youth activities in Warm Springs
- Trust for Public Land, which received funding to support a community schoolyard at Madras Elementary School
“We recognize that community members are craving opportunities to come together, meet new people and rebuild their social networks coming out of COVID. From in-person social events for seniors to new youth opportunities in Warm Springs, we believe that these grants will help make a positive impact in reducing loneliness and bolstering belonging in Central Oregon,” said Carlos Salcedo, St. Charles manager of community partnerships.
