Grants Awarded for Heritage Projects, Nov. 21

Oregon Heritage, a division of Oregon Parks and Recreation Department, awarded 18 grants totaling $230,000 to organizations across the state for projects that conserve, develop and interpret Oregon’s cultural heritage. Projects range from exhibits to oral history and awards range from $2,000-$20,000. Funded organizations include: * Abernethy Elementary School PTA, in Portland, for the restoration of a WPA mural in the school. * Astoria Public Library to organize historic archives. * Benton County Historical Society and Museum for conservation of historic objects to be displayed in the new museum in Corvallis. * Butte Creek Mill Foundation for the restoration of the Butte Creek Mill destroyed by fire in Eagle Creek. * Chetco Historical Memorial Committee for enhancements to the Chetco Indian Memorial site in Brookings. * Cottage Grove Museum for improvements to an exhibit about a survivor of the wreck of the Titanic including the jacket worn by her onboard. * Four Rivers Cultural Center, in Ontario, for the restoration of the Harano photography neon sign. * Gorge Owned, in Hood River, for the development and marketing of two podcasts about Columbia River Gorge history. * High Desert Museum, in Deschutes County, for improvements to the Frontier Days school program. * Illinois Valley Community Development Organization, in Cave Junction, to create and perform an original production about food farm heritage. * Linn County Historical Museum, in Brownsville, for improvements to the exhibit about the history of the local indigenous people. * Oregon Historical Society, in Portland, to develop and implement the Indigenous Oregon History series for Tribes to share history and culture with broad public audiences. * Oregon Jewish Museum and Center for Holocaust Education, in Portland, to evaluate and update a walking tour with added stories and sites exploring South Portland’s historic, cultural, ethnic and racial dynamics. * Oregon Nikkei Endowment, in Portland, to digitize, to translate and publish on-line two collections; FBI documents from the Koyama Family and 10 special issues of Oregon Nippo, a Japanese language newspaper. * The Vanport Mosaic, in Portland, to collect and present the history of the northeast Portland neighborhood of Albina 1950s-1980s through multimedia oral histories, a new play, and engagement activities. * Umatilla County Historical Society, in Pendleton, to complete phase three of the Umatilla Gold: The History of Wheat in Umatilla County exhibit. * The University of Oregon, in Eugene, to provide training and equipment to the Confederated Tribes of Warm Springs to digitize photographs, slides, and scrapbooks that will be annotated by community members and published to the tribes’ online, digital collection. * Whiteaker Community Council to conduct 10 oral histories, digitize photos in private collections, and upload these to its website. This competitive grant program is for qualifying organizations, and is offered once per biennium. It is a program of the Oregon Heritage Commission, comprised of nine people representing Oregon’s heritage and geographical diversity who have been appointed by the Governor. There are nine advisory representatives from state agencies and statewide organizations. The mission of the Oregon Heritage Commission is to secure, sustain, and enhance Oregon’s heritage by ensuring coordination of heritage initiatives by public and private organizations; advocacy on its behalf; education of the public about its extent and value; and promotion and celebration of its diversity. The Commission is part of Oregon Heritage, a division of Oregon Parks and Recreation Department. To learn more about the Oregon Heritage Grant or the Oregon Heritage Commission, visit www.oregonheritage.org or contact Kuri Gill at Kuri.gill@oregon.gov or 503-986-0685.