The Lilja Family Fund of The Oregon Community Foundation awards grants and scholarships to support communities in south Douglas County, including Canyonville, Riddle, Tri-City, Camas Valley, Myrtle Creek, Days Creek, Milo, Azalea, and Glendale. The fund was created by Don Lilja and his sister Helen, through their estates.
Scholarships
Scholarship applications and information can be found by visiting the Web site of the Oregon Student Assistance Commission (OSAC), which administers the scholarship program for The Oregon Community Foundation (OCF). See www.getcollegefunds.org. Scholarship applications are due to OSAC by March 1 each year.
Graduates of the following public high schools are eligible: South Umpqua, Days Creek, Glendale, Riddle and Camas Valley. In addition, south county graduates of the following private high schools are eligible: Canyonville Christian Academy, Milo Adventist Academy, Phoenix School of Roseburg, and Umpqua Valley Christian School. In addition, south Douglas County residents who are graduates of a private high school in the state of Oregon are eligible.
Grants
The Lilja competitive grants program at OCF accepts applications each summer to support projects that address the priorities of the fund. Approximately $40,000 is available for grant making each year, with the average grant about $5,000. Priorities of the Lilja grant program are projects that fall within the following fields:
K-12 education
Early childhood education
Youth development
Literacy
Culture
Community
Please note: Proposals in the K-12 education area should not be requests for teacher salaries, basic equipment and supplies, or replacing government funding, but rather for direct student services (for example, enrichment activities).
The deadline is August 1 for an OCF board decision in November. Applications are accepted throughout the month of July. You may download a copy here of the grant application form for Douglas County programs.
Post-grant evaluation reports are due August 1 each year. A new grant application will not be considered unless progress reports have been submitted on all previous grants. This program uses OCF's standard grant evaluation form, available here.
(Note: For the nonprofits who receive emergency/disaster relief grants, here is the Lilja disaster relief report form for their work.)
Questions?
After reviewing the information available here, please contact us if you have questions.
Belle Cantor, Program Officer for Scholarships
503.227.6846 or bcantor@oregoncf.org