“You can’t always have investment expertise in a nonprofit – but by our association with OCF, we have that expertise available to us.”
Ron Hays, President, Marion-Polk Food Share
In fulfilling its mission to help eliminate hunger, Marion-Polk Food touches the lives of almost 70,000 people each year. The organization serves the emergency food needs of Marion and Polk counties.
Bequests and grants help the Marion-Polk Food Share collect, sort, store and distribute more than 4.8 million pounds of food annually. A typical grant, however, might last only a few years.
“Eliminating hunger takes long-term strategies,” said Ron Hays, president of the Marion-Polk Food Share. “We need intergenerational programs.”
In 1993, the organization established an endowment with the Oregon Community Foundation to ensure funding for long-term projects that address the root causes of hunger.
“As a society, we’ve moved away from self-sustainability, so an entire generation needs this kind of education,” Hays said. “The endowment helps ensure that our long-term programs will still be there in 10 years.”
Placed within OCF’s main investment pool, the endowment is managed by a team of experienced investors. “There is more opportunity in this larger pool than in a smaller fund,” Hays said. “We can build it up to keep up with inflation and still meet our goals.”
The endowment enables the Marion-Polk Food Share to set up ongoing programs that teach people gardening skills, food preservation and budgeting, among other self-sustainable skills that can help alleviate hunger.
“OCF is there to serve Oregon and its people,” Hays said. “I’ve always felt supported by the staff — and it’s real, not a put-on. They’re as committed as we are.”