First Tech Federal Credit Union awards $396,000 in Innovation Grants to 29 nonprofit organizations dedicated to helping children and families in the Northwest and California
SAN JOSE, CA (December 3, 2019) — First Tech Federal Credit Union, the nation’s sixth largest credit union, continues its commitment to giving back to the communities it serves and has awarded more than $396,000 in grants to 29 nonprofit organizations throughout the Northwest and California.
“With a long-standing commitment to making a measurable difference in our communities, we are on a mission to support the next generation of leaders, thinkers and innovators,” said First Tech President and CEO Greg Mitchell. “Our 2019 innovation grant partners think outside the box to find solutions to our communities’ most basic needs so children and families have the food, shelter and safety they require in order to learn, grow and thrive in their communities.”
When a child goes hungry, has to worry about their safety or experiences homelessness or instability in their home, it affects their health and ability to learn effectively. By working with community partners that strive to make sure that kids’ basic needs are met, First Tech is helping to ensure that every child has the opportunity to succeed and focus on their future.
California First Tech Innovation Grant Partners:
In California, First Tech designated $40,000 to Second Harvest, an organization fighting hunger in the Silicon Valley by providing food to children, families and seniors. “We want to ensure that anyone that needs a healthy meal in our community can get one and First Tech’s Innovation Grant directly supports that mission,” said Bernadette White, Corporate Philanthropy Officer of Second Harvest Food Bank of Santa Clara and San Mateo Counties. “We provide food to more than a quarter million people in Santa Clara and San Mateo counties every month and more than half of those we serve are kids and seniors.”
Additional California First Tech Innovation Grant partners include:
Placer Food Bank, Roseville; $10,000 to support the Feed Our Future Program, providing children with healthy food through its mobile food pantry, backpack program (sending students home with food over the weekend) and school pantry.
Sacred Heart Community Service, San José; $5,000 to support La Mesa Verde, a network of low-income urban gardeners working to provide access to healthy food in their community.
Raphael House of San Francisco; $15,000 to help low-income families, including families experiencing homelessness, find personalized solutions to achieving stable housing and financial independence.
Valley Verde, San Jose; $15,000 to promote healthy eating and provide food access and micro-entrepreneurship training to low-income families.
Oregon First Tech Innovation Grant Partners:
Among other nonprofits working to fight hunger and homelessness in Oregon, First Tech contributed $75,000 to the Oregon Food Bank in order to support community organizing around hunger relief in Washington County. “At Oregon Food Bank, we believe food is a human right,” said Mike Davis, Corporate & Community Relations Manager at Oregon Food Bank. “First Tech’s Innovation Grant directly supports fulfilling Oregon Food Bank’s mission to eliminate hunger in Oregon by helping people access nutritious food today and working with communities to eliminate the root causes of hunger for good.”
Additional Oregon First Tech Innovation Grant partners include:
Bienestar, Hillsboro; $5,000 to support affordable housing and stabilize families through financial capability.
Clackamas Service Center, Portland; $5,000 to support operations of the community nutrition program.
Clackamas Women’s Services, Portland; $4,000 to provide safety through technology for victims of domestic and sexual violence.
Community Action Organization, Hillsboro; $7,500 to support Community Action Resource Eligibility (CARE) Assessment, a 16-question assessment that can quickly connect individuals to the resources they need.
Friends of the Children, Portland; $30,000 to support its mission to promote equity and safety in innovation, solving problems creatively to serve youth who are facing the greatest obstacles.
Marion-Polk Food Share, Salem; $7,000 to support its hunger relief efforts, including The Youth Farm, a 6-acre urban farm engaging young people in community farming and food production.
Partners for a Hunger Free Oregon, Portland; $5,000 to support the Hunger-Free Schools initiative, working to provide healthy school meals at no charge to Oregon students that need it.
Portland Homeless Family Solutions, Portland; $25,000 to contribute to the living room at the new Lents Family Shelter for homeless families with children.
Store to Door, Portland; $5,000 to support grocery deliveries for homebound seniors and people with disabilities.
Urban Gleaners, Portland; $27,500 to support Urban Gleaners’ fight against childhood hunger in Washington County through school pantries, mobile markets and summer markets.
Virginia Garcia Memorial Foundation, Hillsboro; $7,000 to help expand access to high-quality healthcare by providing services, classes and activities to community members in order to help maintain and improve their health.
Willamette West Habitat for Humanity, Hillsboro; $10,000 to support the construction, rehabilitation and preservation of homes and other community improvement projects.
With Love, Oregon, Portland; $5,000 to help provide foster families with resources such as diapers, blankets, books and other items needed to care for a child.
Washington First Tech Innovation Grant Partners:
Redmond, Washington’s Hopelink is another First Tech Innovation Grant recipient. $10,000 will go to the Hopelink’s Harvest program, increasing access to healthy food, and Hopelink’s Financial Capabilities program, providing free tools and services to help increase financial stability. “Hopelink works every day to help members of our community find a path out of poverty,” said Jeni Craswell, Vice President of Advancement and External Relations (First Tech member since 1992). “Organizations like First Tech make it possible for us to help more than 65,000 people each year experiencing homelessness, food insecurity or other life challenges.”
Additional Washington First Tech Innovation Grant partners include:
Bellevue LifeSpring, Bellevue; $7,500 to support Breakfast-Mealtime, a program ending hunger by distributing food during school breaks to children enrolled in the federal free and reduced-price lunch program.
FareStart, Seattle; $7,500 to support FareStart’s community meals program, preparing and delivering hot meals to social service programs and schools.
Food Lifeline, Seattle; $10,000 to support Food Lifeline’s mobile food program, delivering food to underserved areas across Western Washington.
Issaquah Food and Clothing Bank, Issaquah; $4,500 to support the Power Packs program, providing a weekend bag of food to students who may otherwise experience hunger without school breakfast and lunch programs.
Mary’s Place, Seattle; $7,000 to support critically-ill children and their families by providing housing, health care services and employment resources.
Northwest Harvest, Seattle; $8,690 to support the Growing Connections program, increasing fresh produce in partner food banks across Washington.
YWCA Clark County, Vancouver; $12,643 to support innovative safety planning and shelter for domestic violence survivors.
Seattle’s Union Gospel Mission, Seattle; $10,000 to help provide shelter and recovery programs to those experiencing homelessness in the Seattle area.
The Pike Place Market Foundation, Seattle; $15,000 to support Pike Market Childcare and Preschool, providing families of all income levels with access to high-quality, affordable childcare.
About First Tech Federal Credit Union
First Tech Federal Credit Union is a nearly $17 billion institution headquartered in San Jose, California. The nation’s premier credit union serves the world’s leading technology-oriented companies and their employees, including HP Inc., Hewlett Packard Enterprise, Microsoft, Agilent, Intel, Cisco, Amazon, Nike, Intuit, Google, and more. First Tech is recognized as the industry catalyst for delivering effortless banking experiences to more than 660,000 members through its 34 branch locations, more than 5,600 CO-OP Shared Branch locations, 30,000 CO-OP Network ATMs, and online platforms. First Tech offers a full range of financial services, including traditional banking, online banking, mortgages, financial planning, various consumer loans, and insurance services. Federally insured by NCUA. Equal Housing Lender. For more information, visit www.firsttechfed.com.
About First Tech Federal Credit Union’s Community Commitment
First Tech Federal Credit Union is committed to supporting the next generation of leaders, thinkers and innovators. In 2018, First Tech provided $3.28 million in charitable giving and more than 30,000 employee volunteer hours to the community; directing dollars and time to nonprofit partners who provide programs and services to children and families in need. First Tech’s philanthropic focus areas include support for education (STEM, early childhood literacy and financial education), research (Children’s Miracle Network Hospitals and supportive health services for children) and innovation (food, shelter and safety). Visit firsttechfed.com/community to learn more about the ways First Tech pays it forward throughout the year.
