text:
Mission/Values
Tabor Commons
Your Neighborhood, Your Community
Board Member Resources
Land Use & Transportation
SE Uplift Board Committees
Office Space Rentals
Community Resource Library
Land Use and Transportation Advocacy Resources & Tips
SE Uplift COVID-19 Resources
SE Uplift Houselessness Resource Guide
SE Uplift Board Advocacy Requests
Submit e-News!
2019 Community & Civic Engagement Small Grants
by Muz
By: Muz Afzal, Small Grants Manager
SE Uplift Neighborhood Coalition Awards $27,165.00 in Community & Civic Engagement Small Grants to 15 Community Projects for 2019.
Now in its 12th year, the Community & Civic Engagement Small Grants program funds small but powerful community efforts aimed at increasing the number and diversity of people engaged in the community, strengthening community capacity to create social change, and increasing community impact on public decisions and community life.
A huge thank you to all 32 grant applicants, and our Small Grants Review Committee – Laura Powers, Dan Shramek, Lauren Schaefer, Shresta Anand, Mari Tamiyasu, and Kelly Lopiz– for their careful consideration and funding recommendations.
On April 17th, join SE Uplift in celebrating 15 community projects awarded by our 2019 Community & Civic Grants! RSVP HERE
Community & Civic Engagement Small Grants are made possible by the City of Portland's Office of Community & Civic Life. Below is a complete list of funded projects.
Living Histories with Artists Roshani Thakore and Renee Sills $3,350
Living Histories in Motion aims to increase and diversify community participation and engagement by creating a smartphone app which leads users through personalized tours of the neighborhood. The narration and map design will be made collaboratively in a series of workshops with residents and longtime occupants around SE 82nd and Division. The audio tours are meant specifically for new residents moving into the Orchards 82 building to have a better understanding of the neighborhood and their neighbors.
Lutheran Community Services: Training to Reach Immigrant & Refugee Crime Victims $3,300
The Crime Victim Advocacy Program will offer training to Crime Victim Advocates and community members from immigrant and refugee communities on improving leadership and outreach strategies to non-English speaking populations. The goal of this project is to improve access to justice for community members who are marginalized and do not access services after a crime has been committed. This training will also be offered to partners from the Portland United Against Hate Coalition.
Portland Meet Portland: Pass the Mic Music Education Camp $3,225
PMP will coordinate a free week-long music camp for youth of color at Franklin High. Youth can come in with no musical experience, and that Friday evening, they'll perform their original song for the community in a showcase concert. Key partners include PPS and Morrison Child and Family Services. Youth will build strong relationships and gain confidence and skills to express themselves; the broader community will learn the perspectives and stories of these youth.
New Expressive Works: Our Cultural Voices $3,000
"Our Cultural Voices" is a collaborative and community- led effort showcasing multi-generational voices and bringing visibility to under-represented communities in our region. N.E.W will 1) commission two multi-media artists of color to present at "The Field PDX Micro-Conference"; 2) host a panel discussion/exhibition by "Youth Advocates for Immigrants and Refugees (YAIR); 3) curate a month-long festival highlighting South Asian American artists and activists; and 4) host a series of Rocking Workshops and community Dance Sessions.
Yankiuk Horizontal: Taller de Formacion Politica (Political Training Workshop) $2,725
The Political Training Workshop is a Spanish written three-module interactive class taught in 3 sessions of 4 hours each for 25 Spanish speaking students or more. It's designed to provide basic tools to build leadership and participation within the public decision making process.
Rahab's Sisters: Portrait Circle Project $2,500
Portrait Circle Project is a photography project featuring portraits of Rahab's Sisters' guests and volunteers, as well as neighbors, students, local business owners and Southeast Portland leaders, all of whom identify as women or are gender nonconforming. This project will highlight the humanity of Southeast Portland residents, whether housed or unhoused, marginalized or privileged. The portraits will be exhibited in local venues for the community to see and experience our similarities.
Impact NW: Anti-Bias Project for Home Visits $1,884
INW will engage marginalized families with children in Multnomah County to participate in our Anti-Bias Education Project, which will draw from established curriculum often used in diverse pre-school classrooms. Phase 1 of this project will convene an Advisory Board of parent stakeholders to inform the curriculum content, which will be written by The Threads of Justice Collective. This Board will elevate parent voice in programming and increase parent engagement in Early Childhood Education.
Brentwood-Darlington Neighborhood Association: Engage Brentwood Darlington $1,141
Engage BD is aimed at developing, printing and distributing a comprehensive and inclusive community resource guide for all members of the BD neighborhood. The guide will be available in print and digital formats and in several different languages including English, Spanish, Russian and Vietnamese. The guide will include information such as a directory of local elected officials, employment and housinf services, local businesses and non profits, public safety resources and a map of the neighborhood.
Laurelhurst Queer Students Alliance $1,000
Laurelhurst youth wrote and submitted a grant proposal to increase visibility of LGBTQ+ youth in their school. This project will support QSA students and their allies with more LGBTQ+ visibility in our schools. Students will be designing bulletin boards and adding LGBTQ+ themed books to the library in order to increase the visibility of the LGBTQ+ community in their school.
Bikes for Humanity: Community Mechanic Workshops $1,000
Bikes for Humanity PDX has provided free classes and workshops for the Portland community for over a decade. On Thursday nights in their space on Powell, participants learn skills and perform repairs on donated bikes or on their own. B4H will expand these offerings through a series of workshops that will occur in parks, parking lots, farmer's markets, and community centers, and will include folks beyond those that are already participating.
Yale Union: Sky Hopinka $1,000
YU will present a major new project – titled SKY HOPINKA – by indigenous experimental filmmaker and educator Sky Hopinka in the spring of 2019. Hopinka has elected to begin the two-month project with a powwow, coordinated by a team of experienced powwow organizers, to be held in YU's 10,000 sq. ft. exhibition hall. The powwow will be followed by a program of experimental film and video works by Native artists and will include a public talk by Hopinka to discuss the significance of the works in the cultural context of a contemporary art institution in 2019 Portland, Oregon.
Portland Through a LatinX Lens $1,000
Through a series of workshops, interviews, and a culminating art gallery, this project will engage with and promote the expression of stories from a variety of Latinx individuals. Additionally, these vignettes will be hosted online to encourage submissions from the greater Latinx community. This medium will serve as a conduit to amplify the voice of the Latinx people in Portland — highlighting their lives, challenges, joy, passions, and grit.
Mount Scott Arleta Neighborhood Association Renter Rights' $840
In conjunction with CAT (Community Alliance of Tenants) the MSANA will present a 2-hour training to help community members understand how to become better equipped at locating, securing and retaining affordable and adequate housing. Using an accessible, public location, they will offer free food, childcare and translation services to encourage attendance by communities that need this training most.
Vibe of Portland: Kalediscope Community Engagement Series $700
Vibe's Kaleidoscope Series intersects social justice and community engagement through art, music, and dialogue for the entire family/community. The city has undergone rapid change in the past decade due to gentrification greatly impacting the communities of Southeast Portland, where the Vibe Studio resides. Through a creative and inviting framework, Vibe of Portland encourage neighbors from varying cultural backgrounds to engage with one another via collaborative art and music projects.
Czech School of Portland: Community Building Project $500
Czech school of Portland & Aja Ngo, mosaic artist, will create a placemaking community building project for the Czech minority in Portland. The final product of the 3 months long activities is going to be an interior glass mosaic mural of the Czech national tree – Linden to be installed at Brentwood- Darlington community center. The project will involve elders from the Czech community, create a sense of belonging for the Czech families in SE Portland and increase awareness of Czech culture by being located in a community center that is visited by over 200 people per week.
I want to receive:
SE Uplift E-News
Land Use & Transportation Committee Update
Houseless Committee
Contact SE Uplift
© 2021 SE Uplift | Website Design by Watermelon Web Works
Paola De La Cruz
Paola is the Communications & Outreach Manager for SE Uplift. Paola's professional background lies in design and community advocacy. She has worked with non-profits from Boston, MA to the Portland metro area, to campaign for equity and inclusivity.
Paola received a BFA in Illustration under Communication Design. She looks to merge illustration and design with community organizing to bring SE neighbors together.
On her free time, Paola is painting ethereal, powerful women or putting on a 90s R&B concert for her small dog.
Paola is the SE Uplift Liaison for the following neighborhoods: Ardenwald-Johnson Creek, Brentwood-Darlington, Buckman, Laurelhurst, Mt. Tabor, North Tabor, Sellwood-Moreland, and Woodstock.
Matchu Williams
Matchu feels fortunate to work with the community in advancing the SE Uplift mission of collaborating to build informed, inclusive, and participatory neighborhoods that support our social and ecological well-being. He looks forward to assisting neighborhood and partnering with the community in building capacity in building equity in their programs for civic engagement.
Matchu holds a Bachelor of Arts in Sociology with a focus on Women, Gender, and Sexuality studies and Criminal Justice. You may know Matchu from the SE Uplift Board of Directors where he was recently Vice Chair. He brings a wealth of community engagement to SE Uplift having previously served as Chair of Mt. Scott Arleta Neighborhood Association, BikeLoud Memorial Events Coordinator, Arleta Triangle Project Planning Committee, South East in Active Motion Co-Chair, and has volunteered with many groups including Urban Gleaners, Sisters of the Road, SOLVE, Transition Projects, Food Not Bombs, Humane Society of SW Washington, and more.
On his days off he dreams of the next bikepacking (biking + camping) trip. Last year he bikepacked the San Juan Islands and campgrounds in the Cascades. When in town he enjoys cycling, seeing movies on the big screen at the historic Hollywood Theatre, and enjoying food at Portland Mercado with friends.
Matchu is the SE Uplift Liaison for the following neighborhoods: Brooklyn, Creston-Kenilworth, Foster-Powell, Kerns, Montavilla, Mt. Scott-Arleta, Reed, South Tabor, and Sunnyside.
Nanci Champlin
Nanci is the Executive Director for SE Uplift.
"It always seems impossible until it's done." -Nelson Mandela
Nanci Champlin has a passion for social justice, civic engagement and conservation with nearly thirty years' experience in scaling up organizations at the local, regional and national level. She leaned early in her career as a grassroots organizer that a key to success comes from authenticity, trust and active listening. These values have guided her approach to work ever since.
In her professional roles, Nanci has led outreach at Oregon Wild; communications and operations at the Funders Committee for Civic Participation; and most recently was Director of Development at Western State Center, a movement building and leadership development organization helping to build a 21st century civil rights movement.
Nanci has lived in SE Portland for 32 years where she has devoted countess hours to volunteer-driven conservation initiatives through her past role on a neighborhood association board. She currently serves as the fundraising chair for Friends of Moreland Woods and on the board of the Sellwood Community House. When not working or volunteering she can be found creating pollinator habitat in her backyard or hiking with her family and dog in Portland's parks.
Nanci is excited to help lead SE Uplift in building a vision and strategy that empowers everyone in our community to learn, connect and engage in civic opportunities to build a future where every person can thrive.
Nanci is the SE Uplift Liaison for the following neighborhoods: Eastmoreland, Hosford-Abernethy, Richmond.
Lindsey is thrilled to join the staff team at SE Uplift as Administrative and Operations Specialist.
Over the past two years, she has served on the board for Montavilla Neighborhood Association and SE Uplift. Lindsey has an extensive background in the nonprofit arts and education sectors. She is passionate about building community and supporting local businesses.
Lindsey hails from Minneapolis and has been living in East Portland since 2016. She earned music degrees from Luther College and the University of North Texas. Lindsey performs with the Portland Opera Chorus, serves on the Board of Governors for the American Guild of Musical Artists labor union, and is President of the Mu Phi Epsilon Portland Alumni Chapter. In her spare time, she enjoys board games, hiking, mushroom foraging, and cuddling her puppy and two cats.