$9.5 Million Pledged Toward New Planned Parenthood Regional Service Center

Portland, OR – Grants from Spirit Mountain Community Fund and The Oregon Community Foundation bring Planned Parenthood Columbia Willamette’s (PPCW) Regional Service Center project fundraising total to $9.5 million. Spirit Mountain Community Fund generously pledged $50,000 toward the expansion project, and The Oregon Community Foundation awarded PPCW with a $75,000 grant toward the new facility. These two recent pledges put PPCW more than 75 percent of the way toward the final campaign goal of $12.5 million. 

PPCW’s new Regional Service Center, expected to open in 2010, will expand health care access for low-income Portland residents, enhance centralized support services and increase efficiencies for the entire organization. Almost 60,000 patients sought care at PPCW’s eleven health centers last year, but there is still a significant need for service in our community. In Portland, approximately 30 percent of women in need lack family-planning services. In Salem and Southwest Washington, that number is more than 70 percent. Most PPCW patients are low-income, uninsured or underinsured, and they rely on providers like Planned Parenthood for basic health care. The Regional Service Center will enable PPCW to serve 50 percent more patients and expand care throughout the state. 

The Spirit Mountain Community Fund's focus is to improve the quality of life in Northwest Oregon through community investments that provide lasting benefits consistent with the Tribe's culture and values. Spirit Mountain Community Fund donates about $5 million each year to local programs and services that benefit citizens striving for self-sufficiency. Since it was established in 1997, the Fund has targeted special needs in public safety, health, education, culture, environment, problem gaming and historic preservation. To date the Spirit Mountain Community Fund has given over $45 million to Oregon non-profits.

“Our trustees and Tribal Council have a firm commitment to health. Providing reproductive health care helps pave the way for good decisions and healthy families. Planned Parenthood is an excellent community resource to help women make these healthy choices,” said Director Shelley Hanson. 

The mission of The Oregon Community Foundation (OCF) is to improve life in Oregon and promote effective philanthropy. OCF works with individuals, families, businesses and organizations to create funds to support the community causes they care about. Through these funds, OCF awards more than $55 million annually in grants and scholarships.

To learn more about PPCW’s Regional Service Center fundraising campaign, visit www.LetsBuildCampaign.org. For more information about PPCW, visit www.ppcw.org. 

Planned Parenthood Columbia Willamette (PPCW) is the largest non-profit family planning and reproductive rights organization in Oregon and Southwest Washington. Since 1963, PPCW has successfully carried out its mission of providing, promoting and protecting access to quality reproductive and sexual health care. Each year, approximately 60,000 women, men and teens visit one of PPCW’s eleven health centers. We provide a wide range education programs and health care services, including low-cost contraceptives, emergency contraception, annual gynecological check-ups, breast exams, cervical cancer detection and treatment, testing and treatment of sexually transmitted diseases, and pregnancy testing and options counseling. Less than five percent of PPCW’s services are for first term abortion care. For more information, visit www.ppcw.org.