During hard times in Lane County, people are coming together to help everyone, making our community stronger. Here is a list of services being offered.
Shopping Angels
Shopping Angels is a volunteer-run program created by pre-med student Jadye Powell, who started the program because of COVID-19. Volunteers can go to multiple stores to find products such as toilet paper or bottles of water that are considered essential products and deliver them to at-risk Americans and the elderly. At risk Americans including parents of young children, elderly, and compromised immune systems. Clients who receive this service are still expected to pay at this time.
Volunteers stay in contact with clients throughout the entire process from delivery to clients exchanging cash for their items. Clients are never expected to pay more than the price on the receipt, the press release says. Shopping Angels will deliver to clients who have been infected with COVID-19 but would need to be discussed between volunteers and clients so both parties can stay safe according to the Shopping Angels press release.
Shopping Angels has become an international program, with branches in all 50 states, Canada, and Australia, says Melissa Roby, the Oregon state coordinator for Shopping Angels. She became involved after seeing a CNN article and reached out immediately to become a volunteer. Volunteers are now working in Lane County, Portland, Bend and Salem.
If you or somebody you know would benefit from the Shopping Angels Program, please sign up on the Shopping Angels Program Facebook group, Facebook.com/shoppingangelsinc/ or call at 458 215 1213.
Lane County Artist Relief Fund
Lane Arts Council has put together an Artist Relief Fund for artists who may not know what their financial future holds for them. Artists commonly earn their living through teaching art in schools, promoting their work at galleries or performing at gigs, according to the Lane Arts Council (LAC) website. Because public spaces have closed and many art events are either canceled or postponed, artists are worried about their finances, the LAC website says.
Funds will be appropriated to as many artists as possible who qualify. Artists include literary artists, event production workers, visual artists and performing artists. Applications to apply for funds are open.
For more information about donating or applying for the funds, please visit, LaneArts.org/lane-county-artist-relief-fund/ or email at artistrelief@lanearts.org.
St. Vincent de Paul Society of Lane County
With the retail stores closing, SVDP formed a Community Response Fund. The fund is in response to the nonprofit’s ability to meet the needs of the most susceptible within the community who are the most compromised and have now started to search for emergency funding, the SVDP website says. With the Community Response Fund in place, community members can contribute and support the nonprofit’s work.
To keep the social services open to those who are most in need, the First Place Family Center, the Eugene Service Center and Dusk to Dawn need donations due to the retail stores closing. St. Vinnie’s retail services are harmed in the same way as other businesses. The ability to supply help to the community through feeding the homeless and supporting the families who rely on St. Vincent has been altered.
SVDP recognizes that everyone is struggling in this global epidemic and appreciates any donations made, the SVDP website says. Any amount given or donating any of the products listed on their website would help immensely.
For more information about donating money or supplies please visit, SVDP.us.
Pearl Buck Center
The Pearl Buck Center is a nonprofit organization located in Eugene. The nonprofit serves about 600 adults and children with intellectual and developmental disabilities, The New York Times says. The Pearl Buck Center programs include the Pearl Buck Preschool & Family Supports, Supported Living and Community Employment and much more.
The Pearl Buck Center announced a $10,000 matching gift from Yellow Emperor, a Eugene manufacturer of herbal supplements. Some of the funds will be used to pay the employee portion of health insurance premiums of laid-off workers and maybe bring a few workers back, The New York Times says.
Elisabeth “Lisl” Waechter formed what is now the Pearl Buck Center in 1953. Starting as a small school in Creswell, the school eventually moved to Eugene and was finished in 1959, according to the Pearl Buck Center website. During this time, no other public schools offered special education.
For more information about donating, visit PearlBuckCenter.co. Pearl Buck Center is located at 3690 W. 1st Avenue. As of right now, the Pearl Buck Center is not open to the public.
White Bird Clinic
The White Bird Clinic is working to design a few dispersed and sanctioned campsites that follow the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) guidelines. These camps will offer assistance in hygiene, nutrition, peer support services and other outreach services, the White Bird Clinic newsletter says.
Crisis support offered through the White Bird Clinic will continue to help community members, the newsletter says. The White Bird Crisis line will continue to be accessible 24/7 by phone at 541-687-4000.
If you or somebody you know would like to volunteer, visit WhiteBirdClinic.org. White Bird Clinic is located at 341 E. 12th Avenue. Open to the public from 9 am to 5 pm, seven days a week.
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