A Community of Services

Photography by Stacie Muller

This will be the 18th year for the event, which is the major fundraiser for the Foundation. Silent and oral auctions, wine from local vineyards, and great food and music are sure to provide a spectacular evening! For details, ticket purchasing, and sponsor information, click here.

The mission of Deschutes Children's Foundation is to promote a community of services for the children and families of Deschutes County. The Foundation receives no federal, state, or local tax dollars and relies on the support of the community - individuals, private foundations and businesses - to continue its service to children and families.

Since 1990, Deschutes Children’s Foundation (DCF) has provided rent-free space on collaborative campuses to other nonprofits that serve children and families in Deschutes County. Since the first campus opened in Bend, the organization has partnered with Deschutes County and with the Bend/La Pine School District to add two campuses, and recently managed a $4.1M capital campaign to add another much needed campus in East Bend. DCF now manages four collaborative campuses throughout Central Oregon.

In 2009 there were 26 different nonprofits located at DCF’s four campuses and 76,000 client visits were experienced at these facilities. This was an increase of 10% in visits over the previous year, signifying the increased need in our community for social services serving children and families. This unique model has the obvious advantage of freeing resident programs’ money they would otherwise spend in rent to put toward their important services. We save programs an estimated $800,000 per year in rent and property management. Additional advantages of fostering collaborations, garnering additional cost-savings for programs by sharing equipment, meeting areas, kitchens, central reception staff, and of making communication between programs an everyday thing – all make for efficient and effective services for Deschutes County children and families.