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How Capital Manor Supports the Salem Community

Each year Capital Manor residents and staff have an opportunity to nominate local not-for-profit organizations that support our mission and unify Capital Manor’s relationship with the greater community. After receiving these nominations, a committee of both residents and staff determine up to four organizations that we will partner with for the year. This year, we chose four incredible not-for-profit organizations: Marion Polk Food Share, Dolly Parton’s Imagination Library, Music Lessons Project and the Union Gospel Mission. In this blog, we will share about each of these not-for-profit organizations, detailing their partnerships with Capital Manor.

Marion Polk Food Share
Capital Manor has partnered with Marion Polk Food Share for over a decade. Marion Polk Food Share distributes nutritious food for individuals and families to more than 100 local partners, including food pantries, meal sites, Meals on Wheels and more. This year, our partnership includes a monthly work project where resident volunteers label 4,000 bags a month used for food distribution in the Marion and Polk County communities. And in March, we hosted our annual Food and Fund Drive. Here are some highlights:

  • On March 12 we held a special Work Project Day labeling bags with 50 resident volunteers who worked together to label 8,000 bags in two hours!
  • Our three food barrels collected 427 pounds of food.
  • Our monetary donations (online, cash/checks, sustainers) totaled $19,689.
  • Our grand total of meals provided for those in need was 59,423.

Dolly Parton’s Imagination Library
Dolly Parton’s Imagination Library is dedicated to inspiring a love of reading by gifting books free of charge to children from birth to age five, through funding shared by Dolly Parton and local community partners. Her program spans across five countries and gifts millions of free books each month to children around the world. As of this year, The Imagination Library has been made accessible to families in every county of Oregon, and they are actively working to have bilingual options for all families across the state.

Capital Manor partnered with them through the Early Learning Hub of Marion and Polk County, who are committed to helping children and families thrive through parent education, early childhood learning, and family health and safety programs.

We actively participated in fundraisers, the most recent one at the Gilbert House Children’s Museum, for their Storybook Adventure where children got to meet storybook characters and have then sign autographs. A few of our residents even volunteered as Where’s Waldo helpers to guide the children from room to room.

We also host book labeling events to help place stickers in books that will be shipped to families across the state. And this year we will have our very first wine tasting and Dolly-Trivia night!

The Music Lessons Project
The mission of The Music Lessons Project is to provide opportunities for personalized music instruction to students with limited financial resources. The vision is that no dedicated student who wants to pursue music is limited because of cost. Our partnership this year focuses on two areas. First, we have hosted student Music Recitals—one in the Fall and in February. Our goal was to give students participating in The Music Lessons Project an opportunity to perform in front of a live audience as soloists and in ensembles.  The recitals included both vocal and instrumental numbers. Our final event will be a Benefit Concert on May 6 that will feature the music of the Fusion Trio, special refreshments created by our Capital Manor baker, Glenda, and the story of a former Music Lessons Project student who is now a teacher in the program.

Union Gospel Misson
The Union Gospel Mission (UGM) is working to change the face of homelessness in Salem. They have programs that range from meeting immediate needs for food and shelter, to addiction recovery, education, job training, and transitional housing for those coming out of incarceration. Capital Manor residents have enjoyed partnering with UGM in their mission this last year. In September we participated in a coat drive for their “One Salem” event and enjoyed a tea at the Simonka Place, the women and children’s shelter. In October UGM came to campus to share their extensive array of programs, and then residents had an opportunity to tour both the men’s shelter and Simonka Place. At each of these events we have been inspired by listening to UGM clients describe what an incredible impact the care and programming they have received has profoundly improved their lives. In June, Capital Manor residents will get the chance to raise funds benefiting UGM’s learning and education programs.

We are so grateful for our community and the opportunity we are given to partner together with various not-for-profit organizations every year.