Independent Banker - September 2024 - 67

Next: Tap into your bank's state association 
ordinarily used as, a regular sleeping
accommodation for people (for
example, streets, vehicles or parks). "
That's the second highest rate in the
nation, surpassed only by California.
" We can go down the street and
see somebody who's houseless. We
can see and hear ourselves [say] how
challenging it is to pay for rent, " says
Butler. " How can we not acknowledge
such an incredibly important, basic
need in our communities, and not
acknowledge or act on an opportunity
to leverage resources that we
know are going to help be a part of
the solution? "
In total, the Umpqua Bank
Charitable Foundation was able to
distribute $160,000 in grants through
FHLB Des Moines' Member Impact
Fund. The fund is a matching grant
program exclusive to FHLB Des
Moines members, like Umpqua Bank,
that provides funding to strengthen
communities in targeted areas.
Through the Member Impact Fund,
FHLB Des Moines provided $3 for
every $1 donated by Umpqua Bank.
Umpqua Bank nominated 13
nonprofits for the grant, all of which
received the $3 to $1 match: 12
organizations were awarded a total
of $10,000, and one got $40,000 to
put toward either working capital or
capacity building.
According to Butler, " This is an
opportunity for more resources
to get to community members
that we know need it, and we
have trusted relationships with
these organizations. "
Seeing the grants in action
Central City Concern (CCC) is one of
the organizations that was awarded
the grant. Based in Portland, CCC aids
more than 13,000 people each year
as they overcome homelessness by
helping them access healthcare, get
treatment for addiction and substance
abuse, find jobs and be placed in
affordable housing units owned
by CCC.
CCC used the $10,000 it
received-$2,500 from Umpqua and
$7,500 from FHLB Des Moines-to
further its environmental justice
initiatives. Marginalized groups,
including low-income and Black,
Indigenous and people of color
(BIPOC) communities, often
experience the most harmful effects
working in our buildings, " says
Rachel Maas, director, climate action
for CCC.
The goal of this database work
is to implement effective resilience
strategies and inform future retrofit
projects, such as the installation of air
conditioning units, solar panels and
community gardens.
Maas adds that with Umpqua
Bank's support, CCC will be better
equipped to safeguard communities
that are disproportionately affected.
She says it helps CCC " further our
mission of ending homelessness
through targeted, data-driven
resilience strategies. "
" Hopefully we can
lead by example
and spur others to
get more involved
in their local
communities. "
-BRENDEN BUTLER,
UMPQUA BANK
Inspiring others to give back
CCC is just one of the success stories
that come from Umpqua Bank's
contributions. All the nonprofits
chosen for the grants expressed
similar enthusiastic sentiments about
receiving the donation, sharing their
gratitude that Umpqua Bank showed
up as a partner and appreciation for
of extreme weather events, food
insecurity, economic instability
and pollution.
Through CCC's Resiliency Action
Plan, which kicked off in March
2023, the organization has been
gathering data and creating a scoring
methodology to understand the threat
various hazards pose to its affordable
housing properties.
That was phase one. Now, in phase
two, " We are working to incorporate
essential health and wellness data to
help identify potential vulnerabilities
and sensitivities of folks living or
the support of their missions.
" There was no reason we had
to [apply for the Member Impact
Fund], " Butler says. " It wouldn't
have reflected differently in the
eyes of FHLB Des Moines if we
did or didn't. " He notes that
Umpqua Bank was committed to
donating to all the organizations it
nominated, regardless of whether
FHLB Des Moines matched
Umpqua's contributions.
" The hope is that it will spark
others to see the power the Federal
Home Loan Bank Member Impact
Fund has, and to be able to
continue to leverage it when those
opportunities come up, " says Butler.
" Hopefully we can lead by example
and spur others to get more involved
in their local communities. "
Taylor Hugo is a writer in Colorado.
independentbanker.org // 67
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Independent Banker - September 2024

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