Helen Baller Wins $2500 Umpqua Bank Grant

Camas, WA — Umpqua Bank has announced the 10 winners in the Show Us How You Give photo campaign, providing $25,000 total in grants to schools and organizations across the region. The five nonprofit organizations and five schools – ten grantees altogether – that had the most votes on their photos via Umpqua Bank’s Facebook page each receive a grant of $2,500.

Helen Baller Elementary in Camas, Wash. placed in the school category with 361 total votes.

Helen Baller principal, Aaron Parman, is quite pleased with the grant.

“I am very excited about winning the grant,” said Parman. “It shows the pride that the community takes in Helen Baller. I very grateful for the money and it will be used to support our students at Helen Baller.”

So, what does the school plan to do with the money?

“I am not exactly sure at this point what the funds will go towards,” said Parman. “A building goal is to support literacy and we are in the process of purchasing leveled books and a writing curriculum. It might go to that depending on what our need is. I want to get some feedback from our Leadership Team to help make the decision.”

Check presentations are currently being planned with Lori Wick, the Umpqua Bank store manager at Evergreen Vancouver.

“I also want to thank Diana Sterle for taking the initiative to submit the picture and advertise the grant,” said Parman. “We are very fortunate to have parents and community members who go above and beyond expectations to support all of our students.”

Additional winners include Playworks in Portland, Ore.; Humboldt County Children’s Author Festival in Eureka, Calif.; NeighborWorks Umpqua in Roseburg, Ore.; Clothes for Kids in Lynnwood, Wash.; Tacoma Art Museum in Tacoma, Wash.; Memorial Middle School in Albany, Ore.; B. Gale Wilson in Fairfield, Calif.; Bertha Holt Elementary in Eugene, Ore.; and Coleman Elementary in San Rafael, Calif.