OPUS BANK Opus Bank (Nasdaq: OPB) and the Opus Community Foundation (the “Foundation”) announced today the Foundation’s approval of 20 grant awards to nonprofit organizations that the Foundation believes will have an immediate and long-lasting impact on efforts to build and strengthen our communities. The organizations receiving the Foundation’s financial support create enrichment and advancement opportunities that directly improve the lives of individuals and families in the communities Opus Bank serves.
The organizations receiving grants are located in California, Oregon, and Washington and focus on affordable housing, arts education for youth, domestic violence prevention and child safety, economic and financial literacy, community health and human services, safety net services, and education for at-risk children. These individual organizations are included below by the state they serve.
California
Accelerate Change Together (“ACT”) Anaheim received a grant to support its mission of improving the lives of Anaheim’s underserved youth by collaborating with community organizations to engage youth and their parents in programs that strengthen families and communities.
Blind Children’s Learning Center received a grant for its Bright Visions Early Childhood Center, which provides early childhood education and support services for blind and visually impaired students and their families.
Boys & Girls Club of Santa Ana received a grant to support its programs, which provide after-school academic assistance, career preparation support, health and fitness instruction, and academic enrichment opportunities to 5,000 students in kindergarten through 12th grade.
CASA of Contra Costa County received a grant for its programs, which provide mentors, counseling, educational services, and financial literacy programs to abused and neglected students in preschool through 12th grade.
Coalition for Engaged Education received a grant for its C/FORWARD program, which provides individualized support, mentoring, and enrichment opportunities for foster youth from kindergarten through college years.
Hands Together received a grant for its Morning Garden program, which provides a high-quality early education for preschoolers from homeless and at-risk families while helping the children’s parents develop their English language, financial literacy, job, and parenting skills.
Orangewood Children’s Foundation received a grant to support its scholarship program, which provides financial support to recently emancipated foster youth attending community colleges, trade schools, and four-year universities.
South County Outreach received a grant to support its programs, which provide safety net services to individuals, families, and seniors in crisis through its computer learning lab, food pantry, and support services that are focused on homelessness prevention, transitional housing, financial management, and life skills training.
University of California, Irvine Foundation received a grant to support the university’s Institute for Innovation, which focuses on integrating research, entrepreneurship, and technology to create real-world applications that benefit the public and drive the economy.
Washington
Dawson Place received a grant to support its programs, which provide coordinated medical and mental health care, victim advocacy, and law enforcement-related services in Snohomish County to the victims of child abuse and their families.
Food Lifeline received a grant to support its programs, which procure and efficiently distribute food to low-income individuals and families in Western Washington through after-school and summer meal programs for children, and an innovative mobile pantry serving people in rural areas.
InvestED received a grant for its programs, which reduce barriers for low-income students by providing financial support for activity fees, school supplies, sports and music equipment, transportation, and clothing, allowing the students to participate fully in school activities and achieve academic success.
Kirkland Arts Center received a grant to support its Artist in Residence program, which promotes education and participation in the visual arts through innovative programming, contemporary exhibitions, and dynamic events for students attending schools in low-income neighborhoods with limited exposure to and instruction in the creative arts.
Mary’s Place received a grant for its programs, which provide safety, emergency shelter, meals, showers, laundry, clean clothing, and referrals to social services, medical care, financial and legal aid, transitional and permanent housing, and employment services to homeless women and children.
Safe Streets Campaign received a grant for its Youth Leading Change program, which provides opportunities for middle and high school students to develop their leadership potential by participating in meaningful civic projects, becoming engaged members of the community, and promoting safe and healthy lifestyles among their peers.
Teens in Public Service received a grant to support its summer internship program, which subsidizes paid internships for teens at local nonprofits, where the interns develop job and leadership skills, provide service to their communities, and increase their social awareness.
Wellspring Family Services received a grant for its Early Learning Center program, which provides year-round preschool, nutritional assistance, and medical care for homeless and disadvantaged children ages one to five to prepare them for a successful transition to kindergarten.
Additionally, the Foundation provided grants to Junior Achievement of Orange County, Junior Achievement of Oregon and SW Washington, and Junior Achievement of Washington to support their financial literacy programs, which teach students in grades K through 12 to understand finances, complete fundamental financial tasks, improve their circumstances, and thrive in the real world by instilling accountability for one’s finances.
Opus Community Foundation
The Foundation is a private 501(c)(3) organization established by Opus Bank on September 30, 2010. The Foundation targets its philanthropic efforts in the areas of affordable housing, community development, education, financial literacy, community health issues, and the arts. The Foundation’s goal is to stimulate economic change, promote reinvestment, inspire philanthropy, and strengthen the communities around us. For additional information about the Opus Community Foundation, please visit the Foundation’s website: www.opuscf.org.
About Opus Bank
Opus Bank is an FDIC insured California-chartered commercial bank with $5.6 billion of total assets, $4.3 billion of total loans, and $4.3 billion in total deposits as of March 31, 2015. Opus Bank provides high-value, relationship-based banking products, services, and solutions to its clients through its Retail Bank, Commercial Bank, Merchant Bank, and Correspondent Bank. Opus Bank offers a suite of treasury and cash management and depository solutions and a wide range of loan products, including commercial business, healthcare, technology, multifamily residential, commercial real estate, and structured finance, and is an SBA preferred lender. Opus Bank offers commercial escrow services and facilitates 1031 Exchange transactions through its Commerce Escrow Company and RPM Investments divisions. Opus Bank provides clients with financial and advisory services related to raising equity capital, targeted acquisition and divestiture strategies, general mergers and acquisitions, debt and equity financing, balance sheet restructuring, valuation, strategy, and performance improvement through its broker-dealer subsidiary, Opus Financial Partners. Opus Bank is an Equal Housing Lender. Opus Bank operates 58 banking offices, including two in the Phoenix metropolitan area of Arizona, 32 in California and 24 in the Seattle/Puget Sound region in Washington. For additional information about Opus Bank, please visit our website: www.opusbank.com.
