Who We Are
The Yarg Foundation is a family foundation operating in Oregon where a majority of family members were raised and still live. The intergenerational family board, staff and committee members represent both rural and urban parts of the state. As active members of their communities, family members are committed to philanthropy as one avenue for engaging in positive change. A small foundation with limited staff, Yarg Foundation utilizes advisory committees and community outreach as a method for identifying grantees and organizations doing work in their interest areas.
Our Mission
to promote social equity by supporting Oregon communities to effectively create, steward and adapt the systems that shape our lives.
Our Vision
An Oregon and beyond where everyone can safely live in a healthy environment, free from violence and have economic security.
Yarg defines equity as
just and fair inclusion into a society in which all can participate, prosper, and reach their full potential.
Our Values, Approach, and Culture
We believe in empowerment, so we invest in the voice and collective energy of people who are most impacted by injustices to lead change and shape the future they seek. We value the power of community, recognizing that profound change results when people come together, build connections, and work in coalition.
We support community-led responses to pressing needs. From
a starting point of respect, we work with our partners to build relationships of trust and long-term commitment to our common goals.
Yarg works to counter complex and challenging issues of social equity.
We do not hold the answers to the change we seek. Consequently, webring curiosity to our approaches, and continually seek to listen and learn from our community partners, and to understand the conditions and challenges we aim to change.
We aspire to be intentional in directing our resources. In much of our grantmaking we embrace a supporting role as funders of well-defined community change efforts and organizations we believe in.
We look to community leadership to determine the solutions that we fund, and to define the measures of success.
In other areas, where we see opportunities to address gaps, we pursue approaches that involve embracing risk, and proactively seeking out partners to advance new or promising strategies.
We will invest in building community capacity in systems change. Sometimes it is essential and effective to accomplish this through support of direct services and programs.
Our intent is to remain flexible as our work evolves, and to understand where Yarg can best contribute to building more equitable communities.
A Majority of Yarg’s funding is earmarked for our two initiatives in 2021-2025: Healthy Families and Justice Reform.
Most of Yarg’s funding is targeted to a specific focus and/or invite only. If you have questions about whether your organization fits within Yarg’s funding priorities, reach out to Program Director, Mariana Lindsay.