The Tower Theatre in downtown Bend. 

The Oregon Cultural Trust has announced grants to 261 cultural organizations across the state facing losses due to the COVID-19 health crisis, which will be distributed across Oregon through a partnership between the Oregon Cultural Trust and its county and tribal cultural coalitions.

The Coronavirus Relief Fund Cultural Support grant awards totaled $25.7 million statewide. In Central Oregon, $998,668 went to Deschutes, $271,715 to Jefferson and $22,220 to Crook counties.

“Recognizing the essential role arts and culture play in building and maintaining a healthy society is not something states typically do in a crisis. Oregon has in an unprecedented way,” Cate O’Hagan, co-chair of the Deschutes Cultural Coalition, said. “Every corner of this beautiful state will receive an infusion of funds to support our local creative assets. The Deschutes Cultural Coalition, in partnership with its parent organization, the Oregon Cultural Trust, is honored to be entrusted with the distribution of these funds on a local level.”

The largest award is $1.4 million, which went to the Oregon Museum of Science and Industry. The average grant award was $41,458. In total, 751 organizations requested $90 million, with 130 organizations ineligible due to program guidelines.

In Deschutes County, recipients include the Tower Theatre Foundation ($269,881), Sisters Folk Festival ($194,998), Deschutes County Historical Society ($33,636) and BendFilm, Inc. ($81,148).

Other Bend organizations that received financial assistance include Cascade School of Music, which received $51,393 and BEAT Children’s Theatre, which received $43,667. Scalehouse, a Bend arts organization that recently took over the gallery mission of At Liberty, received $37,407.

Lay It Out Inc., parent company of The Source Weekly and Lay It Out Events, which stages an annual musical theater production in Drake Park, received $44,337.

In Jefferson County, $140,147 went to the Museum at Warm Springs and $53,736 to the Confederated Tribes of The Warm Springs Reservation of Oregon Warm Springs.

In Crook County, the Crook County School District Prineville received the most money, $9,299, although the Prineville Crook County Chamber of Commerce got on the board with $280.

According to the release, the $50 million relief package for Oregon culture was made available through the Emergency Board of the Oregon Legislature in July.

Kelly Cannon-Miller, executive director of the Deschutes Historical Museum, said, “As the COVID crisis heads into the fall, we canceled our two major fundraisers that normally happen in October and November, so the funding couldn’t be announced at a better time for us. The funding also helps us shift more programming online in lieu of the loss of our in-person programs like History Pub.”