Designated Charities of Reign XLIX

Martha’s Pantry

The first case of AIDS in Washington State was reported in 1982, and by 1985, the number of cases in Vancouver had increased dramatically. Over the next few years, a few concerned individuals and the newly organized Metropolitan Community Church of the Gentle Shepherd provided food, firewood, and emergency funds for those living with HIV/AIDS.  In the early 1990s,  efforts to serve Clark County residents infected with HIV/AIDS began to multiply.  By 1995, a coalition of PWAs known as Life Force, a service agency called Evergreen AIDS Response, a hospice called St. Christopher’s House, and a food bank known as Martha’s Pantry had formed.

Today, only Martha’s Pantry continues to operate and is the only organization/agency in Clark County to serve this group of people.  Staffed entirely by volunteers, the Pantry provides food, household cleaning products, personal hygiene items, and food for pets.  Martha’s Pantry joined the Oregon Food Bank in 2008 and the Clark County Food Bank in 2009.

The pantry is funded entirely by donations and grants, including annual donations from the ISCRE since 1995. Pantry Director Vicki Smith and Pantry Manager Jeanie Harman are Honored Members of the ISCRE.

Since May 2016, when an arsonist destroyed the Pantry’s home at First Congregational United Church of Christ (UCC), the Pantry has occupied space in the Vancouver Heights United Methodist Church. Arrangements to return to renovated space in the UCC, hopefully in late 2017 or early 2018, are underway.

For more information on Martha’s Pantry, call 360-695-1480 or check their Facebook page.

Audria M. Edwards Scholarship Fund

Audria M. Edwards was a devoted mother of six children, four of whom – including Woody Johnson (aka Rose Empress XXIX Lady Elaine Peacock) and Misty Waters (aka Imperial Princess Royale XI) — were LGBT.  Audria served as second president of the Portland, Oregon chapter of Parents and Friends of Lesbians and Gays and demonstrated her passion for continuing education by enrolling in college after her children became adults.

After Audria passed away in 1987, her children established a scholarship fund in her name and began raising funds to award the first scholarships in 1989 at a show called Peacock in the Park.  When Lady Elaine Peacock and Misty Waters passed away in 1993, Rose Empress XXXVI Maria and Kimberlee Van Patten accepted responsibility for producing annual Peacock in the Park shows and administering the scholarship program.   They formed a board of directors for Peacock Productions, Inc. and gained tax-exempt status from the IRS in 1999.  Peacock Productions, Inc. has continued the tradition of annual shows in Portland’s Rose Garden Amphitheater to raise funds for the Scholarship Fund.  The 30th Anniversary “Peacock in the Park” was held in 2017.

Since 1995. the ISCRE has provided annual awards supporting the Audria M. Edwards Scholarship Fund;  ISCRE members have participated in Peacock in the Park and other fundraisers sponsored by Peacock Productions on multiple occasions. Maria, Kimberlee, and other current and former members of the board are Honored Members of the ISCRE.

Pride of the Rose Scholarship

Pride of the Rose Scholarship is given by the Pride Foundation, its prime objective is to provide essential financial resources and community support to inspirational LGBTQ+ and allied student leaders across the Northwest.

The Pride Foundation prioritizes moving resources to LGBTQ+ students who need it most, so we especially focus our funding on those LGBTQ+ student leaders who have some or all of the following experiences and qualities: 

• Demonstrate a commitment to advancing justice and the well-being of their communities, past, present, and future 
• Have experienced family rejection and/or haven’t been able to access a larger community support system
• Face systemic barriers to educational access, and have been impacted by systemic discrimination and oppression. Specifically:
  • Black, Indigenous, and other People of Color
  • Trans, non-binary, gender diverse, gender non-conforming, and Two Spirit people
  • Immigrants 
  • Disabled people/People with Disabilities, including people living with chronic illness, HIV, neurodivergence, and mental health challenges
  • People over 25, as non-traditionally aged students
  • People living rurally
  • People who have experienced or are experiencing housing instability or houselessness
  • People who have experienced or are experiencing poverty
  • Demonstrate financial need and don’t have access to familial or other financial supports