Page 40 - Southern Oregon Magazine Spring 2020

neck of the woods | prof ile

ANNE

KUBISCH

The Ford Foundation
Continues a Legacy

steve boyarsky

e in Southern Oregon are blessed with many,
Wmany amazing people who share their talents
with all of us. To name and profile them all would
fill a book. We’ve chosen a few, presented them to
you and will continue to do so over the next several
issues. Some of these folks you will know, some not.
Perhaps, reading about them will inspire you to reach
out and offer your own talents, time, and resources.

Q – THE FORD FAMILY FOUNDATION HAS
AS THEIR FOCUS SUCCESSFUL CITIZENS
AND VITAL RURAL COMMUNITIES. TELL US
ABOUT YOUR FOUNDERS AND WHY THESE
AREAS WERE IMPORTANT TO THEM.

ANNE – The Ford Family Foundation was founded
by Kenneth and Hallie Ford, who made their fortune
through a timber company now called Roseburg
Forest Products. They wanted to create a foundation
that would exist in perpetuity to give back to the
regions where they had made their wealth. In 1994,
Kenneth set up a scholarship program. Even though
he was incredibly successful and founded a company
that is still one of the largest privately held timber
companies in the world, he felt at a disadvantage
because he never completed college. He saw col-
lege as a way for kids in rural areas to get ahead, to
be in control of their lives, to determine their own
trajectories.

Kenneth Ford started with the scholarship program,
but also wanted to help needy children and families in
Southwest Oregon and Siskiyou County, California.
Our work has now grown to include all of rural
Oregon. We are one of the few foundations in the
country that has rural communities as its mission.

38 www.southernoregonmagazine.com | spring 2020