QWO Awarded $175,000 Grant from M.J. Murdock Charitable Trust

On August 20th, Quiet Waters Outreach (QWO) was awarded a $175,000 grant from the M.J. Murdock Charitable Trust.  Grant funds are earmarked to purchase a home in Hillsboro making possible the opening of Oregon’s 2nd Bed & Breakfast, called Selah West, that provides critical respite care for people with developmental disabilities. 
                                   
Nationwide, caregivers of these special people report that respite care is their #1 most important need. Caring for a person with DD requires constant attention and is leading more and more people to feelings frustration, guilt, neglect, and most often, burn out.  Periodic respite care is the antidote to these problems.  For many, a respite break is the first time in 5, 10, 20, even 30 years that they have experienced extended relief from their responsibilities! 

In 2000, QWO received a $190,000 grant from the Murdock Trust to open Oregon’s first Bed & Breakfast in Tigard called Martha’s Place.  Since that time, QWO has provided over 150,000 hours of respite care to people with DD and their caregivers.  Martha’s Place is so successful at meeting the critical need of respite care, that currently the waiting list for reservations is 6-9 months long!  Operating 7 days each week, Martha’s Place has been serving at maximum capacity for over four years. 

Thanks to the kind-hearted and generous people at the Murdock Charitable Trust, QWO is now able to double our capacity to provide respite care by opening second permanent respite care option to thousands of Portland-area families and caregivers responsible for the care of people with developmental disabilities. 

Quiet Waters Outreach (QWO) is an Oregon non-profit organization that is dedicated to serving individuals with developmental disabilities, their families and caregivers by providing services to restore their spiritual, physical, emotional, and mental health.  With over 350 volunteers, 12 team members and a strong board of directors, QWO serves 2,500 individual with DD and their caregivers annually.

The lives and hearts of those that will be touched because of the Murdock Charitable Trust will be clearly evident in the smiles of QWO’s guests, the respite time given to the caregivers, and the stronger family bonds that will develop.  This respite care is the breath that keeps many of Oregon’s special families together. 

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