End of Year Gratitude

Dear Partners,

As 2018 comes to an end and we celebrate the accomplishments of the year, we want to thank you for your deep commitment and service to Social Venture Partners Portland. Because of you, SVP Portland has expanded both the breadth and depth of our impact by investing more deeply in our current Community Partners as well as growing our portfolio to 14 investments—the largest ever! SVP Portland began a new endeavor in 2011—to focus our impact on a single goal. Prior to having a strategic focus, former Board Chair Larry Fox described our process as “... failing broadly, one success at a time.” In the seven years since, the SVP Partnership and staff have immersed themselves in the early childhood education ecosystem, racial equity, and the root causes preventing children from accessing positive early learning experiences. We have strategically leveraged our human, social, and financial capital to co-create solutions to address the systemic change needed in our community. We now have measurable goals, clear strategies and investment priorities, and a political champion behind the effort. Momentum is strong and we are committed to continuing to grow it!Amongst community impact news of 2018 was that leaders from multiple SVP Community Partners have joined Commissioner Jessica Vega Pederson at the Preschool for All Task Force, of which Mark Holloway is Vice Chair. The Task Force will create a set of recommendations to expand preschool access across Multnomah County for the thousands of children in our community who are not currently being served. Significant staff news in 2018 includes Mark’s transition from CEO (after 12 remarkable years!) to being a dedicated Partner and energetic leader in our community. On behalf of everyone at SVP, we want to thank Mark, and express our optimism about this next phase in our partnership.

This year is ending with the amazing success of our Make a Bigger Difference campaign that kicked off in October. With an incredible lead gift from our friends at Bank of America and a huge commitment of $100,000 from two amazing Partners, Holly and Zach Levow, we reached the challenge of meeting the $200,000 total with time to spare! With this funding bolstering our “Preschool for All” initiative, we are looking onward to 2019 with excitement, confidence, and humble appreciation for all that our Partnership provides to our community. Together we are truly making a bigger difference.

Wishing you a joyous holiday season,

SVP Portland Staff