Rugged and vast, Cottonwood Canyon is one of Oregon’s largest state parks at over 8,000 acres. Bordered by another 10,000 acres of federally-maintained public lands, this special place gives a new depth of meaning to the phrase “getting away from it all”. Before white settlers took hold of this land, the river was known as the Mah Hah to the Native Americans. In the 19th Century it was renamed the John Day River as part of a privately-owned cattle ranch. Between 1964 and 2008, the canyon and surrounding property were purchased by Oregon State Parks and the Western Rivers Conservancy. Seeking to protect the canyon while allowing the public to access the breathtaking area, Cottonwood Canyon became an Oregon State Park in 2013. With help from Oregon Lottery dollars, it’s been transformed into a unique wilderness and recreation experience for Oregonians and visitors alike. In 2019, more than $2 million in lottery dollars helped fund a learning center, cabins and restrooms, making it easier for visitors to set up a base camp from which to explore all Cottonwood Canyon has to offer. Plans are in the works to build a boat launch for easier access to the clear and open waters of the John Day, the largest free flowing river in the western United States. This undammed waterway is home to a year-round angler’s delight. Winter native steelhead, catfish and summer small-mouth bass mean the fish are constantly biting. Down the road, there’ll be even more ways to access the wild, back country of Cottonwood Canyon. Whether you choose to visit when spring turns the hills green or in winter when snow blankets the cliffs, just make sure you go to this unique and special place. It’s a perfect sample of the natural beauty of Oregon.

Preservation at a historic Oregon cemetery.

At Project ABLE, veterans receive training to help fellow veterans with behavioral health. Thanks to a grant of lottery dollars, Salem-based Project ABLE will train veterans as peer support specialists for other veterans with behavioral health issues. In peer support, an individual provides support to another who shares similar life experiences. Fellow veterans will be trained as support specialists because those who’ve also taken the Oath of Enlistment best understand military related trauma. This sort of support, along with additional wellness classes and services, can provide veterans-in-need with a much brighter future. Thanks to Lottery support, Project ABLE’s training will benefit veterans in six northwest Oregon counties.

St. Andrew Legal Clinic (SALC), based in Portland, provides legal protections for some of the community’s most vulnerable people. Specializing in family law, SALC provides legal advocacy on matters like adoptions, divorce, child custody and support, and more. Thanks to a grant of lottery dollars, SALC will now be able to leverage their legal expertise for the benefit of Oregon veterans, with a focus on economic stability and housing security. With the support of lottery dollars, SALC will provide veterans in five Oregon counties with access to the legal services they might need as they return to civilian life.

KLCAS, a Local agency, helps homeless veterans and those at risk for homelessness. Military veterans can be particularly vulnerable to a housing crisis for a variety of reasons. In southern Oregon, Klamath-Lake Community Action Services (KLCAS) is using a grant of lottery dollars to help prevent low-income veterans and their families from falling into homelessness—or to rapidly re-house already homeless veterans. Assistance might take the form of help finding and accessing a rental, childcare assistance, utility assistance, and other types of support services veterans need to obtain housing and stay housed. With the help of the ODVA, your lottery dollars are distributed to local organizations like KLCAS where they can do targeted good for Oregon veterans.

Lottery funds are being used to create veterans’ resource centers at Oregon’s public colleges and universities. Blue Mountain Community College’s center is already serving military veterans and performing community outreach in eastern Oregon.