New Eastern Oregon Chapter Featured on Front Page of Oregon Newspaper

Photo credit: La Grande Observer

Friends of the Children – Eastern Oregon launched in late 2024 and is the seventh Friends of the Children location in Oregon—one of 42 locations in the Friends of the Children national network. The new chapter was recently the focus of an article in the local La Grande Observer, and a few days later the story was featured on the cover page of the print issue of the East Oregonian.

Christine Rood, a key launch funder for Friends – Eastern Oregon, who has generational family roots in the area, said to the paper, “To have the chance to give back to where you come from is powerful and meaningful to me,” said Rood. “Friends is just top…”

She made a point that the chapter was “truly going to be local,” with leadership from the area, and support from Friends of the Children – National. This is modeled through the hiring of Neesha Turner, the chapter’s executive director, who was a school counselor at a local elementary and middle school prior to joining Friends – Eastern Oregon. She says the chapter is partnering with the La Grande School District and Eastern Oregon University Head Start with a goal to enroll 16 children within the next month.

Read the article in The Observer to learn more.