“When you learn something from people, or from a culture, you accept it as a gift, and it is your lifelong commitment to preserve it and build on it.”
– Yo-Yo-Ma
The Cultural Coalition of Washington County (CCWC) is the re-granting board of the Oregon Cultural Trust in Washington County, Oregon. Monies donated to the Cultural Trust come back to Washington County and are distributed as grants to cultural nonprofits per the Washington County Cultural Plan.
The Oregon Cultural Trust receives its funding from donors who receive a generous state tax credit for giving as long as their contribution to the Trust is matched by equal or greater charitable gifts to any number of Oregon’s 1,600+ nonprofits. Washington County is home to over 100 heritage, humanities and arts nonprofits.
The CCWC was originally established as the Washington County Arts, Heritage and Humanities Coalition by the Washington County Board of Commissioners in 2005 as an all-volunteer advisory body and tasked with administering Oregon Cultural Trust funds for the county and implementing the Washington County Cultural Plan. The coalition name was changed in 2008 to Cultural Coalition of Washington County. Until July 2021, the CCWC was an official advisory board to the Board of County Commissioners. It is now under the fiscal sponsorship of Tualatin Valley Creates. The CCWC is still all-volunteer and still works to inform the Board of County Commissioners about the cultural identity, quality of life and economic vitality of Washington County and its arts, heritage and humanities organizations, through the CCWC’s ongoing administration of the Washington County Cultural Plan.