After the tragedy at Silver Rail Elementary School, BEAM Learning Program, a nonprofit that offers after-school programming for special-needs children, found itself without a home.
That’s when the Deschutes Children’s Foundation, like so many other community members and service providers, sprang into action.
Since Oct. 26, BEAM has resumed its afterschool programming and tutoring services for about 20 grade school kiddos at the DCF campus on Bend’s east side. DCF cleared a conference room for BEAM’s staff and children for the rest of the year, at no cost.
Cassi MacQueen, DCF’s executive director, told the Source that after the tragedy, the Deschutes Children’s Foundation kicked into overdrive.
“We know what these families are going through,” MacQueen said. “We told BEAM, ‘We’ve got you.’”
MacQueen and staff cleared the calendar at its East Bend DCF campus so BEAM and the program’s families “knew they had a place to go — immediately.”
BEAM is one of 25 Central Oregon partners, most of which are nonprofits, that benefit from the Deschutes Children’s Foundation. Founded about 30 years ago through a joint effort between Deschutes County, the City of Bend and local philanthropists, the Deschutes Children’s Foundation operates with the understanding that running a nonprofit is costly.
While a nonprofit may pencil out the cost of providing a particular service, necessary overhead, such as a physical space, furniture and janitorial upkeep, might be prohibitive. The Deschutes Children’s Foundation fills that gap by offering physical space, tailored to a partner’s programming needs.
The foundation estimates that it saved fellow nonprofits $1.5 million in 2025 by providing these scalable spaces.
MacQueen, who’s directed the foundation for three years and has worked in nonprofit management for nearly 20 years, says nonprofits need support now more than in recent decades. She points to a nationwide decrease in nonprofit funding, notwithstanding the reduction in federal and state funding, as well.
“All these nonprofits are being asked to do more,” MacQueen said. “I don’t think anybody thought our mission would be as important — if not maybe more important — as it is today.”
Karen Bures, the co-founder and executive director of BEAM, says DCF’s support is a crucial lifeline. Since July, BEAM had rented a classroom in Silver Rail Elementary for its after-school curriculars. (The elementary school will reopen Nov. 12.)
“There was the initial shock and grief and trauma. We have kids that were in Silver Rail at the time,” Bures said. “But the community really wrapped around us immediately.”
Sometime during Thanksgiving break, Bures said BEAM hopes to relocate to a former dance studio — a larger space that a philanthropic property owner recently offered her.
BEAM offers intensive behavioral programming for school children with an emphasis on social-emotional learning and collaborative problem-solving approaches. BEAM meets kids’ needs with compassion, not control, Bures said.
“For all of the kids we serve, things aren’t necessarily going well for them within the traditional environments. …They face a lot of discipline,” Bures said, adding that “big behaviors” usually result in exclusionary discipline.
“They end up feeling like they’re bad kids and that they don’t belong,” she continued. “The very foundation of BEAM is: No matter what happens, we are going to figure out the underdeveloped skill. Then we’re going to work on developing it and filling the academic gaps. We are going to repair and restore and you’re not gonna get kicked out of here.”
That work entails rolling up the proverbial shirt sleeves and, side by side, doing the work together, Bures said.
“I think it’s once the kids understand that, trust builds in the relationship,” Bures said. “Then we can do the work on the skill building and re-engaging them academically. That’s the hand-in-hand process.”
The Deschutes Children’s Foundation operates four community campuses. Two are in Bend — its east side campus and the Rose Bareis campus. The foundation also operates a BLPS campus in La Pine and the Becky Johnson Center in Redmond, which is owned by Deschutes County.
“It’s such a critical time for nonprofits,” MacQueen said. “Our community really relies on wraparound services that rise to the occasion. That’s where the Deschutes Children’s Foundation comes in. We’re meant to be a partner so nonprofits like BEAM can support more families and serve more kids.”
Deschutes Children's Foundation
1010 NW 14th St., Bend
541-388-3101
deschuteschildrensfoundation.org
The BEAM Learning Program
2125 NE Daggett Ln., Bend
(DCF East Bend Campus)
info@thebeamprogram.org
thebeamprogram.org
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