In 2025, the Ben B. Cheney Foundation is doing more than celebrating 50 years of grant making, it is honoring 50 years of partnership and service across communities historically connected to the Cheney Lumber Company. As a meaningful way to honor this milestone and decades of partnerships, the Foundation Board is celebrating select organizations with special 50th anniversary grants.
The Foundation selected this distinguished group of Pierce County-based 50th anniversary grant recipients because they have been partners since our first year of grantmaking in 1975. To this day, we continue to have a relationship them, one that is rooted in trust, shared values, and a mutual commitment to community well-being. For 50 years, these partners have walked alongside the Foundation, responding to evolving needs while remaining steadfast in their missions and offering Foundation staff opportunities for meaningful investments in our community. Together, they represent the power of long-term partnership and the lasting impact that comes from showing up year after year.
Our 50-year Pierce County partners include the Boys & Girls Clubs of South Puget Sound, Charles Wright Academy, MultiCare Tacoma, Pacific Lutheran University, the Tacoma Rescue Mission, and the YMCA of Pierce and Kitsap Counties.
Boys & Girls Clubs of South Puget Sound
For decades, the Boys & Girls Clubs of South Puget Sound has created safe, supportive spaces where young people can learn, grow, and thrive. Serving thousands of children and teens across Pierce County, the Clubs provide consistent access to academic support, mentorship, healthy meals, and enriching programs during critical out-of-school hours. The Ben B. Cheney Foundation’s long-standing partnership with the Clubs reflects a shared commitment to investing in youth, strengthening families, and building brighter futures, one child at a time. This 50th anniversary grant honors the enduring impact of the Clubs for generations of South Sound youth.
Charles Wright Academy has been a trusted educational partner of the Ben B. Cheney Foundation for decades, offering students a rigorous academic experience rooted in character, curiosity, and community engagement. Founded on the belief that education should develop the whole child, the school has remained a consistent presence for families in Pierce County.
The Foundation’s support of Charles Wright Academy, including its recent investment in the Bradshaw Chapel, reflects a long-standing commitment to educational spaces that inspire learning, reflection, and connection.
This 50th anniversary grant recognizes a shared history and a mutual dedication to nurturing future generations.
MultiCare Tacoma serves as a vital healthcare partner for the Ben B. Cheney Foundation and a vital resource for the broader community. As a leading provider of comprehensive medical care, MultiCare has consistently expanded access to high-quality service, strengthening the health and well-being of our region, while responding to evolving health needs. The Foundation’s long history of partnership with MultiCare reflects a shared commitment to community-centered care that improves wellness and dignity for all and particularly for children, families, and underserved populations.
Since the Foundation’s earliest years, Pacific Lutheran University (PLU) has been a cornerstone of higher education in the South Sound. Grounded in a mission of service, inquiry, and community engagement, PLU has educated generations of students who go on to lead, serve, and strengthen the region.
The Ben B. Cheney Foundation has long supported PLU’s commitment to accessible, values-based education, recognizing the university’s role not only as an academic institution, but as a vital community partner. Through scholarships and capital investments over five decades, the Foundation’s partnership with PLU reflects a shared belief that education is a powerful engine for opportunity and long-term community resilience.
For more than a century, Tacoma Rescue Mission has provided hope, dignity, and practical support to individuals and families experiencing homelessness, hunger, and hardship in Pierce County. The Ben B. Cheney Foundation has been a long-time partner in this work, supporting the Mission’s holistic approach to meeting basic needs while fostering pathways to stability and self-sufficiency.
Through shelter, meals, recovery programs, and supportive services, Tacoma Rescue Mission has remained a steadfast presence for some of the community’s most vulnerable residents.
In a time of growth and expansion through the Good Neighbor Village, the Foundation is confident that compassion and dignity will continue to lead the way in the work of the Tacoma Rescue Mission.
For generations, the YMCA of Pierce and Kitsap Counties has strengthened the health and well-being of families across the South Sound. The YMCA serves as a community anchor for individuals and families across the region, advancing youth development and healthy living through child and youth programs, aquatics, fitness and sports, wellness services, and more. By creating inclusive spaces where people of all ages can connect, grow, and thrive, the YMCA plays a vital role in strengthening communities. The Ben B. Cheney Foundation’s long-standing partnership with the YMCA reflects a shared belief in the importance of accessible spaces where individuals and families can build connection, resilience, and lifelong well-being.
From education to emergency services to serving our youth, these six partners exemplify what is possible when organizations commit to their communities for the long haul. As the Ben B. Cheney Foundation celebrates 50 years of giving, it is proud to honor Boys & Girls Clubs of South Puget Sound, Charles Wright Academy, Pacific Lutheran University, and Tacoma Rescue Mission, partners whose work and values have been woven into the fabric of Pierce County.