Community Support

FEATURED DONOR – Hayden Homes

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Celebrating Gratitude and Community

Generosity brings people together and creates lasting change. We are honored to celebrate partners like Hayden Homes, whose compassion and commitment help empower youth and strengthen the community we share. Through their leadership and enduring support, they are helping young people discover what’s possible – and build brighter futures of their own.

Donor Spotlight: Hayden Homes

A Legacy of Building Homes – and Futures

For decades, Hayden Homes has been building more than houses across the Northwest – they’ve been building stronger communities. Through their deep culture of generosity and their Give As You Go philosophy, Hayden Homes has made a lasting impact on youth served by J Bar J Youth Services and our program Big Brothers Big Sisters of Central Oregon.

At the heart of this commitment is Hayden Watson, Chairman of the Board, and CEO Dennis Murphy, whose leadership has helped shape a company where giving back is part of the foundation. In recognition of Dennis’s extraordinary dedication to mentorship and youth empowerment, Big Brothers Big Sisters of Central Oregon honored Dennis as their very first Big Champion – an acknowledgment of both his personal advocacy and Hayden Homes’ enduring partnership.

Hayden Homes’ support extends across the J Bar J continuum of care, including their role as Presenting Sponsor of our 2026 Oregon High Desert Classic hunter jumper show. Their leadership helps ensure this premier event continues to raise vital funds that support our programs guiding youth toward stability, confidence, and independence.

Through mentorship, sponsorship, and sustained investment, Hayden Homes demonstrates what it means to be a true community partner. Their generosity is not only opening doors – it’s helping young people discover what’s possible and empowering them to build futures of their own.

About the Oregon High Desert Classic

The prestigious Oregon High Desert Classics (OHDC) is the only event of its kind in Central Oregon. Approved by the US Hunter Jumper Association, this show attracts world class riders from all over the US and Canada. One of a small handful to receive Heritage Horse Show designation, it is also the only show of its caliber which is primarily a fundraiser for a human services nonprofit. Returning for one week only:  July 8 – 12, 2026!

Brothers Big Sisters of Central Oregon honored Hayden Home’s CEO Dennis Murphy as their very first Big Champion – an acknowledgment of both his personal advocacy and Hayden Homes’ enduring partnership.

Community Creativity: DIY Fundraisers Making a Difference

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One of the most inspiring things we see throughout the year is the creativity and generosity of community members who choose to support J Bar J Youth Services in their own unique ways.

From students and scout troops to individuals who simply want to give back, these Do It Yourself fundraisers show how powerful one person’s idea can be when it turns into action.

At a time when nonprofits across the country are facing funding cuts and uncertainty, community-led efforts like these are more important than ever. Each fundraiser – large or small – helps ensure that young people in Central Oregon continue to have access to safe housing, mentorship, and the support they need to build brighter futures.

Here are a few recent examples that made a big impact.

A Student’s Idea Becomes Community Support

A Bend High School student recently organized a fundraiser to support Grandma’s House, raising awareness and resources for young parents working to build stable futures for themselves and their babies. The effort was even featured on Central Oregon Daily News, highlighting the power of youth leadership and compassion in our community.

Read the story →

Cub Scouts Deliver Holiday Cheer

In December, a local Cub Scout troop organized a donation drive for Grandma’s House. Nearly 50 of these youngest scouts visited us to deliver the food and supplies they collected for young families in the program.

Their visit turned into a joyful holiday moment. Staff welcomed the scouts with cocoa and cookies by the fireplace and Christmas tree – and Santa and Mrs. Claus even stopped by to spend time with the group. It was a wonderful reminder of how generosity can bring the community together.

A “Do Good Project” with Heart

We were recently contacted by a Central Oregon Community College student who chose Grandma’s House as the focus of a fundraising project for her communications class.

She shared that she first learned about the program through a friend who once lived at Grandma’s House. Inspired by that connection, she decided to raise awareness and support so more people could learn about the program and the work it does to help young parents build better futures for themselves and their children.

We are incredibly grateful for her thoughtful effort and the heart behind it.

Want to Start Your Own Fundraiser?

DIY fundraisers can take many forms – school projects, community events, donation drives, birthdays, or creative campaigns among friends and family. What they all share is a simple idea: one person choosing to make a difference.

If you have an idea for a fundraiser or would like to support J Bar J Youth Services in your own way, we would love to hear from you. We may also be able to talk with your group about any or all of the programs you want to support.

Together, our community continues to show that small acts of generosity can create lasting impact for youth and families.

Continuum of Care Is Essential To Helping Kids and Families

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Most of the youth and families receiving support from the programs under J Bar J require a holistic approach to their situation and multiple services to help them reach stability. A recent example highlighting how services come together was when a teenager needed housing. Sara was living in a vehicle with her mother and siblings. Her mother had escaped an abusive situation and fled to Bend with her children. However, addiction issues made living in most shelters problematic as they require clean and sober residents. She had run out of options.  

Sara was a good student and worked hard, but homelessness made even simple things like getting to school a struggle. A teacher at Sara’s high school recommended she look into services at Cascade Youth & Family Center and The LOFT, our transitional living shelter for runaway and homeless youth. Sara was eligible for lodging at The LOFT and her family was referred to other programs under the umbrella of J Bar J Youth Services.

First, The Street Outreach Program checked in with the family and helped secure a temporary hotel room and provided groceries. Kindred Connections, our program providing support to families in crisis, sometimes by temporarily hosting a child in someone’s home, worked to find them a longer term place to park an RV a donor had offered. The family was reunited in a living situation where her mom could then find support in her recovery.

Other services are called on when needed. The Anti- Trafficking Project provides case management to survivors of human trafficking and The Independent Living Program teaches life skills to current and former foster children living in one of our 3 shelter programs: The LOFT, Grandma’s House, or a Kindred Connections Family.

There are many community services J Bar J programs network with to assure youth in our programs have what they need to sustain a transition to self-sufficiency and reach long term success.

Mosaic Medical for health care and A Smile for Kids, providing orthodontics for underserved youth are examples of our generous medical community partners.  Furnish Hope is a community partner that helps a house become a home for a youth or family as they transition into their own living space.  

An important piece of this network is helping kids get to higher education. COCC’s Latinx Student Program refers youth to our Big Brothers Big Sisters Latinx Mentor Program supported by Oregon Community Foundation to mention just one.  Students in a mentoring relationship are more likely to complete high school and attend higher education.   When youth need help overcoming obstacles, it requires a holistic, community approach. It does take a village. Our village is very generous!

J Bar J Youth Build Tiny Homes for Veterans Village

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In spite of the exponential growth Bend has seen over the last few years, and the challenges of 2020, our community remains connected. We are strong as ever when a ‘barn raising’ such as a Vocational school for youth or housing for Veterans is needed, and you can count on Rotarians to be there to help!

The Bend Rotary Clubs supported J Bar J Youth Services construction of a Vocational Training School for the adjudicated youth in residence at the boy’s ranch. The J Bar J program is designed to help the boys understand and change the behavior that brought them here and help them achieve a GED and or a High School Diploma. In 2019 a Vocational training program was added to include training in the construction trades and Culinary Arts

The Bend Rotary Clubs understood the need for this training immediately and stepped up to help. Mt Bachelor Rotary donated funds from the St. Patrick Day Run and Greater Bend committed $75,000, naming this their 3 year Signature Project.

The boys are now receiving instruction in the classroom and on line and are getting hands on experience building the tiny homes through a mentorship with Hayden Homes Project Manager, James Limerick. The boys will build the first three homes for The Bend Heroes Foundation’s, Veterans Village, at J Bar J and be transported to the permanent site on Poe Sholes Road where the village is under development. 

Deschutes County has leased the land to The Bend Heroes Foundation for the Veterans Village and the City of Bend is forgoing development fees and has awarded $200,000 to the project. Many community businesses, local and state foundations and citizens have donated to this project for homeless Veterans. It’s been said many times but nothing describes this project better than the phrase “It takes a village.” That village often starts with or includes the community servants of Rotary. Thank you!