The Oregon Bankers Association (OBA), in partnership with OregonBusiness magazine, has announced that Oxford Hotel & Suites of Bend, Oregon is the 2017 recipient of the Community Applause Award. Oxford Hotel & Suites is a Bend-based, family-owned hotelier that currently manages a portfolio of 17 properties in Oregon, Washington, Idaho, and California.

Founded in 1996, the Community Applause Award competition is open to banks doing business in Oregon to nominate their business customers in recognition of the contributions they make in their community. An independent panel of judges reviews the nominations and selects a winner. Since the award’s inception, 40 Oregon businesses have been recognized, including this year’s honoree.

Oxford Hotel & Suites was nominated for the award by Wendy McGrane, vice president and commercial banking team leader at U.S. Bank in Bend. McGrane was inspired to make the nomination after learning about a substantial contribution the Baneys made to the OSU-Cascades Hospitality Management Program last year to support the creation of an endowed faculty scholar position. But this was just the tip of the iceberg. After exploring further, McGrane learned the full extent to which the Baneys support numerous organizations and causes in Bend and across their Western footprint.

J Bar J Youth Services is one organization in particular that has benefited from the Baneys’ extensive generosity. The nonprofit’s single largest fundraising event is the High Desert Classics, a premier horse competition that attracts top riders from all over the Western United States and Canada. The Oxford Hotel & Suites has been a title sponsor of this event since 2010.

Oxford Hotel & Suites charitable giving in Central Oregon is both broad and wide. Following are a few recent examples of the Baneys’ generosity.

• Bend High School: Funds donated toward the scoreboard and other athletic facilities
• Oxford Classic High School Cross Country Meet: Annual title sponsorship
• Jazz at the Oxford Free Music Education Workshops: Annual sponsorship towards facilities, sound, and artists
• Numerous in-kind donations to support business and community events, including:
  • Bend Film
  • Bend Venture Conference
  • Ted X Bend

The list above is hardly exhaustive. The financial and in-kind contributions made by the Baneys to events, organizations, and causes tops $600,000 in just the past 18 months. The Baneys firmly believe in a culture of giving back, and they empower their managers and employees to get involved by donating locally and volunteering in the community or on nonprofit boards. As McGrane wrote in her nomination, “Mr. and Mrs. Baney are generous in giving back, and equally encourage this kind of involvement amongst their employees.”

McGrane adds, “The Baneys are passionate business leaders, and I hope that by nominating them for this award, their story will inspire other business owners to find more ways to support the communities in which they serve. We are very fortunate to have business owners like the Baneys here in Oregon, and as the Oxford Hotel & Suites continues to grow I anticipate their generous contributions to the communities in which they serve will also grow.”

↑ Pictured from left: Curtis Baney (son of Robin and Curt Baney); Daniel Cannain, U.S. Bank; Robin Baney, Oxford Hotel & Suites; OBA Chair Ryan Killgore, Wendy McGrane and Michael Smith of U.S. Bank; and Past OBA Chair Chris Karlin, retired, U.S. Bank.

Contacts:

Linda Navarro, President & CEO
Andee Rose, Communications Director
(503) 581-3522