Bless Field Funding Complete

Today the 107 Independent Supporters Trust, the governing body of the Timbers Army, announced that $50,000 was raised through various group and individual donations and donated to Operation Pitch Invasions' Bless Field. All the donations from the 107IST, Portland Timbers, Providence Health Services, and other sponsors and individuals have now completed the funding for the project.

Bless Field was started last year as the biggest project OPI have undertaken to date. It will provide a 9,000-sq-ft, all-weather, turf field in North Portland. This new field will provide soccer facilities for many of the youth programs in the area and could be where future Timbers or Thorns players discover their love for the beautiful game. In the diverse neighborhood children from 22 countries, speaking more than 11 different languages will learn to communicate through the language of soccer. And Bless Field will stand as another testament to the love of soccer our community has. It is a great day to be RCTID and more proof that Portland is indeed worthy of the moniker: Soccer City, USA.

More information on Bless Field can be found at http://pitch-invasion.org/blessfield/

107IST PRESS RELEASE:

PORTLAND — The 107 Independent Supporters Trust is pleased to announce a donation of $50,000 to Operation Pitch Invasion on behalf of the Timbers Army towards the completion of Bless Field. Bless Field will be a youth-sized all-season soccer pitch for the children who live in Portland’s New Columbia Housing Project. A check presentation from Tyler Segel of Factory North, a Timbers Army member and organizer of Art Takeover, will occur on March 16th before kickoff between the Portland Timbers and Chicago Fire.

"We are thrilled we are able to make this large of a contribution," said 107ist President Scott Swearingen. "Our goal was met and it was incredible to watch the Timbers Army community rally around this project. It will be fun for everyone when the kids who live at New Columbia have this field to play the game we all love."

About the 107 Independent Supporters Trust
The 107ist (107 Independent Supporters Trust) is a member-based non-profit organization open to anyone (regardless of where they sit in the stadium) who loves soccer, the Timbers, the Thorns, Portland, and especially the combination of the four.

About the New Columbia Housing Project
The New Columbia Housing project is located in North Portland’s Portsmouth neighborhood, the housing mix of 852 units includes public housing, affordable rental housing, elderly housing and homes for sale. In addition, the New Columbia community is home to nearly 1,200 kids from 22 countries speaking more than 11 different languages.

PORTLAND TIMBERS PRESS RELEASE:

FUNDRAISING FOR OPERATION PITCH INVASION’S BLESS FIELD COMPLETE
Timbers, Providence Health & Services, other partners join in on building new field in North Portland

PORTLAND, Ore. – In conjunction with Operation Pitch Invasion and the 107 Independent Supporters Trust, the Portland Timbers, along with local partners Providence Health & Services, adidas and Widmer Brothers, are pleased to announce that the fundraising goal for Bless Field, a 9,000-square foot, all-weather turf field in North Portland’s New Columbia community, has been achieved.

Through the community-focused partnership with the Timbers, Providence Health & Services joined with OPI, the 107ist, the Timbers and other partners, organizations and individuals, both locally and nationally, in helping to create a positive recreational outlet for young children in Oregon's most diverse census tract.

Situated adjacent to the Regence Boys and Girls Club and Rosa Parks Elementary School, Bless Field, named for pioneering Timbers Army icon Hartmut Bless, is designed for children age 10 and under and will be utilized by a variety of groups that employ sporting and scholastic programs to help children make positive choices. Bless Field will be a place where the international language of soccer and the Timbers Army's unique brand of spirit and energy will combine to welcome newcomers to the community and offer recreation and life opportunities to boys and girls who could even, someday, play for the Timbers and Thorns at Providence Park.

OPI, a project of the 107ist, is a local, grassroots charity formed to build, revitalize and maintain soccer fields throughout the Portland Metro area so that players of all ages and skill levels have high quality and safe playing surfaces to enjoy the beautiful game. Founded in 2011, OPI has done maintenance and repair work on more than one dozen Portland-area parks and schools. Bless Field is its first capital construction project. It is an Oregon public benefit nonmember, nonprofit corporation exempt from tax under Section 501(c)(3) of the Internal Revenue Code. For more information, visit www.pitch-invasion.orgor contact board@pitch-invasion.org.

The 107 Independent Supporters Trust is a member-based nonprofit organization open to anyone who loves soccer, the Timbers, the Thorns, Portland, and especially the combination of the three. It coordinates all the activities of the Timbers Army, working to make the game day experience (both at home and away) bigger and better for everyone, and funding various charities and events in the Portland soccer community. The 107ist is a registered nonprofit organization in the state of Oregon, and has recently been granted 501(c)(7) status under the Internal Revenue Code. For more information, visitwww.timbersarmy.org or contact communications@107ist.org.