IRVINE, Calif.--(BUSINESS WIRE)--Opus Bank and the Opus Community Foundation (the “Foundation”) announced today the Foundation’s approval of 11 grant awards to nonprofit organizations that the Foundation believes will have an immediate and long-lasting impact on efforts to build and strengthen our communities. The organizations receiving the Foundation’s financial support create enrichment and advancement opportunities that directly improve the lives of individuals and families in the communities Opus Bank serves.

The organizations receiving grants are located in Arizona, California, and Washington and focus on affordable housing, economic and financial literacy, community health and human services, safety net services, and education for at-risk children. These individual organizations are included below by the state they serve.

Arizona

Project Access received a grant for its programs, which provide health, education, and employment development services to residents of low-income housing communities, as well as school readiness services, after-school tutoring, and enrichment programs for elementary school students.

California

Armory for the Arts received a grant to support its Artful Solutions program, which provides art instruction and activities to those affected by homelessness and mental illness, aiming to increase the creative expression, independent thinking, self-confidence, and self-esteem of participants.

Heritage Pointe received a grant to support its Residents Assistance Fund, which provides scholarships to low-income seniors who require independent or assisted living accommodations or memory care and could not otherwise afford it.

KidWorks Community Development Corporation received a grant for its University Starts Now program, which provides tutoring, college preparation, mentoring, application assistance and leadership development and community service opportunities to at-risk students in kindergarten through 12^th grade.

LINC Housing Corporation received a grant to support its LINC Cares programs, which provide after school and summer youth educational activities including tutoring, mentoring, arts and cultural field trips, and a summer literacy program that create positive outcomes and opportunities.

Ocean Park Community Center received a grant to support its programs, which provide safety net services, healthcare, housing and benefits assistance, and in home services to help individuals who are homeless, victims of domestic violence, at-risk, or living with mental illness to achieve self-sufficiency and an improved quality of life.

Pathways of Hope received a grant to support its transitional living programs, which provide life skills training, job placement services, counseling, and financial management courses to homeless families and individuals in Orange County.

Washington

Brigid Collins Family Support Center received a grant to support its Family Support Program, which provides case management, group therapy, parent-child interactive therapy, crime victim advocacy, and parent education to victims of child abuse and their non-offending family members.

Clothes for Kids received a grant to support its programs, which provide essential clothing items, shoes, and coats at no cost to children from low-income families, increasing the children’s self-esteem, self-confidence, and self-sufficiency.

Eastside Friends of Seniors received a grant to support its programs, which mobilize volunteers to provide basic needs and services to senior citizens residing in eastern King County, allowing the seniors to remain in their homes and maintain their independence.

Vine Maple Place received a grant for its programs, which work to stop the cycle of homelessness, create change, and build lives of hope, stability, and self-sufficiency by providing transitional housing and support services, including financial literacy coaching, employment development classes, child advocacy, and case management to homeless single parents or those at risk of becoming homeless.

Opus Community Foundation

The Foundation is a private 501(c)(3) organization established by Opus Bank on September 30, 2010. The Foundation targets its philanthropic efforts in the areas of affordable housing, community development, education, financial literacy, community health issues, and the arts. The Foundation’s goal is to stimulate economic change, promote reinvestment, inspire philanthropy, and strengthen the communities around us. For additional information about the Opus Community Foundation, please visit the Foundation’s website: www.opuscf.org.

About Opus Bank

Opus Bank is an FDIC insured California-chartered commercial bank with over $4.7 billion of total assets, $3.7 billion of total loans, and $3.5 billion in total deposits as of September 30, 2014. Opus Bank provides high-value, relationship-based banking products, services, and solutions to its clients through its Retail Bank, Commercial Bank, Merchant Bank, and Correspondent Bank. Opus Bank offers a suite of treasury and cash management and depository solutions and a wide range of loan products, including commercial business, healthcare, technology, multifamily residential, commercial real estate, and structured finance, and is an SBA preferred lender. Opus Bank is an Equal Housing Lender. Opus Bank operates 58 banking offices, including two in the Phoenix metropolitan area of Arizona, 32 in California and 24 in the Seattle/Puget Sound region in Washington. For additional information about Opus Bank, please visit our website: www.opusbank.com.