
Update: Summer 2025
The Classroom Building
We’re excited to further our mission to include family and youth programming in Zen training, and provide in-depth opportunities for lay practitioners through retreats and residential experiences via the construction of a new Classroom Building.
Benefits of the Classroom Building:
- Double pre-school enrollment for Frog Song Montessori Preschool, an important extension of our core mission to serve families.
- Increase dedicated space for Dharma School, residential training, retreat accommodations, and a neighborhood resilience hub.
- Generate additional revenue to strengthen our financial future and help us achieve our strategic goal of becoming debt-free.
Not Just A Classroom
The upstairs rooms of the building will help us expand our residence program and improve our retreat accommodations.
The classroom building will be used by Multnomah County as a Disaster Resource Center (DRC) during extreme weather and citywide disaster events, providing shelter and resources for the community during a time of increasing climate instability and extreme weather events.
Sustainability
As Buddhist practitioners, we are aware of the interdependence of all beings and seek to understand our impact on the world. Consistent with this, we commit to using NetZero design principles in the construction of the Classroom Building.
As designed, the building is estimated to have an energy demand approximately 70% less than the same building designed to energy code minimum performance levels. Accounting for anticipated solar power production, the reduction will reach 100%.
Next Steps
Gravel has been laid down on the footprint of the new classroom building. We have applied for several significant grants, and are awaiting the results. We should know where we stand by fall.
We celebrate the $307,000 raised through the great generosity of our members and community through the Brilliant Sea of Clouds Capital Campaign.
Our fundraising isn’t complete, and we are still asking those who are able to give to support the Classroom Building in any way they can.
What’s the current timeline for construction?
This project, and its timeline, are funding dependent, and we are awaiting the results of a major grant application from earlier this year. Stay tuned!
We anticipate that 40% will be funded via personal donations, and over 40% will be funded by grants, with the remainder coming from operational revenue.
Is the Brilliant Sea of Clouds Capital Campaign still running?
Yes! You can contribute to the Brilliant Sea of Clouds Capital Campaign by following the instructions below for how to give.
How to Give
To donate to the Brilliant Sea of Clouds capital campaign, please visit our donation page to make a one-time donation or a one-year, recurring monthly pledge using PayPal or check. Please indicate “Capital Campaign” in the memo field to ensure that your contribution is recognized.
Northwest Zen Sangha is a 501(c)3 tax-exempt organization, doing business as Dharma Rain Zen Center, and charitable contributions are tax deductible.