Grant Award Information and Application
In honor of his significant contributions to music and the Oregon Bluegrass Association (OBA), the Steve Waller Memorial Grant was established after Steve’s passing in June 2015. The purpose of the Fund is to honor Steve through awarding financial grants to deserving individuals, to further their education, professional growth, a project, or the advancement, preservation or support of bluegrass music.
Steve Waller Memorial Grant funds will be awarded annually to individuals or groups with involvement in the Oregon Bluegrass community. The OBA Waller Grant Committee will consider all requests received through completion of the Waller Grant Application Form by the due date.
Past Recipients List
2024
Lillian Sawyer is a fiddler, multi-instrumentalist, educator, and composer from Portland, Oregon. A graduate of Berklee College of Music, Lillian has performed with renowned acoustic musicians such as Darol Anger, Joe K. Walsh, Grant Gordy, Ben Krakauer and more in addition to touring both nationally and internationally with award-winning bands such as Never Come Down and Fog Holler. Since moving from Boston to Portland in 2015, Lillian has been an avid and continuing contributor to the Oregon bluegrass community as an educator, side person, and bandleader.
She intends to use the Waller Grant funds to help fund the recording of a short EP of her original music. The personnel lineup for said EP will include Joe Suskind, Josiah Payne, and Noa and will be recorded at Dead Aunt Thelma’s.
Henry Strid is a 14 year old banjo player from Eugene, Oregon. He has been living with his family in Oregon for the past four years after moving from the greater Boise area in Idaho. Henry has been playing the banjo for seven years and has performed with a number of bands at various festivals and events. Aside from guest appearances with Mile Twelve and the Kody Norris Show, Henry played with Bluebirds on a Wire at the Parkfield Festival last spring and with Wild Blue Yonder at the South State 48 festival in Carlsbad, California. Henry has been actively involved with the Kids on Bluegrass program through the IBMA for the past four years, and last year was selected to perform in the all-star band to to open on the main stage in Raleigh, North Carolina. Henry also performed as a guest with the Kian Dye band and with his own band as part of the OBA showcase series at Wintergrass. Most recently, Henry played a concert with fiddler Luke Bulla at Tsunami Books in Eugene, and is currently a member of the up and coming Wildwood Bluegrass Band, also from Eugene.
Henry intends to use a portion of the funds from the Waller Grant to cover his ongoing lessons with his current teacher Wes Corbett. The remaining funds will go towards his tuition at the American Banjo Camp in September, where he will be studying with renowned players Alan Munde, BB Bowness and Jeff Scroggins
2023 – Kian Dye
2022 – Never Come Down Band
2022 – Crystal Lariza
2021 – No Award Presented
2020 – No Award Presented
2019 – Ellie Hakanson, Professional Development & Reed Stutz, Professional Development
2018 – Jen Dynes, Lessons & Jane Rombauts, Lessons
Funding & Donations
If you would like to donate to one of the grants, you can do so through a secure Paypal link here. Select the Grant you wish to support from the drop-down menu. Or, if you prefer, you can mail a check or money order to
Oregon Bluegrass Association, c/o (Grant preference), P.O. Box 1115, Portland, Oregon, 97207
Resources supporting the Grants include: OBA general account funds, donations from the Oregon bluegrass community, and potentially grants from various other organizations. OBA’s goal is to receive enough support so that the principal balance remains intact in perpetuity and regular earnings support annual grant awards.
Until that point is achieved, OBA will strive to maintain financial resources to award funds deemed sufficient for recipients. Grant awards may vary in amount and may be awarded to one or more recipients. OBA’s Committee will review applications and recommend award recipient(s) and amount(s) to the OBA Board of Directors for final approval. The OBA aims to present the award annually at the Annual Meeting in April.