Foundations Pledge Support for COVID-19 Relief – Update (04/29/2020)

As COVID-19 continues to spread in the United States, private foundations are stepping up with funding to meet the immediate needs of individuals and vulnerable populations impacted by the virus. Here's a roundup of grants from the last few days:

Rasmuson Foundation, Anchorage, AK | $360,000

The Rasmuson Foundation has announced a contribution of $360,000 to the AK Can Do fund, a partnership between United Way of Anchorage and the Alaska Community Foundation that has raised a total of $1.4 million to support nonprofits assisting Alaskans whose lives have been disrupted by COVID-19 and families struggling with basic needs such as rent and utilities. The fund has disbursed 80 percent of the funds it has raised to date, enabling more than two hundred and fifty families to remain in their homes despite job losses, as well as grants totaling more than $215,000 to twenty-five frontline nonprofit service providers. 

Chuck Lorre Family Foundation, Los Angeles, CA | $250,000

The Los Angeles Unified School District has announced a $250,000 challenge grant from the Chuck Lorre Family Foundation to help provide meals to students in the district while schools are closed. The grant will match donations to the LA Students Most In Need fund in support of the district's sixty-three Grab & Go Food Centers, which in addition to meals provide books, toys, baby supplies, sports gear, technology, and Internet access to students and their families. 

Addison Hines Charitable Trust, Canton, GA | $1.125 Million

Elwyn, a nonprofit that provides services to children and adults with autism, intellectual and developmental disabilities, and related behavioral health challenges in Media, Pennsylvania, has announced a $1.125 million gift to its COVID-19 Emergency Fund from the Addison Hines Charitable Trust. The funds will help Elwyn cover unexpected costs arising from the coronavirus emergency, including nearly $1 million for personal protective equipment purchased over the last several weeks.

Boston Foundation, Boston, MA | $550,000

The Boston Foundation has announced general support grants of $25,000 each to twenty-two organizations through its COVID-19 Response Fund. The latest round of grants from the fund includes four grants made in partnership with the Latino Legacy Fund in support of nonprofits led by or serving Latinx communities in the region; recipients of the grants include East Boston Neighborhood Health Center Corporation, the Latino Health Insurance Program, Neighborhood Developers, and the Right to Immigration Institute. Since its launch on March 13, the fund has raised $6.8 million and awarded ninety-one grants totaling nearly $2.3 million.

Kresge Foundation, Troy, MI | $2 Million

The Kresge Foundation has invested more than $2 million to help nonprofits impacted by  COVID-19 access U.S. Small Business Administration Paycheck Protection Program loans, Crain's Detroit Business reports. To date, the foundation's $2 million program-related investment in Community Reinvestment Fund USA, a community development finance institution, has funded SBA-backed PPP loans to nonprofits as well as technical assistance. 

Charles Stewart Mott Foundation, Flint, MI | $163,000

The Charles Stewart Mott Foundation has announced a $163,000 grant to Flint Community Schools for the purchase of eight hundred mobile WiFi hot spots and fifteen hundred content-filtering apps to keep students safe while online. While the district had already provided Internet-enabled devices for middle and high school students in the district, those provided to K-6 students were for in-school use and lacked content filters.

Vattikutti Foundation, Detroit, MI | $400,000

The Vattikuti Foundation, in partnership with business transformation firm Altimetrik, has pledged $400,000 to help bring ten thousand onsite COVID-19 tests to nearly a hundred and thirty nursing homes and senior assisted living facilities in Detroit. The funds will support the mobile testing component of an initiative managed by the Global Health Initiative at Henry Ford Health System, in partnership with the City of Detroit and its health department, that includes education, outreach, and prevention efforts, monitoring, analysis, and back-to-work planning.

Horst Rechelbacher Foundation, Minneapolis, MN | $80,000

The Horst Rechelbacher Foundation has announced an $80,000 donation to Beauty Changes Lives, a scholarship nonprofit created by the American Association of Cosmetology Schools, in support of individuals in the beauty industry impacted by COVID-19. Funded by a gift from Nicole Rechelbacher, daughter of the late Horst Rechelbacher, the commitment of $1,000 grants boosts the foundation's total support for COVID-19 relief efforts to $104,000.

Nantahala Health Foundation, Franklin, NC | $200,000

The Nantahala Health Foundation, which was created by the sale of Mission Health System to HCA in 2019, has announced the launch of a COVID-19 Impact Recovery Fund with a commitment from board members to match donations to the fund dollar-for-dollar up to $100,000. The fund will support efforts to bolster local healthcare systems, improve access to quality education, advance workforce development initiatives, and strengthen nonprofits in the state.

Andrew W. Mellon Foundation, New York, NY; Flamboyan Arts Fund, San Juan, PR | $1 Million

The Andrew W. Mellon Foundation and Flamboyan Arts Fund, with additional support from Broadway Cares, have announced the launch of a $1 million emergency relief fund in support of Puerto Rico-based artists and cultural organizations impacted by COVID-19. The fund will award grants of between $5,000 and $20,000 to help cover staff salaries, rent, and the purchase of technology and services needed to create or expand virtual programming. In addition, the fund will partner with the Museo de Arte Contemporáneo de Puerto Rico and Km 0.2 to award grants of $600 to more than two hundred individual artists.

And the Women's Funding Network has launched an online initiative aimed at assisting victims of domestic violence during the stay-at-home restrictions implemented to contain the spread of the virus. Signal for Help defines a simple single-hand gesture that victims of domestic violence can silently display during video calls to alert family, friends, or colleagues — without leaving a digital trace — and request that someone check in with them. WFN provides tips on how to respond to a signal for help, as well as links to resources and a downloadable toolkit.

(Photo credit: Rick Smith)