ACF approves nearly $50K in second round of emergency response funding during coronavirus outbreak
This week, Akron Community Foundation announced $47,500 in grants to assist nonprofits during the coronavirus outbreak through its Community Response Fund for Nonprofits. This latest round of grants was approved by a sub-committee of the foundation's board of directors and brings the foundation's cumulative emergency nonprofit funding to nearly $100,000 since the response fund was established in mid-March.
Included in this round of funding is $8,000 that will support a new collaboration between Vantage Aging and United Disability Services.
At the same time Vantage Aging has been experiencing an increased demand for its Meals on Wheels program, it has also been facing an issue with preparing and delivering those meals due to the current "stay at home" guidelines. A $5,000 grant will help Vantage Aging provide two weeks' worth of shelf-stable meals, while $3,000 allows United Disability Services to partner with them to provide the transportation fleet and drivers, ultimately providing 800 clients in Summit County with nutritional meals. These meals will be distributed through non-contact delivery methods to help reduce interactions and limit the spread of COVID-19.
"As seniors are the most susceptible to COVID-19, maintaining their nutritional health is our utmost priority," said Ted Watko, CEO of Vantage Aging. "It is through the generosity of community foundations and donors that we can be certain no senior goes hungry during this national health crisis. Akron Community Foundation has been a strong supporter of programs supporting older adults and this is the most critical need we have probably seen in our 45 years of providing community-based services."
An additional $5,000 was awarded to OPEN M to support its free medical and dental clinics in south Akron. The organization is expecting a surge in its services as a result of coronavirus-prompted unemployment and the economic downturn. The majority of OPEN M's medical clinic expenses are used to provide free medicine and basic in-house lab services to its clients through its full-service pharmacy.
"Many of our local nonprofits are facing an unprecedented situation where they're being asked to serve more individuals, provide more services and, often, do so with fewer financial and human resources," said Sylvia Trundle, chair of Akron Community Foundation's Community Investment Committee. "These grants are quickly providing them with necessary funding at a time when speed is crucial."
Akron Community Foundation will award grants through its Community Response Fund for Nonprofits on a continual basis to help combat the effects of the COVID-19 pandemic in Summit and Medina County. For more information about the Community Response Fund for Nonprofits, visit www.akroncf.org/communityresponsefundinfo.
Below is a complete list of grants awarded:
Autism Society of Greater Akron, to support individuals and families impacted with a developmental disability during COVID-19, $5,000
Catholic Charities of Summit County, to provide rent and utility payments for residents facing hardship during the COVID-19 health crisis, $2,500
Community Support Services Inc., to support the integration of virtual platforms for mental health counseling, $5,000
Family and Community Services Inc., to deliver meals to high-risk populations in Summit County in response to COVID-19, $5,000
Hattie Larlham Foundation, to purchase cleaning supplies and critical safety equipment to protect health care workers and combat COVID-19, $3,000
He Brought Us Out Ministry, to expand the organization's services due to increased demand as a result of the COVID-19 pandemic, $5,000
Legacy III, to restructure daily activities to support shelter-in-place orders, including the purchase of recovery related items such as Alcoholics Anonymous speaker and workgroup CD's, books, DVDs and arts and crafts supplies, $3,000
OPEN M, to support increased services through its free medical and dental clinics as a result of increased unemployment due to mandates related to the COVID-19 pandemic, $5,000
Pathway Caring for Children, to support Summit County foster parents and children impacted by COVID-19, $2,500
Stewart's Caring Place, to support the increased demand for food, supplies and counseling for cancer patients and families throughout the COVID-19 emergency, $3,500
United Disability Services, to support a new collaboration with Vantage Aging to deliver food through Meals on Wheels to elderly and vulnerable residents who are homebound due to the current health crisis, $3,000
Vantage Aging, to support a new collaboration with United Disability Services to deliver food through Meals on Wheels to elderly and vulnerable residents who are homebound due to the current health crisis, $5,000
About Akron Community Foundation
Celebrating 64 years of building community philanthropy, Akron Community Foundation embraces and enhances the work of charitable people who make a permanent commitment to the good of the community. In 1955, a $1 million bequest from the estate of Edwin Shaw established the community foundation. It is a philanthropic endowment of more than $238 million with a growing family of more than 670 funds established by charitable people and organizations from all walks of life. The community foundation and its funds welcome gifts of all kinds, including cash, bequests, stock, real estate, life insurance and retirement assets, just to name a few. To date, the community foundation's funds have awarded nearly $173 million in grants to qualified nonprofit organizations. For more information about Akron Community Foundation or to learn more about creating your own charitable fund, call 330-376-8522 or visit www.akroncf.org.