The Community Emergency Needs Fund has awarded a total of $100,000 in grant distributions to coastal agencies providing basic needs such as food, clothing, shelter, water, prescriptions/healthcare, and transportation to work and medical care to those who have been disproportionately impacted by the corona virus pandemic. The Needs Fund is managed in partnership by the Communities of Coastal Georgia Foundation and United Way of Coastal Georgia to serve coastal residents that have been disproportionately affected by the pandemic.
These funding awards represent Phase One of a multi-phase response to quickly deploy resources into the community. Phase One recipients are:
America’s Second Harvest – Providing community-wide food distribution events and increased food distribution to partner agencies.
Faithworks Ministry – Providing food distribution at the Sparrow’s Nest and maintaining the Well for the homeless.
Golden Isles YMCA - Providing childcare for the children of essential workers who don’t have the option of working from home and require childcare (healthcare workers, first responders, DFCS, Gateway).
Boys and Girls Club – Food distribution of snack and dinner to area children.
Salvation Army - Extended their capacity to shelter clients by resourcing their chapel into a temporary shelter to accept 20 additional clients.
Safe Harbor Street Outreach - Providing homeless assistance with hotel/motel vouchers, transportation, and food distribution.
Coastal Community Health Services - Providing financial assistance for fees, copays, and medication for those who have lost insurance due to unemployment as well as extending their capacity for drive-thru COVID-19 testing.
Communities in Schools – Food distribution for families that have no access to transportation. Distributing donated computers to students without access to a computer in the home.
Coastal Outreach Soccer - Food distribution for families that have no access to transportation. Distributing donated computers to students without access to a computer in the home.
Morningstar Family and Children’s Services – Providing telehealth counseling sessions. Continuing to provide residential care to students.
Darien United Methodist Church – Providing weekly food delivery to elderly and at-risk individuals in McIntosh County.
St Andrews and St Cyprians Episcopal Churches – Food distribution and financial assistance for rent and utilities for McIntosh residents.
House of Hope – Providing residential care for girls that are victims of human trafficking.
Grace House – Providing residential care and treatment to women recovering from addiction.
Additional funding phases will occur in the coming weeks.
“We are so pleased to be able to quickly begin distributing resources to help Coastal Georgians weather the impacts of the COVID-19 pandemic,” says Mary Jenrette, United Way of Coastal Georgia Board Chair.
“As we look toward reopening our community, we are seeing so clearly that the COVID-19 pandemic will have a deep and wide impact on local economy,” Jack Kilgore, Communities of Coastal Georgia Foundation Board Chair. “We will see and feel the need continuing to increase for some time. We encourage all to consider making a gift to the Emergency Needs Fund.”
Individuals, families, businesses and other philanthropy organizations are invited to continue to give to the Needs Fund at this link.