As most of our lives return to normal after the November 30th earthquake, it is important to recognize the difficulties that many families and organizations continue to face. The Alaska Disaster Recovery Fund, at The Alaska Community Foundation, was set up to support the ongoing recovery efforts, and enable donors to support both short-term emergency response and long-term recovery. The Fund is managed in collaboration with Wells Fargo Foundation, Rasmuson Foundation, United Way of Anchorage, American Red Cross of Alaska, Salvation Army – Alaska Division, Mat-Su Health Foundation, United Way of Mat-Su, Alaska Mental Health Trust Authority, The Foraker Group and Premera Blue Cross Blue Shield of Alaska. The Alaska Disaster Recovery Fund has granted out $110,000 to 18 nonprofit organizations critical in supporting those in need with disaster recovery.
Quick response time was made possible by a generous seed donation of $185,000 from Wells Fargo Foundation, entrusting The Alaska Community Foundation to effectively manage and invest in local organizations where dollars would be the most effective. Wells Fargo Foundation’s donation has primarily funded the first round of grants, which were informed by a survey conducted by The Foraker Group of impacted nonprofits in the region, with a focus on providing resources to ensure direct support to those in need. The second round of funding will take place in early 2019 with the balance of Wells Fargo Foundation’s gift and donations from private individuals and businesses.
“Nonprofits play an ever-increasing and critical role in our communities, and many of them played a central role in providing some of our most vulnerable citizens a safe place during the earthquake,” said Nina Kemppel, ACF President and CEO. “It is important to remember that these partners in care have their own recovery efforts that need to be addressed to continue to strengthen lives and communities.”
Visit Alaskacf.org to donate or learn more about the Alaska Disaster Recovery Fund.
“It was important for us to be able to provide emergency childcare services so parents could get back to work or focus on repairs. The emergency funding we received allowed us to provide care at no cost to families during a time of crisis and for that, we are so very grateful.” – Barbara Dubovich, Camp Fire Alaska CEO
Grants from the Alaska Disaster Recovery Fund:
Alaska 2-1-1 (United Way of Anchorage) – $5,000
Alaska Literacy Program – $5,000*
Alaska Unique Riders Overcoming Risk & Adversity – $2,500
Anchorage Community YMCA – $10,000
Anchorage Concert Association – $5,000
Bean’s Café – $10,000*
Camp Fire Alaska – $10,000*
Catholic Social Services – $10,000*
Chugiak Senior Citizens, Inc. – $5,000
Family Outreach Center for Understanding Special Needs Inc. (FOCUS) – $10,000*
Food Bank of Alaska – $5,000
Four Valleys Community School – $1,000
Girl Scouts of Alaska – $5,000*
National Crisis Response Canines – $4,000
Salvation Army – $10,000*
Sled Dog Sanctuary – $2,500
Volunteers of America – $10,000
*Co-supported by funding from the Alaska Disaster Recovery Fund and United Way of Anchorage.
This news from The Alaska Community Foundation was originally posted on their website on January 15, 2019. The Alaska Community Foundation granted permission for Philanthropy Northwest to cross-post this article here on our website, including the related photos, so that we could share the information with our entire six-state regional network. It is an excellent real-world example of disaster philanthropy efforts done in collaboration.
