MAYOR WALSH AND FUND
STEERING COMMITTEE AWARD $1.7 MILLION IN EMERGENCY GRANTS THROUGH BOSTON
RESILIENCY FUND
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BOSTON - Wednesday, April 22, 2020 - Mayor
Martin J. Walsh and the Boston Resiliency Fund Steering Committee today
announced the distribution of an additional $1.7 million in funds to support
20 organizations that provide critical services and support to residents,
vulnerable populations, and Boston families whose wellbeing is most
immediately impacted by the COVID-19 public health emergency. This round of
funding is aimed at providing continued support for community health centers,
individuals experiencing homelessness, persons with disabilities,
community-based organizations in neighborhoods experiencing higher rates of
COVID-19, and Boston's Muslim community during Ramadan, which begins this
week. The funding will also support the personal protective equipment (PPE)
needs of Boston's frontline and essential workers. To date, including this
most recent funding award, the Boston Resiliency Fund has distributed $13.8
million in 76 emergency grants to 135 organizations.
"Through the Boston Resiliency Fund, we
are harnessing the generosity of Boston's residents and businesses and we're
making sure those resources go where they will make the biggest, most
immediate impact for our residents," said Mayor Walsh. "I am
incredibly proud and thankful for everyone's generosity as we come together
to support one another during these difficult times."
Since its creation in March, the Boston Resiliency Fund has
raised over $26 million from over 4,200 individual donors. The Fund will
continue accepting donations from individuals, organizations and
philanthropic partners who wish to contribute and offer their support, and
100 percent of donations will be awarded to local organizations, with the
majority of future grants to be made through the rest of April and May.
Organizations are encouraged to complete a statement of interest to
be considered for future grants.
Today, 21 organizations will receive grants to
expand their capacity or adjust their service model to meet the immediate
needs of Boston residents during this public health emergency. 29 percent of
the organizations receiving grants today are led by a person of color and 52
percent are women-led organizations.
"This second round of support from the
Boston Resiliency Fund will be critical in helping to ensure continuity of
care -- from testing to treatment -- for thousands of city residents during
the COVID-19 crisis," said James W. Hunt, Jr., president and CEO of the
Massachusetts League of Community Health Centers. "We are grateful to
Mayor Walsh and city health leaders for making these critical investments in
some of Boston's most vulnerable communities."
"Eastie Farm is delighted to be part of
an innovative solution that helps ensure food security in East Boston and
Chinatown, while supporting our partners Bon Me Restaurant and Tawakal Halal
Cafe in sustaining themselves through this economic crisis," said Kannan
Thiruvengadam, director of Eastie Farm. "We thank Bon Me and Tawakal for
providing much needed culturally sensitive meals at cost and with utmost
attention to the health and safety of all involved, and we thank Mayor Walsh
for this generous support for Eastie Farm's work in resiliency, and for his
tireless and diligent leadership during this challenging time."
The grants range in size and will be awarded
to the following organizations:
Continued support to community health centers
and healthcare systems:
· Expanded COVID-19 Testing for Community Health Centers that will allow the Harvard Street and Dimock Community
Health Centers increase neighborhood-based testing. So far, the Boston
Resiliency Fund has supported nine community health centers in neighborhoods
that are seeing higher incidences of COVID-19. To view a map of testing sites
in the City of Boston, please visit here.
· Mass. League of Community Health
Centers will pilot
telehealth expansion with nine community health centers in Boston. This pilot
will allow community health centers to screen for testing virtually and
conduct follow up appointments at home with those who test positive. It will
also give patients access to virtual visits and health monitoring devices for
better management of chronic disease.
· Personal Protective Equipment that
will protect Boston's frontline and essential workers at health centers,
long-term care facilities, shelters, and other non-profit providers across
the City. This additional funding from the Boston Resiliency Fund matches the
$500,000 MAPFRE Foundation grant awarded to the City of Boston last
week.
Ensuring Boston's children, families, and
seniors have access to food and basic needs:
· African Community Economic
Development of New England,
in partnership with ISBCC's Ascia Foods, will provide Iftar (sunset) meals to
Boston's Muslim community during Ramadan.
· Boston Public Market Association will work with the Market's local vendors to prepare and
deliver nourishing, safe meals for various senior centers and meal sites and
to homeless guests and residents at the Pine Street Inn.
· Boys and Girls Club of Dorchester will provide 'grab & go' bags of groceries and baby formula
to low-income families with young children in Dorchester.
· Hope & Comfort supplies basic hygiene items to under-resourced youth and
families via meal sites, including those run by the Boston Public Schools and
the YMCA of Greater Boston.
· More Than Words will buy and deliver food and hygiene supplies to over 300 youth
and young adults who are facing food insecurity.
Support for organizations doing work in East
Boston, a neighborhood experiencing higher rates of COVID-19:
· Center for Cooperative Development
and Solidarity will offer
financial relief for East Boston families in need who are ineligible to
receive support from other resources.
· East Boston Soup Kitchen will continue distributing grocery gift cards to families in
need in the East Boston community.
· Eastie Farm will work with East Boston Mutual Aid, East Boston Soup
Kitchen, Boston Chinatown Neighborhood Center, and Chinese Progressive
Association to identify families in need of food. Two local restaurants, Bon
Me and Tawakal Halal Cafe, will then prepare and distribute safely prepared
meals to families in East Boston and Chinatown.
· Maverick Landing Community Services, in partnership with The Harborside Community Center, Neighbors United for a Better East
Boston, and Veronica Robles Cultural Center,
will offer food, supplies and financial assistance to East Boston families
who do not have access to stimulus dollars, unemployment assistance, or who
do not qualify for public benefits.
· Salesian Boys and Girls Club distributes meals from the Club and provides home delivery
of breakfast, lunch, hygiene products, and at-home art activities to
children and families.
Support for Boston's most vulnerable
populations, including those experiencing homelessness and persons with
disabilities:
· Commonwealth Land Trust will
support vulnerable residents with HIV/AIDS in their supportive housing
programs by providing increased frequency and extent of cleaning and
enhancing social distancing policies.
· Developmental Evaluation and
Adjustment Facilities, Inc. will adapt their service delivery to provide deaf-accessible
essential health information relating to COVID-19, how to access basic needs
online, and more.
· Haley House will prepare 500 additional hot take-out meals and expand their
food pantry services at their South End soup kitchen.
· Health Care Without Walls will staff screening stations at Rosie's Place to promote the
health and safety of guests and will provide gift cards to vulnerable clients
in need of basic supplies.
· Home for Little Wanderers will provide extra meals for children and youth living at their
group homes and residential sites and grocery assistance to families and
individuals identified by their clinicians.
· New England Paralyzed Veterans of
America will continue
transporting disabled veterans to the VA Boston Healthcare System, help
veterans combat feelings of isolation and loneliness, and assist home-bound
veterans with their food needs.
· Rosie's Place will continue to be a safe space where vulnerable and homeless
women can access services such as medical screening, showers, both daytime
and overnight shelter, prepared to-go meals and snacks, and groceries.
As the effects of the coronavirus pandemic are
quickly evolving and potentially long-lasting, the City and the Steering
Committee will work closely with non-profit partners and service providers to
understand how their needs will change. As a result, the priorities of the
fund may change as the needs of Boston residents evolve.
The Boston Resiliency Fund exists within the
Boston Charitable Trust, an existing 501(c)(3) designated trust fund managed
by the City of Boston's Treasury Department. For more information on how to
make a donation, please visit: boston.gov/resiliency-fund.
For general inquiries, please email brf@boston.gov.
To learn more about other funds serving Boston
nonprofits, please visit Philanthropy Massachusetts' resource page. In
addition, the COVID-19 Response Fund at The Boston
Foundation and the COVID-19 Family Support Fund at
the United Way are working to rapidly distribute resources to organizations
and individuals in Greater Boston that are disproportionately affected by the
coronavirus outbreak.
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