Updates on foundation and fund responses to COVID-19

We are continuing to update information about COVID-19 response by foundations and funds in the Greater Philadelphia area on an ongoing basis. If you have sent us information and don’t see it here, look for it in the next update. If you haven’t sent us your information yet, email it to philly@generocity.org to be included in future updates.

Brandywine Health Foundation

“Thus far, community need has far exceeded our projections and we are compelled to surpass our original Fund Goal of $350,000. The Foundation is committed to doubling its fundraising efforts so that our partner organizations can continue to address the growing hardship that so many of our neighbors, friends, students, relatives, and colleagues now face.”

According to the Brandywine Health Foundation, “to date 19 organizations have received funds with the average grant size of $6,700 to address varied community needs identified as life sustaining and essential during the initial stages of this pandemic.”

Those organizations include:

• Brian’s House
• Community Volunteers in Medicine (CVIM)
• Family Services of Chester County, Inc.
• Good Works, Inc.
• Greater Philadelphia Search and Rescue (GPSAR)
• Hope Beyond Borders- Coatesville Kids to College
• Human Services, Inc.
• Keystone Valley Fire Department
• Bridge Academy and Community Center
• Valley Youth House
• Community, Youth & Women’s Alliance, Inc.
• Modena Fire Co #1
• OIC, Chester County
• W.C Memorial Atkinson Center
• The Parkesburg Point
• Coatesville Area Senior Center
• Youth Mentor Partnership
• Maternal Child Health Consortium

Bread & Roses Community Fund

“The work these grantees are doing is essential and provides a source of hope. This pandemic is a nightmare for all of us. But the responses of governments, corporations, and institutions have also inflamed many of the injustices faced by marginalized communities on an everyday basis. The grantees … are doing incredible work to push for a more humane and just response to the crisis.”

From our Partners

In late April, Bread & Roses Community Fund announced its first round of grants from the Solidarity Fund for COVID-19 Organizing. Seven organizations received grants of $10,000 each:

• Amistad Law Project is a West Philadelphia-based public interest law center and organizing project. They are pressuring Governor Wolf to use his reprieve powers to temporarily suspend the sentences of the approximately 12,000 incarcerated people who are vulnerable to COVID-19. They are hoping to use this short-term crisis as a call to mobilize people and expand their base long-term and help permanently reduce prison populations.
• Coalition for Restaurant Health and Safety (CRHS) is a group of restaurant workers in Philadelphia dedicated to ending gender-based violence in the workplace. COVID-19 has led to many restaurant workers losing jobs and having limited hours. In response, CRHS is reorienting their grassroots organizing and education model to help restaurant workers weather this crisis through worker mobilization, distribution of vital information, and bottom-up support networks.
• Healing Communities, led by formerly incarcerated individuals, trains faith communities to engage in restorative justice, connect returning citizens to resources, provide spiritual support, and advocate for political change on local, state, and federal levels. In response to the COVID-19 pandemic, Healing Communities is moving organizing meetings to reliable online platforms, increasing social media presence, and advancing legislative advocacy around COVID-19 decarceration.
• Philadelphia Community Bail Fund posts bail for people who cannot afford to pay. Because the COVID-19 pandemic puts incarcerated individuals at increased risk of infection, they are fighting for decarceration by pressuring the First Judicial District, judges, and Mayor Kenney to release all individuals held pre-trial.
• Philadelphia Teamsters for a Democratic Union is a worker-led, grassroots movement that organizes economic justice campaigns, develops grassroots leaders, and promotes community-labor alliances to improve workers’ rights. They are organizing UPS workers to demand personal protective equipment from their employer as well as spreading awareness to all workers about their COVID-19 health and safety rights through communication campaigns, Zoom meetings, and mentorship.
• Philadelphia Unemployment Project (PUP) organizes and provides services to the unemployed and low-income people of the Philadelphia region. Due to COVID-19, over 800,000 people were laid off in two weeks in March alone in PA. PUP is organizing unemployed people to increase access to unemployment benefits and make change in the state unemployment system.
• The Sappho and LaRoyce Foundation organizes LGBTQ people and women of color to sustain holistic healing. They are supporting community needs, organizing mutual aid systems, and developing emergency response teams to support community members suffering mental health issues and domestic violence, both of which have increased since COVID-19 began.

MontCoPA COVID-19 Response Fund

“This is the definition of community—neighbors helping neighbors.”

Launched in late March by a collaborative of local funders, county government and nonprofits, the MontCoPA COVID-19 Response Fund is intended to provide rapid response grants to area nonprofits serving residents impacted by COVID-19.  It launched with $235,000 in commitments and by mid April had raised $40,000 in individual donations.

As of April 16, the fund had released $212,000 in grant funds to 63 nonprofits, including:

• Abramson Senior Care
• ACLAMO Family Center
• Advanced Living Communities
• Ardmore Food Pantry at St Mary’s Episcopal Church
• Association for Adults with Developmental Disabilities
• Bethel AME Church of Ardmore/Bethel Academy
• Bethel Community Church of Pottstown
• Cecil and Grace Bean Soup Kitchen, Inc.
• Centro de Cultura, Arte, Trabajo y Educación (CCATE)
• Daily Bread Community Food Pantry Inc.
• Einstein Medical Center Montgomery
• ElderNet of Lower Merion and Narberth
• Family Service of Montgomery County PA
• Foundation for Pottstown Education
• Garden of Health, Inc.
• Gaudenzia Foundation
• Gilbertsville Area Community Ambulance Service
• Greater Harleysville & North Penn Senior Services
• Greater Philadelphia YMCA
• Greener Partners
• Hedwig House, Inc.
• Indian Creek Foundation
• Interfaith Hospitality Network of the Main Line
• Inter-Faith Housing Alliance
• Jewish Relief Agency
• Kencrest Services
• Lansdale Hospital Corporation
• Laurel House
• LifePath
• Mattie N. Dixon Community Cupboard, Inc.
• Memorial Church of God in Christ of Haverford, Inc
• Merakey Montgomery County
• Mitzvah Circle
• Montgomery County Community Action Development Commission
• Montgomery County Emergency Service
• Nationalities Service Center
• New Hanover Lutheran Church
• North Penn YMCA
• Orion Communities
• Patrician Society of Central Norristown
• Peaceful Living
• Penn Foundation, Inc./Jennifer Smith
• Philabundance
• Philip Jaisohn Memorial Foundation
• Pottstown Area Children’s Foundation
• Retired Senior Volunteer Program Of Montgomery County Pa DBA RSVP
• Saint Miriam Pro-Catholic Parish and Friary
• Second Alarmer’s Rescue Squad of Montgomery County
• Senior Adult Activities Center of Montgomery County
• Senior Adult Activity Center DBA: Generations of Indian Valley
• Silver Springs – Martin Luther School
• St. Patrick Parish Outreach
• The Open Link
• The Partnership TMA of Montgomery County
• The Pathway School
• The Pottstown Cluster of Religious Communities
• Valley Youth House Committee
• VNA-Community Services, Inc.
• Volunteer Medical Service Corps of Lansdale
• Whitemarsh Community Ambulance Association
• Willow Grove Community Development Corporation
• Women’s Center of Montgomery County
• YWCA Tri-County Area

The Pew Charitable Trusts

“For 29 years, Pew has been pleased to support local agencies dedicated to assisting the most vulnerable people in our community. Now, more than ever, we are incredibly thankful to these organizations for their efforts and compassion.”

The Pew Charitable Trusts announced May 4 that it has awarded $6.8M in grants to support 38 health and human services organizations in the region. “The grants will help to address critical needs of vulnerable adults that are related to or have been exacerbated by COVID-19, such as those related to homelessness, mental health, and extended unemployment.”

The grantees include:

• Action Wellness
• AHEDD
• AIDS Law Project of Pennsylvania
• Bethesda Project
• Broad Street Ministry
• Career Wardrobe
• Center for Employment Opportunities
• Community College of Philadelphia Foundation
• Community Integrated Services
• Compass Working Capital Inc.
• La Comunidad Hispana
• Crime Victims’ Center of Chester County Inc.
• Delaware County Community College Educational Foundation
• Delaware County Women Against Rape
• Depaul USA
• Domestic Violence Center of Chester County
• Drexel University
• Drueding Center
• Esperanza Health Center
• Face to Face
• Family Services of Montgomery County, PA
• HIAS
• Homeless Advocacy Project
• Horizon House
• Inglis Foundation
• Interim House Inc.
• Joseph J. Peters Institute
• Local Initiatives Support Corp.
• Metropolitan Area Neighborhood Nutrition Alliance (MANNA)
• Penn Foundation Inc.
• Philabundance
• Project HOME
• Tech Impact
• Temple University Beasley School of Law
• Women Against Abuse
• Women’s Opportunities Resource Center
• Year Up Inc.
• YouthBuild Philadelphia Charter School

Also announced: The Pew Charitable Trusts and the Pew Center for Arts & Heritage have increased flexibility for all current grants, including the possibility of shifting the funds awarded for a project to general operating support, as well as the ability to adjust reporting deadlines and timelines. In addition, the Pew Center for Arts & Heritage is providing additional funding to its current grantees and fellows.

The Philadelphia Bar Foundation

“The Foundation remains committed to strengthening the legal aid system during this unprecedented time of physical distancing.”

The Philadelphia Bar Foundation announced in late April that it was releasing $254,745 to be distributed immediately to organizations the offer legal aid services for those in need. The funds are in the form of unrestricted grants in April to 36 nonprofit organizations that are “working nonstop to ensure that individuals, families, and communities have access to necessary information, services, and resources needed during this stressful time. They have engaged in critical collaborative efforts, which include:

• Providing instructions on how to obtain a Protection from Abuse Order (aka a restraining order) while the courts are closed from Women Against Abuse, Philadelphia Legal Assistance, Women’s Law Project, and SeniorLAW Center.
• Drafting a guide of Pennsylvania-specific resources for helping students experiencing homelessness and students in the foster care system to adjust during the COVID-19 outbreak from Education Law Center and Juvenile Law Center in collaboration with The Field Center for Children’s Policy, Practice & Research, The Hope Center, and Pennsylvania Partnerships for Children.
• Delivering information on evictions and other housing issues from PhillyTenant.org, a collaborative project by AIDS Law Project, Community Legal Services, HELP: MLP, Legal Clinic for the Disabled, Philadelphia Legal Assistance, Philly VIP, Regional Housing Legal Services, SeniorLAW Center, and Tenant Union Representative Network.

PHL COVID-19 Fund

The PHL COVID-19 Fund administered by the City of Philadelphia, the Philadelphia Foundation and United Way of Greater Philadelphia and Southeastern New Jersey announced its third round of grants on April 23. The grantees are:

• Access Services
• ACHIEVEability
• Associated Services for the Blind and Visually Impaired
• AtlantiCare Foundation
• Barber National Institute
• Bethesda Project
• Big Brothers Big Sisters Independence Region
• Bringing Hope Home
• Bristol Twp. Senior Center
• Bucks County Opportunity Council
• Cambodian Association of Greater Philadelphia
• Camp Dreamcatcher, Inc.
• Campaign for Working Families Inc.
• Catholic Partnership Schools
• Ceiba
• Center for Employment Opportunities – Philadelphia
• Christian Caring Center-Pemberton, Inc
• Collective Success Network
• College Possible Philadelphia
• Community College of Philadelphia Foundation
• Cristo Rey Philadelphia High School
• Deer Meadows Home Health and Support Services LLC
• Drexel Neumann Academy
• Drexel University – 11th Street Health Center, St. Christopher’s Hospital
• Family Promise of Southwest New Jersey
• Family Service of Chester County
• Germantown Life Enrichment Center
• Health Quality Partners
• Help Hope Live
• HELP USA
• Home of the Sparrow
• Hopeworks Camden
• Human Services, Inc.
• Jewish Family Service of Atlantic & Cape May Counties
• Jewish Relief Agency
• KenCrest Services
• Laurel House
• Legacy Treatment Services
• Legal Clinic for the Disabled
• Masjidullah
• Mastery Charter Schools Foundation
• Mazzoni Center
• Mothers in Charge
• Mt. Vernon Manor CDC
• Narberth Ambulance
• New Sanctuary Movement of Philadelphia
• North Light Community Center
• Northeast First Aid Corps
• One House at a Time
• Orion Communities
• PATH (People Acting To Help), Inc.
• Philadelphia Mental Health Center
• Pottstown Cluster of Religious Communities
• Prevent Child Abuse-New Jersey Chapter, Inc.
• Quest Therapeutic Services, Inc.
• Ralston House, DBA Ralston Center, Ralston My Way
• Raymond and Miriam Klein JCC (DBA KleinLife)
• Roxborough Presbyterian Church
• SeniorLAW Center
• St. Christopher’s Foundation for Children
• SOWN
• Team IMPACT
• The Bridge
• The Community Action of Development Commission
• The Graduate! Network
• The Puerto Rican Action Committee of Southern New Jersey
• Uptown Entertainment and Development Corporation
• UrbanPromise Ministries Community Development, Inc.
• Veterans Multi-Service Center
• VietLead
• Women Against Abuse, Inc.
• YoungMoms

The Presser Foundation

“We want our music organizations to come roaring back when it is safe to do so, because so many musicians and enthusiasts depend on them.”

The Presser Foundation, established in 1939 and one of the few private foundations in the United States dedicated solely to music education and music philanthropy. announced in late April that it would be awarding an additional round of general operating grants to 85 music organizations, totaling $521,250, which “will be paid immediately to help these organizations weather the current COVID-19 crisis.”

Additionally, the foundation announced “the selection of grantees for capital projects totaling $795,000, including $545,000 in new commitments and $250,000 satisfying previous commitments, through its Capital Support program.” The recipients include:

• Haverford College
• Historic Lansdowne Theater Corporation
• Kimmel Center, Inc., Academy of Music
• Lafayette College
• Lebanon Valley College
• Rider University – Westminster Choir College
• Swarthmore College
• The Mann Center for the Performing Arts
• University of the Arts

Wawa Foundation

Wawa Foundation awarded $150,000 to 21 Feeding America Food Bank Partners from its COVID-19 Emergency Food Distribution Fund. The company has 900 stores throughout PA, NJ, DE, MD, VA, FL and DC, and its foundation is awarding funds in amounts ranging from $1,000 to $34,000.

In Pennsylvania, where Wawa has 244 stores, the recipients were:

• Philabundance, $34,000
• Second Harvest Food Bank of the Lehigh Valley & NE PA, $4,000
• Helping Harvest (was Greater Berks Food Bank), $2,000
• Central Pennsylvania Food Bank, $1,000

In New Jersey, where Wawa has 257 stores, the recipients were:

• Food Bank of South Jersey, $17,000
• Community FoodBank of New Jersey, $14,000
• Fulfill – Monmouth & Ocean Counties, $9,000
• Mercer Street Friends Food Bank, $2,000
• NORWESCAP Food Bank, $1,000

William Penn Foundation

“William Penn Foundation grants pay for staff, project work, and other necessary costs, but they really represent a strong statement of confidence in the organizations and individuals we support.”

The William Penn Foundation has provided significant funding for a variety of funds and funding efforts that have, themselves, helped hundreds of nonprofits and community organizations in the Greater Philadelphia region:

• $2.5 million to help launch COVID-19 Arts Aid PHL
• $5 million grant to help launch Philadelphia Emergency Fund for Stabilization of Early Education (PEFSEE)
• $3 million lead grant for PHL COVID-19 Fund