Community Foundation Awards $38,000 to Aid Immediate Hurricane Irma Relief Efforts

The Community Foundation of the Florida Keys (CFFK) provided $38,000 from the Florida Keys Emergency Relief Fund for immediate relief to individuals throughout the Keys with urgent needs in the wake of Hurricane Irma. Four nonprofits received the first grants from the Fund to immediately assist individuals with critical needs in housing, rent and other areas on Sunday, October 1st during a concert at St. Paul’s Church benefitting Sister Season:

  • Sister Season Fund, $5,000 to provide rent and other financial assistance to locals employed in tourism-related industries. Applications at com or call Julie Hanson at 305-304-9828 or Ginger King at 305-849-0991.
  • Samuel’s House, on behalf of the Hurricane Disaster Community Relief Fund, $11,000 to help address housing needs in Key West and the Lower Keys. Call 305-296-0240 for more information.
  • Columba Episcopal Church in Marathon, $11,000 to work with city officials and nonprofits to alleviate the Middle Keys housing issues. Call 305-743-6412 for assistance.
  • Florida Keys Outreach Coalition, $11,000 to address urgent and immediate housing and other emergencies in the Upper Keys. Call 305-916-5454 for assistance.

Says CFFK Chair Susanne Woods, “Our tourist service employees are the backbone of the Key West economy. Sister Season is the nonprofit that gives people who work in the tourism industry the most immediate help. This is truly one of our vital nonprofits.”  Applications for construction industry workers and artists and other resources for people in need can be found at cffk.org.

Additional grants from the Florida Keys Emergency Relief Fund (FKERF) at CFFK will be distributed to Keys-wide nonprofit organizations through an application process. Applications for funding from the FKERF and from other granting agencies are available at cffk.org. Keys nonprofits and businesses have been invited to complete a short community assessment to help determine where help is most needed.

Donations to the Florida Keys Emergency Relief Fund can be made at cffk.org or by calling 305-292-1502. The Community Foundation is distributing 100 percent of funds raised through nonprofit and faith-based partners throughout the Keys to help with recovery and rebuilding efforts.

About the Community Foundation of the Florida Keys: The Community Foundation serves the needs and philanthropic aims of donors who wish to better the Keys. For more than 20 years, CFFK has been making Key West and the Florida Keys a better place to live now and in the future by encouraging philanthropy and matching these acts of caring to the community needs.  CFFK and its funding partners have granted more than $22 million to the community since 1996 helping residents from Key West to Key Largo through grants to our local nonprofit partners, scholarships and program services. CFFK currently manages over 140 funds and endowments for individuals and other nonprofits and causes throughout the Florida Keys. More information is available at www.cffk.org or by calling 305-292-1502.

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