COVID-19 Response Funds
The McCormick Foundation quickly responded to the call to offer support for beleaguered organizations as they seek to continue operations amidst the coronavirus, including the Chicago Community COVID-19 Response Fund.
Funded by several local area foundations, the Chicago COVID-19 Response Fund will provide flexible resources to community-based organizations across the Metropolitan Chicago region to supply essential aid to the individuals and households who are most impacted by the pandemic. Those resources currently include access to emergency food and necessary supplies, rent and mortgage assistance, and utility assistance.
Read about the Chicago Community COVID-19 Response Fund.
Also, the Foundation provided funding to the Illinois COVID-19 Response Fund for nonprofit organizations across the state serving individuals, families, and communities hit hardest by the pandemic.
Read more about the Illinois COVID-19 Response Fund.
Place-Based Emergency Funds for Englewood and Little Village
Teamwork Englewood and Enlace Chicago spearhead community-led efforts to address inter-related issues of education, public health and safety, economic development, and jobs. The national COVID-19 pandemic has adversely affected vulnerable residents already challenged with homelessness or at-risk of experiencing homeless, healthcare, and emergency response workers, seniors, and immigrants.
Recently, the McCormick Foundation provided $150,000 to each organization for COVID-19 emergency funding. Those resources will be used to meet urgent needs and provide survival essentials for residents during the pandemic, including, but not limited to, economic supports for lost wages and income, rental assistance, emergency food distribution, and access to healthcare and mental health supports.
Journalism Fund Provides $425,000 in Grants
The McCormick Foundation, in collaboration with five other foundations, announced 48 grants totaling more than $425,000 from a collaborative Journalism Fund, offering immediate support for local media organizations working to disseminate information about COVID-19 to Chicagoland communities. The Fund is providing local media organizations covering the pandemic with grants up to $10,000 to continue their coverage. Congratulations to Democracy Program Officer Andres Torres for launching the effort.
Read the news release.
A Focus on Our Children
The McCormick Foundation’s commitment to help Illinois' most vulnerable children to succeed through school and life by ensuring the best possible start beginning at birth continues during the pandemic. Emergency funding is helping address immediate and intermediate needs, bulk-purchasing diapers and wipes for high need families served by child care agencies across the city, and technical assistance to providers to access federal CARES act funding for small businesses. Emergency funding also will support a rapid response effort to quickly update the city’s early learning data system in a way that allows real time forecasting of and response to anticipated sudden swings of the availability of child care, as well as family needs for care.
A History of Support
Robert R. McCormick and the McCormick Foundation have both provided resources in anticipation of and in preparation for disaster.
Read Blog
Meals for the Front Line
The McCormick Foundation is committed to supporting our frontline organizations during this unprecedented time. To date, hundreds of box lunches have been provided Mt. Sinai Hospital, the Jesse Brown VA, and the Manteno VA. The McCormick Foundation will continue to provide meals from small, minority-owned businesses to select organizations through June.
Partner Spotlight: Breakthrough
Breakthrough has adapted quickly to support Garfield Park residents in an age of social distancing. Here are just a few examples:
- Transitioning to curbside pickup at the Fresh Market Pantry
- Delivering meals to families of students participating in Breakthrough programs
- Procuring laptops for families with students participating in e-learning
- Partnering with the Anti-Cruelty Society's Friends Network to provide pet care kits to families.
Learn more at breakthrough.org and watch their feature on WTTW's Chicago Tonight.