Kent County Today

Delaware State Chamber Of Commerce issued the following announcement on March 17

Four leading nonprofit and philanthropic entities have launched a coordinated initiative to generate resources necessary to respond to the COVID-19 pandemic in Delaware. The group is coordinating fundraising, grantmaking and volunteer activities.

Delaware Alliance for Nonprofit Advancement (DANA), Delaware Community Foundation (DCF), Philanthropy Delaware (PD) and United Way of Delaware (UWDE) are partnering to coordinate charitable resources to maximize impact statewide during this crisis.

Businesses, organizations and individuals are invited to donate to this collective response. Donations can be made to:

   • Delaware Does More: COVID-19 Rapid Response Fund at United Way at UWDE.org/COVID19

   • Delaware COVID-19 Strategic Response Fund at the DCF at delcf.org/coronavirus

An overview of the full plan is below.

***The application process for nonprofits will be announced soon. Nonprofits are asked to refrain from contacting the participating organizations at this time.

DELAWARE COVID-19 EMERGENCY RESPONSE INITIATIVE

A Nonprofit Collaborative Response to the 2020 Coronavirus Pandemic

THE CHALLENGE (Our “Why”)

The coronavirus pandemic is an unprecedented challenge. In Delaware, every sector of society is doing its part to help slow the spread of the coronavirus, which causes the illness known as COVID-19. These necessary actions are driving massive changes in daily life, which are especially hard on children in low-income households, the working poor and seniors, most of whom lack essential resources, on a good day.

At the same time, as Delaware nonprofits race to address the immediate local consequences of the pandemic, they are tapping funds earmarked for other needs, compromising the network’s capacity to address the long-term consequences of the pandemic.

The goal of this partnership is to align Delaware’s nonprofit community in a coordinated effort to alleviate the impact of the crisis in Delaware. We seek to do this by supplementing and supporting efforts of government, school systems and social service agencies, by generating funds and other supports, and by recruiting volunteers to address both the immediate and long-term consequences of the COVID-19 crisis.

THE RESPONSE (Our “How”)

A group of Delaware’s philanthropic and nonprofit leaders have launched a coordinated response, comprising four elements:

Delaware Does More: COVID-19 Rapid Response Fund

United Way of Delaware (UWDE) has launched the Delaware Does More: COVID-19 Rapid Response Fund, an initiative to raise and manage funds that will address immediate needs resulting from the crisis. The fund will focus on alleviating the near-term impact of COVID-19 by working to supplement and support efforts related to children in low-income households, the working poor and seniors. UWDE will work with Philanthropy Delaware (PD) and will house and manage this fund.

Volunteer Coordination

Through the Delaware Does More: COVID-19 Rapid Response Fund, UWDE will coordinate COVID-19-related volunteer activities throughout the state, using its 211 platform.

Delaware COVID-19 Strategic Response Fund

The COVID-19 Strategic Response Fund will target evolving needs of the state’s most-impacted communities, for the longer term needs of our community. The Delaware Community Foundation (DCF) will house and manage this fund. The DCF and PD will work with philanthropists to assemble funds for a collective response. This response will be coordinated with the activities of Delaware Does More.

Assessing & Strengthening Nonprofits to Respond

The Delaware Alliance for Nonprofit Advancement (DANA) is assessing what nonprofit organizations require to be able to respond successfully to community needs as the long-term impact of the pandemic evolves. Armed with the information from DANA’s assessment, the DCF, PD and UWDE will work together to allocate the charitable dollars to have the greatest impact throughout the state.

Throughout this difficult time, United Way of Delaware, the Delaware Community Foundation, Philanthropy Delaware and the Delaware Alliance for Nonprofit Advancement will coordinate with each other, and with other nonprofits, businesses, government agencies and individuals to ensure a comprehensive response throughout the state.

For information about or to contribute to either or both funds, visit UWDE.org/COVID19 or delcf.org/coronavirus.

For nonprofits wishing to share information for the DANA survey, visit https://www.questionpro.com/t/ALTU4ZgwmL.

Original source can be found here.