FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE:
Media Contact:
Courtney Thomas Barnes
Vice President for Communications & Public Affairs
Greater New Orleans Foundation
504.236.7096
courtney@gnof.org
Foundation Activates Disaster Response & Restoration Fund Ahead of Tropical Storm Francine Landfall, Announces $20,000 in Grants to Local Nonprofits
NEW ORLEANS – (September 10, 2024) Today, ahead of Tropical Storm Francine’s landfall in Louisiana, the Greater New Orleans Foundation (Foundation) activated its Disaster Response & Restoration Fund and is now accepting donations in response to the State of Emergency declaration issued by Governor Jeff Landry due to threats from Francine and the threats to the Foundation’s 13-parish service area in Southeast Louisiana (Orleans, Jefferson, St. Tammany, St. Bernard, Plaquemines, Lafourche, Terrebonne, Assumption, St. Charles, St. James, St. John the Baptist, Tangipahoa, and Washington Parishes.)
Donations can be made to the Disaster Response & Restoration Fund here. Please write “Francine” when asked to specify the fund.
The Foundation is also immediately awarding grants to local nonprofits through the Foundation’s endowed Gayle and Tom Benson Disaster Relief Fund, which was established earlier this summer to give the Foundation capacity to provide rapid financial support to our region’s most effective first-responding nonprofits in advance of an event like Tropical Storm Francine’s landfall. A total of $20,000 will be distributed to the following nonprofit organizations:
- Via Link: Through its 211 line, provides crisis support, connects people to resources and services, and develops vital data and trend information to ensure policies and programs meet community needs.
- Second Harvest Food Bank: Delivering water and shelf-stable staples to their partner organizations; providing hot meals, snacks and water to emergency shelters and first responders in affected areas; and preparing to distribute food, disaster boxes, and water once the storm has passed.
“Thanks to the generosity of Mrs. Gayle Benson, the Foundation has been positioned to play an immediate role in helping the nonprofits on the front lines with these grants,” said Andy Kopplin, President & CEO of the Greater New Orleans Foundation. “As the storm threatens communities in the Greater New Orleans region, we ask that others join us in supporting our nonprofit first responders.”
Kopplin added that “Everyone has a job in times of disaster, and ours is raising money and deploying it to the most effective nonprofits working to help our neighbors. Our nonprofit partners are experts in responding to both immediate and long-term needs of our community following disaster. As always, we are proud to support these trusted organizations and remain committed to quickly responding to the needs of our region.”
“As our City and region respond to Tropical Storm Francine, it is essential that our nonprofits have the resources they need to lift up our residents as the storm approaches,” said New Orleans Mayor LaToya Cantrell. “I encourage anyone who can to contribute to the Greater New Orleans Foundation’s Disaster Response and Restoration Fund, so our nonprofits have what they need to take care of our most vulnerable populations.”
“I want to thank our partners at the Greater New Orleans Foundation for their steadfast commitment to Jefferson Parish and our entire region, especially in times of crises,” said Jefferson Parish President, Cynthia Lee Sheng. “The activation of its Disaster Response & Restoration Fund will provide nonprofit organizations in our area needed support and additional resources to assist our community in the aftermath of Francine.”
Since 2005, the Greater New Orleans Foundation has built a track record of making impactful grants after a disaster. The Foundation has responded to every disaster since Hurricane Katrina when it led the Unified Community Planning effort and raised a $23 million affordable housing fund. The Foundation invested approximately $10 million in response to the COVID-19 pandemic and has distributed roughly $8 million in response to Hurricane Ida.
In May 2022, the Foundation announced one of its major long-term community recovery grants from Hurricane Ida disaster response funds, which was a $1 million leadership grant to launch the Community Lighthouse Project. The Community Lighthouse Project, an initiative of Together New Orleans, aims to provide commercial-scale solar power and back-up battery capacity to congregations and nonprofits throughout Louisiana. Since the Foundation made its grant, nine Community Lighthouses have been established within the Greater New Orleans region and are prepared to provide residents with immediate access to cooling and heating stations, charging stations, food distribution, oxygen exchange, light medical equipment, and other critical services during extended power outages in response to Tropical Storm Francine. This is an example of the impact that donations to the Foundation’s disaster recovery funding have on nonprofits’ ability to immediately respond to the disaster at hand. To view the map of the currently active Community Lighthouses, please see below.
“While it is unclear exactly where the storm’s landfall will be, with a service area stretching across the entirety of South Louisiana, we know that many of our neighbors will be majorly impacted, and we are ready to meet the need for disaster assistance when and where it arises,” said Natalie Jayroe, President & CEO of Second Harvest Food Bank. “Thank you to the Greater New Orleans Foundation for all the ways you support Second Harvest, including your partnership in disaster response.”
“Via Link is prepared to provide the residents of impacted parishes with critical information. This funding supports our ability to prepare for and respond to disasters through our 211 line and our website https://vialink.org/,” said Via Link CEO LaVondra Hallman Dobbs.
Through the Greater New Orleans Foundation Disaster Response and Restoration Fund, the Foundation mobilizes and supports a network of voluntary and community organizations active in disasters (VOADS and COADS) whose expertise is deployed locally, nationally and internationally. The Foundation also honors the tradition of “paying it forward” by coordinating with a network of community foundations when disaster strikes other communities to get immediate support to the most vulnerable citizens. Our Response and Restoration Fund provides immediate relief as well as long-term rebuilding support.
With the capability to get dollars where they are most needed within 48 hours, the Foundation has pre-registered over 20 organizations from across Southeast Louisiana to receive expedited grants should they be active in responding to a disaster.
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ABOUT THE GREATER NEW ORLEANS FOUNDATION
With roots extending over 100 years, the Greater New Orleans Foundation connects generous people to the causes that spark their passion. As one of the most trusted philanthropic organizations in the region, we work every day to drive positive impact by championing charitable giving, strengthening nonprofits, and leading civic projects in our thirteen-parish region. In addition to grantmaking, we convene people, resources, and ideas to create intelligent strategies and solutions to meet our region’s greatest challenges. We are proud to serve as a vocal civic leader with our partners to ensure an economically and culturally vibrant, sustainable, and just region for all. Learn more at www.gnof.org.