Photo courtesy of Emergency Family Assistance Association, providing housing and eviction prevention services for low-income families in Boulder County.
The Foundation has distributed over $11.6 million in total COVID-19 grantmaking to date
Denver, CO – In response to the COVID-19 pandemic’s continued health, social and economic impacts, Rose Community Foundation and its fundholders awarded 531 grants totaling over $4.6 million in its third phase of COVID-19 grantmaking, bringing the Foundation’s COVID-19 grantmaking total thus far to more than $11.6 million.
“The local nonprofit sector continues to demonstrate incredible creativity, resilience and empathy as it responds to the varied and evolving challenges presented by this ongoing crisis,” said Lindy Eichenbaum Lent, Rose Community Foundation’s president & CEO. “This diverse slate of grant recipients embodies that spirit, with each organization advancing innovative, equity-oriented solutions to the pandemic’s inequitable impacts.”
This latest round of responsive grantmaking was informed by ongoing conversations between the Foundation’s staff and community partners on the front lines of service-provision efforts. These discussions indicated that challenges around basic needs remain a growing concern for individuals and families in the Greater Denver region.
Grants were aimed at supporting these basic needs, from food and housing services to cash assistance and resource navigation. The Foundation prioritized funding for organizations serving populations that have been most impacted by the pandemic and/or have been historically under-resourced, including communities of color; domestically-at-risk, economically insecure and low-income individuals; immigrants; people experiencing housing insecurity or homelessness; people with disabilities; public assistance recipients; and older adults. Additionally, the Foundation’s Jewish Life program area made significant investments in supporting Jewish nonprofits advancing community health, safety and wellness and supporting ritual and communal life during this time of physical isolation.
In total, the Foundation’s board and staff directed over $2.2 million to 80 wide-ranging nonprofits and government agencies in the seven-county Greater Denver region.
“Throughout the pandemic, we have been intentional about listening to and learning from nonprofits that are on the ground and have the greatest proximity to those we aim to support,” said Benny Samuels, the Foundation’s vice president of programs. “We will continue to prioritize basic-needs supports and impact-mitigation efforts for as long as those needs persist, and we remain committed to supporting long-term COVID-recovery efforts in metro Denver in the future.”
The Foundation’s donor-advised fundholders made 451 grants totaling over $2.3 million to local, statewide and national organizations during the funding cycle, bringing their total giving since mid-March to more than $4 million. Their grantmaking has not only supported a wide range of direct COVID-19-response efforts but has helped bolster the nonprofit community throughout this challenging year.
The Foundation’s third phase of COVID-19 grantmaking was also supported by generous donations made into two pooled funds, the COVID-19 R.E.S.P.O.N.D. Fund and the Fund for Jewish Nonprofit Resiliency. In 2020, these funds have received over 75 donations totaling over $791,000.
Rose Community Foundation’s third phase of COVID-19-response grant recipients are listed below:
BASIC NEEDS GRANTMAKING
48 grants totaling $1,080,000 million to organizations supporting basic needs in the Greater Denver region. Information about each grant recipient and the services they provide is available here.
Adams County Emergency Food Bank
Archway Housing & Services, Inc.
Asian Pacific Development Center of Colorado
Center for People With Disabilities
Cherry Creek Schools Foundation
Colorado COVID Relief Fund via Mile High United Way)
Community College of Denver Foundation
COVID-19 Eviction Defense Project via The Community Firm
COVIDCheck Colorado via Gary Community Investments
Denver Indian Family Resource Center
Emergency Family Assistance Association
Engaged Latino Parents Advancing Student Outcomes
Gateway Domestic Violence Services
International Rescue Committee in Denver
Keep the Lights On via Mile High United Way
Metro Caring
Metropolitan State University of Denver Foundation
Safehouse Progressive Alliance for Nonviolence
Sister Carmen Community Center
JEWISH LIFE GRANTMAKING
32 grants totaling $1,153,941 to Jewish organizations advancing community health, safety and wellness and supporting ritual and communal life. Information about each grant recipient and the services they provide is available here.
Colorado Jewish ECE Initiative
Jewish Family Service of Colorado
Jewish Explorers via JEWISHcolorado
Merkaz Torah V’Chesed
Southwest NCSY via The Orthodox Union
About Rose Community Foundation
Rose Community Foundation strives to advance inclusive, engaged and equitable Greater Denver communities through values-driven philanthropy. The Foundation envisions a thriving region strengthened by its diversity and generosity, and it utilizes the varied tools at its disposal – grantmaking, advocacy and philanthropic services – to advance this aspiration. Since its founding in 1995, the Foundation has granted more than $322 million to nearly 2,000 organizations and initiatives, including $54 million in facilitated grantmaking from donor-advised funds. The Foundation has also supported nearly 70 nonprofit organizations in creating and growing endowments to sustain their vital work into the future, currently stewarding $44 million in endowed assets. The Foundation has $295 million in total assets under management, with annual grantmaking of nearly $25 million.