Kitsap’s COVID Response Fund brings in $450,000

By Steven Powell Bainbridge Island Review • September 30, 2020 1:30 am
Tags: ,
Kitsap’s COVID Response Fund brings in $450,000

Unity in Community, Kitsap’s COVID-19 Response Fund, has brought in about $450,000 since its inception a little more than six months ago.

That amount includes donations to the Kitsap Race Equity and Empowerment Fund. Focus areas besides that fund are: basic, relationship and nonprofit needs.

The largest grants have been awarded to:

•$50,000 – Kitsap County Food Association for area food banks.
•$48,400 – Kitsap County Food Bank Association for local food banks.
•$25,000 – The Arc of the Peninsulas, providing meals to those in need.
•$17,250 – Olive Crest, helping foster families and youth in numerous ways.
•$15,000 – The Coffee Oasis, serving homeless and other youth in need.
•$15,000 – House of Refuge, helps uneducated, disabled and people of color in need.
•$12,500 – Kitsap Community Resources, helping with domestic violence and parenting.
•$11,000 – Peninsula Community Health Services, funds for programs to help with suicide prevention.
•$10,325 – Empact Northwest, helping the most-vulnerable populations in a variety of ways.

•$10,000 – Kitsap Immigrant Assistance Center, helping immigrants with exceptional need.

•$10,000 – The Arc of the Peninsulas, providing meals to people who need them.

Most of the donations have come from other foundations or businesses. Contributors who donated $10,000 or more include: United Way of Kitsap County, The Ballmer Group, Columbia Bank, First Federal Community Foundation, Medina Foundation, Orchard Foods, Perigee Fund, Puget Sound Energy, Sparky’s Fund, Town & Country Markets, and Windermere Foundation (Poulsbo office).

Foundation president and CEO Kol Medina said they are always looking for more donations as the need continues. While happy for any donation, he said they are especially seeking funds for the Kitsap Race Equity and Empowerment Fund, which has received about $93,000.

“I’m extremely proud of the leaders of color who have come together to lead the Kitsap Racial Equity and Empowerment Fund. It’s a privilege to learn from them,” he said.

For details go to www.kitsapcovid19response.org/equitable-community-needs.

As for the specific COVID fund, Medina said it has $47,000 left in it.

”We’re going to hold that money and any additional donations made until we get further into fall or winter and see whether a second surge of COVID occurs and/or if we start seeing the longer-term negative economic and social impacts of the pandemic start to materialize,” Medina said.

He added that he thinks the need will be there for quite some time.

“This fund will go on as long as the need still exists, which I think we will be for a year or more,” he said.

Tags: ,