Alexandria, Minn. – The Alexandria Area Community Foundation (AACF) announced today the most recent grant recipients from the Alexandria Response Fund to support local COVID-19 relief efforts. The Alexandria Response Fund made eight grants totaling $40,000.
The grant recipients are as follows:
- $5,000 to support childcare tuition assistance at the Alexandria Area YMCA;
- $5,000 to support telehealth counseling through the Village Family Center;
- $5,000 for emergency housing and financial resources for victims of domestic violence to Someplace Safe Douglas County Advocacy;
- $5,000 for lumber and supplies to Habitat for Humanity of Douglas County;
- $5,000 to Salvation Army: Northern Division to support COVID-19 response in Douglas County;
- $5,000 to support the current food purchase budget of Douglas County Outreach Food Shelf;
- $5,000 to support client access and transition to telehealth through Lutheran Social Services;
- $5,000 to support basic need supplies through Love INC of Douglas County Lakes Area.
The Alexandria Response Fund was established in late February after the downtown fires. The purpose of the fund is to help in times of crisis, such as the downtown fires and the COVID-19 pandemic. The AACF Board of Directors also made the decision at the end of April to suspend the yearly “Difference Maker” Grant round and instead put those dollars into the Alexandria Response Fund to support the needs of the community due to the COVID-19 pandemic.
Holly Witt, AACF Executive Director, stated, “We know that the needs of our friends, family and neighbors are great and we know that they will continue to grow as this pandemic affects our community. The grants from the Alexandria Response Fund are to support the front line organizations that are helping those most impacted and we thank them for their continued work.”
As of May 6, 2020, the Alexandria Response Fund had just over $130,000 which included the transfer of grant dollars from the “Difference Maker” grant round. If you are interested in making a gift to the fund, visit https://www.communitygiving.org/donate/alexandria-response-fund to make a gift via credit card or checks can be mailed to Alexandria Area Community Foundation, 12010 Broadway Street South, Suite 240, PMB 264, Alexandria, MN 56308.
The AACF continues to work with local agencies to identify the greatest needs of the community and disseminate the funds to local 501c(3) nonprofits, governmental and faith-based organizations. Organizations who are interested in applying for funding can visit www.communitygiving.org/covid-19.
There is also a statewide COVID-19 relief fund being operated by the Minnesota Council on Foundations and the St. Paul and Minnesota Community Foundation. For more information on this fund, visit https://mcf.org/minnesota-disaster-recovery-fund-coronavirus.
The Alexandria Area Community Foundation (AACF) attracts and administers charitable funds for the benefit of the local Alexandria area. Since 1992, AACF has grown to over $4.8 million in assets and awarded over $3.9 million in grants to nonprofits. The AACF is governed by a local board of directors and is a partner of CommunityGiving, which is a collaborative of many community foundations united under a single framework to create efficiencies that maximize the impact of our donors. Collectively, CommunityGiving administers nearly 850 funds totaling more than $150 million. Learn more at CommunityGiving.org/Alexandria.