La Crosse Community Foundation: Emergency Response Fund

About

The La Crosse Area Emergency Response Fund's first priority will be to provide funding to La Crosse County charitable organizations that already offer direct services to its targeted populations. The aim is to help people hardest hit by reduced and lost work resulting from pandemic-related closures.

Hosted by La Crosse Community Foundation and supported by Great Rivers United Way, this fund will provide flexible and rapid resources to charitable organizations working with communities who are disproportionately impacted by COVID-19 and the economic consequences of the outbreak and its related preventative measures. The fund is designed to complement the work of public health officials and expand local capacity to address all aspects of the outbreak and subsequent closures as efficiently as possible.

The first phase of these rapid-response grants will address:

· The economic impact of reduced and lost work due to the COVID-19 outbreak
· Immediate needs of economically vulnerable populations caused by closures and cancellations related to COVID-19
· Increased demand for medical information and support

La Crosse Community Foundation will administer grants in partnership with Great Rivers United Way. Together we will proactively identify potential grant recipients, solicit guidance on potential recipients from community advisors, review grant applications, and recommend final awards. Funds will be released on a rolling basis as fundraising continues throughout the outbreak and recovery phases of the crisis, making it possible to move resources quickly and adapt to evolving needs in subsequent funding phases. The fund expects to make an initial round of grants within the next few weeks.

About the Host

La Crosse Community Foundation (LCF) is a charitable organization created through gifts from individuals who care about enhancing the greater La Crosse area.