Robin Hood Announces $5.2 Million in Latest Rounds of Funding To Organizations Aiding Victims of Hurricane Sandy

NEW YORK, Nov. 27, 2012 /PRNewswire/ -- Robin Hood -- New York's largest poverty-fighting organization -- has announced its latest round of grants to organizations that are helping victims of Hurricane Sandy. 

"Disaster does not recognize zip codes or boundary lines," said David Saltzman, executive director of Robin Hood.  "Thanks to our generous donors, we are able to extend much-needed assistance to our neighbors in New Jersey for the first time, and we'll continue our efforts to help storm victims throughout the tri-state area."

Thus far, Robin Hood has made grants to more than 90 different non-profit organizations in the regions hardest hit by Hurricane Sandy.  Earlier today, it was announced that Robin Hood made a grant of $2 million to New York City's "Non-Profit Recovery Loan Program," which will provide interest-free loans to NYC non-profits impacted by Hurricane Sandy. 

Robin Hood's Relief Fund Committee meets weekly to review and approve new grants, and thus far has disbursed more than $8.2 million since Hurricane Sandy struck.  The latest grants are listed below; for a complete list, please visit www.robinhood.org/rhsandy:

Children's Health Fund
Brooklyn, Queens, Staten Island, Long Island
$500,000

Children's Health Fund has been providing its flagship pediatric programs for homeless and other medically underserved children in New York City since 1987.  Following 9/11, CHF drove its mobile medical unit into communities that were most effected by the terrorist attacks and provided both physical and behavioral health care for children and adults.  CHF also went to Louisiana to help victims of Hurricane Katrina, and they will once again deploy their mobile units to provide medical care to children and adults in the New York tri-state area who are coping with the after-effects of the storm.  This grant will allow them to stock their mobile units with medical personnel and supplies, and will provide operational funds to keep them rolling.

Community Food Bank of New Jersey
State-wide
$200,000

The Community Food bank of New Jersey distributes 39 million pounds of food and groceries each year, serving 1,500 non-profit programs feeding 900,000 low income people throughout the state.  This grant of $200,000 will pay for additional food and groceries in the wake of Hurricane Sandy, and will support two additional staff members who will help families and individuals in affected communities enroll in food stamps and teach them about other potential benefits to which they may be entitled.

Coney Recovers
Coney Island
$25,000

Coney Recovers has created a workforce development initiative ("Coney Corps") to train and employ local residents in the skills required to assist in storm clean-up efforts.  This grant will provide the seed money needed to get recruitment, training, and deployment efforts off the ground.

CUNY
Staten Island, Brooklyn, Manhattan
$300,000

With campuses on Staten Island, in eastern Brooklyn, lower Manhattan and other areas, Sandy had a profound effect on CUNY, where 7,000 students live in Zone A, the area hardest hit by Sandy.  This grant will provide emergency cash assistance to approximately 750 students who are struggling to pay bills in the wake of the storm and will make it possible for them to stay on course with their studies. 

East Harlem Tutorial Program
New York City
$25,000

In the immediate aftermath of the storm, the East Harlem Tutorial Program opened its doors to the community, providing food, a safe haven, programs for children, and support to its neighbors in need.  This emergency grant will replenish the funds they expended and help them continue their good work.

FoodBank of Monmouth and Ocean Counties/Single Stop USA
Cape May & Atlantic Counties
$215,000/$500,000

Founded in 1984 in an effort to address hunger at the Jersey Shore, the FoodBank   of Monmouth and Ocean Counties currently serves over 260 pantries, soup kitchens and other feeding programs by providing nearly 7 million pounds of food annually.  To help meet increased demand for their services following the devastation caused by the storm, Robin Hood is providing a grant of $90,000 which will enable FoodBank to replenish their inventory of available food.  In addition, a grant of $125,000 will go to 14 local food groups in FoodBank's network in Cape May and Atlantic Counties to help address some of their urgent needs, such as replacing refrigerators, freezers, and food that were damaged in the storm. 

The $500,000 grant to Single Stop USA will enable it to establish a full-time presence in New Jersey to aid individuals and families impacted by Hurricane Sandy.  The funding will pay for 10 full-time individuals who will work on-site at food pantries in Cape May and Atlantic Counties that are part of the FoodBank network, where they will help clients apply for food stamp benefits, and provide assistance with tax preparation and FEMA applications.   

Graybeards
Belle Harbor, Queens
$25,000

Originally founded as an over-40 recreational basketball league, Graybeards played a key role in community revitalization after the losses suffered by the Belle Harbor community following 9/11.  Once again, the Belle Harbor area is reeling following the devastation of Sandy, with many homes destroyed by flooding and fires.  Graybeards is striving to provide vital support services to help people rebuild their lives, including finding apartments for physically handicapped individuals who were displaced by the storm.

Global DIRT (Disaster Immediate Response Team)
Rockaways, Queens
$45,000

Founded by military veterans interested in applying their logistical expertise to helping those afflicted by natural disasters, Global DIRT strives to create order amid the chaos.  After receiving accolades for its work helping victims of the Japanese tsunami in 2011, Global DIRT is launching I.T. and coordination teams to assist in food distribution, ground communications, and emergency information management in the Rockaways section of Queens.

Jersey Cares
NJ state-wide
$30,000

Jersey Cares is a state-wide non-profit that recruits and engages volunteers in rewarding, effective efforts that address community-identified needs.  Following Hurricane Sandy, thousands of people have registered with Jersey Cares offering their services to help their neighbors recover from the devastation.  This grant will provide for additional staffing and other operational funding allowing Jersey Cares to effectively deploy thousands of people across the state to help in rebuilding and recovery.

Legal Services of New Jersey (LSNJ)
NJ state-wide
$550,000

LSNJ provides free legal assistance to low-income New Jersey residents.  This grant will allow LSNJ to hire additional staff (four social workers, three attorneys and two paralegals) to work throughout the most affected communities, helping thousands of residents navigate local, state and federal disaster-relief systems so that they can receive the assistance to which they are entitled.

Marks Jewish Community House
Bensonhurst, Brooklyn
$25,000

The Marks JCH has mobilized to help meet the needs of the Brighton Beach, Coney Island and Rockaway communities in this time of crisis. Thanks to this latest grant from Robin Hood, Marks JCH will provide practical support including bridge loans to families with young children to ensure they have food and heat until FEMA and insurance claims come through; purchasing replacement cribs and bedding for families whose homes were flooded and portable heaters for families who have returned to buildings with no heat; and purchasing vouchers and gift cards for other essential items.

New York City Non-Profit Recovery Loan Program
New York City
$2,000,000

This loan program will provide interest-free loans ranging from $5,000 - $100,000 to New York City non-profits impacted by Hurricane Sandy and will cover both operating and capital costs.  The loans, which will be administered by the Fund for the City of New York, will be prioritized for organizations that have suffered the most severe losses and/or are operating within the worst affected areas.

Project Renewal
New York City
$25,000

Based in Manhattan, Project Renewal works with homeless men and women who suffer from mental illness or addiction.  Following the storm, 30 of Project Renewal's clients lost their jobs because their work sites incurred serious damage.  This emergency grant will provide Project Renewal with the funding needed to support those clients until new employment opportunities can be found.

Selfhelp Community Services
NYC-metro area
$25,000

Selfhelp   trains and provides home healthcare aides, enabling the elderly and other at-risk populations to live in their own homes, independently and with dignity.  In the aftermath of Sandy, their employees made hundreds of home visits to clients throughout the most damaged neighborhoods, often spending several days in clients' homes to ensure they received proper medical treatment.  This grant will provide additional operating funds which will allow Selfhelp to repair damage to their technological infrastructure and cover additional staffing costs due to the storm.

Single Stop USA
NYC-metro area
Up to $450,000

Single Stop USA is a national non-profit organization dedicated to helping low-income families and individuals build economic security by offering a "one-stop" program that combines benefits screening and application assistance with tax preparation, legal assistance and financial counseling.  A long-time Robin Hood grantee, this additional funding will allow Single Stop to provide these critical services to thousands of people in need through their mobile response unit and via New York City's recently announced "restoration centers," serving the Rockaways (including Breezy Point), Staten Island, Coney Island, Gravesend, and Red Hook neighborhoods. 

Where To Turn
Staten Island
$25,000

Arising out of the 9/11 disaster, Where To Turn provides crisis relief services for victims of any kind of tragedy by aiding them in obtaining the help they need during the recovery process.  Since so many victims of Hurricane Sandy either lost their homes, or were forced to leave their homes due to damage, Where To Turn will offer storage   lockers for Staten Island residents who need a safe and secure place to house their household possessions as they rebuild their lives.

Thanksgiving Meals
The Rockaways, Coney Island, Red Hook and Staten Island
$112,000

Thanks to a Robin Hood grant, three of Robin Hood's long-time grantees – St. John's Bread & Life, the Food Bank for NYC and Project Hospitality – served an additional 17,000 Thanksgiving meals to people in Coney Island, Red Hook, the Rockaways and Staten Island.

Other Supplies - $129,000

In addition to these grants, the Robin Hood Relief Fund allocated $32,000 to purchase goods (at cost) for organizations in need.  Working with the online retailers Soap.com and Diapers.com, Robin Hood purchased desperately needed toiletries – including 15,000 diapers, 13,000 bars of soap, 12,500 feminine care products, 10,000 baby wipes, 8,000 servings of baby formula, 6,800  toothbrushes and tubes of toothpaste, and 2,500 bottles of shampoo – and delivered them to six organizations serving hard hit communities.  These organizations included AIDS Service Center NYC, Green City Force, Project Hospitality, the River Fund, SCO Family Services and St. John's Bread & Life. 

Robin Hood also purchased 10,000 throw-size fleece blankets for $5 each from the Massachusetts-based company The Promohut, who delivered them to relief organizations Good Shepherd Services and SCO Family Services, which helped 10,000 people stay warm.

An additional 36,000 diapers and other baby supplies – as well as $47,000 to purchase 4,000 warm sleeping bags – will be provided for immediate distribution to needy residents in the Rockaways.

About Robin Hood

Since 1988, Robin Hood has held steadfast to a single mission: fight poverty in New York City. We find, fund and create programs and schools that generate meaningful results for families in New York's poorest neighborhoods. We work closely with more than 200 organizations to help them reach their full potential and perform rigorous assessments to ensure accountability. In addition, Robin Hood's board of directors pays all administrative, fundraising and evaluation costs, so 100% of your donation goes directly to organizations helping New Yorkers in need.

Media contact
Patty Smith
Robin Hood
212-844-3562

SOURCE Robin Hood