Our organization has a long history of raising funds for important work in our community. Our team has already raised over $5M for relief and recovery efforts in Buncombe County, but we aren't done yet.
Where Will Those Dollars Go?
Our Board's Executive Committee met last week and approved a Hurricane Helene funding strategy that falls into the following priority areas:
- 30% Relief Work - funding to meet the urgent needs of our community
- 60% Recovery Work - strategic funding to address mid to long-term recovery
- 10% United Way of Asheville and Buncombe County's relief and recovery work
Early Investments
By November 30, we will have invested $1.5M in Relief Work. We've already dispersed some of those funds. Within two weeks of the storm, $200K was invested in 11 youth-serving nonprofits addressing relief efforts in their communities, and we provided funds to five organizations for direct assistance to people in Swannanoa, Big Ivy, Sandy Mush, and Asheville. Additional grants to groups with immediate needs and to individuals most severely impacted by the storm will continue to be made over the next 3 weeks.
Next Stage Funding
The Recovery stage involves a longer-term, more targeted strategy that will emerge as the mid-and long-term impacts of the hurricane are better understood. We expect this discernment process to begin in December.
In Other News
In addition, UWABC connected over 100 community partners with the opportunity to request up to $10,000 from The North Carolina Disaster Relief Fund, which is operated by UWNC. This has the potential to bring tens of thousands of additional relief funds to partners in Buncombe County.
