Helping Communities Recover from Hurricane Helene
Philanthropy Southeast is closely monitoring ways members can support communities affected by Hurricane Helene. This post will be updated as more information becomes available.
Last week, Hurricane Helene swept through the Southeast, making landfall as a Category 4 storm and bringing catastrophic winds and flooding to parts of Florida, Georgia, North Carolina, South Carolina and Tennessee. The storm caused dozens of deaths and has left communities throughout the region, particularly in western North Carolina and eastern Tennessee, facing months of rebuilding and recovery.
Our team is ready to support members who have been directly affected by the storm by connecting them with resources and other sources of support. Please call us at (404) 524-0911 if you need to speak with anyone on our staff. You can also email Jaci Bertrand, vice president of member engagement, at jaci@philanthropysoutheast.org.
The North Carolina Network of Grantmakers is also collecting resources for philanthropic organizations supporting relief and recovery in that state.
Immediate Relief & Volunteer Opportunities
To help support immediate relief efforts, you can donate to the Red Cross here.
World Central Kitchen has sent teams to Florida, Georgia, North Carolina and Tennessee to provide meals where needed. You can donate to support their work here.
Team Rubicon, a veteran-led humanitarian organization, has established full response operations in Florida, Georgia and South Carolina, route clearance teams in Georgia and Tennessee, and reconnaisance teams in eastern Tennessee and western North Carolina. You can donate to support their work here. Volunteer sign-up is available here.
Those who live in and around Boone, North Carolina, can sign up with Samaritan’s Purse to assist with debris removal and clean-up between now and November 2.
In North Carolina, Volunteer NC is seeking volunteers here. North Carolina Voluntary Organizations Active in Disaster has a round-up of volunteer opportunities on its website.
If you know of other volunteer opportunities, please let us know.
Relief Funds Accepting Donations
Foundations and other philanthropic organizations throughout the region are accepting donations to funds that will help sustain long-term relief and recovery efforts in the weeks, months and years ahead. Donation links to these funds are listed below – please email David Miller at david@philanthropysoutheast.org if you know a fund that should be on this list.
National/Regional
Florida
Georgia
North Carolina
South Carolina
Tennessee
Virginia
Philanthropy Responds
We've been tracking responses to the hurricane via our listservs and press releases. If you have been supporting relief and recovery, please let us know by emailing david@philanthropysoutheast.org.
Thank you to the organizations below for their rapid response during this time of incredible need.
- The Atlanta Braves Foundation has made a $20,000 donation to Team Rubicon
- Bank of America is supporting the Red Cross and is matching employee donations as low as $1 to partners, including the Red Cross, World Central Kitchen and SBP USA
- BlackRock is supporting the American Red Cross and Team Rubicon
- Chick-fil-A, Inc. is supporting the American Red Cross, including an employee match
- Coca-Cola has been working with American Red Cross, state and local officials and other nonprofits to coordinate a disaster response for water throughout Georgia, particularly those areas hit hardest
- Delta contributes $500,000 to American Red Cross for Hurricane Helene relief
- Dogwood Health Trust Announces More Than $30 Million for Initial Hurricane Helene Relief Funding Throughout Western North Carolina
- Genuine Parts Company is supporting the efforts of the American Red Cross Disaster Recovery Team
- Georgia-Pacific is working with its disaster relief partner Convoy of Hope to help citizens in impacted areas, including Augusta
- Georgia Power Foundation will be making grants across local Georgia communities most impacted by the storm
- HCA Healthcare to donate $1 million towards Hurricane Helene disaster relief efforts in North Carolina
- Home Depot Foundation commits up to $2 million for Hurricane Helene Relief
- Kaiser Permanente has launched an employee giving campaign with a match of up to $100,000
- Papa Johns made an initial grant of $10,000 to World Central Kitchen
- Georgia Power, Southern Company and Southern Company Gas Charitable Foundations Donate $3 million for Hurricane Helene Relief
- Truist Foundation increases Hurricane Helene relief, recovery support to $1 million
- Wells Fargo Donates More Than $1 Million For Hurricane Helene Disaster Relief
- Augusta National Golf Club Donates $5 Million for Hurricane Helene Relief
- Arthur M. Blank Family Foundation Grants $2 Million to World Central Kitchen for Hurricane Relief
- Civic Local Foundation supports relief efforts in western North Carolina
- Community Foundation of Sarasota County launches Season of Sharing Campaign early to respond to Hurricane Helene
- The Patterson Foundation Seeds Local Efforts for Hurricane Helene Immediate Relief and Long-Term Recovery
- The Duke Endowment Commits $15 Million to Hurricane Helene Relief Efforts in Western North Carolina and Upstate South Carolina
- Regions Bank and the Regions Foundation Launch Services and Support for Communities Impacted by Hurricane Helene
- Humana Foundation Donates $1 Million to Support Disaster Recovery in the Wake of Hurricane Helene
- Blue Cross NC, Blue Cross NC Foundation Commit $2.5 Million to Helene Relief
