Corporations Ramp Up Support for COVID-19 Response Efforts (March 16-31, 2020)

As COVID-19 spreads globally and in the United States, corporations ramp up support with funding to meet the needs of individuals and vulnerable populations impacted by the virus. The “quick-hit” roundup below captures some of the corporate activity in response to COVID-19 over the last two weeks. (In many cases, larger gifts have been covered separately as part of PND’s daily news feed.) Items are sorted in alpha order by company name. 

For more coverage, check out PND’s COVID-19 page and Candid’s COVID-19 popup page.

The AmerisourceBergen Foundation in Valley Forge, Pennsylvania, has announced a $1 million commitment in support of communities, individuals, and nonprofits impacted by COVID-19. Grant recipients include Direct Relief ($250,000), AmeriCares ($250,000), and Healthcare Ready ($150,000). The foundation also announced that it will provide a 2:1 match for employee donations to those organizations as well as the AmerisourceBergen Associate Assistance Fund.

Amgen and the Amgen Foundation have announced an initial commitment of up to $12.5 million in support of U.S. and global relief efforts to address critical needs in communities affected by the coronavirus pandemic. The funds will be used to support emergency response efforts in communities where Amgen operates, patient-focused organizations that are mounting their own response efforts, and international relief efforts led by Direct Relief and International Medical Corps; in addition, the Amgen Foundation will match donations by Amgen employees for relief efforts.

AT&T has launched a $10 million Distance Learning and Family Connections Fund with a $1 million grant to Khan Academy in support of the organization’s efforts to expand existing online learning resources and develop new resources specifically designed to address school closures. The fund also will provide resources in support of efforts to maintain meaningful connections for those isolated from family and friends.

Sustainable energy company AVANGRID and the Avangrid Foundation in Orange, Connecticut, have announced commitments totaling $2 million in support of nonprofits working to address the impact of COVID-19 on vulnerable communities in the company’s service area. To that end, the company will provide $1 million for emergency needs, while the foundation will award $1 million in emergency response funding to its partners nationwide.

Bacardi Limited — in collaboration with Another Round, Another Rally, the James Beard Foundation, and the Restaurant Workers’ Community Foundation — has launched a $3 million initiative to provide bars and bartenders impacted by COVID-19-related shutdowns.

Biogen, a multinational biotechnology company based in Cambridge, Massachusetts, announced a $10 million commitment to address critical immediate needs related to the coronavirus pandemic. Awarded through the Biogen Foundation, the funds will be used to expand testing options, provide training to frontline health workers, ease the strain on healthcare systems, and improve access to basic necessities. The majority of the funds will support U.S.-based nonprofit organizations, including those in Massachusetts and North Carolina, as well as organizations in Italy and other countries worldwide. In addition, the company has provided medical equipment and supplies to Partners HealthCare in Massachusetts and direct support to Massachusetts General Hospital and Brigham and Women’s Hospital.

The Baton Rouge-based Blue Cross and Blue Shield of Louisiana Foundation has announced a commitment of at least $2.1 million, including $2 million through its Community Crisis and Disaster Response Grant funds, to address immediate and longer-term needs in the region related to COVID-19.

The BlueCross BlueShield of Tennessee Foundation has announced grants totaling $3.25 million to food banks in the state impacted by the coronavirus outbreak. The foundation awarded grants of $750,000 to Second Harvest Food Bank of Middle Tennessee (Nashville) and the Mid-South Food Bank (Memphis); grants of $500,000 to the Chattanooga Area Food Bank, Second Harvest Food Bank of East Tennessee (Knoxville), and Second Harvest Food Bank of Northeast Tennessee (Tri-Cities); and a grant of $250,000 to the Regional Inter-Faith Association (Jackson).

Cedars-Sinai in Los Angeles has pledged more than $2 million in support of programs that provide housing, food assistance, and access to health care for individuals who are especially vulnerable to the health and economic impacts of COVID-19, including home-bound seniors and the homeless. Grant recipients include the Community Clinic Association of Los Angeles County ($1 million), Project Angel Food ($150,000), Brilliant Corners ($125,000), the United Way of Greater Los Angeles ($100,000), the Mayor’s Fund for L.A. ($125,000), and the Jewish Free Loan Association ($250,000).

Citizens Bank in Providence, Rhode Island, has announced a commitment of $5 million in support of communities and businesses impacted by the virus. The bank’s Community Support Relief program will provide funding in support of coronavirus-related efforts in regions where the bank operates — including Massachusetts, Pennsylvania, and Rhode Island — while its Small Business Relief and Recovery program will provide funding and other assistance in the coming months to small businesses in the three states.

The Clorox Company Foundation has announced grants totaling $5 million in support of frontline healthcare workers and caregivers. Awards include $3 million to Direct Relief in support of efforts to alleviate the strain on the nation’s hospitals, emergency rooms, and intensive care units, as well as the purchase and distribution of personal protective equipment and portable oxygen concentrators; $1 million to the CDC Foundation in support of its disease control efforts, including patient tracking and follow-up as community transmission occurs, training for caregivers, the strengthening of communications between hospitals and state and local health departments, and the supply needs of healthcare providers; and $1 million to the American Red Cross in support of frontline disinfection measures, efforts to bolster temperature checks for frontline caregivers, and initiatives to ensure that blood products are available for patients in need.

Comerica Bank and the Comerica Charitable Foundation in Dallas have announced commitments totaling $4 million in support of community programming and businesses impacted by COVID-19. The funding will support community development financial institutions working to meet the needs of small and micro businesses, as well as nonprofits serving youth, seniors, and other vulnerable populations, with a focus on food insecurity and access to health care. The bank and its foundation also are expediting $500,000 in planned funding to several local United Ways.

The San Francisco-based Delta Dental Community Care Foundation has committed $5 million for COVID-19-related efforts across its fifteen-state footprint, including $3.5 million to federally qualified health centers to expand access to oral care; $1 million to nonprofits experiencing sharp increases in their expenses and/or budget shortfalls as a result of the virus; and $500,000 in disaster response funding to California organizations working to assist seniors, individuals experiencing food insecurity, and homeless and homebound individuals.

The Dow Chemical Company has announced a commitment of $3 million in support of global COVID-19 relief efforts, including $2 million to the COVID-19 Solidarity Fund, Direct Relief, and local and regional nonprofits, as well as $1 million in support of community-resilience initiatives.

Boston-based Eastern Bank has announced commitments totaling more than $10 million to help address impacts of COVID-19 in the communities it serves. The Eastern Bank Charitable Foundation will award grants totaling $3 million to local nonprofits, while the bank itself has created a $2 million Consumer Impact Loan Fund and a $5 million Small Business Impact Loan Fund for customers facing financial hardship as a result of the public health emergency.

Fifth Third Bank in Cincinnati has pledged a total of $8.75 million through the Fifth Third Foundation and the Fifth Third Chicagoland Foundation to help address the impacts of the coronavirus. The funding includes $3.25 million for COVID-19 response needs in communities served by the bank and $5.5 million in grants through its Strengthening our Communities Fund in support of small businesses, affordable housing, homeownership, and local economic development initiatives.

Harvard Pilgrim Health Care Foundation in Wellesley, Massachusetts, has pledged more than $3 million in support of COVID-19 relief efforts in Connecticut, Maine, Massachusetts, and New Hampshire. The funding includes $1.5 million to create a COVID-19 Assistance Fund comprising two emergency grant programs — $500,000 for nonprofits assisting older adults and $1 million for community-based organizations working to help local residents affected by the public health crisis — a $1 million Local Relief Grants program; and an expansion of the company’s Community Spirit Mini Grants program, through which every employee is invited to give $500 a year to a charity of his or her choice.

San Antonio-based supermarket chain H-E-B has pledged an initial $3 million in support of local nonprofits, including $1.2 million through its Hunger Relief Program to eighteen food banks across Texas; $300,000 to the Texas Biomedical Research Institute in San Antonio in support of its dedicated coronavirus research team; and $1 million through the H-E-B My Community Investment in support of nonprofits providing critical frontline services.

Intel has announced a $4 million commitment through the Intel Foundation in support of community foundations and nonprofits working to address virus-related needs in communities where the company has a significant presence. The foundation also plans to match up to a total of $2 million in donations made by employees and U.S. retirees for relief efforts in Arizona, California, Massachusetts, New Mexico, Oregon, Texas, Costa Rica, India, Ireland, Israel, Malaysia, Mexico, and Vietnam.

KLA Corporation, through its foundation, has created a $2 million relief fund to support food banks, senior communities, public hospitals and medical units, and educational infrastructure in regions badly affected by COVID-19 as well as those with high-risk populations.

KEEN Footwear has pledged to provide up to ten thousand pairs of shoes, valued at approximately $10 million, to frontline workers and their families. “Whether these shoes help a worker stay comfortable during a long shift or simply allow people to get outside to breathe in the benefits of nature while safely practicing social distancing, we feel compelled to share our strengths for the common good,” the company stated on its website.

Lineage Logistics in Novi, Indiana, has launched a $5 million initiative to help provide a hundred million meals to people in need as a result of the coronavirus crisis. As part of its Share a Meal campaign, the company donated $1 million to Feeding America‘s COVID-19 Response Fund and will match up to $500,000 in contributions to a fundraiser run by Stephen and Ayesha Curry’s Eat. Learn. Play. Foundation.

Lowe’s has announced a $25 million commitment in support of frontline medical professionals, vulnerable communities, and Lowe’s employees, including $10 million in donations of protective gear to hospitals nationwide. Another $4.5 million will be allocated to Lowe’s stores in the United States and Canada to donate products needed in their communities. The company also pledged $3 million in support of its associates; $3 million to help local small businesses, with a focus on the skilled trades, continue to operate; $1.5 million to the COVID-19 Response Fund and other nonprofits in greater Charlotte, North Carolina, where Lowe’s is headquartered; and $500,000 to the American Red Cross in support of its blood supply operations.

Micron Technology in Boise, Idaho, has pledged $35 million in cash and in-kind support to help communities disproportionately impacted by COVID-19. To that end, the company will launch a Micron Foundation $10 million relief fund in support of global initiatives focused on economic recovery, increase matching funds for employee gifts, offer financial assistance to employees in need, accelerate payments to small business suppliers, and donate facilities and supplies to emergency medical responders.

Moody’s Corporation has pledged $1 million in cash and in-kind support to mitigate the impact of COVID-19 nationally and globally, including $550,000 in support of efforts to address food insecurity, bolster healthcare systems, purchase medical supplies, and support research on containment and treatment. Recipients include the World Health Organization’s COVID-19 Solidarity Response Fund, Team Rubicon, the NYC COVID-19 Response & Impact Fund, Direct Relief International, Doctors Without Borders, Save the Children, and Give2Asia. Moody’s also will award $450,000 in unrestricted funds to address the impact of COVID-19 on small businesses and education systems, provide pro bono resources to support grantees’ operations and transition to virtual programs, and institute a virtual employee volunteer program.

Morgan Stanley has pledged $10 million in support of COVID-19 response efforts, including $2 million to Feeding America to ensure that its affiliates can continue to operate; $2 million to the CDC Foundation; and $2 million to the COVID-19 Solidarity Response Fund, which was launched by the United Nations Foundation and Swiss Philanthropy Foundation to fund the World Health Organization‘s coronavirus response efforts. In February, Morgan Stanley pledged $1 million — $500,000 and a $500,000 employee match — to charities working to address the impacts of the initial outbreak in Wuhan, China.

The National Football League Players Association, clubs, owners, and NFL players, has announced more than $35 million, including $3.4 million from the NFL Foundation, for COVID-19 relief efforts. Grant recipients include the American Red Cross, the Bob Woodruff Foundation, Boys & Girls Clubs of America, the CDC Foundation, the GENYOUth Foundation, Meals on Wheels America, the Salvation Army, Team Rubicon, United Way, and the Wounded Warrior Project.

New Balance has announced grants to Global Giving, No Kid Hungry, the Boston Resiliency Fund, Groundwork Lawrence, Good Shepherd Food Bank, and the St. Louis Area Foodbank.

The NFL’s New York Jets franchise and the family of Jets CEO Christopher Johnson have announced a $1 million donation to United Way of New York City‘s COVID-19 Community Fund, the United Way of Northern New Jersey‘s ALICE Recovery Fund, and the United Way of Long Island‘s United Together: A Response Fund for COVID-19.

Nike has announced new commitments of nearly $15 million in support of COVID-19 response efforts. The total pledged includes a combined $10 million from Nike co-founder and chairman emeritus Phil Knight and his wife, Penny; executive board chair Mark Parker and his wife, Kathy; and Nike president and CEO John Donahoe and his wife, Eileen, while the commitments include $7 million to Oregon Health & Science University to help improve statewide COVID-19 care coordination, increase patient access to care, and bolster operational readiness for expanded diagnostic testing; $2 million to the Oregon Community Foundation in support of the Oregon Community Recovery Fund; and $1 million to the Oregon Food Bank. In addition, the Nike Foundation pledged $1 million to the COVID-19 Solidarity Response Fund,; $1 million to the Oregon Community Recovery Fund; $1.1 million to the King Baudouin Foundation in support of its community partnerships across Europe, the Middle East, and Africa; $250,000 to the Mid-South Food Bank in Memphis, Tennessee; $250,000 to the Community Foundation of Greater Memphis; and $500,000 to the Boston Foundation.

Northwestern Mutual has announced grants totaling more than $1.5 million through its foundation in support of nonprofits working to mitigate the impacts of COVID-19, with a focus on food insecurity and other basic needs. Awards include $1 million to Feeding America and an additional $50,000 to Feeding America Eastern Wisconsin, as well as grants to several local nonprofits and the Greater Milwaukee Foundation‘s MKE Responds Fund. The company also announced that it is expediting its annual grant of $250,000 to the American Red Cross.

Pegula Sports & Entertainment, in partnership with the Buffalo Bills and Buffalo Sabres foundations, has announced that it will provide at least $1.2 million in direct community aid to western New York residents impacted by COVID-19. To that end, the Bills and Sabres foundations are partnering with the United Way of Buffalo & Erie County and other local foundations to launch the Western New York COVID-19 Community Response Fund. The company’s contributions include ongoing support for FeedMore WNY and the Rural Outreach Center in East Aurora; support for first responders, hospital workers, and nurses; and funds for the purchase of protective and medical equipment supplies.

The PwC Charitable Foundation has announced grants totaling $2.85 million in support of vulnerable populations affected by COVID-19, including $500,000 to Feeding America‘s COVID-19 Response Fund for the distribution of emergency food boxes to low-income seniors, families, and children who no longer have access to school meals; $500,000 to Direct Relief, which will use the funds to obtain and deliver personal protective equipment to frontline health workers at community health centers and clinics and support the management of chronic illnesses th