Neighbor News
COVID-19 Fund Supports Local Residents
The Batavia COVID-19 Fund is the devoted to providing assistance to Batavia residents in this time of need.
Like United Way organizations across the country, Batavia United Way (BUW) has set up a community fund dedicated to ensuring children, families, individuals, and senior citizens at risk have the resources they need to weather the COVID-19 storm. At this time, this fund is being financed primarily by donations from residents and businesses. Friends of BUW have gotten creative with fundraisers to benefit the Fund such as a driveway chalk design contest, T-shirt sales, and school PTO fundraisers. The monies from this fund are being used to provide additional support to Batavians directly and to support agencies throughout the Fox Valley area who provide important programs and services used by Batavians in need.
You may ask, where will these funds go? Back to Batavia, of course! BUW has a 14-member board of individuals who provide guidance for the distribution of monies. Given the changing needs of the community, the Fund offers flexibility to provide for the needs of Batavia residents as they occur. At this time, BUW is using the Fund in the following ways:
- To support Meals on Wheels new enrollment
- To expand the reach of our crisis-induced “pop-up” programs such as the Breakfast Food Drive or the Senior Food Drive (Donations are still being accepted in the vestibule of the Batavia Police Station).
- To provide rent assistance to those who qualify
- To provide specific needs for local agencies; for example, BUW hired a local restaurant, Rivers Edge, to prepare and deliver a meal to those sheltering-in-place at Mutual Ground domestic violence shelter
- To support the Batavia Community CARE Program which provides support to seniors or individuals with disabilities http://cityofbatavia.net/797/Batavia-Community-CARE-Program
This is only possible because of the generous response to both our community food drives as well as monetary donations. BUW will continue to supplement the amazing effort already being done by the Batavia Interfaith Food Pantry, our community agencies, and BPS 101. We will continue to adjust efforts as needs arise. If you are in a position to contribute, you can visit www.bataviaunitedway.org to donate online or by mail. 100% of your gift to Batavia United Way will be used for COVID-19 relief efforts in our local community. Thank you for your generosity.