Community Empowerment

Supporting vulnerable New Yorkers, especially during times of crisis, has been a hallmark of the Mayor’s Fund during the de Blasio Administration.

In the last eight years, the Mayor’s Fund supported programs like NYC: ATWORK, which connects New Yorkers with disabilities to career opportunities, and Love Your Block, which provides grants for community-led groups to transform blocks in their neighborhoods.

When the pandemic emerged in 2020, the Mayor’s Fund jumped into action with the launch of the COVID-19 Emergency Relief Fund. This effort raised more than $65 million to help workers on the frontlines through programs like Food For Heroes and the Restaurant Revitalization Fund. We also provided essential financial support to undocumented New Yorkers, who were excluded from federal relief programs, through the Immigrant Emergency Relief Fund, created in partnership with dozens of community organizations.

The impact of these programs can be seen not only in the community members served today, but also in future generations benefiting from a more equitable city.

Food For Heroes

In April 2020, the Mayor’s Fund launched Food for Heroes as a part of its COVID-19 Emergency Relief Fund and delivered more than 176,000 meals to New York City essential workers.

COVID-19 Emergency Relief Fund

The Mayor’s Fund raised $65 million in response to the COVID-19 pandemic to support healthcare workers, frontline workers, small businesses, and vulnerable New Yorkers.

NYC: AtWork

With support from the Mayor’s Fund, the Mayor’s Office for People with Disabilities launched NYC: ATWORK, an initiative that connects people with disabilities who are unemployed or underemployed to meaningful, living wage jobs across the five boroughs.

Credible Messenger Justice Center

The Mayor’s Fund, in partnership with the Department of Probation, provided support to programs under the umbrella of the Credible Messenger Justice Center that connected thousands of young people with credible messengers who work with probation officers to help young people pursue their goals.

Hurricane Maria Emergency Relief

The Mayor’s Fund served as a conduit for New Yorkers and municipal employees to donate to help Puerto Rico in the aftermath of Hurricane Maria in 2017. Through website donations and public-private partnerships $1.7 million in cash and in-kind goods were donated to support those displaced by these natural disasters.

Learn more about the Mayor’s Fund to Advance New York City at nyc.gov/fund