COVID-19 Emergency Releif Fund
Launched by the Mayor’s Fund in March 2020, the COVID-19 Emergency Relief Fund raised more than $53.5 million by July 2020, including $5.4 million in in-kind donations, to support equitable relief and recovery efforts for the communities hardest hit by the COVID-19 pandemic. By the end of 2021, that figure would grow to approximately $65 million.
The expansive fundraising efforts have included large-scale public-private partnerships, as well as a grassroots campaign that have together garnered approximately 10,000 donors from all around the country.
“As our city unites to build a future that is fairer and more equitable, it is essential that New Yorkers in the hardest-hit neighborhoods can access the resources they need to support themselves and their families,” said First Lady Chirlane McCray. “Thank you to our generous partners who have answered the call to provide this critical relief for frontline workers and communities of color during this unprecedented crisis.”
Priority areas for the COVID-19 Emergency Relief Fund include support for healthcare workers and essential staff; local small businesses; displaced hourly workers, including immigrant workers; and families, youth, and other vulnerable New Yorkers.
Support for Frontline Workers
To ensure that New York City’s healthcare professionals and essential workers on the front lines of the COVID-19 pandemic stay nourished, supported, and protected, the Mayor’s Fund:
- Partnered with the Debra and Leon Black Family, Aramark, Robin Hood, and the American Red Cross to launch NYC Healthcare Heroes. The program provided more than 400,000 packages of shelf-stable food, fresh produce, and household cleaning and personal care products to staff at hospitals across the five boroughs. These deliveries alleviated the burden on workers who often did not have access to supplies or time to shop after working back-to-back shifts caring for COVID-19 patients in hospitals and facilities across the city.
- Developed and launched Food for Heroes, which delivered 176,000 nutritious meals to healthcare workers at NYC Health + Hospitals Elmhurst, staff at the NYC Office of the Chief Medical Examiner, medical workers who chose to stay in hotels to protect vulnerable family members, as well as healthcare workers who traveled from out-of-state to serve on the front lines, staff at non-profit nursing homes, and workers at New York City Sanitation Department garages.
- Supported NYC Health + Hospitals with a $400,000 donation to purchase personal protective equipment. The donation was made possible through Peg’s Cure, an initiative created by Cedar Mills LLC and the family of Peg Broadbent, the former CFO of Jefferies Group LLC who passed away due to complications from COVID-19.
Aid for Restaurants in Hardest-Hit Communities
To support the owners and employees of restaurants in neighborhoods that have suffered disproportionately during the pandemic, the Mayor’s Fund:
- Collaborated with the Taskforce on Racial Inclusion and Equity, One Fair Wage, NYC Mayor’s Office for Economic Opportunity, and the NYC Human Resources Administration to launch the Restaurant Revitalization Program. The program aims to provide short-term payroll support to about 100 restaurants committed to paying full minimum wage with tips on top, in addition to providing hardest-hit communities with meals.
Launched the Trust Youth Initiative, groundbreaking direct cash transfer study for addressing young adult homelessness in partnership with The City of New York, Chapin Hall at the University of Chicago, and Point Source Youth. The study will provide and evaluate direct cash assistance with optional supportive services to help advance the goal of ending youth homelessness in New York City and build actionable evidence.
- Supported the launch and expansion of the CUNY Tutor Corps Program, which provides sustainable employment, practical career development, and academic enrichment each year to hundreds of undergraduate students across 18 CUNY campuses, in partnership with The City University of New York, the Center for Youth Employment, and Department of Youth and Community Development.
Support for Youth
- Launched the Trust Youth Initiative, groundbreaking direct cash transfer study for addressing young adult homelessness in partnership with The City of New York, Chapin Hall at the University of Chicago, and Point Source Youth. The study will provide and evaluate direct cash assistance with optional supportive services to help advance the goal of ending youth homelessness in New York City and build actionable evidence.
- Supported the launch and expansion of the CUNY Tutor Corps Program, which provides sustainable employment, practical career development, and academic enrichment each year to hundreds of undergraduate students across 18 CUNY campuses, in partnership with The City University of New York, the Center for Youth Employment, and Department of Youth and Community Development.
Services for Immigrant Communities
To support New York City’s immigrant communities, many of whom are disproportionately impacted by COVID-19, the Mayor’s Fund:
- Partnered with the Mayor’s Office of Immigrant Affairs, the Open Society Foundations, and the Robin Hood Relief Fund to create the Immigrant Emergency Relief Program. The program worked with community-based organizations to provide direct, one-time emergency relief payments to approximately 20,000 immigrant New York City families who were hardest hit financially by the crisis, yet excluded from the reach of the federal relief program.
- Launched the Immigrant COVID-19 Burial Assistance Program with funding support from SOMOS Community Care, Trinity Church Wall Street, Amalgamated Bank, and Robin Hood. The program provides financial support toward burial expenses for immigrant families—regardless of immigration status—who are unable to pay for the funeral expenses of relatives who died during the pandemic.
