BETTENDORF, Iowa (KWQC) - This year’s United Way Quad Cities’ Spring Day of Caring will look a little different than years past.
The coronavirus pandemic has led volunteers and organizations accustomed to the United Way event to rethink how they can make the biggest impact on their community and help those in need.
On Thursday, volunteers will make masks, deliver meals, read books virtually to children and tackle other “social distancing”-safe community projects to support local nonprofits during United Way Quad Cities’ “Day To Show You Care.”
“While the coronavirus pandemic has changed the types of projects we’re able to offer to volunteers out of concern for their health and wellbeing, this spring event will be a Day of Caring like none other,” Rene Gellerman, United Way of the Quad Cities President and CEO, said in a media release.
“Local charities and nonprofits, which our community relies on, have dramatically different needs this year. Those who are able and want to give back in ways big or small can find safe volunteer opportunities that will make a world of difference for these organizations or a neighbor in need.”
The long-running “Day of Caring,” organized by the United Way twice a year in the spring and fall, has become a staple for local charities which have relied on more than 27,000 volunteers to work on projects such as reading with kids, sprucing up nonprofits, landscaping, painting and more.
Since 2005, volunteers have logged nearly 115,000 hours to support community projects. The total impact on local charities to date is $2.6 million, based on the estimated value of volunteer time from the Independent Sector, a national nonpartisan membership organization representing nonprofits, foundations, and corporate giving programs, the United Way said.
Anyone can participate in the COVID-19-safe volunteer opportunities by visiting unitedwayqc.org/dayofcaring. Many of the activities do not require volunteers to sign up and can be done from home or to aid those impacted by the coronavirus.
Several projects continue on an ongoing basis after the event.
Also, the United Way will seek donations for its COVID-19 Rebuilding Fund, which will address the immediate and evolving needs of Quad Citizens, as well as longer-term challenges that will affect education, income, and health outcomes across our community.
The fund will support current community impact concerns including:
• Shortage of supplies to meet basic health and safety needs (paper goods, hand sanitizer, cleaning products and potentially food);
• Extended closures of school, childcare and after-school programs impacting children’s access to breakfast and lunch programs and parents’ ability to work;
• Immediate economic impact for many workers, particularly in the service and retail industries.
United Way will continue to work with community leaders, funders, school districts, and service partners to identify resource and service gaps and plan for long-term recovery.
More information on the United Way’s COVID-19 Rebuilding Fund can be found at unitedwayqc.org/actions-being-taken.
The United Way Quad Cities is seeking proposals for grants for the Emergency Food and Shelter Program, which received $319,030 from the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) and Coronavirus Aid, Relief and Economic Security Act.
The grants, which are federally funded and administered by the United Way Quad Cities, are available to 501(c)3 nonprofits, faith-based organizations, and government organizations that provide emergency food, shelter and rental assistance in Scott or Rock Island counties.
Applications are available at
unitedwayqc.org/emergency-food-and-shelter and must be submitted along with a letter outlining the needs for funds and a budget by 4:30 p.m. on May 21 via email to Leslee Cook at lcook@unitedwayqc.org. Grant recipients are scheduled to be announced by June 1.
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May 14, 2020 at 06:13PM
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United Way's 'Day of Caring' Thursday will target COVID-19-related needs in the Quad-Cities - KWQC-TV6
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