The Community Foundation of Anne Arundel County’s Community Crisis Response Fund (CCRF) recently awarded $87,542 to 18 local nonprofits that serve the county’s most at-risk populations including seniors, children, low-income or food-insecure families, and the recently unemployed. To date, CFAAC has distributed 282 grants to 134 unique nonprofits totaling $1,709,692 through the Community Crisis Response Fund.

CFAAC will continue to raise money from Donor Advised Funds, individual donors, foundations, and local businesses for the CCRF. This latest grantmaking provided funding for organizations that provide human services and emergency assistance, as well as health/mental health and educational resources. CFAAC has made grants through the CCRF since the beginning of the pandemic, adapting and expanding the focus areas based on the needs of the community, and will continue for as long as funding is available. Grants are made to local nonprofit organizations that are addressing the increase in community needs and demand for services due to the pandemic.

“Our local nonprofits are providing very important programs and services to communities who were most impacted by the pandemic,” said CFAAC President and CEO Mary Spencer. “The Community Crisis Response Fund grants come at a critical time so these nonprofits can continue to offer our county residents the assistance they need such as access to food, transportation, healthcare, housing, and beneficial educational programs during this ongoing pandemic recovery process.”

The following are brief descriptions of the organizations and programs that were awarded grants from the Community Crisis Response Fund in 2022:

• Annapolis Wellness Corporation, DBA Wellness House of Annapolis: The funds will be used to provide counseling services for people dealing with a cancer diagnosis who were especially isolated during the Covid-19 pandemic.
• Anne Arundel County Food Bank: The funds will be used to provide diapers, wipes, formula, and other necessities to under-resourced Anne Arundel County residents who were affected disproportionately by the pandemic.
• Arundel House of Hope: The funds will help with transportation, staffing, and additional support for the Winter Relief Emergency Shelter Program for the homeless, a population hit hard by the pandemic.
• Bemorecaring. Inc.: The funds will provide food, clothing, toiletries, emergency camping supplies, and emotional support to approximately 320 Northern Anne Arundel County homeless individuals who continue to be affected by the pandemic.
• Blessed in Tech Ministries Incorporated: The funds will provide basic needs and temporary housing for the homeless who continue to experience challenges as a result of Covid-19.
• Center of Help, Inc.: The funds will support Case Navigators in providing food, domestic violence crisis intervention for families, mental health counseling, and healthcare in the Hispanic community who were most affected by the pandemic.
• Chesapeake Cares Food Pantry: The funds will help provide food, diapers, wipes, and feminine products to low-income residents, living in Southern Anne Arundel County, who are still dealing with the impact of the pandemic.
• Eastport United Methodist Church: The funds will support a Community Navigator, who lives in the community, to coordinate distribution of supplies and services that are still needed during the ongoing pandemic recovery.
• Harvest Resources in Anne Arundel County: The funds will help support county residents, who were disproportionately affected by the pandemic, by providing access to household safety, cleaning, and hygiene products that SNAP benefits do not cover.
• Heartsmart – The Cliff R. Roop Cardiac Support and Education Foundation: The funds will be used to purchase and install four onsite automated external defibrillators in public spaces and provide training for their use. According to the medical studies, patients with Covid-19 may have a higher risk of cardiovascular complications – defibrillators can be lifesaving.
• Marshall Hope Corporation: The funds will be used to feed 300-plus families, who were most impacted by Covid-19, at drive-through pantry. They will also fund one month of refrigerated truck use.
• My Life Foundation, Inc.: The funds will provide food, transportation, and mental health services, such as substance abuse and suicide prevention programs, to the Asian American community in Anne Arundel County who continue to face challenges brought on by the pandemic.
• OIC of Anne Arundel County: The funds will assist with the new OIC's online virtual learning GED program, career pathways/job readiness classes, and computer literacy and ESL classes to aid at least 50 unemployed and underemployed Anne Arundel County citizens so they can achieve success after the pandemic.
• Partners in Care Maryland: The funds will be used to support staffing needs as a result of the pandemic, so the nonprofit can help Anne Arundel County seniors with independent living assistance and services including food, transportation, errands, handyman services, and more.
• Rebuilding Together Anne Arundel County: The funds will provide building materials, labor, and project day expenses to support urgent home repairs for at-risk populations, including the elderly and disabled, who were disproportionately impacted by the pandemic.
• Seeds 4 Success, Inc.: The funds will help county youth regain academic progress that was lost through Covid-19 and school closures by providing books and materials for a tutoring program. They will also provide training in tutoring; social-emotional learning; and mental health, trauma, and wellness perspectives for volunteers and parents/guardians.
• The Complete Player Charity: The funding will provide STEM kits and CAC art activities for The Complete Player Charity’s STEM summer camp, attended by low-income middle and high school youth so they can now experience socialization that may have been lost during the pandemic.
• Ulman Foundation: The funds will be used to provide counseling services for young adults dealing with a cancer diagnosis, as well as assistance funds to alleviate the additional financial stresses brought on by the pandemic and healthcare costs.