NANCY VAUGHAN: United Ways to direct Lilly disaster relief funds

July 20, 2008 07:34 pm

— A couple of weeks ago, I received an urgent appeal to participate in a conference call from Roger Frick, president of the Indiana Association of United Ways (IaUW). Madison County was one of selected United Ways to get the news firsthand that IaUW has been awarded $45 million by Lilly Endowment Inc. for a disaster-response fund from which IaUW will make grants for relief and recovery efforts at the county level in counties damaged by 2008 disasters. In addition, the American Red Cross and the Salvation Army each will receive $2.5 million from the Endowment to help with their efforts to alleviate the more immediate needs of citizens and communities that have suffered from disasters in 2008.
“The Endowment believes that in situations such as these it is preferable for local communities to be able to prioritize the needs for which funding will be sought, and the Endowment is confident that IaUW has the ability to encourage local priority-setting efforts,” said Endowment president N. Clay Robbins in a release from the Endowment.
Certainly those of us on the conference call were stunned by the magnitude of the Endowment’s response. The representative from one of the hard-hit southern Indiana counties repeated her thanks through tears. Although for nearly 30 years the Endowment has supported IaUW’s efforts to build an effective network of United Ways across the state, this vote of confidence is humbling.
IaUW expects to offer grants in at least two rounds. The first round, which IaUW plans to offer as soon as possible, will provide up to $100,000 in flexible funding to counties affected by a 2008 disaster. This funding may be used for immediate needs and for assistance in planning and facilitation efforts related to prioritizing a county’s needs for support from subsequent funding rounds. One or more subsequent rounds will offer larger grants, which are expected to vary in amount from county to county in accordance with factors determined by the grants advisory committee.
IaUW grant applications to this fund will be based on the recommendations of local United Ways, which will work with key community partners to set local priorities for the funds. Our Safety Net Vision Council will begin discussions focused on Madison County’s disaster response assets and needs in early August. This is an opportunity for our county to take a close look at our ability to respond and recover in the event of natural disaster.
IaUW will form a grants advisory committee that will include IaUW board members and individuals with good judgment and expertise in areas such as community development, financial affairs, neighborhood revitalization, rural development, local government and nonprofit leadership. Besides approving grants, the committee will develop guidelines for the fund’s distribution.
“United Ways know that recovery takes time and resources, and IaUW looks forward to helping communities as they rebuild after these devastating disasters,” Roger noted in the LEI press release. This is the role that United Way of America carved out following the Gulf Coast hurricanes and it has become a cornerstone of the United Way system. IaUW’s 4Community program, which has received more that $20 million in Endowment funding since 2003, has fostered the development of community consensus around projects it has funded by basing grants on demonstrated strong collaborative efforts among local United Ways and key community institutions, such as community foundations, local hospitals, school systems, universities, local governments and chambers of commerce among others.
For this new effort, United Ways will encourage similar collaborations in prioritizing local community needs. The United Way system’s leadership in long-term recovery and its proven record on bringing communities together around issues combined with the continuing generosity of Lilly Endowment will make Indiana a safer place for its citizens.

Nancy Vaughan is president of United Way of Madison County Inc.

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