Looking For Ways To Support Covid-19 Relief Efforts? Here are 8 Organizations Doing Amazing Things To Help!
Before I dive into a list of amazing organizations helping our community through this crisis, I want to give you a big virtual hug. You are doing extraordinary things right now: parent, teacher, childcare provider, employee, employer, partner, chef, homemaker, dog walker, gardener-extraordinaire and more. By staying home and wearing all of these metaphorical hats, we are doing our part in this crisis. This is the most important work we can do to help our community! Thank you!
If you’re looking for more ways to help, there are many businesses and organizations who are doing awesome things to support our community during this crisis. Check out this list to see how you can support:
Supporting Our Greater DC Community
1. Greater DC Diaper Bank continues to provide families with the essentials they need including diapers and period products. Ok Marie Kondo, do you have unexpired, unopened baby items you are ready to clear out? They collect more than just diapers, see the list on the link. Of course, monetary donations are always appreciated so they can purchase wholesale.
2. Capital Area Food Bank continues to provide meals to our food insecure neighbors including seniors, children, and families. They are collecting monetary donations to help them serve more meals.
3. Restaurant Workers Relief Program, in partnership with the DC restaurant Succotash, prepares meals for restaurant workers who have been laid off or experienced a significant reduction of hours. They are collecting monetary donations to continue serving this affected community.
Supporting Health Care & Front Line Workers
4. Masks For Heroes is working to get health care workers PPE. They have identified medical personnel around the world in need of equipment. Handy with sewing? They need homemade masks! Don’t worry, there are many tutorials and guidelines on their site.
5. Feed The Fight and Frontline are both working with local restaurants to deliver meals to front line workers including medical staff and first responders at many of our local hospitals and medical facilities. Your donations support restaurants and our frontline heroes!
6. Off Their Plate raises money to provide meals for medical workers and additional wages for front line workers. Several local restaurants have partnered with this national organization to provide food and wages for our folks keeping us safe. Bonus, your donated dollars are invested in the local restaurant industry!
Fundraising Events By Local Businesses
7. The Lane Social Club is a local mom-owned business. They have partnered with MotherNation and organized a Virtual Dance Party on Saturday 5/2 to benefit the Greater DC Diaper Bank. It is a dance party with two DJs, one for kids and one for grownups! Enjoy this family dance party and benefit a local organization at the same time!
8. grOH! Playrooms is a local mom-owned educational design firm. They are hosting a workshop series to help families organize and design their kids’ spaces. Tickets are by donation and benefit different local covid-relief organizations each week, including Greater DC Diaper Bank and Feed The Fight. Come learn about ways to support your kids and support organizations at the same time. Workshops are 8:30pm on Thursday evenings.
Several businesses are offering ways to support families while also supporting their staff too. Be sure to check them out and other resources here in our Coronavirus Resources Guide.
If you know of other businesses that are helping out our community during COVID-19, please add them to the comments below!
About the guest author:
Anne Gillyard is the co-owner of grOH! Playrooms. She spends much of her time creating beautiful places for children to play by designing and installing places to play in homes and in businesses. Anne is mama to two littles of her own, Grant and Audrey, who inspire her to create rich, developmentally appropriate play spaces for as many families as possible!
