Palm Beach United Way’s Hurricane Ian relief fund tops $500,000, with two new matching grants announced

Darrell Hofheinz, Palm Beach Daily News
·4 min read
In Southwest Florida, people line up for food provided by World Central Kitchen, one of the organizations that has benefited from the Hurricane Ian emergency fund set up by the Town of Palm Beach United Way. So far, the fund has raised more than $500,000 for relief efforts, according to United Way officials.
In Southwest Florida, people line up for food provided by World Central Kitchen, one of the organizations that has benefited from the Hurricane Ian emergency fund set up by the Town of Palm Beach United Way. So far, the fund has raised more than $500,000 for relief efforts, according to United Way officials.

Two weeks after ferocious Hurricane Ian slammed into Southwest Florida, donations to the Town of Palm Beach United Way’s fund to provide emergency relief to survivors topped $500,000, the organization announced Wednesday.

Much of that money came as a result of $250,000 in dollar-for-dollar matching grants. The fund was established Sept. 29, the day after Hurricane Ian ripped into Florida’s Southwest Coast as a Category 4 storm and eventually left more than 100 dead across the state.

On Wednesday, the Town of Palm Beach United Way announced two more challenge gifts of $25,000 each from couples who will match new donations to the fund.

Sandy and George Garfunkel of Palm Beach joined Elizabeth and Jerome Levy of Sarasota in making the latest grants.

The Levys know Southwest Florida firsthand, as they live about 50 miles north of Cayo Costa, the island near Fort Myers where the Hurricane Ian made landfall with 155 mph winds, drenching rain and a record-setting storm surge that caused massive devastation.

“Being from Sarasota, just north of much of the damage, we are honored to join our friends George and Sandy to help people in Florida impacted by Hurricane Ian,” said a statement from the Levys.

“We hope our matching gift will encourage others to continue donating.”

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The organization also released a statement from George Garfunkel, who sits on the Town of United Way’s board of trustees, and his wife about why they contributed to the fund.

“It will take years for some of these families to recover, especially seniors, low-income populations, people with medical conditions and other vulnerable residents,” the Garfunkels’ statement said. “As they go without a bed to call their own and a place to make a comforting meal, a financial contribution to help provide immediate assistance is the least we can do.”

Palm Beach United Way grants have matched donations for Hurricane Ian relief

So far, the Town of Palm Beach United Way has distributed $250,000 to organizations providing emergency-relief supplies and services in areas hit hard by the hurricane, said board president Bill Tiefel.

Americares received $50,000, Global Empowerment Mission got $75,000, Project HOPE received $50,000 and World Central Kitchen got $75,000,

The agencies are using the funds to provide food, water, health-care services, medicine, clothing, hygiene kits, baby supplies and other items to thousands, Tiefel said.

World Central Kitchen, for example, is providing meals to residents in Lee County, including Port Charlotte, Cape Coral, North Port, Fort Myers, Englewood, Arcadia and Pine Island. With the help of restaurant and food partners and their signature paella pans, the World Central Kitchen has distributed more than 500,000 hot meals and sandwiches, as well as truckloads of clean water to people in six counties, according to Joson Collis, the charity’s vice president of relief.

“We are so grateful for this support from the Town of Palm Beach United Way,” said Collis in a statement. “This generous gift will help us keep cooking to provide fresh, nourishing meals to communities that continue to feel Hurricane Ian’s impact.”

The Town of Palm Beach United Way is working to identify additional organizations that can provide direct aid to residents in the hardest hit areas of Lee, Charlotte and Collier counties, Tiefel said.

Palm Beach United Way helped after other hurricanes, including Hurricane Dorian

The other matching grants, which all met their fund-raising goals, were made by donors with strong ties to Palm Beach. They included the Cathleen McFarlane Foundation ($100,000); Barbara and Richard Rothschild ($25,000); Susan and Dom Telesco ($50,000); Tiefel and his wife, Norma ($25,000); Irwin and Ginny Edlavitch ($25,000); and Palm Beach Mayor Danielle Moore, through the Mary Alice Fortin Foundation ($25,000).

Town of Palm Beach United Way has overseen similar funds for other disaster-relief campaigns, including a massive aid effort after Category 5 Hurricane Dorian struck the northern Bahamas in early September 2019.

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People can make donations to the Town of Palm Beach United Way Hurricane Ian Recovery Fund by visiting PalmBeachUnitedWay.org, calling 561-655-1919 or mailing a check — payable to Town of Palm Beach United Way with “Hurricane Ian” written in the memo portion — to 44 Cocoanut Row, Suite M201, Palm Beach, FL 33480.

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Darrell Hofheinz is a USA TODAY Network of Florida journalist who writes about Palm Beach real estate in his weekly “Beyond the Hedges” column. He welcomes tips about real estate news on the island. Email dhofheinz@pbdailynews.com, call (561) 820-3831 or tweet @PBDN_Hofheinz. Help support our journalism. Subscribe today.

This article originally appeared on Palm Beach Daily News: Palm Beach United Way’s Hurricane Ian relief fund hits $500,000