Posted on March 17, 2020 | Hanh Le, Weissberg Foundation
Dear community,
As the gravity of the COVID-19 outbreak intensifies at an alarming pace, we want to reach out, check in, and invite you to do the same.
Operating through a pandemic is deeply unfamiliar terrain for all of us. This makes it all the more amazing to witness the leadership, resourcefulness, and collaboration being exhibited by our grantee partners, colleagues in philanthropy, and everyday yet, extraordinary community members.
The coronavirus threat glaringly exposes and exacerbates deep social, political, and economic inequities we already know exist. We are thankful to be in a community of activists, allies, and advocates working tirelessly to mitigate the immediate harms facing us, while also looking upstream to co-create more equitable, compassionate, and just systems.
Though our staff are currently home-based—for sure through the next two weeks, but likely longer after we reassess over the next few days—we are at the ready to respond to your questions, concerns, and recommendations. What can and needs to be done both now and in the months to come, as the impacts of COVID-19 will be long-lasting and far-reaching?
To our grantee partners, we want to reduce the extra burden that any of our grant requirements might pose at this time. To the extent that it is helpful, we also want to provide you a forum for sharing with us and your peers what you are doing to respond to and weather this crisis, and what support you could use from us, each other, and the broader philanthropic community. Either Leni or I will reach out to you directly with more information specific to your grantee cohort.
To our peers in philanthropy, we are game to join forces to streamline and leverage resources in support of ensuring our community has the support it needs. We are monitoring region-wide opportunities to collaborate, but we also welcome you reaching out to us individually to explore ideas for working together.
Feel free to reach out to any of our staff via email, and we will get back to you as soon as we can.
Please be sure to take good care of yourselves and each other. We promise to do the same.
In partnership,
Hanh and the Weissberg Foundation team
