The Sullivan County Community Foundation, an affiliate of the Wabash Valley Community Foundation, has awarded a $10,000 emergency grant to The Salvation Army of Sullivan, Indiana.

The Salvation Army of Sullivan, Indiana mobilized its disaster team unit in response to the March 31 tornado which left devastation and destruction across the community. Within hours of the outbreak, The Salvation Army had transitioned its operational focus to feeding, hydration, and emotional and spiritual care across the impacted area. In the days since, disaster team members have worked tirelessly to serve workers and survivors in the hardest-hit portions of the community on the Silver Street Corridor.

“We are all trying to get our feet under us,” said Michele Smith, the Sullivan County Service Extension Coordinator. “The community has already been very generous to us in these early moments [of the disaster] and truly the best way people can support us right now is through financial donations.”

On Wednesday evening, residents serving on the Community Foundation’s Sullivan County Services Committee voted to award an emergency grant to The Salvation Army of Sullivan, IN. This funding comes from the Sullivan County Community Foundation’s unrestricted grant monies and is unrelated to the “Help Sullivan Recover” fund.

“That’s the beauty of an unrestricted endowment fund,” explained Harmony Walsh, Engagement Officer for Sullivan County. “Because these individuals didn’t set any restrictions on the use of their gift, it enabled our local volunteers to do what they do best – assess our community’s greatest needs in the wake of this disaster and respond accordingly.”

“In times of crisis, the Community Foundation may initiate Rapid Response or Urgent-Need grants to support nonprofit organizations,” added Ally Orwig, Chair of the Sullivan County Services Committee. “Once Michele reached out to us for help, we initiated the process to make an emergency grant in the amount of $10,000 supporting the recovery efforts made on behalf of The Salvation Army.”

The Community Foundation continues to assess community needs and will periodically discuss potential emergency grants in support of long-term recovery.

Those interested in supporting Sullivan’s recovery efforts may do so by donating to the “Help Sullivan Recover” fund via wvcf.org/help-sullivan-recover. The Community Foundation, in collaboration with the City of Sullivan, launched this fund to provide an avenue for those wishing to contribute.

“The Community Foundation is in close communication with Sullivan officials regarding the contributions received through the ‘Help Sullivan Recover’ fund,” said Beth Tevlin, President & CEO of the Wabash Valley Community Foundation. “These recent storms deeply impacted our Sullivan County community, which is why we have waived all administrative and processing fees typically associated with funds held at the Community Foundation. We can assure donors that 100% of the gifts given to the ‘Help Sullivan Recover’ fund will go directly to the long-term recovery efforts in Sullivan County.”

Nonprofit organizations and agencies unaffected are encouraged to submit a Letter of Intent for projects or programs in Sullivan County by the May 1, 2023 deadline at wvcf.org/grantapplicationforms. Though all organizations are welcome to apply, priority will be given to requests where needs are a result of the tornado.