As Atlantic hurricane season begins, Florida community foundations prepare permanent disaster funds
After the collapse of a condominium tower in North Miami in June 2021, Rebecca Fishman Lipsey realized her organization needed to overhaul how it responded to disasters.
As CEO of the Miami Foundation, the city’s primary community foundation, Fishman Lipsey got to work coalescing support for victims of the tragedy that killed 98 people and destroyed the 136-unit building. Funders were eager to help, but there was a problem.
She remembers corporate partners calling her saying, “We are in, we are with you. Just fill out this application and the money will be there in six weeks.”
Those who lost homes and loved ones couldn’t wait that long. As Fishman Lipsey and her team scrambled to raise and disperse funds, she imagined the next crisis.
“It’s not going to be one building in an isolated neighborhood,” she said. “It is going to be a climate disaster, and I’m not going to have internet to fill out an application. I cannot wait six weeks for the check to clear. I need everybody’s ACH information already. I need to know what supplies people need, before the disaster.”
Related articles
General Hospital star Johnny Wactor's brave final act revealed: Actor, 37, was shielding female co
General Hospital actor Johnny Wactor saved the life of his female co-worker by putting his body in t2024-05-29Iceland violent volcanic flare
By Kathryn Armstrong, BBC NewsMolten lava flows out from a fissure on the Reykjanes peninsula north2024-05-29Latest review should 'put to bed' methane debate, minister says
Climate Change Minister Simon Watts hopes the independent review will put to bed the debate about ho2024-05-29VOX POPULI: ‘Dandara’ puns still entertain amid destroyed shops of Wajima
“Dandara” is a wordplay pun based on the 17-syllable haiku format, with its seven-syllable part repr2024-05-29Six skydivers and a pilot parachute to safety before small plane crashes in Missouri
BUTLER, Mo. (AP) — Six skydivers and a pilot on board a small plane parachuted to safety before it c2024-05-29Coronavirus China update: China's funeral homes overcrowded amid COVID
Your web browser is no longer supported. To improve your experience update it here2024-05-29
atest comment