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The First Responder’s Children’s Foundation, one of two charities to benefit from FOX and iHeart Media’s "Living Room Concert for America," launched the COVID-19 Emergency Response Fund that awards grants to first responders experiencing financial hardship due to the coronavirus pandemic.
Emergency medical technicians, firefighters, paramedics, police officers, medical personnel treating COVID-19 patients and employees and supporting first responders, such as 911 dispatchers, are eligible for the grants and scholarships.
CLICK HERE TO DONATE TO THE COVID-19 EMERGENCY RESPONSE FUND
The foundation will provide everything from temporary housing and need-based grants to first responders to college scholarships to the children of coronavirus victims who were working on the front lines. The COVID-19 Emergency Response Fund will even fund the funerals of first responders, but a challenge for the foundation is making sure the people who need help know the COVID-19 Emergency Response Fund exists.
The Foundation is actively working with public safety agencies across the nation to communicate the availability of grants through the fund. First responders can apply for grants at 1stRCF.org.
"We have experienced genuine caring and generosity from people across this country as we come together to help first responders in a time when they need us most," First Responders Children's Foundation president Jillian Crane told Fox News. "The Foundation is committed to meeting the needs of the first responders on the front lines of COVID-19 who are experiencing financial hardship."
Ryan Seacrest made a donation that will provide 200 hotel rooms and corporate-style apartment housing in New York City for the next six weeks. Temporary housing is critical to first responders during the coronavirus pandemic as many are concerned about going home and spreading the virus to vulnerable family members. The foundation recently awarded a grant to the FDNY Foundation to provide temporary housing for FDNY EMS personnel and firefighters.
FIRST RESPONDERS CHILDREN’S FOUNDATION HELPS PEOPLE ON FRONT LINE OF CORONAVIRUS PANDEMIC
“The First Responders Children’s Foundation COVID-19 Emergency Response Fund will make an immediate impact in the lives of our EMTs, Paramedics, and Firefighters who are on the front lines of this pandemic by providing important funding to secure temporary housing for them through our FDNY Foundation COVID-19 Fund,” Fire Commissioner Daniel A. Nigro said in a statement.
The First Responder’s Children’s Foundation was formed in 2001 as a response to the attacks of September 11, when 800 children lost first responder parents and 403 first responders died. First Responders Children’s Foundation’s mission is to provide financial support to children who have lost a parent in the line of duty as well as families enduring significant financial hardships due to tragic circumstances – with the coronavirus pandemic being the foundation’s latest cause.
FOX and iHeart Media recently raised over $10 million and counting for coronavirus relief during the March “Living Room Concert,” with the donations going to Feeding America and First Responders Children’s Foundation.
CLICK HERE FOR COMPLETE CORONAVIRUS COVERAGE
The unprecedented concert offered a unique glimpse into the lives of celebrities who performed from their homes while observing social distancing guidelines. Artists including Alicia Keys, Backstreet Boys, Dave Grohl, Billie Eilish, Sam Smith, Camilla Cabello, Shawn Mendes, H.E.R., Billie Joe Armstong Demi Lovato, Tim McGraw and Mariah Carey used only an iPhone and whatever equipment they had on hand to broadcast their performances.
FOX's concert aired commercial-free, using breaks between songs to encourage viewers to donate. It attracted some 8.7 million viewers during its initial airing across multiple FOX networks and brought significant awareness to the charities involved in the process.
The First Responder’s Children’s Foundation also sells concert merchandise with all proceeds going to the charities and donations of all sizes are accepted online.
The foundation believes it will need to raise at least $200 million more to accommodate the projected needs to first responders as the coronavirus continues to impact Americans on a daily basis.