Community Foundation of Greater Dubuque Hosts Regional Gathering Focused on Disaster Philanthropy

The Community Foundation of Greater Dubuque (CFGD) is hosting a regional gathering of 23 philanthropic organizations November 6-8 as part of an ongoing initiative to help equip community foundations with the knowledge, skills, tools and capacity to improve how their communities prepare for and response to natural disasters and strengthen overall community resilience.

The regional initiative, known as the Philanthropic Preparedness, Resiliency & Emergency Partnership (PPREP) program, is comprised of 20 community foundations and three regional associations in a ten-state region bordering the Missouri River. It is made possible by funding from Margaret A. Cargill Philanthropies and is hosted by The Funders’ Network for Smart Growth and Livable Communities.

This month’s in-person site visit is one of two annual gatherings at which members will discuss strategies for building community resilience, tips for enhancing relationships with local partners, tactics for identifying and attending to socially vulnerable populations, and examples for designing disaster grants programs. The group also convenes regularly online for educational webinars and online meetings covering curriculum provided by the national Center for Disaster Philanthropy.

CFGD’s participation in the program has already created positive outcomes for residents of McGregor, Iowa. Less than 24 hours after an EF-1 tornado tore through town on July 19, the Community Foundation had established the Restore McGregor 2017 Tornado Fund in coordination with local officials and spread the word through presses releases and emails. In just two days, people from all over the country contributed $10,000 to the fund, which has since grown to over $40,000. Since them, CFGD has also helped McGregor to write a successful grant request for $10,000 from The Native Fund to build a new community center at the site of a building destroyed by the storm.

“Community foundations are uniquely suited to help when disaster strikes,” says Nancy Van Milligen, CFGD president/CEO. “In addition to engaging generous community members in the immediate aftermath of disasters, we build safety net funds that are flexible enough to address whatever challenges our communities may face in the future.”

For more information about PPREP, visit www.fundersnetwork.org/pprep.