“The Eldora Mountain Resort’s donation to Canyon Cares through their Play it Forward Fund is HUGE for us, not only in terms of monetary value and the number of people we can help, but also in terms of community support from one of the most recognized businesses in the area.”
Since COVID-19 hit in March, Canyon Cares – a grantee of the Play It Forward Donor-Advised Fund established at your Community Foundation – has assisted more than 40 families in Coal Creek Canyon, unincorporated Gilpin County, Nederland, and western Boulder County.
According to President Karen Siefert, the all-volunteer nonprofit has provided $17,247 toward housing (i.e., rent, mortgage, urgent home repairs); $5,295 toward utility bills; $1,613 toward medical bills; and $1,461 toward transportation in aid during this time.
“This four-month total – $25,616 – is a huge increase in the amount of financial assistance Canyon Cares typically distributes,” she says. “By comparison, we distributed slightly more than $36K in all of 2019. At the end of the second quarter of 2020, we had already distributed $39,228.”
Continues Karen, “The communities Canyon Cares serves are seeing a big increase in basic needs right now, as many places are. We support individuals and families with short-term assistance, and we pay bills directly to the landlord, utility company, or vendor. We also work with health and human services agencies in Boulder, Gilpin, and Jefferson Counties to find longer term services – and to make referrals for those that need it.”
Indeed, the organization’s “neighbors helping neighbors” tagline has never rung more true since the pandemic began. “Our grassroots fundraising effort has been successful, and the Canyon Cares COVID-19 Relief Fund has received more than 180 donations from community members and local businesses and organizations since mid-March,” says Karen. “The majority of these have been relatively small amounts [$100 or less] from individuals.
“The Eldora Mountain Resort’s donation to Canyon Cares through their Play it Forward Fund is HUGE for us, not only in terms of monetary value and the number of people we can help, but also in terms of community support from one of the most recognized businesses in the area.
“Because our assistance to individuals remains completely confidential, we’re often working behind the scenes and are not a highly visible organization. We are extremely grateful to Eldora, POWDR, and the Play It Forward Fund for supporting Canyon Cares and our mission – as well as so many other outstanding local nonprofits.”
To illustrate her point, Karen shared one family’s story:
A fresh start
With gainful employment at the casinos, a grandmother, her adult daughter, three children under the age of 6, and a teenager look forward to the prospect of buying a home in the mountains they have grown to love.
Then COVID-19 hits, and the casinos close. One stimulus check for a family of six, and complications with getting unemployment ensue.
They had never been in such a financially precarious position before, and then the owner of their rental home has no financial recourse but to sell the house due to COVID-19. The family has one month to find a home to rent, and their savings are depleted.
Resourcefully, they find a new rental, but they don’t have the funds for the required security deposit, and the first and last month’s rent – even though the grandmother is back at work, and the daughter, waiting to hear when she can return to her job, has taken on other employment with a significant pay cut.
Asking for help is not easy for many, but sometimes there just isn’t another option. Enter Canyon Cares, offering financial assistance to help mountain neighbors through difficult times. We believe that we can only strengthen our community as a whole by helping individuals in need.
Most of the time, picking up a bill or two is all that’s needed. But sometimes, we can’t offer enough help alone, as was the case with this family. So we coordinated with two county agencies (i.e., the Emergency Family Assistance Association and Gilpin County Human Services), and nonprofit organizations (i.e., Nederland Food Pantry, Teens, Inc., and the Brownie Foundation) to utilize special funding made available during the COVID crisis, and to piece together the necessary amount.
A huge effort by many, with an awesome result for a nice family now moved into a new home. We know that everyone involved – the professionals, as well as the Canyon Cares volunteer board members – don’t want to think about what would have happened if this coordinated effort had not been successful.
Learn more about Play It Forward, and its other community-serving grantees.
