COVID-19 Resource Page

Orange County Response

Orange County Grantmakers is actively working to support the community as we all address the spread of the coronavirus (COVID-19) pandemic. As funders, we recognize we have a crucial role to play in responding to this public health challenge. We invite funders, nonprofits and community leaders to use this website as a resource as information develops.

OCG Statements

OCG stands with our nonprofit community during this challenging time. Read our full statement here:

Download PDF

OCG calls for Unity and Collective Response as xenophobia rises in Orange County

Joint PSO Statements

"Keep Equity at the Forefront in Philanthropy's Response to the Coronavirus." The Cure to Racism is in our Hands. 

OCG is tracking OCG member’s responses to ensure alignment and maximum impact of funding for our nonprofits in this time of need. To share your responses, please contact Taryn Palumbo at:

Webinars

  • Nonprofit Resiliency Webinar. Hosted by OCG on 5.21.2020. View the recording here. 
  • OC Community Resilience Fund Update Meeting. Hosted by OCG on 4.23.2020. View the recording here. 
  • CA Funders Supporting Immigrants During the COVID-19 Crisis. To be held on April 21, 12:00 – 1:30pm. Hosted by GCIR. Register Here. 
  • Funding a Radically Just Response to COVID-19. To be held on April 15, 9 – 10:30am. Hosted by Neighborhood Funders Group. Register Here. 
  • United Philanthropy Forum COVID-19 Legislative Update & Conversation. Register Here. 
  • GCIR April 15 National Webinar on COVID & Immigrants. Register Here. 
  • United Philanthropy Forum: Crisis Communication Strategies and PSO Responses to COVID-19. To be held Tuesday, March 31 12 PST. (Must be a United Philanthropy Forum member) Register Here. 
  • Philanthropy California: Supporting CA’s Communities Through Threat of the COVID-19 Coronavirus. (March 12, 2020) with The CDC Foundation, FSG, CalOES, and Governor Newsom’s Senior Advisor on Social Innovation.
    Access the slides here. Watch here: Click Here.
  • Center for Disaster Philanthropy: COVID-19 Coronavirus: How Philanthropy Can Respond. (March 5, 2020) 
    Watch here and access the slides: Click Here

Grant & Loans Information

Ideas and Suggestions of Ways to Help Grantees and Nonprofits

  • Change grants to general operating if you can or convert restricted funds to general operating support.
  • If at all possible, do not rescind grants if a grant-funded program is canceled or postponed.
  • Expedite payment on 2020 grants. 
  • Waive final and progress reports if at all possible. 
  • Pre-approve grant extension requests.
  • Keep in mind that many nonprofits have no reserves and will need assistance in recession-related financial planning and resilience.
  • Center your strategies around the awareness of the most vulnerable populations and those at the highest risk of dying from COVID-19.
  • Reach out to your grantees to see if they need an adjustment of reporting dates. 
  • Help fund pro-level Zoom accounts to encourage remote work.
  • Fund laptops: Many do not have enough for all staff to work remotely.
  • Fund QuickBooks Online: Many only have the desktop version of QuickBooks which means they can’t access our finances remotely.
  • Provide Additional general support funding to cover:
      • Additional office cleanings
      • Quarantine supplies for our older members (e.g. non-perishable foods)
      • Cancelled travel reimbursement
  • GCIR’s Recommendations for Funders. Click Here. 
  • San Diego Study: Nonprofit Sector Response to COVID-19. The Immediate Impact of the COVID-19 Pandemic on San Diego Nonprofits. 3.2020. Click Here
  • “Grantmakers Must Put Equity at the Forefront of the Coronavirus Response” A letter to the editor of the Chronicle of Philanthropy. Click Here.
  • Funding Summary for COVID-19: Candid has released a new page on its website which is tracking the latest funding going to respond to the outbreak, as well as related news and RFPs. The page updates automatically as data and news are added to the database. Click Here
  • Philanthropy CA’s COVID-19 Response Page. This page includes resources for various funds listed by region. Click Here
  • Guidance on reinforcing equity during this challenging time: Click Here
  • COVID-19: Seven Things Philanthropy Can Do. Read the full FSG article here. Click Here
  • Organizational Resilience: An Equity Approach to Crises. An interview from Philanthropy CA. Click Here
  • Philanthropy Has a Duty to Respond Quickley to the COVID-19 Outbreak and Here is How We Can Do it. From Inside Philanthropy. Click Here. 

National/Statewide Resource Sites

  • Early Childhood OC Childcare Resources. Click Here. 
  • OneOC COVID-19 Nonprofit Resource Page. Click Here. 
  • Executive Coaches of Orange County Resource Page for Nonprofits. Click Here. 
  • Philanthropy CA COVID-19 Resource Page. Click Here
  • Council on Foundations COVID-19 Resource Hub: Click Here
  • CA Department of Public Health. Click Here. 
  • Center for Disaster Philanthropy has a dedicated page with information on how to help/engage around COVID-19 Coronavirus: Click Here
  • World Health Organization COVID-19 Resource page: Click Here
  • CDC COVID-19 Resource page: Click Here

Public Policy Resources

OCG joined with nonprofits and philanthropic leading countries across the country advocating for nonprofits to be included in the COVID-19 stimulus legislation. Read the full letter here.

Congress has passed the CARES Act, providing support to Americans in the wake of the COVID-19 pandemic. Learn more about how it will affect the nonprofit industry:

Articles

How do we build a compassionate and inclusive America in an age of distrust? WAJAHAT ALI knows from personal experience that when we come together to be the superheroes of our own stories, we can create honest social change. The beloved TED speaker has written for the New York Times, the Washington Post, and The Atlantic about our urgent issues—immigration, politics, parenthood—with boldness, hope, and humor. His memoir Go Back to Where You Came From, one of Amazon’s Best Books of the Year, follows his life as a Muslim Pakistani-American on a surprising, emotional, and challenging quest for the good life. Iconic journalist Katie Couric says that “we are all so fortunate to be on the receiving end of his intellect, his humanity, and his heart.”

Wajahat Ali

“With wit and charm, Ali delivers a masterful meditation on growing up brown in America...he gives us a clear-eyed affirmation of the country America could be.” — Mara Gay, New York Times

Wajahat Ali uses his platform to fight tirelessly for the social change we need in our country—and he isn’t afraid to get personal while doing it. The Daily Beast columnist and former New York Times writer, TED speaker, award-winning playwright, and Peabody-nominated producer of the documentary series The Secret Life of Muslims offers us his experiences of triumph over hardship as a beacon of hope and resilience in the face of life’s impossible situations. From his experiences of Islamophobia growing up as a Muslim Pakistani-American to his two-year-old daughter’s liver cancer diagnosis, Wajahat is living proof that when we share our authentic stories, we build the America we wish to live in.”

In his memoir Go Back to Where You Came From: And Other Helpful Recommendations on How to Become American, Wajahat teaches us how to create our own superhero origin story, invest in hope for the future of America, and enact real social change. The book was called “biting and funny and full of heart” by NPR. Representative Ilhan Omar called Wajahat’s work “hilarious” and “deeply moving”, and legendary writer Dave Eggers said it was the book he’d “been hoping Wajahat Ali would write for ten years—hilarious, stylistically fearless, deeply humane.”

Wajahat is also the author of The Domestic Crusaders—the first major play about Muslim-Americans in a post-9/11 world. He was the lead researcher and author for the Center for American Progress’s seminal report “Fear Inc., Roots of the Islamophobia Network in America,” and served as a national correspondent for Al Jazeera America, where he told stories about communities and individuals often marginalized or under-reported in mainstream media.

As Creative Director of Affinis Wajahat Labs, he worked to create social entrepreneurship initiatives to support and uplift marginalized communities. He also worked with the US State Department to design and implement the “Generation Change” leadership program to empower young social entrepreneurs. Wajahat initiated chapters in eight countries, including Pakistan and Singapore. For his work, he was honored as a “Generation Change Leader” by Sec. of State Clinton and recognized as an “Emerging Muslim American Artist” by the Muslim Public Affairs Council. 

He has given keynote speeches around the world such as TED, The Aspen Ideas Festival, Google, the United Nations, and The New Yorker Festival. His writing appears regularly in the New York TimesThe Atlantic, the Washington Post, and The Guardian. He’s a Senior Fellow at The Western States Center and Auburn Seminary and co-host of Al Jazeera’s The Stream.