NORTHEAST KINGDOM – Northeast Kingdom Community Action (NEKCA) and Kingdom United Resilience & Recovery Effort (KURRVE) have received flood relief grants from the Vermont Community Foundation (VCF.)
The Vermont Community Foundation has distributed $455,500 in flood relief grants over the past month to respond to devastating flooding around the state this summer. The latest grants bring the total granted or allocated through the Vermont Flood Response and Recovery Fund since July of 2023 to $13.7 million.
With the fresh damage, the work of the fund is closely focused on immediate relief. NEKCA received one grant in July for $7,500 and a second grant in August for $10,000. KURRVE received one grant in July for $20,000 and a second grant in August for $15,000.
The most recent grants are helping communities shelter people displaced by floodwaters, clean up debris, and meet basic needs for food and clothing. Grants are also helping farmers plant cover crops in damaged fields, replace equipment, and repair farm roads that were gouged by torrents of water. The money is supporting local long-term recovery offices where people can seek assistance with a range of needs, from filing for state and federal aid, to connecting with volunteers who can help with rebuilding and mucking out.
NEKCA is a leading organization in the NEK addressing poverty through education, partnerships and community organizing. It provides community-based activities, essential support, connections to resources and skill building opportunities to all members of the Northeast Kingdom. It is committed to strengthening families and communities through equitable approaches and inclusive practices.
Kingdom United Resilience and Recovery Effort (KURRVE) is a collaboration of neighbor-to-neighbor networks, faith and business communities and other local nonprofit organizations. It provides services to individuals and families affected by flooding and works to strengthen the regional response and recovery from future disasters, through a coordinated community-driven and regional approach.
The VCF Flood Response and Recovery Fund was created after catastrophic flooding in July 2023. It has been reinvigorated to help the state put itself back together after the new rounds of flooding this summer. Since July 11 of this year, $842,715 has been donated to the fund to help hard-hit communities recover from flooding that in many cases has been recurring, adding to the need for aid and hope.
“It is only through the deep generosity of people who care about Vermont that we are able to bring hope and help to communities coping with this era of recurring flooding,” said Dan Smith, president and CEO of the Vermont Community Foundation. “We cannot overstate how important this assistance is right now, or how grateful we are to everyone who is helping the effort. Our regard for our neighbors is infrastructure that no flood can wash away.”
Since the creation of the Vermont Flood Response and Recovery Fund in 2023, more than $14 million has been donated from all over the country and all over Vermont.
To learn more about the work of the Vermont Flood Response and Recovery Fund, go to vtfloodresponse.org
Paul Fixx is editor of The Hardwick Gazette and lives in Hardwick.
