Seattle Sounders FC today announced that the club’s recently established COVID-19 community relief fund, the Seattle Sounders FC Relief Fund, has awarded its first cycle of grants to qualified individuals and small businesses, with additional funding cycles currently open. Potential beneficiaries are encouraged to apply to access assistance from the fund at SoundersFC.com/ReliefFund. Qualified applicants not receiving a grant in the initial cycle remain eligible for future cycles and do not need to re-apply.
"We are humbled to help our community with the first cycle of Sounders FC Relief Fund grants," said Sounders FC Majority Owner Adrian Hanauer. "The Relief Fund's review committee continues to work hard to review applications, and we encourage all those who are eligible and have not yet applied to do so. We understand that the need in our community remains great, and we will continue to award cycles of funding to support the individuals and small businesses who require assistance. Additionally, I would like to thank those who have contributed to the fund, from fans giving what they can to assist the club's work, to our partner Captain Morgan who recently added $55,000 in funding. Every dollar in this fund will go to making our Seattle community stronger, and we appreciate the generosity and compassion displayed by so many."
In its first cycle, the Seattle Sounders FC Relief Fund awarded over $200,000 in direct assistance to 143 individuals and 17 small businesses. Also receiving funding was nonprofit SCIDpda, the Seattle Chinatown International District Preservation and Development Authority, which has set up its own emergency fund for small businesses in Seattle’s Chinatown International District.
Additional cycles of grant assistance from Seattle Sounders FC Relief Fund are currently open. The applications for those qualified individuals and small businesses that applied in earlier cycles but did not receive funding remain active for future cycles and no new application is needed.
Small businesses and individuals – including independent contractors – interested in applying for a Seattle Sounders FC Relief Fund grant may apply one time every calendar month, and receipt of a grant award in a previous month will not make an applicant ineligible. To learn whether an individual or small business meets eligibility requirements and to apply for a grant, as well as to learn more about grant proceed conditions, please visit SoundersFC.com/ReliefFund.
Grant applications will be reviewed by the Sounders FC Relief Fund Review Committee, comprised of the following members:
- Fred Mendoza, Relief Fund Review Committee Chair and Chair of the RAVE Foundation Board
- David Chen, RAVE Foundation Board Member
- Cameron Collins, Sounders FC Alliance Council President
- Stefan Frei, Sounders FC Goalkeeper and At-Large Committee Member
- Max Kleinman, Sounders FC Ownership Group and At-Large Committee Member
- Maya Mendoza-Exstrom, Sounders FC Senior Vice President of Legal and External Affairs
In addition to grant applications for individuals and small businesses, the Review Committee will work to identify in its discretion a non-profit serving individuals and small businesses primarily in the South Downtown neighborhoods of SoDo, Pioneer Square and the Chinatown-International District, in order to award between $10,000-20,0000 each month.
SEATTLE SOUNDERS FC RELIEF FUND
The Sounders FC Relief Fund has been established to support individuals, non-profits and small businesses, primarily in the South Downtown neighborhoods of SoDo, Pioneer Square and the Chinatown-International District, all of which have been impacted by the club’s lack of matches at CenturyLink Field and Sounders FC’s Pioneer Square front office adapting to a work-from-home policy during the COVID-19 public health crisis. The fund is intended to support a range of needs, from groceries to rent assistance and monetary packages that will fund the following priorities:
- Direct support of resources to shift workers and service providers in and around CenturyLink Field, and in neighborhood businesses that support and serve fans on matchday.
- Direct resources to small business owners to pay their critical expenses during this crisis so that they can stay in business and keep their doors open.
- Direct resources to non-profits that serve and support individuals and small businesses in the South Downtown neighborhoods of SoDo, Pioneer Square and the Chinatown-International District.
