Howmet kicks off United Way COVID fund

Howmet Aerospace has made its first charitable award in Michigan in the amount of $25,000 to support the Muskegon COVID Response Fund through the United Way.

“The pandemic has created increased need and demand on resources for area non-profit agencies that provide emergency support,” said Christine Robere, United Way President.

“Howmet Aerospace believes in giving back to support the communities where our employees work,” commented Amy Heisser, Human Resources Director for Howmet. “We are proud that our first gift in Michigan is to help in this incredible time of need.” United Way and the Community Foundation seeded the development of the COVID Response Fund.

“COVID-19 is bringing out the best in Muskegon County, our ingenuity, our resilience, and our value of caring for our neighbors, for one another,” said Todd Jacobs, President & CEO, Community Foundation for Muskegon County. “Howmet Aerospace continues to lead by example, and this wonderful gift is yet another example of their caring for the greater community. They are truly a valued corporate partner.”  In addition to Howmet Aerospace, other corporate partners have included Meijer, Consumers Energy Foundation and DTE Foundation.

United Way of the Lakeshore and the Community Foundation are partnering to raise funds to support area non-profits with a myriad of issues related to the COVID pandemic. Top issues to date have been food, shelter, baby items, child care, technology, cleaning supplies, masks and volunteers. A small team from United Way, the Foundation and Public Health have been reviewing grant requests from agencies on a weekly basis. To date grants have been made from the fund to the following agencies:

  •  Every Woman’s Place - $5,000 for technology to work differently and cleaning supplies
  •  Muskegon Rescue Mission - $5,000 food and cleaning supplies
  •  Head Start of Muskegon - $2,500 diapers, wipes and young children’s products
  •  Mission for Area People - $15,000 support unemployed, rent assistance, transportation, & food
  •  LOVE Inc. - $5,000 for food, shelter, personal care items and masks
  •  YMCA - $4,500 veggie van to distribute healthy produce to seniors 
  •  Fruitport Christian Reformed - $1,000 Food pantry and personal care items
       Community Encompass - $10,000 for housing support for families
       Catholic Charities - $5,000 for food pantry
       AgeWell Services - $5,000 for food for seniors – Curbside distribution and Meals on Wheels
       Salvation Army – $3,000 – Meat for the food pantry
  •  Child Care Center Supports - $5,000 to provide necessities to local daycares in operations

United Way is monitoring developments of the pandemic, particularly for families in our most vulnerable local communities. For these families, one illness or missed paycheck can be disastrous. The United Way is communicating weekly with the emergency services agencies to keep aware of the changing needs. 

Families are encouraged to call 2-1-1, the three-digit helpline, to get connected to health and human services agencies that can help. All the helping agencies have been encouraged to update their program information and availability to ensure that this “one-stop” place to call is continuously updated to meet the needs of local residents. Dial 2-1-1, text your zip code to 898211, or Visit/Chat www.211.

org to link to available local services. Information about volunteering or donating to support the COVID-19 response is available on our website at: www.unitedwaylakeshore.org/coronavirushelp.

United Way of the Lakeshore’s Bold Goal is 10,000 more working families meeting their basic needs by 2025. For more information, contact United Way of the Lakeshore at 231-332-4000.

Howmet Aerospace Inc., headquartered in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, is a leading global provider of advanced engineered solutions for the aerospace and transportation industries. In 2019, the businesses of Howmet Aerospace reported annual revenue of over $7 billion. For more info, visit www.howmet.com. Follow @howmet: LinkedIn, Twitter, Instagram, Facebook, and YouTube.

In more COVID-19 news, The United Methodist Retirement Communities (UMRC) Foundation has received a $50,000 grant from the Michigan Health Endowment Fund as part of a Safety Net Telehealth Initiative. These funds will support telehealth services to benefit low-income, nursing home-eligible older adults who participate in four of UMRC & Porter Hills’ PACE (Program of All-inclusive Care for the Elderly) sites, which includes the LifeCircle PACE in Muskegon. This allows people to access comprehensive medical, occupational and physical therapy, pharmacy needs, nutrition and meals, health education, social and recreational activities, and door-to-door transportation needs as the pandemic has closed physical centers temporarily.  

To learn more, visit LifeCircles PACE at https://lifecircles-pace.org or call 231-733-8686.