NCUF to Send $250,000 for Hurricane Fiona Relief Efforts

Since the powerful Hurricane Fiona made landfall in Puerto Rico Sept. 18, hundreds of thousands of citizens remain without power and water as recovery efforts continue.

On Monday, the National Credit Union Foundation (NCUF) announced its commitment to send $250,000 from its CUAid program to help credit union employees and volunteers based on the island who have been devastated by the storm.

According to a statement from NCUF, the grant money will be handed to Inclusiv to manage individual donations to those who need it. As of Monday, Inclusiv employees on the ground in Puerto Rico have been working around the clock to identify where the money needs to go.

“We’ve identified about 100 credit union employees and volunteers whose homes, vehicles, personal property has been damaged and in some cases, irreparably,” NCUF Executive Director Gigi Hyland said.

In addition, several credit unions, or cooperativas, have reported substantial flood damage.

Pablo DeFilippi, EVP of Inclusiv said, “We know dozens of credit union employees have been impacted, and several credit unions received damages as a consequence of flooding. This CUAid grant will help those individuals, and the credit unions they work for, get back up and running. That’s an important first step in supporting the rest of the island through what will be a long, challenging recovery.”

Historically, the Foundation would solicit donations prior to distributing dollars. According to the NCUF, following a series of catastrophic events in 2017, CUAid was restructured to be able to provide immediate financial support.

“CUAid is the living embodiment of our people helping people philosophy,” André Parraway, the Foundation’s chief financial and operations officer, said. “When disaster strikes, the credit union movement responds.”