(Above image from The Center Orlando’s Facebook page)
ORLANDO | The LGBT+ Center Orlando has been awarded a $250,000 grant from Orange County through the CARES Act.
The grant will allow funds to be allocated to those within Central Florida’s LGBTQ community hardest hit by COVID-19.
“Many of those we serve work in service jobs that have suffered large layoffs and furloughs,” Joel Morales, Director of Operations for The LGBT+ Center, said in a statement. “This can mean the difference for many of becoming homeless or not.”
The grant comes as The Center, Alliance for Safety and Justice, Crime Survivors for Safety and Justice, QLatinx, Bros in Convo, Contigo Fund and the One Orlando Alliance have been advocating for a portion of CARES Act funding to go to emergency service providers in the community.
“We need to make sure that communities hardest hit by both crime and violence and COVID-19 have the emergency services necessary to keep them safe and healthy,” Robert Rooks, CEO and co-founder of Alliance for Safety and Justice, said in a press release. “By investing in essential programs that communities rely on to meet their core health and safety needs, Orange County is taking important steps to reduce harm and make everyone safer.”
In order to help meet these needs, The Center announced it would be hiring a temporary, full-time case manager to assist in housing, food, travel, legal services and scheduling mental health appointments.
The grant-funded position will run through December 2020. Those interested in applying can email their resume and cover letter to Morales at Joel@TheCenterOrlando.org.
The Coronavirus Aid, Relief and Economic Security (CARES) Act is a $2 trillion economic stimulus package passed by Congress last March in response to the initial impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on the economy.
