Columbia, SC (WLTX) - After the thousand-year flood of 2015, the "One SC Relief Fund" was set up to distribute money to charitable organizations throughout the state.
"We're using that fund to be able to respond quickly, on the ground. And we fund non-profits that are on the ground responding locally to disasters," says Erin Johnson, with Central Carolina Community Foundation. Her organization helps to allocate funds from One SC.
During times of disaster, when charity is needed the most, the question of validity always comes up. Those that are able to give, want to know their donation is being used responsibly. Johnson says, that's where One SC comes into play. "South Carolina, unfortunately, has been hit three times in the last four years with a natural disaster. So we now have a pretty good structure in place, and we have a really good network of non-profits who have a lot of experience responding to a disaster. And we, as a foundation, have a lot of experience in vetting organizations to know they're current in their 501 c3 status, they do good work on the ground, and they have a good track record of being a non-profit."
Initially following a disaster, presently the aftermath of Hurricane Florence, funds are given to help with immediate necessities things like food, food vouchers, temporary shelter and lodging. It also includes mucking and gutting houses, and helping people get everything wet out of their homes to mitigate the onset of mold. Then later, funds are redirected to recovery efforts.
Johnson says, "The grants will then go towards home reconstruction and rebuild, and more long term sustainability things."
After their extensive vetting process, and after funds are dispersed, the foundation acts as a watchdog, following up with the the charities who received grants, to make sure their doing work in the communities. The One SC fund was set up, in part, to do the research for you, in an effort to make your donations are allocated to those who will use it the most productively.
Johnson says, "100% of the dollars that come into the One SC Fund go back into the community. We don't take an administrative fee off of that, which is different from some of our other grant making, but we make no money off of the One SC Fund because we understand how important it is to get all those dollars back into the community."