Chum, the largest emergency shelter and service provider north of the Twin Cities, has announced that they have received a $2.5 million grant from the Bezos Day 1 Families Fund. According to Chum, this is the largest private gift in the nonprofit’s history.
Chum is part of the eighth annual cohort of organizations receiving the funding.
“We are so pleased to have been invited to apply for this grant,” said John Cole, Executive Director of
Chum. “This is a once in a lifetime gift that will certainly change the trajectory of many lives.”
The Bezos Day 1 Families Fund was created in 2018, and since then has awarded 280 grants totaling more than $850 million to organizations serving families across the United States, the District of Columbia, Puerto Rico and Guam.
Chum has stated that they will use the grant money to serve more families experiencing homelessness in Duluth, with the goal of ensuring no child in the community sleeps outside. More specifically, they plan to use the one-time grant over the next five years to expand their Emergency Family Shelter and support services for parents and programs for children.
