CDP Hurricane Irma Recovery Fund - Center for Disaster Philanthropy

Hurricane Irma made landfall in Florida on September 10, 2017, as a Category 3 storm after leaving a trail of destruction through the Caribbean, including significant devastation throughout the Leeward, U.S. and British Virgin Islands, Puerto Rico, Cuba, and Haiti.

We launched the CDP Hurricane Irma Recovery Fund to support medium and long-term recovery in all areas affected by the storm.

(Photo: Destruction can be seen from the air in and around Marathon, Florida during recovery efforts following Hurricane Irma. Source: U.S. Customs and Border Protection photo by Kris Grogan)

This fund supported this disaster:

Hurricane Irma

Grantmaking timeline

We raised just over $1.4 million for this Fund. Some donors restricted their gifts to Florida sites; others restricted contributions to Caribbean sites.

July 2018 – $836,000 awarded to six organizations for housing recovery
September 2018 – $570,000 awarded to four organizations

Grant committee

The grant committee for the CDP Hurricane Irma Recovery Fund included:

Committee Chair: Lori J. Bertman, President and CEO of the Baton Rouge- based Irene W. and C.B. Pennington Foundation. Lori is the Co-Founder and former Chairman of the Board of CDP.

Michael Corley, Senior Consultant, Administration, The Patterson Foundation

Robert “Bob” McFalls, President and CEO, Florida Philanthropic Network

Jacqueline Patterson, Director, NAACP Environment and Climate Justice Program

John Slocum, Independent Consultant and Associate Senior Researcher CIDOB, Barcelona Center for International Affairs

Bob Ottenhoff, Former President and CEO of the Center for Disaster Philanthropy

CDP’s Hurricane Irma Recovery Fund raised $1.4 million, with grants being issued to nine organizations in July and September 2018. These grants focused on housing, particularly for vulnerable people and people experiencing homelessness.

See all our grantee partners