FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
April 14, 2020
Media Contact:
Rachel Davis, Office of Mayor Sam Liccardo, 408.712.9149, rachel.davis@sanjoseca.gov
SAN JOSE, CALIF. – Donor commitments to the Silicon Valley Strong effort have surpassed $20 million through the generosity of community leaders but the need amongst the residents is so great that the effort’s leaders are asking for more contributions.
“The pandemic has put an unprecedented strain on the residents of Silicon Valley,” said San Jose Mayor, Sam Liccardo. “We have seen a tremendous outpouring of support from the community so far but the need is so great that we are calling on our leaders for even more generosity.”
The Silicon Valley Strong effort brings together public and private funds to help Silicon Valley’s most vulnerable residents, small businesses and nonprofits.
Thanks to the fundraising efforts from a public-private partnership between Destination: Home, Cisco, the County of Santa Clara and the City of San Jose, Silicon Valley Strong has received commitments from the City, County, and several significant private funding commitments, including from the following organizations:
| $4 million from Cisco
$1.5 million from Western Digital $1 million from Apple $1 million from Adobe $1 million from Samsung $1 million from Destination: Home $1 million from Google $1 million from Zoom $500,000 from Micron $500,000 from PayPal $500,000 from Broadcom $500,000 from eBay $300,000 from HP Foundation |
$250,000 from Marvell
$200,000 from Bank of America $200,000 from AMD $200,000 from Brandenburg Family Foundation $150,000 from Housing Trust Silicon Valley $150,000 from Facebook $150,000 from Silver Lake $100,000 from David & Lucile Packard Foundation $100,000 from Intel $100,000 from Infosys $100,000 from Hewlett Packard Enterprise $100,000 from Xilinx |
Recently, partners of Silicon Valley Strong hosted a telethon with NBC Bay Area. The event included heartfelt messages from local leaders, community members and even a surprise appearance from celebrity talk show host and Grammy winner, Kelly Clarkson. The overall event raised $277,200 in donations – including a generous $100,000 commitment from John A. Sobrato.
The vast majority of the funding raised by Silicon Valley Strong (more than $16 million) is being allocated towards a COVID-19 financial assistance initiative for residents. Led by Destination: Home and Sacred Heart Community Service, this initiative is providing direct cash assistance to low-income Santa Clara County residents who have lost wages and are facing economic hardship as a result of the pandemic. Yet, the generous funding raised to-date is being vastly outpaced by the enormous demand in the community. In fact, more than 4,400 families applied for assistance in the first three days, and as of April 13, there were more than 9,000 additional households on the waiting list.
The movement includes the following:
- Digital Resource Hub – A way for Silicon Valley residents to stay informed and look out for each other. This landing page serves as a hub with critical updates and resources for vulnerable neighbors.
- Volunteering and Food Distribution – This critical, regional effort seeks volunteers to ensure food security for our most vulnerable residents among the 1.9M people in this county. We will assist non-profits in food programs that serve seniors and the medically vulnerable who are urged to self-isolate for their own safety.
- Monetary Contribution – The COVID-19 pandemic is hurting Silicon Valley residents, businesses, and community-based organizations. Particularly hard hit are those families and individuals who can least afford a medical or financial crisis. Small businesses and nonprofits are seeing an increased need for services or have had to cancel arts, cultural, or fundraising events. The Silicon ValleyStrong Fund will work to address these economic impacts. Donations can also be made to a regional fund.
Silicon Valley Strong is a facet of the Santa Clara County COVID response strategy and is a partnership with Silicon Valley Community Foundation (SVCF), which is also fundraising for COVID-19 response efforts across the Bay Area region. The Silicon Valley Strong effort incorporates fundraising for the Silicon Valley Strong Fund; SVCF COVID-19 Regional Response Fund designated for Santa Clara County; SVCF COVID-19 Nonprofit Regional Emergency Fund designated for Santa Clara County; and direct commitments to Destination:Home.
To find out how Silicon Valley corporations, philanthropic organizations, and residents can help during this pandemic, please visit www.SiliconValleyStrong.org.