Olympic Times

The Washington State Department of Commerce will distribute a combined total of $9.4 million in COVID-19 funding to youth development organizations throughout the state.

“Nonprofit organizations are absolutely crucial for supporting and lifting up the children and youth most at risk of falling behind or suffering the physical and emotional impacts of this pandemic,” Washington State Department of Commerce Director Lisa Brown said in a news release posted on the Washington Commerce website. “But our community organizations can’t do their work without funding. We are in this together, and these grants are one way we can help keep our communities strong.”

The investment is part of the Washington Youth Development Nonprofit Relief Fund created with funding from CARES Act, according to the Commerce website. The Commerce partnered with School’s Out Washington to implement the relief fund.

Awards ranging from $10,000 to $50,000 will be given to 421 youth development organizations in Washington state with a focus on groups that have been disproportionately impacted by the coronavirus including youth in poverty, youth with disabilities, and migrants/immigrants.