We have given out over $160K in grants this year - blowing past our normal budget, and we’re barely halfway through the year. And while normally our grants help an individual or a family, this year we’ve had numerous requests to help groups of people.
Turkey: the earthquake in Turkey which affected 140+ Mission employees, many of whom lost family members, their homes and possession. We sent a grant of $42K which barely made a dent.
Nigeria: the deaths of seven LGF (Local Guard Force) assigned to US Embassy Abuja who we killed in a attack on their convoy. We sent a grant of $12K plus an additional $4K that was donated by many.
Sudan: Civil war broke out in Sudan in April, 2023. The US Embassy Khartoum was evacuated but 11 LGF have remained and have continued to protect the embassy, risking their own lives on a daily basis. A grant of $16K was sent to assist them during this difficult time.
These are just a few of the grants we’ve made in the past few months. There are many more that can be viewed on our Grants page. It has been challenging, but it’s what we were built for. That being said, we do need your help: If you haven’t yet made a gift to DSF this year, now would be a good time. Visit our Donate page so that we can continue to provide for those in our world-wide DS family.
