Relief Fund for Flatbush Families

Every dollar raised for the Relief Fund for Flatbush Families goes directly to struggling local families - over 390 families to date! Started to support families during the pandemic from local Flatbush elementary schools, most recently we have help dozens of newly arrived in our community.

February 2024

As of Feb 2, we have raised over $24,000 and have distributed $14,780 in direct cash assistance to 30 families, who are primarily new migrant families staying at Floyd Bennett Field with kids attending PS 315 and PS 152, co-located elementary schools in Flatbush. We also have used some funds to buy gloves, medicine and other supplies. We hope to raise more funds to both give families move out of the shelter and pay rent as well as to meet immediate needs like food, medicine and transportation. Our PS 315 school community expects a new wave of students whose families are placed in the tent shelter at Floyd Bennett Field due to the Mayor's 60 day rule. We are hoping to raise more money to give directly to families, who can use the funds for rent, food, bills or anything else they need.

This Go Fund Me - the Relief Fund for Flatbush Families - was started during the pandemic, we raised about $150,000 to support more than 330 local struggling families with direct cash assistance. It was started by parents in the PS 315 parent interpreter committee that saw so many of the families we knew face a crisis with layoffs and illness in 2020.

January 2024

We have restarted the Fund for Flatbush Families to support our newest neighbors. Living in tents out in Floyd Bennett Field, families with young kids are cold, hungry and desperate for safe shelter. For these struggling parents, having some money in their pocket can make all the difference. Thank you for your contribution.

May 2022

We are raising funds to support a local Haitian family in Flatbush who lost everything in a terrible fire. They need funds to help buy food, clothes, and save enough to rent and furnish a new apartment. Right now the family is living in a homeless shelter, where they do not feel safe. We have raised $2000 of our $5000 goal to help them find a new apartment in our community. Your donation could mean the difference of this family becoming homeless or finding a new home where they can rebuild their life. We hope you can contribute! See the updates for photos and more about this story. 

The family's daughter attends a local elementary school where the kids of many of the Fund's founders also attend school.

---------

Families in our community - Flatbush, Brooklyn -  have been dramatically impacted by the COVID-19 pandemic.

Parents have suffered the loss of their jobs and are struggling to buy groceries and pay rent. Countless families are coping with illness without adequate medical care. Our kids have lost parents, grandparents, aunts and uncles from COVID-19. Over 15 languages are spoken by families in our community. Many parents have lost all of their income, and are not eligible for unemployment insurance or the stimulus.

We are coming together as a community to support the families that are most acutely impacted by this crisis, and ensure that everyone has their basic needs met. 

We have created the Relief Fund for Flatbush Families to provide financial assistance to local families with young children who are struggling with the loss of loved ones or jobs. 

Every dollar you give will go directly to families struggling in Flatbush to help buy food, pay rent, and cover mounting bills.

Please donate whatever you can to support the Fund.

Thank you for helping our community.

How Our Fund is Managed

A diverse group of Flatbush parents with children attending PS 315 are working together to build this Fund. We speak Spanish, Haitian Creole, Urdu, and Arabic. We will ensure that every dollar raised goes to local Flatbush families in need. We also will keep close accounting of the funds and how they are distributed.

Who is Eligible to Receive Funds

Families in Flatbush who have either lost family members in their home or who are facing financial hardship due to job loss or medical expenses. We are also prioritizing families who have no source of income and aren't eligible for unemployment insurance or the stimulus. Families with children who attend a Flatbush elementary school in the 11210 zip code will get preference. 

To volunteer or request support, just send us a message.

Thank you for your tremendous support!