The Bezos Day One Fund, a $2 billion philanthropic fund launched in 2018 by Jeff Bezos and his then-wife, MacKenzie Scott, has announced grants totaling $123.45 million in support of nonprofits working to help families experiencing homelessness.

To date, the Day 1 Families Fund has provided 170 leadership awards totaling $521.6 million to organizations in 45 states, the District of Columbia, and Puerto Rico.

Awarded through the fifth annual Day 1 Families Fund leadership awards, one of the philanthropy’s two programs, grants will support 40 organizations from 26 states and Puerto Rico to help families move from unsheltered homelessness and shelters to permanent housing with the services they require to achieve stability. Recipients include CATCH, Inc. in Boise, Idaho ($1.25 million); Community Services & Employment Training in Visalia, California ($2.5 million); Housing First, Inc. in Mobile, Alabama ($5 million); Ka Hale A Ke Ola Homeless Resource Centers, Inc. in Wailuku, Hawaii ($5 million); Samish Indian Nation in Anacortes, Washington ($5 million); Strategies to End Homelessness in Cincinnati ($5 million); and The Wellspring in Monroe, Louisiana ($1.25 million).

“I am both humbled and honored that the work of The Wellspring has been recognized at the national level in such a significant way and that we have been selected for a Day 1 Families Fund award,” said The Wellspring president and CEO Caroline Cascio. “Homelessness in northeast Louisiana looks very different than it does in other parts of the country, with families making up the majority of those facing homelessness, and children under the age of 18 comprising half of our homeless population. The need for comprehensive services that will not only bring families indoors, but also address the root causes of their homelessness and foster long-term self-sufficiency, is critical.”

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