SEATTLE, Washington — Amazon founder and CEO, Jeff Bezos, currently the richest person in the world, announced on Thursday he has donated $98.5 million through his Beezos Day One Fund — to 32 organizations in 23 states that are helping homeless families.
The gifts to each organization received ranged from $1.25 million to $5 million.
Excited to announce this year’s Bezos Day One grants. Thank you to these 32 organizations in 23 states working to end homelessness. I recently spent time with the amazing team at Community of Hope in Washington, D.C. – one of last year’s grantees. https://t.co/Lfy5LUWT99 pic.twitter.com/L0JeDUrjAY
— Jeff Bezos (@JeffBezos) 21 november 2019
The Bezos Day One Fund launched in 2018 with a $2 billion commitment to focus on making meaningful and lasting impacts in two areas: funding existing non-profits that help families experiencing homelessness, and creating a network of new, non-profit tier-one preschools in low-income communities.
The Day 1 Families Fund issues annual leadership awards to organizations and civic groups doing compassionate, needle-moving work to provide shelter and hunger support to address the immediate needs of young families. The vision statement comes from the inspiring Mary’s Place in Seattle: no child sleeps outside.
The Day 1 Academies Fund is building an organization to launch and operate a network of high-quality, full-scholarship Montessori-inspired preschools in underserved communities. We will have the opportunity to learn, invent, and improve. And we’ll use the same set of principles that have driven Amazon. Most important among those will be genuine, intense customer obsession. The customer set this team of missionaries will serve is simple: children in underserved communities across the country.
