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Jeff Bezos' Day One fund gives $97.5 million to first 24 recipients

The awards will help homeless families in 16 states.

marrianzhou
marrianzhou
Marrian Zhou Staff Reporter
Marrian Zhou is a Beijing-born Californian living in New York City. She joined CNET as a staff reporter upon graduation from Columbia Journalism School. When Marrian is not reporting, she is probably binge watching, playing saxophone or eating hot pot.
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A picture used on the webpage for the Bezos Day One Families Fund. 

 Screenshot by Marrian Zhou/ CNET

Jeff Bezos has awarded the first half of his $2 billion Day One Fund.

The Amazon CEO and founder started the charitable Bezos Day One Fund in September. It's designed to donate to nonprofit organizations that help homeless families, and to create a network of top-tier preschools in low-income communities.

On Tuesday, the fund awarded $97.5 million to 24 organizations, including the Refugee Women's Alliance in Seattle and Simpson Housing Services in Minneapolis. Each organization is given either $2.5 million or $5 million, according to the fund's webpage. The groups support homeless families in 16 US states and the District of Columbia.

"These 24 organizations are working on a number of initiatives that support families in need," Bezos said in a statement on the fund's site, "from emergency shelter and safe short-term shelter for families to get on their feet, to access and support for permanent housing and support services that help families move forward together."

Here's the list of awardees.

  • Abode Services, Fremont, California.
  • Catholic Charities Archdiocese of New Orleans.
  • Catholic Charities of the Archdiocese of Miami.
  • Catholic Community Services of Western Washington, Tacoma.
  • Community of Hope, Washington, DC.
  • Community Rebuilders, Grand Rapids, Michigan.
  • Crossroads Rhode Island, Providence.
  • District Alliance for Safe Housing (DASH), Washington, DC.
  • Emerald Development and Economic Network, Cleveland.
  • FrontLine Service, Cleveland.
  • Hamilton Families, San Francisco.
  • Heartland Family Service, Omaha, Nebraska.
  • Housing Families First, Henrico, Virginia.
  • JOIN, Portland, Oregon.
  • LA Family Housing, North Hollywood, California.
  • Northern Virginia Family Service, Oakton.
  • Primo Center for Women and Children, Chicago.
  • Refugee Women's Alliance, Seattle.
  • SEARCH Homeless Services, Houston.
  • Simpson Housing Services, Minneapolis.
  • The Salvation Army, Center of Hope, Charlotte, North Carolina.
  • The Salvation Army of Greater Houston.
  • UMOM New Day Centers, Phoenix.
  • Urban Resource Institute, New York.

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