SALT LAKE CITY – Salt Lake City Mayor Erin Mendenhall announced today an effort to raise $1 million to help city residents most impacted by COVID-19. Raise Up SLC will provide financial relief to residents who did not qualify for or couldn’t access federal stimulus money – with an emphasis on undocumented and mixed-residency-status families, refugees who have struggled to access resources, and others who were living below the poverty threshold before COVID-19 hit.

“There are people in our city struggling to get by during this pandemic, and who were not eligible for the federal stimulus. Salt Lake City wants to help them,” Mayor Mendenhall said. “Our hope is that with a Salt Laker Card in their hands, residents will feel a bit of relief during this incredibly trying time.”

Raise Up Salt Lake City will kick off with a fundraising-only period, and transition into a donation and distribution model by offering $500 to selected individuals and families through a no-fee debit card which can be used for food, utilities, rental assistance and any other essential expenses families and individuals are facing.

The Community Foundation of Utah will manage donations and distribution of the cards to community partners, which will ensure that the members of our community experiencing the most need are served.

Contributions can be made through the Raise Up Salt Lake City donation portal at www.raiseupslc.com or by texting GiveSLC to 21000. Donors can choose to make a one-time donation, recurring donations or can round up the dollar amount of purchases and have the change donated to the campaign.

The City and its partners invite the community to use the hashtags #RaiseUpSLC and #LevantarSLC to help promote the campaign.

“When we act collaboratively as a community, we can create true impact” said Alex Eaton, CEO of the Community Foundation of Utah.

An initial donation has already been received from the Muslim World League with the assistance of the World Trade Center Utah. Salt Lake was one of eight cities and two states selected by the non-profit Accelerator for America to receive technical assistance and $50,000 in funding to set up and administer a financial assistance program for residents whose livelihoods have been hard-hit by COVID- 19.

The Salt Laker card will be available to residents in the coming weeks.

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