CoBank Establishes $100,000 Matching Fund to Support Hurricane Michael Relief Efforts
DENVER (October 22, 2018) — CoBank, a cooperative bank serving agribusinesses, rural infrastructure providers and Farm Credit associations throughout the United States, today announced it is committing $100,000 to support disaster relief efforts in the wake of Hurricane Michael. The bank has established a fund which will match the disaster relief contributions of its customers on a dollar-for-dollar basis.
Hurricane Michael made landfall as a category 4 hurricane and has caused extensive damage throughout Florida, Georgia, Alabama and North Carolina. In some locations, communications systems and electrical power have still not been restored, complicating the task of assessing the damage and beginning the recovery process. To date, an estimated 30 deaths across the four states have been attributed to the storm.
“The impact of Hurricane Michael and other recent storms will be felt for years to come,” said Thomas Halverson, CoBank’s president and chief executive officer. “At CoBank, we have personally heard about the affect these storms have had on our customers, their businesses and their communities and we are committed to doing our part to make the recovery process a little easier.”
“Our customers are CoBank’s eyes and ears inside affected communities,” continued Halverson. “These are the places they call home and, as such, we feel they are best equipped to help us identify the most urgent needs and the most impactful projects. We look forward to working with them in this effort.”
CoBank matching fund
CoBank’s Hurricane Michael Disaster Relief Fund will be available through November 15 or the point at which the fund is fully exhausted, whichever comes first. The fund will be operated on a first come, first served basis and is open to any CoBank customer or Farm Credit organization that makes a contribution to support Hurricane Michael relief efforts. Preference will be given to customers operating within the impacted areas.
Customers may apply for a matching grant by completing the application available here.
Questions about the program and/or completed applications may be directed to Sherry Johnson, senior manager of Corporate Social Responsibility at sjohnson@cobank.com or 303-740-6518.
About CoBank
CoBank is a $131 billion cooperative bank serving vital industries across rural America. The bank provides loans, leases, export financing and other financial services to agribusinesses and rural power, water and communications providers in all 50 states. The bank also provides wholesale loans and other financial services to affiliated Farm Credit associations serving more than 70,000 farmers, ranchers and other rural borrowers in 23 states around the country.
CoBank is a member of the Farm Credit System, a nationwide network of banks and retail lending associations chartered to support the borrowing needs of U.S. agriculture, rural infrastructure and rural communities. Headquartered outside Denver, Colorado, CoBank serves customers from regional banking centers across the U.S. and also maintains an international representative office in Singapore.
For more information about CoBank, visit the bank's web site at www.cobank.com.