Teaming Up to support our community

TEAMING UP TO SUPPORT OUR COMMUNITY

In response to the COVID-19 crisis, the Rays Baseball Foundation and Rowdies Soccer Fund committed over $1.4 million in financial support to nonprofit organizations in the Tampa Bay region, with 81 agencies receiving funding.

COVID-19 RELIEF GRANT PROGRAM

The Rays Baseball Foundation and Rowdies Soccer Fund established this Relief Grant program in response to the COVID-19 crisis. The following nonprofit organizations with a focus on hunger relief, shelter and/or health and wellness, that have been impacted by COVID-19, were recipients of these Relief Grants:

TEAMING UP TO FEED OUR COMMUNITY

Virtual Food Drive Campaign

The Rays Baseball Foundation and Rowdies Soccer Fund donated $250,000 to Feeding Tampa Bay to help those in need during the COVID-19 crisis. The Rays Baseball Foundation and Rowdies Soccer Fund kicked off the virtual food drive campaign with a $100,000 donation, and pledged to match donations on the campaign page up to an additional $150,000. In total, over 4.1 million meals were raised for those in need through the Rays and Rowdies virtual food drive campaign.

Tropicana Field Mobile Pantry

Every Saturday, Lot 9 of Tropicana Field is used as a Feeding Tampa Bay Mega Pantry. Those in need of food can come to Lot 9 to pick up pre-packaged groceries, free of charge. For more information, including any updates to the distribution schedule, visit https://feedingtampabay.org/megapantry.

Concessions Donation

The Rays and concessions partner, Levy, donated a total of 26 pallets of food and beverages from Tropicana Field, Charlotte Sports Park and Al Lang Stadium, to Metropolitan Ministries and the St. Petersburg Free Clinic. The products donated included produce, meats, bakery items, dairy products and more, with a retail value of nearly $200,000.

COMMUNITY PARTNERSHIP GRANTS

The Rays Baseball Foundation is proud to maintain long-standing partnerships with key community organizations throughout the Tampa Bay region. The Foundation provided grants to the following established community partners in support of programming focused on the COVID-19 crisis and the critical needs of our community, including hunger relief, health and wellness, shelter and youth programming.

COMMUNITY FUND GRANTS

The Rays Community Fund Grant Program provides assistance to local nonprofits in the Tampa Bay region. These grants help enhance and support current programs offered by community-based nonprofit organizations. The following 2020 Community Fund Grant recipient organizations focused on providing support to the community in response to the COVID-19 crisis:

ONE TAMPA

The Rays Baseball Foundation and Rowdies Soccer Fund contributed $100,000 to the Relief Now, Rise Together Fund—a new relief fund for residents and small businesses in the City of Tampa facing economic uncertainty due to the pandemic.

ST. PETERSBURG FIGHTING CHANCE FUND

The City of St. Petersburg’s Fighting Chance Fund provided critical financial support to locally owned and independently operated small businesses and their employees. The Rays Baseball Foundation and Rowdies Soccer Fund donated $100,000 to this program to help offset the significant loss of revenue during the global pandemic.

RESOURCES

Hunger Relief

Feeding Tampa Bay offers a number of ways to bring food to your table every day.

INFO http://feedingtampabay.org/find-a-pantry/

Additional Resources

Meals on Wheels
Salvation Army
The Kind Mouse Productions
The Thomas Promise Foundation

Health & Wellness

In a medical emergency or immediate crisis, please call 911.

The Crisis Center of Tampa Bay exists to make sure no one in our community has to face crisis alone. The Crisis Center is available 24 hours a day, 365 days a year as the community’s gateway to help. People who are struggling with a variety of crisis situations including sexual assault or abuse, domestic violence, financial distress, substance abuse, medical emergency, suicidal thoughts and other emotional or situational problems can connect to hope and healing.

To speak with someone right away, please call 211.

INFO https://www.crisiscenter.com/get-help/

Additional Resources

211 Tampa Bay Cares
ALS Association Florida Chapter
Big Brothers Big Sisters of Tampa Bay
Boys & Girls Clubs of the Suncoast
Florida Holocaust Museum
Metro Inclusive Health
St. Petersburg Free Clinic
Tampa Metro YMCA
YMCA of Greater St. Petersburg
YMCA of the Suncoast

Shelter

CASA St. Petersburg is the official domestic violence center for Pinellas County and has provided lifesaving services to women, children, and men living with domestic violence for more than 40 years.

If you are in immediate danger, call 911 to reach law enforcement.

24 HOUR DOMESTIC VIOLENCE HOTLINE: (727) 895-4912 | TTY: (727) 828-1269

OUTSIDE PINELLAS COUNTY: (800) 500-1119 | TTY: (800) 621-4202

INFO https://www.casa-stpete.org/get-help/

The Spring of Tampa Bay provides comprehensive services to enhance the safety of victims and survivors of domestic violence in Hillsborough County. Since their founding in 1977, they have provided a safe haven and comprehensive supportive services to more than 60,000 abused adults and their children, and answered calls all hours of the day and night from well over 150,000 women in crisis.

If you are in immediate danger, call 911 to reach law enforcement.

If you wish to speak with an advocate, please call:

24-Hour Spring of Tampa Bay Crisis Hotline: (813) 247-7233| TTY: (813) 248-1050

Florida Domestic Violence Hotline: (800) 500-1119 | TTY: (800) 621-4202

National Domestic Violence Hotline: (800) 799-7233

INFO https://www.thespring.org/get-help/

Additional Resources

A Kids Place
Alpha House of Pinellas
Dawning Family Services
Eckerd Connects
Metropolitan Ministries
Ready for Life
Ronald McDonald House
St. Petersburg College
St. Vincent de Paul CARES
Starting Right, Now

ACTIVITIES FOR KIDS

Raymond’s Activities

Keep the kids entertained with a variety of Raymond’s favorite activities, including coloring pages, word searches and much more!

INFO https://www.mlb.com/rays/fans/activities

Reading with the Rays

Since 2006, the Rays Baseball Foundation has teamed up with Suncoast Credit Union for the summer reading program Reading with the Rays - Read Your Way to the Ballpark. Reading with the Rays encourages kids to avoid summer reading loss by participating in a fun and interactive reading program over the summer months. Kids can pick up their favorite books from home, explore local library websites, or read anything they desire. As they read, track their hours by rounding the bases. Hit a reading home run by reading for 24 hours and kids can receive two (2) tickets to a Rays game and other Reading with the Rays prizes!

Summer Slugger

In partnership with EVERFI, Major League Baseball’s Summer Slugger program was developed to combat summer learning loss during vacation months. The course -- designed for 4th and 5th graders -- focuses on math & literacy skills and teaches these concepts through a baseball-themed, gamified experience.