This page contains information from the GoFundMe campaign bearing this page’s title (abbreviated to SFHEF). I set this fund up to help defray the loss of hours or jobs by hospitality workers caused by CONVID-19 emergency response actions, especially in the South Florida communities. The GoFundMe page can be found here.
The story of the SFHEF is included below. If you need assistance, please see the survey linked below. Filling it out completely will put it in the hands of the Team Leader for the SFHEF and will open the door for possible dibursements.
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In the aftermath of the governor of Florida declaring the 30-day closure of bars and nightclubs and the halving of capacity at restaurants across the state, I was briefly stunned while considering the dire uncertainty and circumstances that so many of our dear friends will endure in the coming month(s).
There is no time to be stunned, however; so I now ask that you consider supporting the South Florida community of hospitality+ workers… they are a hardworking bunch that nonetheless will struggle to support themselves during this unprecedented health and economic emergency.
This fund is designed to provide aid to bar, nightclub, restaurant, and certain gig-economy workers that have and will be impacted by COVID-19 emergency responses. This fund can be accessed by workers whose hours have been curtailed because of this crisis and who are not being otherwise compensated.
In order to distribute the funds, I’ve created a short survey to help me prioritize those in our community most at-risk and in need. All information shared will remain confidential. Our aim is to provide everyone who applies with emergency funds, but we will make certain considerations for the BIPOC, LGBTQIA+, disabled, immunocompromised, and otherwise disadvantaged communities.
If you need funding, please apply here – translations are in the works.
Who am I – my name is Jackson Hubbard, a professional geologist at a South Florida environmental consulting firm and a friend and patron of many workers and establishments in the food and bar scene in South Florida, especially Delray Beach. Personally, my life has been made brighter and fuller by the companionship and hard work of so many in the service industry. As my group-chats lit up with surprised and frightened friends admitting their empty bank accounts, lack of options, and possible homelessness, I realized I had to do something for them and the larger community… so here we are. If this fund takes off, I will likely employ the aid of family members or friends to help administer the fundraiser, so keep a look out for additions to this section. Please feel free to contact me if you have questions.
We are a community. To me that means we help each other and can rely respectfully on others in the community in our times of need. Let’s show the country and world how good giving can be… for this community, for other communities, and for ourselves.
While the fund goal is large, please consider that this is a tri-county effort involving thousands of people in need. We’d like to help more than a hundred people, and an amount this large is the only way I can envision this goal being met. Please consider donating or sharing if you are unable to give at this time.
(I would like to thank the Jessica Tousignant and Candace Whitney Morris from the gofundme Seattle Hospitality Emergency Fund for providing a great template to get my South Florida fund set up. I have made a donation to their fund, and I hope you consider it at as well.)
Please see the South Florida Hospitality Fund GoFundMe page here for additional information.
Jackson Hubbard, MS, PG 