Windermere Community May 14, 2020

Neighbors in Need Raises $690,000 for Food Banks

The COVID-19 pandemic has affected populations across the globe, but those who struggle with poverty and count on food programs to meet their basic day-to-day needs are in an especially uncertain place. While coping with increased demand and a bottlenecked pipeline of food supply, food banks are desperate for funds to continue to serve their communities. Because of this, Windermere decided to challenge its offices to raise $250,000, every dollar of which would be matched by the Windermere Foundation and donated to food banks in the areas where Windermere operates. We titled it the “Neighbors in Need” fundraising campaign.

Neighbors in Need kicked off on April 21, with the goal of raising $250,000 by May 5. As word continued to spread, online donations and contributions from both our agents and the public began to increase. Neighbors in Need was given a boost by Seattle Seahawks starting safety Quandre Diggs in a heartfelt message encouraging support. Over the final 24 hours, leading up to the May 5 deadline, support poured in from across the Windermere family as the final figure exceeded the initial goal of $500,000, landing at a total of $690,000.

Neighbors in Need exemplifies Windermere’s deep commitment to supporting our local communities, which traces back to 1989 when the Windermere Foundation first started. Since then, we’ve proudly raised more than $41 million for low-income and homeless families throughout the Western U.S.

On behalf of the Windermere Foundation to all those who joined the effort: Thank you. We could not have made this large of an impact without your help. We are humbled to be able to do our part to help those who need it most during these uncertain times.

Regional Market Updates April 30, 2020

Coming Together For Our Neighbors in Need

Every year for the past 35 years, Windermere Real Estate has closed its doors on the first Friday in June for its annual Community Service Day so that our 9,000-member team can head into our local neighborhoods and volunteer. This year, in light of COVID-19, we have made the decision to replace Community Service Day with an immediate fundraising challenge for our offices to help food banks whose operations, and the people they serve, have been heavily impacted by the virus.

Between now and Tuesday May 5, we are matching every dollar, up to $250,000, that our offices raise, with the goal of donating $500,000 to food banks in the communities across the Western U.S. where we operate. The public is also invited to participate by donating to the Windermere Foundation here. All donations will be directed to food banks with the greatest need.

Those who struggle with poverty and depend on food programs are having difficulty meeting their basic needs. Our mission is to help local food banks in our communities keep their shelves stocked and keep food on the tables of those families.

Due to COVID-19, food bank representatives expect the number of people they normally serve to double. The increased consumer demand on grocery stores has slowed the pipeline of food bank donations, which are crucial to their ability to serve their communities. With these complicating factors, every food bank has the same answer when it comes to their greatest need: dollars.

Neighbors in Need is the latest example of the Windermere family coming together in support of our local communities during the COVID-19 epidemic. The positive impact we have seen across our footprint thus far gives us confidence in our ability to meet our total donation goal of $500,000. If you would like to help, you can donate here: