FEMA: Churches, organizations to share $1M in grant funding to prioritize V.I. security

The Federal Emergency Management Agency announced that $1 million awarded in grant funding to local organizations will go toward assisting with the safety and security concerns of their communities.

According to a FEMA statement, in total, just over $1 million “was awarded to houses of worship and community organizations through a competitive application process.” “These grants will fund structural enhancements to protect these institutions from threats,” the release noted, adding that community engagement between FEMA, the V.I. Territorial Emergency Management Agency and the U.S. Virgin Islands Voluntary Organizations Active in Disaster was instrumental with the Nonprofit Security grants being awarded to six houses of worship across the territory.

The release also noted that a territorial and federal partnership paved a way for two organizations to receive Nonprofit Security grants. “Our strong partnerships with VITEMA and our community partners in the U.S. Virgin Islands has once again led to several houses of worship and other organizations to be recipients of security grants that will ultimately make their congregations and communities safer and more resilient,” Aaron VanDoren, the FEMA Virgin Islands Caribbean Area Office acting coordinator said in a prepared statement. “We will continue to work with our faith-based and community partners to ensure they have the resources to keep their groups safe from threats that could harm them.”