Since the Jaime Whelan Foundation was established in 2008, it has awarded $280,500 in scholarships to worthy graduates of Long Beach Catholic Regional School who are attending Jaime’s alma mater, Sacred Heart Academy.
The Jaime Whelan Foundation also raised and distributed over $116,000 for Hurricane Sandy Relief and awarded an additional $14,000 to assist a local family in need of financial support.
Altogether, the Foundation has raised over $760,000 since 2008.
The Jaime Whelan Foundation is a 501 (c)(3) non-profit organization.
JWF Latest News
JWF: Helping support the recovery efforts of Brendan Wagner
We are proud to announce that the Jaime Whelan Foundation is donating $10,000 to support the recovery efforts of Brendan Wagner.
This donation will be given to Brendan’s family at the Benefit for Brendan that will took place Sunday, March 30th at Bridgeview Yacht Club from 2:00-6:00. Brendan is a fellow Long Beach Catholic School alum who was involved in a terrible car accident in December 2013, which caused a severe spinal cord injury and stroke resulting in paralysis from the neck down. Brendan is unable to breathe on his own and therefore relies heavily on electricity to power the machines that help him breathe. He is currently in a rehabilitation facility in NYC but his family is doing all they can to get him to his home to continue his recovery.
The JWF’s $10,000 donation will be used to equip Brendan’s house with a generator, which will ensure consistent operation of those life-saving machines in all circumstances.
For more information on how you can help Brendan please visit his website at www.brendanwagner.com
JWF: Helping their community after the storm
Shortly after SuperStorm Sandy, the Jaime Whelan Foundation (“JWF”) began raising funds to help those people in Island Park and Long Beach who were severely impacted by the storm. In total, $116,000 was raised. The JWF created an application and shared it via Facebook and email so that others could assist in getting the word out about the assistance JWF would be providing. Approximately 150 applications were received.
To ensure the identities of the applicants remained anonymous through the application review process, each application received a number and the names and email addresses on those applications were blocked out. Those applications were reviewed independently and ranked in order of need by 4 people, including two members of the Foundation and two people who are very active in the Island Park and Long Beach communities.
The rankings of the four people were then combined and the top 35 applications were selected to receive between $500 and $7,500 each, for a total of $100,000. Members of the JWF then met with each family to verify damage, confirm identities, and deliver the checks. An additional $16,000 in gift cards was distributed to Long Beach families that were in need of help after Sandy but not identified through the application process in cooperation with teachers and guidance counselors of Long Beach High School.
A letter received from a recipient of post-Sandy aid
To the Whelan Family and the Foundation,
It was such a surprise to receive such a generous gift from the Whelan Foundation. James came to my house, which is still waiting to be lifted. It is going to take a long time to complete this project. I do not get discouraged because I live in a town where everyone is reaching out to help. When I looked at the check that James gave me I thought : "This is bigger than me, bigger than the storm, it is about people remembering loved one like Jamie. It is about neighbors watching over each other. It is about how we live our lives and the meaning we give in every day we live. I am so blessed to live in such a wonderful town, to have the family and friends I have, and to have a faith in God that sustains me during difficult time. This money will help me build my house as well as give me the courage and strength to move forward.
May God bless you all for all the good you do. And may God watch over Jamie and my Grandson Connor who watch over us from their perches in heaven.
With much thanks and love
Kathy Ryan