Answering the Call & Introducing 4-CT
Answering the Call & Introducing 4-CT
There’s no question that the novel coronavirus has turned our world upside down. For me (and presumably for you, too), the question immediately became, how can I help?
I’m humbled to announce that question was answered just a little over a week ago when I received a call from Ted Yang, one of the founding partners of Social Ventures Partners (SVP).
Ted shared with me the incredible news that a group of concerned citizens and businesses had swiftly sprung into action to launch the Connecticut COVID-19 Charity Connection (4-CT), a 501(c)(3) non-profit organization “dedicated to unite donors with state-wide programs that will help make an immediate impact.” And he asked me how Digital Surgeons could help get the word out quickly to attract volunteers and donors while simultaneously alerting the public that help is on its way.
My perspective is always if you’re not part of the solution, you’re part of the problem. So the solution — to design and implement the digital strategy and experience — became the challenge. As we all know, time is of the essence when it comes to the coronavirus. Unlike typical branding and site development projects, we were talking about increments of hours, not months or weeks, to get the job done.
And so, 48-hours later, 4-CT was created in a virtual frenzy by the Digital Surgeons team, all working from their homes. (Giving new meaning to doing our part by not leaving our couch — Netflix can wait!) Now, less than a week later, we’ve launched what we all hope will become a critical support system for Connecticut’s COVID-19 response. The first two programs include the CT Food Bank & Foodshare to meet the demand of our 144K+ food-insecure individuals (a donation opportunity), and childcare for health workers (a chance to submit your ideas for a solution).
I take particular comfort and pride in the words of our Connecticut governor, Ned Lamont:
"During this unprecedented public health crisis, we have seen incredible courage and acts of generosity by countless members of our community. 4-CT is a never before seen coordinated effort to link philanthropists, donors, and community foundations to the needs of our residents, as we all work together to get through this COVID-19 pandemic. We will get through this together, and 4-CT will act as a vital tool to help provide much needed outside investment to keep our programs and services stable during this tenuous time."
Whether you call Connecticut your home or just need inspiration about how together we can make a swift and sure difference in fighting the devastating effects of COVID-19, I invite you to check out the 4-CT.org website. And I’d love to hear your ideas in the comments about your ideas on how we can all think globally and act locally in the fight against the novel coronavirus, so feel free to reach me direct here
