Aaron Rodgers’ philanthropic ways have now led to more than $ 1 million in small, locally owned businesses in and around his hometown of Chico, California, the North Valley Community Foundation announced Monday.
The Green Bay Packers quarterback founded the Aaron Rodgers Small-Business COVID-19 Fund last month.
Nine of those companies were personally notified by Rodgers and North Valley Community Foundation President / CEO Alexa Benson-Valavanis in video calls, which can be viewed on Rodgers’ Instagram account.
“Small, locally run businesses are the heart and soul of a community,” Rodgers said in a statement. “In the applications and the videos, it was heartbreaking to hear about all the obstacles that restaurants and retailers face.
Rodgers, a resident of Chico who also started his college career there at Butte College before joining Cal, started the fund with a donation of $ 500,000. He doubled it shortly afterward. Another $ 100,000 was added in donations.
Rodgers had previously donated $ 1 million to help Butte County recover from a wildfire in November 2018. Restaurants and retailers with 20 or fewer full-time equivalent employees could apply for assistance through the Rodgers fund. Many restaurants, which are still unable to serve dinner due to California restrictions, were among the 80 companies that received support from the fund.