David A. Tepper Foundation Donates $2.65 Million To Help With COVID-19 Response

In response to the recent coronavirus pandemic, Panthers owner David Tepper and his foundation donated more than $2.65 million to several foundations across the Carolinas.

Carolina Panthers owner David Tepper has donated $2.65 million via the David A. Tepper Foundation to help the local Carolina community - as well as other parts of the country - in the wake of the COVID-19 pandemic that is rapidly spreading across the globe.

Tepper has donated a total of $1 million to the Atrium Health ($650,000) and Novant Health ($350,000), $1 million to the Foundation for the Carolina’s COVID-19 Response Fund, and $650,000 to the Charlotte-Mecklenburg School’s Foundation via the David A. Tepper Charitable Foundation.

David Tepper purchased the Panthers back in July for $2.275 billion. Since purchasing the team, Tepper has been a leader in the greater Charlotte community, specifically recently supporting the COVID-19 pandemic relief during these horrific times.

There are 137 confirmed cases of the coronavirus in North Carolina as of Friday morning, with 43 confirmed in Mecklenburg county. The number of cases has continued to increase and members like Tepper stepping up in the community are continuing to provide much-needed aid.

Tepper spoke on his donations amid the Coronavirus outbreak saying, “These are difficult times, and we are trying to do our part to help those in need.”

The COVID-19 Response Fund, launched March 16 by Foundation for Carolinas and United Way of Central Carolinas, has already received more than $7.8 million in donations since its launch just four days ago. The response fund is a country-wide effort that aims at assisting those affected by the COVID-19 outbreak which assists nonprofits organizations that support the vulnerable members of the community.

"David Tepper has emerged as one of our most influential leaders and a champion in the philanthropic field," the Foundation for the Carolinas President and CEO Michael Marsicano said. "This generous gift is an expression of his heartfelt commitment to the well-being of our citizens. Now is the time for us all to come together to help one another."

Tepper’s generous $350,000 donation to Novant Health will be distributed to support the Novant Health Foundations across the Carolinas in Charlotte, Winston-Salem, Thomasville, Rowan, and Brunswick.

"I'm grateful that the David Tepper Charitable Foundation is providing funding to support the ongoing delivery of healthcare during this pandemic," said Ann Caulkins, who serves as senior vice president of Novant Health Foundations. "This truly is a time of everyone working together for our communities.”

The $650,000 gift to Atrium will directly support the Atrium Health Essential Needs Fund. The fund will support Atrium Health’s response to the COVID-19 outbreak along with future essential needs.

"During these unprecedented times, it's uplifting to have generous donors like David Tepper step forward to ensure that our community has the very best healthcare services possible," said Armando Chardiet, president of the Atrium Health Foundation. "We're all in this together and we're extremely thankful for those in our community coming together during times like this."

Additionally, the David A. Tepper Foundation partnered with Belk Endowment and the David Belk Cannon Foundation on a $1 million gift to the Charlotte-Mecklenburg Schools Foundation's COVID-19 Relief Fund. The David Belk Cannon Foundation contributed $100,000, the John M. Belk Endowment added $250,000 while the Tepper Foundation gifted an additional $650,000.

Charlotte-Mecklenburg Schools - which serves more than 148,000 students as the second-largest school district in North Carolina - had critical needs that needed to be met for the schools’ students and families while they were closed. The CMS Foundation launched its COVID-19 Relief Fund to help meet those needs.

Ensuring that students had internet connectivity to access online learning opportunities was instantly identified as an immediate need that the CMS Foundation needed to assist. The CMS Foundation partnered with Charlotte-Mecklenburg Schools and local nonprofits to Eliminate the Digital Divide (E2D) to secure a deal for the mobile hotspots and prepaid service. In doing so, the district allowed students in fourth through twelfth grade to take home the laptops they use in school.

"We all understand that internet access is no longer a luxury. It is essential," said Charlotte-Mecklenburg Schools Superintendent Earnest Winston. "This gift addresses an equity issue in our community, and I am truly grateful to these three organizations for leading the way in this time of crisis and helping us meet this need. Their generosity will have a meaningful impact on our students."

"Today's gift is an inspiring example of what can happen when groups come together,” said Sonja Gantt, the Executive Director of the CMS Foundation. “We know that this gift and every single donation from our community will help us address critical needs in our school district at this unprecedented time.”