First National Bank Announces Final Disbursement of Flood Recovery Grants

The Rebuild the Heartland Community Fund, which was established in partnership between First National Bank of Omaha (FNBO) (www.fnbo.com) and the Nebraska Community Foundation in response to the devastating floods that impacted the area in the spring and summer of 2019, has announced its final disbursement of flood recovery grants awarded to long-term recovery groups and organizations in Nebraska and western Iowa. In total, the fund raised enough to award $830,000 in grants to flood-impacted communities in Nebraska and western Iowa.

FNBO contributed $100,000 to establish the Rebuild the Heartland Community Fund and matched an additional $150,000 in donations from individuals, families and corporations across the U.S. One hundred percent of the donations have been directed to supporting the long-term recovery of flood-impacted communities that received FEMA Individual Assistance designations. As of March 31, 2020, all of the grants have been awarded from within three funding categories:

• $630,000 in Housing Rebuilding Assistance and New Housing Construction grants were awarded to organizations that provide housing-related individual assistance support to repair and/or rebuild homes that were damaged.
• $175,000 in Flood Mitigation Assistance, where money from the fund will help offset the homeowner’s 25% contribution that is required in order to repair homes and/or mitigate against future flooding. 
• $25,000 toward the establishment of the Midwest Housing Resource Network, a statewide disaster resiliency network that was developed in response to the 2019 flooding to assist communities.

For more than 160 years, First National Bank has maintained its commitment to helping to build strong communities. To learn more, visit www.fnbo.com.