In an immediate response to the COVID-19 pandemic, Nike has announced that it will be pledging more than $15 million in support of its employees' local communities.
According to the Swoosh, Nike Chairman Emeritus, co-founder Phil Knight and wife Penny, Nike Executive Chairman of the Board Mark Parker and wife Kathy, and Nike President and CEO John Donahoe and wife Eileen, are personally donating a combined $10 million to Oregon, which is where the Nike World Headquarters is located.
The donation breaks down to $1 million to the Oregon Food Bank, $2 million to the Oregon Community Recovery Fund founded by the Oregon Community Foundation, and $7 million to Oregon Health & Science University to improve statewide care in the state in an attempt increase patient access and to ramp up diagnostic testing for the coronavirus.
The other $5 million will be donated by the Nike Foundation headlined by a $1 million donation to the global COVID-19 Solidarity Response Fund that was created by the United Nations Foundation and Swiss Philanthropy Foundation to fund efforts by the World Health Organization and its partners to support countries responding to the outbreak.
To further aid the local communities of its employees, the brand has announced a two-to-one match for any donations to support COVID-19 responses locally, nationally and internationally. Earlier this week, the Swoosh also announced that it has temporarily closed its stores in the United States, Canada, Western Europe, Australia, and New Zealand until March 27 in an effort to limit the spread of coronavirus.
