Vikings, Wilfs Donate $500K To Community Causes During COVID-19 Pandemic

The Minnesota Vikings and the Wilf Family Foundation have pledged $500,000 to "various community causes" affected by the COVID-19 outbreak, the team announced on Friday in a note from owners Zygi, Mark, and Lenny Wilf.

The Vikings organization is committing $250,000 and the Wilf Family Foundation is matching that total. According to the letter from the Wilf family – which is directed to Vikings fans – substantial portions of the donation are going to the Boys and Girls Club of the Twin Cities and the Minnesota Disaster Recovery Fund for Coronavirus

"A significant portion of the resources will be directed to the Boys and Girls Club of the Twin Cities as they determine how to continue their youth and family support during this time of closure for their centers. Specifically, our dollars will go directly toward meal and educations services to more than 1,000 youth during this crisis. Another substantial amount of the donation will be given to the Minnesota Disaster Recovery Fund for Coronavirus and will go toward providing immediate support to residents, small businesses and non-profits impacted by or responding to the rapidly evolving COVID-19 situation."

The letter also explains some of the precautions being taken by the Vikings organization to combat the spread of the coronavirus.

"Per recommendations from the Minnesota Department of Health and the CDC, we closed TCO Performance Center last week and implemented a work-from-home policy. All public and private events previously scheduled to take place at TCO Performance Center through May 16 have been canceled or postponed. Additionally, the annual Vikings Draft Party has also been canceled. These decisions are not made lightly, but our priority is solely to reduce the risk to the most vulnerable."

Lastly, the letter from the Wilfs asks that Vikings fans do their part to combat the virus by following the recommendations from health officials within the state and across the country.

By supporting each other and doing our part as individuals, we can get through this critical situation together. Sports will return at the appropriate time, and when they do, they will play a significant role in the process of healing and returning to a sense of normalcy.