Primavera Foundation Gets $5 Million from Bezos Day 1 Family Fund

Primavera Foundation, which has provided pathways out of poverty for 40 years, has announced that it has received a $5 million grant from the Bezos Day 1 Families Fund—the largest gift in the organization’s history. 

This is the sixth round of annual Day 1 Families Fund grants, which recognize leading organizations doing compassionate, needle-moving work to help families experiencing homelessness secure housing and achieve stability.  

“We are honored to receive this grant,” said Tisha Tallman, CEO of Primavera Foundation. “This is the largest grant in our 40 years of service in and with the community, co-creating pathways out of poverty with families in the greater Tucson area. With this grant, we will be able take our work to the next level, guaranteeing sustainability and growth in the coming years—moving the needle on poverty and homelessness in new ways through partnership with our families.” 

This one-time, uniquely flexible grant will support Primavera Foundation in serving as a critical lifeline to children and adults in families experiencing homelessness, who represent more than a quarter of the homeless population nationally. Primavera Foundation plans to use its Day 1 Families Fund grant to solidify its ability to employ new strategies that will prove most sustainable for families experiencing homelessness in Tucson.  

“Besides providing sustainable support of our existing programs in mobile outreach, rent and utility assistance, emergency shelters and services, and placement into permanent, safe, affordable homes, the grant will allow us to build an on-site family shelter with traditional and non-traditional supportive services co-created with the families,” Tallman added. 

Primavera Foundation was selected as a Day 1 Families Fund grant recipient by a group of national advisors who are leading advocates and experts on homelessness and service provision. National advisors brought expertise on housing justice, advancing racial equity and helping programs employ resources effectively to assist families out of homelessness.  

Over the past six years, the Day 1 Families Fund has provided 208 grants totaling more than $630 million to organizations around the country working on the frontlines to identify unsheltered families, help families regain housing and connect families experiencing homelessness to vital services. A selection of more than half of the Day 1 Families Fund grantees who received funding between 2018 through 2021 report that, to date, they have used their grants to divert more than 28,000 families from experiencing homelessness, connect more than 30,000 unsheltered families with safe shelter and help more than 75,000 families access the services they need.  

This year, the Fund issued a total of $117.55 million in grants to 38 organizations. The Day 1 Families Fund has now granted this award to organizations in 48 states, the District of Columbia and Puerto Rico. New states this year include Arkansas, Vermont and Wyoming. The other organizations receiving grants in Arizona are Native American Connections and UMOM New Day Centers. The full list of awardees is available at bezosdayonefund.org/day1familiesfund.  

Launched in 2018, the Bezos Day One Fund made a $2 billion commitment to focus on making meaningful and lasting impacts in two areas: funding existing nonprofits that help families experiencing homelessness, and creating a network of new, nonprofit tier-one preschools in low-income communities.  The Bezos Day 1 Families Fund issues annual leadership awards to organizations and civic groups doing compassionate, needle-moving work to help families experiencing homelessness—including those who are unsheltered or staying in shelters—regain safe, stable housing and achieve well-being.  The vision statement comes from the inspiring Mary’s Place in Seattle: no child sleeps outside.