State Farm donations to Convoy of Hope reach nearly $500K this year

Convoy of Hope is celebrating the support of Bloomington, Illinois-based State Farm Insurance, which has donated nearly $500,000 to the Springfield humanitarian nonprofit this year.

State Farm presented a ceremonial check of $491,000 to Convoy of Hope on Sept. 27, according to a news release issued this morning. The total includes $100,000 designated toward Convoy of Hope's efforts responding to the Maui wildfire and $50,000 for the nonprofit's Hurricane Idalia response.

"State Farm is committed to helping people recover from the unexpected," said Apsara Sorensen, State Farm corporate responsibility director, in the release. "Our support for Convoy of Hope helps meet critical needs in communities impacted by a disaster.”

Much of State Farm's donation to Convoy of Hope has been used to purchase hygiene kit materials. Those materials are being used to pack around 15,000 kits this fall nationwide.

“We at Convoy of Hope are incredibly grateful for State Farm and for the collaboration between our organizations,” Convoy Vice President of Public Engagement Ethan Forhetz said in the release. “We share a similar culture and mission in that both strive to be among the first to respond when disasters strike. With their forward-thinking and proactive support, Convoy of Hope is better equipped to alleviate suffering even before the unexpected strikes.”

Convoy of Hope has responded to more than 75 natural disasters this year to date.

The nonprofit completed its $37 million, 200,000-square-foot Global Headquarters and Training Center earlier this year. The new headquarters, at 1 Convoy Drive and attached via a second-story skywalk to its 230,000-square-foot distribution center near Amazon’s Republic facility, unites local Convoy of Hope personnel onto one campus for the first time in its nearly 30-year history, according to past reporting.