Our friend, who is an unemployed food stylist in New York, is making masks

COVID-19: How Can I Help?

You’re fortunate enough not to be sick right now. You have money, or you don’t. What can you do?

Note: We are republishing this story because the doctors and scientists monitoring the Coronavirus pandemic say this week and next will probably be the hardest for the U.S., at least the areas of the U.S. that have so far been hard hit. We’ve also updated some of the links, and didn’t want to mess up the many people and organizations who linked to our original version of this story.

We started looking into this because we saw a letter from President Jimmy Carter, who raises money and does a ton of good work around the world. But for now he’s asking his supporters to skip their next donation to his foundation and instead:

“Direct it to a local group that is reducing the suffering caused by this pandemic….Concentrate on the needs of your family, friends,neighbors, and all in your community. Your commitment will help stop this threat.”

So where can we best contribute our time and money here, at home, in the U.S.?

We spent the last couple of days talking with and emailing friends or acquaintances who work in public health, or are diplomats, or legal scholars, or run charitable organizations.