Fall Out Boy just gave back to their hometown in a big way: the band announced today a $100,000 donation to the Chicago Community COVID-19 Response Fund.
The check comes via the Fall Out Boy Fund, which the quartet set up in 2017. “Chicago is the city that we grew up in,” bassist Pete Wentz said in a statement. “It’s important to us that we give back and support the community and local heroes who are on the front lines any way we can.”
The Chicago Community COVID-19 Response Fund is a partnership between the City of Chicago and United Way of Metro Chicago. It was set up to merge funds raised by Chicago philanthropies, corporations, and individuals and use them to help those disproportionately impacted by the coronavirus pandemic across the Chicago region. Food banks, meals for students who normally get fed via public schools, and people who have lost work due to COVID-19 are all focal points for the charity.
The city of Chicago has so far reported 3,427 COVID-19 cases and 43 deaths. A stay at home order throughout Illinois has been instated through at least April 30.
Fall Out Boy has North American stadium dates on its Hella Mega Tour alongside Green Day and Weezer lined up throughout July and August; time will tell how the pandemic will effect those concerts. In the meantime, they’re doing their best to pay it forward locally.
“No act of kindness is too small right now,” Wentz added. “Check in with the people you love. Support the businesses you love if you can. Stay vigilant and hopeful. Everyone is affected by this, and we win by coming together and thinking of the world as bigger of ourselves.”
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