Apple Donates $5 Million to Hand in Hand for Hurricane Relief Efforts, Will Accept iTunes Donations This Weekend

Apple today donated $5 million to the Hand in Hand: A Benefit for Hurricane Relief Fund to support those who have been affected by both Hurricane Harvey and Hurricane Irma.

Hand in Hand is planning to host a live telethon on Tuesday, September 12 to raise additional money for hurricane relief efforts. Proceeds from the upcoming telethon will benefit the Rebuild Texas Fund, Feeding Texas, Save the Children, United Way, Habitat for Humanity, and DirectRelief.


Celebrities and performers like George Clooney, Matthew McConaughey, Justin Bieber, Beyonce, Stephen Colbert, Julia Roberts, Robert De Niro, Ellen DeGeneres, Drake, Jamie Foxx, Tom Hanks, Barbra Streisand, Oprah Winfrey, and more are set to make appearances during the telethon.

In addition to donating $5 million, Apple is also planning to allow Apple customers to donate to Hand in Hand through the App Store and iTunes as if often does in similar disaster situations.

"On behalf of everyone at Apple, our hearts go out to the millions of people whose lives have been disrupted by Hurricanes Harvey and Irma, and the many more still bracing for Irma's impact," said Apple's CEO Tim Cook. "We applaud Hand in Hand for bringing together people from all over the country to help one another at a time when so many desperately need it. In addition to Apple's direct contribution to the relief and recovery efforts, we're making it easy for anyone in the US to make their own donations to Hand in Hand through the App Store and iTunes."

Apple last week donated $2 million to the Red Cross to benefit those affected by Hurricane Harvey, and raised an additional $1 million through employee and iTunes donations.

Hurricane Harvey caused widespread flooding and destruction in Texas and Louisiana last week, while Hurricane Irma, now a category 4 storm, is forecasted to make landfall in Florida this weekend. Irma hit Puerto Rico and several Caribbean islands over the course of the week, with St. Martin, St. Barts, Anguilla, Barbuda, and the British and U.S. Virgin Islands seeing some of the worst devastation.