North Highland United Methodist Church received a $1,500 grant for its Coats for Kids program to purchase coats to provide youngsters as the weather gets colder. In 2019, Coats for Kids provided an estimated 250 coats to children in the area, many of which were donated. The longtime program canceled its donated coat collection due to the pandemic and elected to purchase coats, for which financial contributions were needed. The grant provided funds to buy coats, which were distributed over Halloween weekend. The funds came from the Knight COVID-19 Aberdeen Sub-fund within the AACF.
In March 2020, the John S. and James L. Knight Foundation committed $225,000 in partnership with the Aberdeen Area Community Foundation and the South Dakota Community Foundation to provide short-term and long-term relief in response to the pandemic through the AACF Knight COVID Sub-fund. These funds were a portion of the over $10 million Knight Foundation committed to its 26 Knight communities around the country. The funds are meant to address immediate needs within the community while also focusing on priority areas Knight Foundation has identified in Aberdeen. Through October 2020, the fund has made more than $125,000 in grants in the Aberdeen area to address the impact of the pandemic.