San Francisco-based Life360, which develops mobile applications focused on family, raised $3.5 million in its first round of funding. Investors included Fontinalis Partners, Bessemer Venture Partners, 500 Startups, Kapor Capital, Venture51, Bullpen Capital, Social Leverage and EchoVC Partners.

Life360 formed following Hurricane Katrina, which its founding members said turned "many families... upside down because of a lack of preparation and resources. People stayed uninformed, didn't have the proper supplies, and lacked an easy and efficient way to connect to their families to confirm that they were safe." The Life360 team began work on the project while at UC Berkeley and launched its first apps for the Android and iPhone platforms in 2009.

The free apps offer family GPS tracking that enables users to locate family members on a map; safety status alerts that send a safety notification or call for help with the tap of a button; neighborhood safety monitoring that displays safety points and threats in the user's area. The apps also offer a host of premium features like emergency identification (alert EMS personnel of pre-existing medical conditions), family identity protection (credit reports, alerts, and more), and lost item recovery.

The Life360 website also lists Facebook (fbFund), Founders Fund (FF Angel), LaunchCapital, and Seraph Group as early investors in the startup.

Fortune's Dan Primack mentioned the investment in a VC roundup this morning.