Search Through Food Grants for Nonprofits in North Carolina in the U.S.

Appalachian Regional Commission (ARC)

The Appalachian Regional Commission (ARC) is a unique federal-state partnership providing social and economic support for a 13-state region stretching along the Appalachian Mountains from southern New York to northern Mississippi, including western North Carolina.

Established by the United States Congress in 1965, when Appalachia was considered "a region apart" from the rest of the nation, ARC has worked to bring Appalachia's 26 million people into America's economic mainstream.

Area Development Program

ARC’s Area Development program relies on a flexible “bottom up” approach to economic development, empowering Appalachian communities to work with their state governments to design impactful investment opportunities supporting our mission and investment priorities.

Within the scope of our Strategic Plan, ARC’s Area Development program makes investments in two general areas: critical infrastructure and business and workforce development. Critical infrastructure investments mainly include water and wastewater systems, transportation networks, broadband, and other projects anchoring regional economic development. Business and workforce investments primarily focus on entrepreneurship, worker training and education, food systems, leadership, and other human capital development.

ARC Strategic Plan

A comprehensive strategic planning process involving federal, state, and local officials and citizens resulted in, Appalachia Envisioned: A New Era of Opportunity – ARC Strategic Plan 2022-2026, which focuses investments under these five general goals:

• Building Appalachian Businesses:
  • Strengthen and diversify the region’s economy through inclusive economic development strategies and investments in entrepreneurship and business development
• Building Appalachia’s Workforce Ecosystem
  • Expand and strengthen community systems (education, healthcare, housing, childcare, and others) that help Appalachians obtain a job, stay on the job, and advance along a financially sustaining career pathway.
• Building Appalachia’s Infrastructure
  • Ensure that the residents and businesses of Appalachia have access to reliable, affordable, resilient, and energy efficient utilities and infrastructure in order to successfully live and work in the region.
• Building Regional Culture and Tourism:
  • Strengthen Appalachia’s community and economic development potential by preserving and investing in the region’s local, cultural heritage, and natural assets.
• Building Community Leaders and Capacity:
  • Invest in the capacity of local leaders, organizations, and communities to address local challenges by providing technical assistance and support to access resources, engage partners, identify strategies and tactics, and conduct effective planning and project execution.

Background

Draper Richards Kaplan Foundation seeks to dramatically improve the lives of underserved communities across the globe by supporting scalable, innovative, and impact-first solutions that leverage existing systems and stakeholders. Our goal is to find social entrepreneurs with dynamic products or services that have a proven ability to positively impact the lives of underserved people, and nurture those organizations at the early stages by providing capacity, capital, and community.

Our application process is designed to be open and accessible, and we accept applications year round from across our priority geographies and sectors. Borrowing from our venture capital legacy, we find exceptional entrepreneurs and provide them with: 

Capacity

• The core of DRK’s model is deep and extensive operational and technical support for each portfolio organization, both through dedicated hands-on Board service and specialist capacity-building resources for fundraising, board and organizational development, leadership, financial support, and scaling strategy,

Capital

• DRK provides up to $300,000 USD in either unrestricted grant funding or investment capital over a three-year period, and

Community

• DRK convenes our portfolio and alumni annually, facilitating connections and community. 

What We Fund

DRK Foundation funds early-stage social impact organizations solving the world’s biggest social and environmental problems using bold, scalable approaches.

What stage of growth does DRK Foundation typically fund?

Early stage: Organizations who are early stage, which we define as post-pilot and pre-scale. This typically means: 

• Your program, product or service is already being used in the market or in the field, 
• You have early indication that your model is having its intended impact on the beneficiary populations,
• Your organization is relatively young (ideally between two and five years old, although we will consider both younger and older organizations).

Venture funding: In the case of for profits, we typically support Seed to Series A organizations, and never lead rounds; we also generally but not exclusively refrain from participating in financings exceeding a $15M USD post-money valuation.  

Global Impact Cash Grants

Cisco welcomes applications for Global Impact Cash Grants from community partners around the world who share our vision and offer an innovative approach to a critical social challenge.

We identify, incubate, and develop innovative solutions with the most impact. Global Impact Cash Grants go to nonprofits and non-governmental organizations (NGOs) that address a significant social problem. We’re looking for programs that fit within our investment areas, serve the underserved, and leverage technology to improve the reach and efficiency of services. We accept applications year-round from eligible organizations. An initial information form is used to determine whether your organization will be invited to complete a full application.

Social Investment Areas

At Cisco, we make social investments in three areas where we believe our technology and our people can make the biggest impact—education, economic empowerment, and crisis response, the last of which incorporates shelter, water, food, and disaster relief. Together, these investment areas help people overcome barriers of poverty and inequality, and make a lasting difference by fostering strong global communities.

Education Investments

Our strategy is to inclusively invest in technology-based solutions that increase equitable access to education while improving student performance, engagement, and career exploration. We support K-12 solutions that emphasize science, technology, engineering, and math (STEM) as well as literacy. We also consider programs that teach environmental sustainability, eliminate barriers to accessing climate change education, and invite student engagement globally to positively affect the environment.

What we look for:

• Innovative early grade solutions using the internet and technology to bridge the barriers preventing access to education for underserved students globally.
• Solutions that positively affect student attendance, attitudes, and behavior while inspiring action by students to improve learning outcomes, whether they participate in person, online, or in blended learning environments. 
• Solutions with high potential to replicate and scale globally, thereby increasing the availability of evidence-based solutions that support student-centricity, teacher capacity in the classroom, and increased parental participation to help students learn and develop.

Economic Empowerment

Our strategy is to invest in early stage, tech-enabled solutions that provide equitable access to the knowledge, skills, and resources that people need to support themselves and their families toward resilience, independence, and economic security.

Our goal is to support solutions that benefit individuals and families, and that contribute to local community growth and economic development in a sustainable economy.

We target our support in three interconnected areas:

• Skills development to help job seekers secure dignified employment and long-term career pathways in technology or other sectors, including environmental sustainability/green jobs.
• Inclusive entrepreneurship with small businesses as engines of local growth as well as high growth potential start-ups as large-scale job creators nationally and internationally, in technology or other sectors, including environment sustainability/green businesses.
• Banking the unbanked through relevant and affordable financial products and capacity building services.

Cisco Crisis Response

We seek to help overcome the cycle of poverty and dependence and achieve a more sustainable future through strategic investments. We back organizations that successfully address critical needs of underserved communities, because those who have their basic needs met are better equipped to learn and thrive.

What we look for:

• Innovative solutions that increase the capacity of grantees to deliver their products and services more effectively and efficiently
• Design and implementation of web-based tools that increase the availability of, or improve access to, products and services that are necessary for people to survive and thrive
• Programs that increase access to clean water, food, shelter, or disaster relief and promote a more sustainable future for all
  • By policy, relief campaigns respond to significant natural disaster and humanitarian crises as opposed to those caused by human conflict. Also by policy, our investments in this area do not include healthcare solutions.

Climate Impact

Our strategy is to invest US$100 million in Cisco Foundation funds over the next decade to help reverse the impact of climate change, working toward a sustainable and regenerative future for all.

The commitment includes both grant and impact investment funding for early-stage climate innovation. Both categories of support will be focused on bold climate solutions, and the grants side will also concentrate on community education and activation. Grants will go to exceptionally aligned nonprofit organizations, while impact investments will go to highly promising for-profit solutions through the private sector and climate impact funds.

Funding comes from the Cisco Foundation and will focus on:

• Identifying bold and innovative solutions that:
  • Draw down the carbon already in the atmosphere
  • Regenerate depleted ecosystems and broadly support the transition to a regenerative future
• Developing curricular initiatives to spur community engagement that can lead to measurable behavioral change and collective action

We will prioritize organizations that can achieve, measure, and report outcomes such as:

• Reduction, capture, and/or sequestering of greenhouse gas and carbon emissions
• Increased energy efficiency and improved mapping and management of natural resources, such as ecosystem restoration, forest treatments, reforestation, and afforestation that also will help repair our water cycles
• Transition to inclusive, just, coliberatory, and regenerative operating models, ways of being, and ways of organizing economies
• Creation of, and increase in, access to green jobs and job training
• Changes in community and individual behavior that lead to carbon footprint reduction, community climate resilience, and localized roadmaps to a sustainable shared climate future for all

Community Grants

State Farm is committed to helping build safer, stronger and better-educated communities.

• ​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​We are committed to auto and home safety programs and activities that help people manage the risks of everyday life.
• We invest in education, economic empowerment and community development projects, programs and services that help people realize their dreams.
• We help maintain the vibrancy of our communities by assisting nonprofits that support community revitalization.

Good Neighbor Citizenship company grants focus on safety, community development and education.

Focus Areas

Safety Grants

We strive to keep our customers and communities safe. That's why our funding is directed toward:

• Auto safety — improving driver, passenger, vehicle or roadway safety
• Home safety — shielding homes from fires, crime or natural disasters
• Disaster preparedness and mitigation
• Disaster recovery

Community Development

We support nonprofits that invest and develop stronger neighborhoods. That's why our funding is directed toward:

• Affordable housing — home construction and repair
• Commercial/small business development
• Job training
• Neighborhood revitalization
• Financial literacy
• Sustainable housing and transportation
• Food insecurity

Education

Our education funding is directed toward initiatives that support the following programs:

• Higher education
• K-12 academic performance
• K-12 STEM
• Pathways for college and career success

Mission

The mission of the Hearst Foundations is to identify and fund outstanding nonprofits to ensure that people of all backgrounds in the United States can build healthy, productive and satisfying lives. Through its grantmaking, the Hearst Foundations support well-established nonprofit organizations that address significant issues within their major areas of focus—culture, education, health and social service—and that primarily serve large demographic and/or geographic constituencies. In each area of funding, the Foundations seek to identify those organizations achieving truly differentiated results relative to other organizations making similar efforts for similar populations. The Foundations also look for evidence of sustainability beyond their support.

Whether providing a scholarship to a deserving student, supporting a rural health clinic or bringing artists into schools so children can see firsthand the beauty of the arts, the Foundations’ focus is consistent: to help those in need, those underserved and those underrepresented in society. Since the Foundations were formed in the 1940s, the scale and capabilities of the grant making have changed, but the mission has not.

Culture Grant

The Hearst Foundations fund cultural institutions that offer meaningful programs in the arts and sciences, prioritizing those that enable engagement by young people and create a lasting and measurable impact. The Foundations also fund select programs nurturing and developing artistic talent. Supported organizations include arts schools, ballets, museums, operas, performing arts centers, symphonies and theaters.

Funding Priorities in Culture

In the recent past, 25% of total funding has been allocated to Culture. Organizations with budgets over $10 million have received 60% of the funding in Culture.

The Hearst Foundations are only able to fund approximately 25% of all grant requests, of which about 80% is directed to prior grantees and about 20% is targeted toward new grantees.

Types of Support

Program, capital and, on a limited basis, general and endowment support

PNC Foundation

Strengthening and enriching the lives of our neighbors in communities where we live and work.

Vision & Mission

For decades, we have provided resources to seed ideas, foster development initiatives and encourage leadership in nonprofit organizations where imagination and determination are at work enhancing people's lives everyday.

The PNC Foundation's priority is to form partnerships with community-based nonprofit organizations in order to enhance educational opportunities, with an emphasis on early childhood education, and to promote the growth of communities through economic development initiatives.

Foundation Grant

The PNC Foundation supports a variety of nonprofit organizations with a special emphasis on those that work to achieve sustainability and touch a diverse population, in particular, those that support early childhood education and/or economic development.

Education

The PNC Foundation supports educational programs for children and youth, particularly early childhood education initiatives that meet the criteria established through PNC Grow Up Great. Specifically, PNC Grow Up Great grants must:

• Support early education initiatives that benefit children from birth to age five; and
• Serve a majority of children (>50%) from low- to moderate-income families; and
• Adhere to all other standard PNC Foundation guidelines, as outlined on the PNC Foundation website, applicant eligibility quiz, as well as the Foundation policies and procedures; and
• Include one or a combination of the following:
  • direct services/programs for children in their classroom or community;
  • professional development/workforce development for early childhood educators;
  • family and/or community engagement in children’s early learning
• Additional considerations:
  • The grant focus should include math, science, reading, vocabulary development, the arts, financial education, or social/emotional development.
  • The grant recipient, or collaborative partner, should have early childhood education as an area of focus. If the organization’s focus is beyond birth to age five, the specific grant must be earmarked for birth to age five.
  • Incorporate opportunities for PNC volunteers in classroom or non-classroom-based activities.

Economic Development

Economic development organizations, including those which enhance the quality of life through neighborhood revitalization, cultural enrichment and human services are given support. Priority is given to community development initiatives that strategically promote the growth of low-and moderate-income communities and/or provide services to these communities.

• Affordable Housing
  • The PNC Foundation understands the critical need for affordable housing for low-and moderate-income individuals.
  • We are committed to providing support to nonprofit organizations that:
    • give counseling and services to help these individuals maintain their housing stock;
    • offer transitional housing units and programs; and/or
    • offer credit counseling assistance to individuals, helping them to prepare for homeownership.
• Community Development
  • Because small businesses are often critical components of community growth and help foster business development, the PNC Foundation provides support to nonprofit organizations that
    • offer technical assistance to, or loan programs for, small businesses located in low-and moderate-income areas or
    • support small businesses that employ low-and moderate-income individuals.
• Community Services
  • Support is given to social services organizations that benefit the health, education, quality of life or provide essential services for low-and moderate-income individuals and families.
  • The PNC Foundation supports job training programs and organizations that provide essential services for their families.
• Arts & Culture
  • Support is given for cultural enrichment programs benefitting the community.
• Revitalization & Stabilization of Low-and Moderate-Income Areas
  • The PNC Foundation supports nonprofit organizations that serve low-and moderate-income neighborhoods by improving living and working conditions.
  • Support is given to organizations that help stabilize communities, eliminate blight and attract and retain businesses and residents to the community.

Philanthropy is our commitment to communities in which we operate and broader society. We focus our resources on a limited number of key projects that can deliver valuable benefits from our contributions and those of our partners. We give priority to innovative, high-quality projects that meet the following criteria:

• promote sustainable development
• offer an opportunity for Roche to use its expertise and logistics capabilities
• involve Roche actively at an early stage with local authorities and established partners
• engage Roche employees in cultural (focus on contemporary arts), educational and social activities
• managed by an accredited charity

Our four focus areas

Humanitarian and Social

We direct the majority of our philanthropic donations to humanitarian and social development projects.

Science and education

We are dedicated to programmes that promote scientific interest and provide educational opportunities for young people around the world.

Community and Environment

We are committed to building stronger communities and responding to natural disasters sustainably.

Arts and Culture

We support groundbreaking contemporary art, cultural projects and activities that explore the parallels between innovation in art and in science. 

Mission

Driven by a philanthropic calling to support marginalized communities throughout the world, the Semnani Family Foundation partners with on-the-ground organizations and leverages its resources in a cost-effective and efficient manner that delivers the maximum benefit.

History

Guided by his grandmother Maliheh’s example and teachings, Khosrow Semnani and his wife Ghazaleh established the Semnani Family Foundation in 1993. The foundation’s first grant was issued through CARE International to an orphanage in Romania that cared for newborns affected by HIV. Over the last few decades, the foundation has continued to build upon its mission to empower the disaffected, partnering with a variety of organizations in different countries who can make the greatest impact.

In addition to its global influence, the Semnani Family Foundation established roots within the state of Utah with the founding of Maliheh Free Clinic in 2005 to provide free healthcare to thousands of uninsured people in the Salt Lake City area.

Where We Work

The Semnani Family Foundation focuses primarily on promoting health, education, and disaster relief for marginalized communities all around the world. Driven by a clear mission to adapt and serve at the global level, we have leveraged our resources to make a meaningful impact in the following countries so far:

• Afghanistan
• Bosnia
• Colombia
• England
• Ethiopia
• Ghana
• Guatemala
• India
• Iran
• Kenya
• Madagascar
• Mali
• Mexico
• Pakistan
• Philippines
• Romania
• Somalia
• South Africa
• Tanzania
• Tonga
• Uganda
• United States
• Yemen

At the heart of the Foundation lies a fervent commitment to human welfare, always prioritizing health and the needs of society’s most vulnerable.

We have strong partnerships with nonprofit organizations across the country that are working to advance economic mobility and social progress in low- and moderate-income communities. Our focus areas include basic needs like food and housing, workforce development and education, and community development. In addition to our philanthropic investments, we also encourage our employees to make a difference by offering robust employee giving and volunteering programs, including the opportunity to direct funds to organizations they support through volunteer efforts, and a matching gifts program that doubles their individual giving to causes they care about. Last year, we invested $350 million in the communities we serve, and employees contributed more than 1 million volunteer hours and directed $65 million through individual giving and matching gifts to support nonprofits.Through our regional U.S. sponsorships, we support the economic, social and cultural life of the places we live and work. We provide an extensive program of arts and sports sponsorships to help maintain vibrant, healthy communities.Sponsorships supporting communitiesBank of America welcomes your sponsorship proposal for opportunities that make our communities a better place to live and work. We are particularly interested in providing support to address needs vital to the health of our communities through a focus on:

• preserving neighborhoods;
• educating the workforce for 21st century jobs;
• addressing critical needs such as hunger and emergency shelter;
• arts and culture;
• the environment; and
• diversity and inclusion programs.

Grants are made at the Foundation’s discretion based on our current funding strategies focused on housing, jobs and hunger. 

The FFTC manages dozens of competitive grant programs that invest in communities throughout our region. Nonprofits are invited to apply for grants from these programs. Programs vary in grant size, application process and funding priorities.

Cleveland County Community Foundation Grants

The mission of the Cleveland County Community Foundation is to inspire philanthropy and strengthen our community by supporting initiatives that address local needs and providing quality services to donors and constituents. The Foundation’s Board of Advisors supports this mission through an annual competitive grantmaking program. The Foundation is an investor in the community and is interested in creating the highest possible levels of community gain, focused on improving the lives of citizens in Cleveland County, North Carolina. 

Perdue Farms is a fourth-generation, family owned U.S. food and agricultural company. We were founded on trust—a value that carries through everything we do. Through our two operating divisions, Perdue Foods and Perdue AgriBusiness, we’re making steps every day toward our goal of becoming the most trusted name in food and agricultural products. Our path forward is about getting better, not just bigger.

We're Committed to Being Careful Stewards. Stewardship is one of our company's core values. Our stewardship platform, "We believe in responsible food and agriculture®," challenges us to continually improve. Learn more about the progress we've made in the areas of food, environment, animal care, people, community and our partners.

What we support

We believe in putting our resources where there is a direct benefit to a broad-based spectrum of the community.

• We strive to strengthen our communities by focusing our efforts on agriculture and the environment, education, fighting hunger and poverty, health and social services, and public safety
• We also support organizations that celebrate the heritages and cultures of our communities

Our Responsibility

• Food Producing: Quality Food
• Environment: Protecting the Environment
• Animal Care: Providing for the Welfare of Animals
• People: Caring About Others

About the Hughes Memorial Foundation

Hughes Memorial Foundation was established by John Edward Hughes who built his fortune in the tobacco industry and upon his death in 1922 left most of his estate to build Hughes Memorial Home, an orphanage located in Danville, Virginia. He established a trust fund, which was governed by a Board that was elected and approved by the church, to financially assist with the needs of the facility. The orphanage was self-sufficient in that the staff and children raised vegetables and animals to assist with the cost of food. The agricultural program also served as a training program for the residents. Many of the individuals that were raised at the orphanage still consider it their "home". The alumnae of Hughes Memorial Home meet annually. Being a non-profit organization, Hughes Memorial also received charitable contributions from individuals wishing to help financial support the orphanage and the children. In the mid 1970's because of the reduction in need for the orphanage, Hughes Memorial became a residential treatment facility for abused and neglected adolescents. The residential treatment program was discontinued in 1999 and the Board of Hughes Memorial Home made the decision to become a private foundation that kept as its focus the example of Jesus Christ and the legacy of Mr. Hughes' original wishes which was to help children "most in harm's way" ... they chose to do this by awarding grants and scholarships that were targeted for the benefit of children. The first awards were made by the Board in November of 2000. Since then, the Hughes Memorial Foundation has awarded $5.1 million in grants to nonprofit organizations for programs benefiting children, and educational scholarships.

Our Mission

The Hughes Memorial Foundation is a charitable non-profit organization that seeks to aid deserving children in Virginia and North Carolina, and linear offspring of Hughes Memorial Home alumnae. Guided by the example of Jesus Christ and continuing the legacy of John E. Hughes, the Foundation will be prudent stewards of the resources entrusted to us and will provide scholarships and grants, support projects, and initiate programs which will provide care, training, and nurture.

In 2001, Food Lion created a 501(c)(3) foundation operated by a volunteer board of directors in order to streamline requests for financial donations to eliminate hunger.

The Food Lion Feeds Charitable Foundation supports a variety of hunger-related initiatives, including "Feeding the Hungry" grants each year. The foundation has given away more than $17.5 million across Food Lion’s operating area since its inception. Specifically, grants support children at risk of hunger and support feeding agencies by helping to increase their "fresh" capacity so families can put nutritious meals on their tables. The foundation also helps provide nutrition education to eliminate the health risks of the hungry.

About the Foundation

Jesse W. Couch lived a life of zeal, honor, and dedication to the betterment of his community. The Couch family now humbly stewards the foundation he created to carry on his legacy of service for future generations. We believe that impact is best accomplished through partnerships with local organizations that know the people and communities they serve. We invest in and support efforts to protect the environment, further conservation and preservation initiatives, and save historical architecture that preserves community heritage. We also support initiatives that promote wellness and mental health and organizations seeking to provide and further education for all communities.

Annual Grant Focus

Each year, we seek to partner with and support non-profit organizations making an impact in the focus areas listed here.  The focus areas for 2025 are:

• Animal Wellbeing: We are dedicated to helping nonprofit organizations that nurture compassion and respect for all living animals. We must have animal-focused organizations that advocate for animal rights and provide humane treatment across all spectrums.
• Early Childhood Education: We are looking for schools that are providing young children with a creative and balanced approach to education. Things we love in early childhood curriculums:
  • Life Skills
  • Collaboration With Their Peers and Teachers   
  • Having Fun   
  • Montessori Teachings   
  • Project Based Teachings   
  • Diversity   
  • More Time Outside   
  • Less Screen Time
• Teachers: Teachers are essential to providing children with the best possible education. We must invest in their future and are always looking for teams that help them succeed in educating future generations.
• Get Outside: Being outside can improve memory, fight depression, lower blood pressure, and more! We support organizations that facilitate and encourage more outdoor activities that help create healthier communities. 

Overview:

Each year, WCMA members complete a survey of funding priorities to guide the WCMA Board in allocating available grant funds, which are raised through membership dues and donations to WCMA’s annual fundraising event. Applications submitted by the deadline and meeting all eligibility requirements are given in-depth review by a committee of WCMA members, carefully considering the application’s measurable impact on WNC residents. Available funding varies each year, and the award process is competitive.

Focus Areas

Social or healthcare services:

Programs that offer food, clothing, shelter or basic needs to underserved individuals or that provide services or support to those in need. Grant requests in this category will provide programs or services to help address the health care, food or shelter needs of low-income individuals. 

Education:

Programs that enhance the educational success and academic achievement of students. Grant requests in this category will address youth education and development or family and parental support services such as after-school programs. Educational programs including summer camps or outdoor/environmental education should be multi-week with defined activities or curriculum and measurable objectives. Programs that are short term “experiences” for the participants, will be afforded less weight in terms of funding.

Natural or Cultural Resources or Animal Welfare:

Programs that support the region’s rich environmental or cultural resources. Animal welfare programs that assist low-income households with costly veterinary expenses such as spay/neuter or similar type programs. Grant requests in this category will address animal welfare, arts and cultural development and enrichment, or developing/enhancing outdoor recreational resources. 

Grant requests may not exceed $25K per organization. Focus area funding caps for 2025:

• Social and Healthcare Services - $25K
• Education - $15K
• Natural or Cultural Resources of Animal Welfare - $10K

Background

Food security, or more specifically consistent access to affordable and nutritious food, has significant bearing on physical, mental, and cognitive health outcomes. Despite North Carolina being a leading agricultural state with a robust farm and food community, more than 1.2 million people (1 in 8) who live in our state are food insecure. And many populations and communities are disproportionately impacted.

Increasing access to healthy food requires addressing the systemic issues that allow food insecurity to persist. Therefore, the purpose of this funding opportunity is to support community-based organizations with deep connections and accountability to the communities they serve in expanding their ability to advocate for systems and policy change, resulting in increased access to healthy food for those most food insecure.

Description of Funded Work

This opportunity is specifically designed to support nonprofit organizations with deep connections and accountability to the communities they serve in order to increase their ability to advocate for changes and solutions that address the root causes of food insecurity. Grant funds can be used to support staff time, materials, and expenses for a mix of advocacy-related activities.

For example, these could include – but are not limited to – the following:

• Community listening sessions or other community data collection activities to identify priority issues and solutions.
• Strengthening communications and outreach efforts, including storytelling, to increase awareness and visibility and to build reputation.
• Relationship building work and collaboration with other organizations, advocates, and decision makers at the institutional, municipal, county, state, or federal levels.
• Engaging the community around priority issues, e.g., community forums, neighborhood canvassing.
• Concentrated efforts or “campaigns” to educate the public and decision makers about the organization’s top issues and/or solutions.
• Providing institutional and/or government decision-makers with information about systems and conditions that perpetuate barriers to healthy food, along with potential solutions.
• Training and supporting new leaders from the community to advocate for change.
• Training for new or existing staff to strengthen skills and competencies needed to be an effective advocate (e.g., communication, collaboration, leadership). Travel and meeting expenses to visit other organizations for learning, relationship building, and/or collaboration.
• Other activities that will contribute to the expansion of the organization’s capacity to advocate for change.

Available Funding

As part of our overall commitment to increase access to healthy food for those most food insecure, and to grow the network of community organizations working to achieve this, we are issuing a three-year, up to $300,000 ($100,000 per year, per organization) grant opportunity. This opportunity will support up to 14 locally focused, community-based organizations to enhance their ability to affect the policy and systemic changes needed to address the root causes of food insecurity for those most impacted.

In addition to funding, the Foundation will provide grantees additional opportunities based on grantee needs and interests for the purposes of learning and relationship building including:

• Related technical assistance, training, or other learning experiences to enhance grantee effectiveness and impact.
• Attendance support for related conferences.
• Meetings and other connection-building activities with other grantees and organizations working to advance policy and systems change to improve access to healthy food.

Perdue Farms is the family-owned parent company of Perdue Foods and Perdue AgriBusiness. Perdue Farms are dedicated to enhancing the quality of life for everyone we touch through innovative food and agricultural products.

Through Perdue Farms Perdue, Harvestland and Coleman Natural food brands; through Perdue Farms agricultural products and services; and through Perdue Farms stewardship and corporate responsibility programs, Perdue Farms are committed to making Perdue the most trusted name in food and agricultural products. At Perdue, Perdue Farms believe in responsible food and agriculture.What We Support

• We strive to strengthen our communities by focusing our efforts on agriculture and the environment, education, fighting hunger and poverty, health and social services, and public safety
• We also support organizations that celebrate the heritages and cultures of our communities
• We may give additional preference to organizations in which our associates have direct involvement, but the overarching consideration is the betterment of the community

Calling to Serve

Since its inception in 2016, the Robinson Foundation has sought to demonstrate God’s love through sharing the gifts we have received. We understand the often unspoken hardships and struggles that people in and outside of our community face everyday. As such, our contributions are focused on relieving these hardships for the betterment of our world.

As a family-operated foundation, we pray that our small efforts will not only create immediate change in the lives of our neighbors, but will help set those lives on a course for success in the future. We are thankful for each and every day we have on this earth to use what God has granted us to make a difference.

Areas of Interest

• Animal Welfare
• Children & Families
• Disaster Relief
• Education
• Medical Assistance
• Nature & Wildlife Conservation
• Poverty Relief
• Religious & Spiritual Endeavors
• Veterans' Issues

Grant Considerations

We take many different aspects of applications into account when making grant issuing decisions, however these are some of the high-level questions we ask ourselves during the process:

• How does the organization serve their key audience goals?
• Is the organization fiscally responsible?
• Will a grant have a tangible, meaningful impact?
• Will we see direct results from this grant?
• Does the organization have other financial contributors?

Max and Victoria Dreyfus Foundation Grant

The Foundation will consider requests to support museums, cultural and performing arts programs; schools and hospitals; educational, skills-training and other programs for youth, seniors, and persons with disabilities; environmental and wildlife protection activities; and other community-based organizations and programs.

Vision

The vision of the Polk County Community Foundation is to advance philanthropy and improve the quality of life for all citizens in Polk County, North Carolina and the surrounding area.

Mission

The mission of the Polk County Community Foundation is to:

• Support charitable and beneficial activities in the community
• Provide and administer a variety of planned giving programs
• Serve as a responsible steward of all funds entrusted to it
• Provide initiative in recognizing areas of community needs and supporting solutions.

Free Community Events

The Community Foundation is pleased to offer grants for free community events, an initiative of the Foundation's Board of Directors to support face to face social interactions that build community in ways small and large. Gatherings funded by these grants are intended to benefit residents who have chosen to make this community their home, to give people an excuse to strike up a conversation and get to know your neighbors. Past grants have funded free entertainment at the Upstairs Artspace, heart-healthy banquets in Green Creek, programs for children and Shakespeare fans at the Polk County Public Library, and a Play Day for children and families in Saluda. All events are 100% free.

Grants of up to $3,000 shall be awarded for small, single events.

Grants of up to $8,000 shall be awarded for a series of events or a large single event likely to attract a hundred or more local people.

Grant funds must be spent within 12 months of the time of the award notification. You may request a longer grant period by indicating the need for an extension of time on the cover page.

Project Examples

Past Free Community Event grants have funded a Martin Luther King, Jr. celebration, the Do-It- Yourself Messiah, a New Year’s Eve celebration, free concerts in Columbus, Landrum, Saluda, and Tryon, heart-healthy banquets in Green Creek, programs for children and Shakespeare fans at the Polk County Public Library, and a Play Day for children and families in Saluda.

Additional ideas for free gatherings could include:

• A yoga series at a library
• Community nights at schools
• Recreational and sporting activities
• Dances
• Gardening classes
• Community grill nights at public parks
• Arts and music workshops and performances
• Extraordinary learning opportunities for community members young and old
• Festivals and celebrations for local residents
• Grant funds may be used to help keep schools open outside normal school hours as gathering places for community building activities

Ameriprise Financial Grantmaking

At Ameriprise Financial, giving back is deeply rooted in our culture. We’ve initiated positive change in the communities where we live and work for more than 120 years. We believe our community involvement enables us to actively live our values. Through grant making, volunteerism and employee and financial advisor gift matching programs, we support a diverse group of over 6,000 nonprofits across the country.

Focus Areas

Awarding grant dollars to nonprofits is one way we strengthen our communities and help individuals on a path to financial independence. To ensure we're meeting the needs of our communities and making an even greater collective impact, we focus on three key giving areas when awarding grants.

Volunteer engagement is a priority across all focus areas:

The engagement of Ameriprise employees and financial advisors is a critical component of our philanthropy. Whether it’s serving on a nonprofit board, engaging friends, clients and community members in volunteering or providing skills-based support, our relationships with nonprofits go deep. For this reason, we give priority across all focus areas to applications where there is active volunteer engagement of Ameriprise advisors and employees. 

Meeting Basic Needs

At Ameriprise Financial, we help clients achieve financial security and peace of mind. That’s satisfying, meaningful work. We also help the people in our neighborhoods who struggle to meet basic needs such as where their next meal comes from, where they’ll sleep tonight or how they’ll find a higher wage job. We’re here to help them through the three platforms of our Meeting Basic Needs focus area.

Consideration is given to applications addressing the following: 

• Hunger
• Food banks, food shelves and food pantries, daily meal programs or meal services for the homebound
• Hunger-relief programs targeted to meet the special needs of children, ethnic populations or veterans
• Food programs run by nonprofits where hunger is not their sole focus, for example a youth meal program at the YWCA or a backpack program run by a Boys & Girls Club
• Shelter
• Emergency shelter, including youth homelessness
• Transitional housing, permanent supportive housing and efforts to end chronic homelessness
• Housing-first models (programs quickly providing housing and then addressing needed services)
• Achieving and maintaining home ownership, repair and maintenance efforts helping keep seniors, veterans and other populations in their homes 
• Adult Self-Sufficiency: Programs serving adults age 21 and older that help address the following areas:
• Basic hard and soft skills that help adults achieve economic and family stability
• Basic financial and budgeting skills
• Increase employability and wages, including work readiness and job transitions
• Employment of disabled adults

Supporting Community Vitality

We believe communities should be strong, healthy and resilient. We want livable places for all, where neighbors look out for one another, cultural events are well-attended and people pull together in times of crisis and joy. We work to create economic vitality and cultural enrichment through the following areas of focus.

Consideration is given to applications addressing the following: 

• Community Development
• Neighborhood revitalization
• Economic development
• Strengthening and supporting small businesses and nonprofits through technical expertise
• Cultural Enrichment
• Arts education
• Access for underserved populations
• Diverse artists and performances that spark topical community conversations 

Volunteer Driven Causes: Ameriprise employees and financial advisors are outstanding volunteers who serve in teams and also as individuals bringing personal skill-sets to nonprofits. Volunteering is part of the culture at Ameriprise and we are proud to support communities through contributions of both service and financial resources. 

Funding for Volunteer-Driven Causes is determined by current Ameriprise volunteerism. In general, funding is in proportion to the size of the Ameriprise volunteer team supporting a nonprofit. A team may include employees, financial advisors and/or staff or a combination of any Ameriprise volunteers. 

Background

Many rural regions in our state have plentiful land but inadequate access to healthy food and recreation opportunities. Loss of land in communities of color, lack of food processing capacity, insufficient protections for farmworkers, and cuts to nutrition assistance programs leave communities little control over food systems in their region. These dynamics are shifting as organizations and residents push for local ownership of the food systems and advocate for meaningful investments in parks, recreation departments, and safe places to play.

Opportunity Details

The Trust is interested in building the capacity of organizations and networks that are working toward local ownership of the food system. Organizations should be deeply rooted in financially vulnerable communities and communities of color and aim to change the way local decisions about the food system are made. Proposals should include plans for deeply engaging residents and shifting policies or systems. Applicants should be working with, or show a willingness to work with, broader food system collaboratives.

Goal

Leverage local organizations and networks, especially those based in financially vulnerable regions and communities of color, to promote equity in food and recreation systems, substance misuse, and adverse childhood experiences.

GSK IMPACT Awards for the Triangle

This annual awards program honors up to 10 local nonprofit organizations in recognition of their exceptional achievements, overall excellence, and best practices in contributing to a healthier Triangle Region. This is the 27th year of the program in the United States.

GSK is proud to continue its partnership with Triangle Community Foundation in the administration of this awards program. This program is one of several charitable programs GSK offers in the United States as part of a commitment to building healthier communities and a healthy America.

Challenge

Much of what influences our health happens outside the doctor’s office – in our communities. Factors such as access to healthy foods and recreational spaces undeniably contribute to our health. Where we are born, raised, live, and work matters to our health; yet too many individuals are living in communities that are hazardous to our health.

Solution

The more we understand the connection between our health and our community, the more we can improve it. GSK is guided by their mission of helping people to do more, feel better and live longer. To achieve this mission, GSK goes beyond discovering, developing, and delivering new medicines, vaccines, and healthcare products and addresses health challenges where they often start – in our communities.

Process

GSK and Triangle Community Foundation staff review nonprofit registrations and invite eligible organizations to complete the application process. We work together to select 20 finalists. Virtual site visits are managed and conducted by Triangle Community Foundation. A panel comprised of local and national community health experts and GSK representatives evaluate the finalist applications and site visit reports and select up to ten winners.

Application Guidance

There are a variety of factors that contribute to a healthier community that have been identified in the County Health Rankings & Roadmap model developed by the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation and the University of Wisconsin Population Health Institute. Through the GSK IMPACT Awards, we seek to recognize and honor exemplary nonprofit organizations with program(s) that are making measurable impact on these community health factors, listed below. Please read more about each category below and visit County Health Rankings & Roadmap for more information, including examples of evidence-based programs and interventions.

• Community Safety– Programs that support: Healthy neighborhoods, safe streets, crime reduction, civil rights advocacy, community centers, etc. that help to build safe neighborhoods that are free from violence.
• Education– Programs that support: Literacy, life skills, early learning and learning engagement, out-of-school-time, teacher support/development, curriculum quality improvement, coaching/mentorship etc. to help members of the community graduate high-school or go onto post-secondary education.
• Employment & Income– Programs that support: Job skills, professional training, resume assistance, career counseling, interviewing skills, etc. that help to reduce unemployment and increase earnings.
• Family & Social Support– Programs that support: Life coaching/mentorship, elderly care and engagement, child care assistance, parenting support, counseling, etc. that help to reduce isolation and increase community engagement and support.
• Housing & Built Environment– Programs that support: Shelter, safe housing conditions, home assistance, home ownership, transit systems, parks and green spaces, etc. that help to build healthy, connected neighborhoods.
• Nutrition & Physical Activity– Programs that support: Healthy eating, exercise, sports, outdoor activity, etc. to help members of the community achieve or maintain a healthy weight.

About New Hanover County Community Foundation

The New Hanover County Community Foundation is a growing family of philanthropic funds, source of grants for local causes and partner for donors. The NHCCF has deep roots in southeastern North Carolina. A descendant of the former Community Foundation of Southeastern North Carolina, it has been serving the community since 1987 and is led by a local volunteer advisory board that helps build community assets through the creation of permanent endowments, makes grants and leverages leadership – all for the benefit of New Hanover County.

The NHCCF, through the NC Community Foundation, makes it easy to become a philanthropist, whatever your means or charitable goals. You can open an endowment for your favorite cause at any time – or contribute to an existing fund in any amount.

The NHCCF board advises the New Hanover County Community Fund, the unrestricted community grantmaking fund, to support local needs. This competitive grants program is held annually. Because advisory board members live and work in New Hanover County, they can leverage resources to help meet local needs and access opportunities.

New Hanover County Community Foundation

The Foundation is seeking proposals from New Hanover County nonprofit organizations in support of the following purposes:

• Suzanne and George Taylor Endowment – Focus on improving the welfare of children from birth to 18 years of age in New Hanover County.
• New Hanover County Unrestricted Endowment – Supports broad charitable purposes including capacity building. Grant awards typically range from $500 to $2500. Larger amounts will be considered for projects or initiatives with the potential to achieve a significant positive impact on New Hanover County.
• Food Bank of Coastal Carolina Fund – Focus on food or food-related services to those who are in need in the NC Counties of New Hanover, Pender, Brunswick, and Columbus.
• 1898 Memorial Fund – Grants are awarded for projects that support race relations in Wilmington.
• Lucille Murchison Marvin Fund - General charitable purposes.

Community Partnership Award

The Mutual of America Foundation Community Partnership Award recognizes outstanding nonprofit organizations in the United States that have shown exemplary leadership by facilitating partnerships with public, private or social sector leaders who are working together as equal partners, not as donors and recipients, to build a cohesive community that serves as a model for collaborating with others for the greater good.

Each year, the Mutual of America Foundation sponsors a national competition in which hundreds of organizations demonstrate the value of their partnership to the communities they serve, their ability to be replicated by others and their capacity to stimulate new approaches to addressing significant social issues.

Six organizations are selected by an independent committee to receive the Community Partnership Award.

• The Thomas J. Moran Award is given to the national award-winning program and includes $100,000 and a documentary video about the program.
• The Frances R. Hesselbein Award is given to a partnership that is addressing social challenges in more than one community, or which demonstrates the potential to be replicated in other communities. This recipient receives $75,000.
• Four other organizations are named Honorable Mention recipients for their programs, and each receives $50,000.

Since its inception in 1996, the Community Partnership Award has recognized 262 partnerships from cities and towns across America. Like so many of our clients working in the nonprofit community, Mutual of America is dedicated to having a direct, positive impact on society.

The North Carolina Community Foundation is honored to serve the people of our state by connecting our nonprofit partners that are meeting community needs with our fundholders and donors supporting that vital work. Our competitive grantmaking programs demonstrate our fundholders’ commitment to nonprofit causes strengthening our communities across the state.

Louise Oriole Burevitch Endowment

The Louise Oriole Burevitch Endowment was founded by the noted Wilmington philanthropist whose gifts are having a transformative effect on eastern North Carolina. NCCF is pleased to offer a competitive grants program from the Louise Oriole Burevitch Endowment in support of education, health and human services in eastern North Carolina.

Focus Areas

The Endowment defines these focus areas as follows:

Education

Education benefits students, teachers, school personnel within pre-K, K-12 and 4-year college and university education systems with a goal of escalating school success. 

• After-school educational programs and other educational extra-curricular activities serving students may be considered with a focus on academic achievement.
• The Endowment may consider non-academic educational opportunities for youth that offer leadership development.

Health

Health includes programs and services that yield positive impacts on the health and well-being of individuals, groups, and communities.

• Health includes physical health, mental health, and general wellness.
• The priority of the program and/or service must be to improve health outcomes directly, not indirectly.

Human Services

Human Services addresses basic human needs – food, clothing, shelter and safety.

• Job skills training and employment assistance may be considered within this category as they serve basic human needs and improve quality of life.
• Because of the fund’s preference for benefiting women, domestic violence services are included within this category as serving a basic human need for safety.