Search Through Grants for the Arts in Maine in the U.S.

1977, the Charles and Mildred Schnurmacher Foundation has focused on charitable giving. Because we value the importance of enhancing and improving the lives of others, the Foundation supports diverse programs in the fields of human services, education, Jewish causes, health, performing arts, scientific research and animal advocacy. While most of the organizations we support are in the United States, some of the programs provide support throughout the world.

We review every request submitted and make our decision after diligent and thoughtful consideration. Most grants awarded are for program development or specific project support as opposed to general operating expenses.

How we decide who receives funds

To decide where funds should go, we consider the organization’s relevance to our Community Promise goals, how the service it offers impacts our community, other support the group receives in the private and public sector, and the community’s general need.

As many typical fundraising avenues disappeared during the COVID-19 pandemic, we’ve been especially proactive in reaching out to partners as vital societal needs have only increased across communities.

We receive so many requests, and every category offers invaluable services and activities. Here’s a quick sample of the kinds of organizations that receive assistance.

Five categories of organizations

Our dedicated Social Responsibility team considers requests from five categories of organizations. We award grants and sponsorships on a rolling, year-round basis in support of the following causes:

Health and Wellness

Community organizations and programs that promote mind, body, and financial wellness align very strongly with our corporate and community values. We sponsor races, sports teams, and other wellness programs and initiatives.

Examples of groups who have received support from us include:

• Hospitals and Community Health Centers
• Nutrition Programs
• United Ways
• Community Action Agencies

Community & Economic Advancement

Community spaces that create access to resources for community members of all walks of life get our attention. We want to empower everyone in the community who has ideas that can help make it better.

Examples of groups who have received support from us include:

• Libraries
• Chambers of Commerce
• Affordable Housing
• Public Transportation

Arts & Culture

A vibrant art scene in our communities drives tourism and commerce and serves a higher purpose – fostering understanding, creating empathy, and moving a community forward. We want to support the arts whenever we can.

Examples of groups who have received support from us include:

• Visual and performing arts programs
• Museums
• Historical Societies
• Theaters

Education & Innovation

Investments in education and youth programs create the future of the community. As parents ourselves, we support youth programs that address food insecurity, technology, wellness, and trauma prevention to help children succeed beyond their dreams.

Examples of groups who have received support from us include:

• Education Foundations
• Literacy Programs
• Leadership Development
• Social Entrepreneurship

Environment & Animal Welfare

We all deserve a healthy environment to live in and enjoy, our furry friends included. We work with land trusts, animal shelters, animal agencies and more to make that happen.

Examples of groups who have received support from us include:

• Land Trusts
• Marine Resource Conservation
• Animal Welfare and Rescue

About Us

Mattina R. Proctor (1926-2005) was a compassionate philanthropist from Camden, Maine and Boston, Massachusetts. Ms. Proctor championed and funded many worthwhile projects to benefit those in need, protect the environment, and bring fine music, arts, and media to the people. In her memory, The Mattina R. Proctor Foundation continues to support charitable organizations and initiatives in Maine, Massachusetts and beyond that focus on education, healthcare, music, and environmental stewardship.

Need Based Giving

MRPF strives to make a difference with the grants we make. We prefer to focus our giving on particular projects rather than on general program support. Successful applicants are generally those who demonstrate a specific need related to our focus areas in Maine, Massachusetts and beyond.

Focus Areas 

Education

We support organizations that provide educational opportunities in music, performance, and in traditional trades and crafts. The foundation has supported projects at the university and secondary school levels, and programs that engage younger students. We are especially interested in projects that support music and trades education in traditionally underserved populations in Maine and Massachusetts.

The Arts 

We supports organizations and initiatives that bring fine music, arts, and media to the people primarily in Maine and Massachusetts with a special focus on opera. We generally focus our funding on performance and education organizations. In this focus area we tend to concentrate on funding opportunities where major foundation support is critical to the ongoing success of the applicant.

Healthcare

We support healthcare initiatives predominantly in Maine and the Boston area, for public health and medical research. Funding is provided for initiatives in diabetes research and care, dental care, and projects that seek to provide preventative healthcare to underserved populations in Maine.

Environmental Stewardship

We support organizations and campaigns that seek to acquire and protect land in the Midcoast region of Maine, both through direct acquisitions and via conservation easements. We tends to give to conservation organizations that demonstrate a desire to support rural economies through multiple-use management objectives, providing for continued agricultural and recreational uses, along with sustainable timber management programs. In all of our grants, the economic impact on jobs and the regional economy are important factors in the decision-making process.

Our community commitment

From our corporate headquarters in Indianapolis, we’ve grown into a national provider of insurance and financial services with offices in California, Maine and beyond. We’re committed to making a difference in people’s lives and the communities we serve.

Helping others is at our core. Making commitments that matter. Our vision to improve the quality of life in our communities, which are stronger because of our support and volunteer efforts. Here are some of the ways we are making an impact:

• Education & workforce development
  • Being there for our community means leading education efforts and workforce development for future success. OneAmerica Financial invests in both education and workforce development because we understand how critical it is to have both.
• Safety, wellness & success
  • Being there for you means working to keep our communities healthy and safe. We support our neighbors and those in need through disaster relief, feeding the hungry, the homeless and by providing essential needs and services through United Way agencies.
• Community vibrancy & civic causes
  • Being there for our vibrant communities can be seen through our efforts to support arts & culture, such as our long-standing involvement with the Broadripple Art Fair, 500 Festival Mini Marathon and the Indiana Repertory Theatre (IRT).

Community grants

The OneAmerica Financial Foundation is a nonprofit, private foundation dedicated to investing in the well-being of communities through strategic philanthropy. Rooted in a long-standing tradition of service, the Foundation’s charitable reach begins in the heart of Indianapolis and extends to communities across the country.

By investing in meaningful change, the Foundation aims to transform lives and create shared success—supporting those who build stronger, more resilient communities for generations to come.

• Education (primarily K-12, early childhood and at-risk populations)
• Workforce development efforts to increase employment and develop talent locally
• Community safety, wellness and success that provide support for basic community needs
• Arts and cultural experiences that add to the vibrancy of the community
• Civic initiatives that strengthen our communities

About Us

The Foundation is a Chicago-based family foundation that provides strategic grants to support social justice, the arts and investigative journalism both in Chicago and around the world.

Dedicated to lasting support for the founders’ powerful and eclectic mix of grants, our directors each contribute their own unique interests to our granting range.

Reva and David Logan Foundation Grant

The Reva and David Logan Foundation grants in three main areas: Social Justice, Journalism and the Arts.

We base our grant making decisions on these key qualities:

• Originality
  • The proposal encompasses a unique approach, proven or experimental, that is likely to deliver outstanding and reliable results.
• Potential (Impact)
  • The applicant’s process will significantly change their field or expand the audience to broaden debate while promoting positive outcomes, wide availability and access to all.
• Feasibility
  • The proposal contains clear and reachable goals, a reasonable timeframe, a fully-specified plan, and a realistic budget.
• Capacity
  • In conjunction with the funding and logistical support of our foundation, the applicant has all the necessary resources to accomplish their proposed goals and to carry out the project successfully.
• Engagement and Continuity
  • The applicant understands the importance of sustained commitment to the people they serve.

The Global Commons Alliance’s Accountability Accelerator

The Global Commons Alliance’s Accountability Accelerator (GCAAA) is a global collaborative of philanthropists and practitioners focused on creating a comprehensive accountability ecosystem for nature that scales and accelerates corporate action.

The Accountability Accelerator aims to

Strengthen and accelerate corporate accountability

• Support, through participatory grant-making, organizations working on targets, frameworks, skills, resources, and pressures to push for credible action.

Support the broader accountability ecosystem

• Coordinate and support a tightly woven web of accountability actors, using various tools both in the Global South and North to drive action and push corporate action and accountability for nature. 

Influence governments to drive corporate action

• Push governments to demonstrably provide the enabling environment for business & finance to halt and reverse nature loss.   

Accountability Accelerator’s Main Functions

Grant-maker

• Participatory grant-maker providing funding support for global, early-stage, innovative accountability projects and actors.

Orchestrator

• Align stakeholders, strengthen accountability architecture, identify accountability gaps and opportunities, capture learnings and insights. 

Convener

• Create a safe place to bring all the stakeholders together to learn from each other, think creatively, and spur action.

Approach

The challenges the Accountability Accelerator is setting out to solve are not new but they are complex. The accountability landscape for corporate sustainability is highly fragmented with many gaps in data and standards, lack of coordination, and disconnects between different actors working in different regions of the world.

Accountability is an ecosystem of actors and actions which includes incentives for companies to take the first steps towards a nature-positive economy as well as resources and ongoing support, and finally, putting pressure and holding companies accountable for their commitments and actions. The tighter and more coordinated the web, the less opportunities for inaction and greenwashing. Companies and governments have a crucial role to play and must be engaged in the process.

To achieve our mission, we believe all stakeholders must work together and be supported by a multi-layered accountability ecosystem or architecture with mutually reinforcing and complementary approaches that ensure accountability for all.

Grant Process

The Accountability Accelerator supports the development of a robust accountability ecosystem for corporate action on nature by making mid-sized grants (USD 50,000-100,000) to specific projects that fit with our areas of work. We specifically focus on closing gaps in the accountability landscape and on projects that are early-stage and require higher-risk seed funding that might be deemed too risky by larger funders. The Accountability Accelerator works with applicants to co-develop proposals and accepts proposals on a rolling basis. We pride ourselves in our ability to be reactive and nimble to catch and support urgent and time-sensitive projects.

We support a broad range of projects across different dimensions: 

• Structural (top-down) as well as scalable grassroots (bottom-up), 
• Enabling environment and incentives (carrots) as well as pressures and pushes (sticks)
• Projects that focus on rule change (mandatory) as well as culture (voluntary)

Finally, the Accountability Accelerator recognizes and supports the rights and leadership roles of Indigenous Peoples and local communities as stewards of nature and the vast majority of the world’s biodiversity regions. We endeavor to have at least half our grants going to the Global South, where the impacts of global agricultural, manufacturing, and commodity supply chains are most deeply felt on the ground.

Engagement Clusters

The Accountability Accelerator is engaging with corporate accountability actors and stakeholders through four primary levers, referred to as “clusters”:

Data & Standards

• Supporting organizations that are working on standards, frameworks, targets and benchmarks and ensuring that companies take action, assess, commit, transform, and disclose, on their commitments. 

Finance 

• Engaging, mobilizing, and enabling the finance sector to take action and optimally leverage its role towards a ‘Safe and Just” future for our planet and its people’. Support organizations by providing guidance, targets, methodologies, benchmarks, capacity building, and putting pressure on the financial sector.

Legal

• Reducing corporate actions that are harmful to nature and biodiversity by mandating disclosure, driving ambitious regulation, and enforcing existing legislation while supporting systems changes such as redefining fiduciary duty.

Campaigns 

• Incentivising and supporting corporate action towards a nature-positive and equitable world. Increasing corporate accountability through enabling the power of local and global stakeholders. Supporting through grantmaking those working on awareness, youth activism, campaigns, journalism, citizen action, art, and elevating grass-roots efforts, especially in the Global South.

History

The Davis Family Foundation is a public charitable foundation established by Phyllis C. Davis and H. Halsey Davis of Falmouth, Maine, to support educational, medical and cultural/arts organizations located primarily in Maine.

The Foundation was established following Mr. Davis' retirement as President and Chairman of Shaw’s Supermarkets, Inc. Their overriding goal for the Foundation was simple and straightforward: “to make grants where they will do the most good and where our gifts make a real difference.” The Foundation has provided more than $63.5 million in grants since its grantmaking activities began in 1986.

Project Guidance

Education projects

Ideal education projects

• Are innovative, inspirational, and based on research
• Involve educators in both design and execution
• Strive to make a meaningful impact:
  • Transforming the learning experience or post-academic outlook for specific learners
  • Inspiring systemic change in Maine education

Medical projects

Ideal medical projects:

• Solve systemic medical issues through programs or initiatives backed by evidence. The project should be scalable, replicable and ultimately sustainable independent of grant funding
• Are unique and not ongoing and/or managing care

Cultural/Arts projects

The Foundation seeks Cultural/Arts Projects that will create an engaging and/or informative cultural/arts experience for Maine community members, or preserve important cultural and historic elements of Maine in a manner that reflects best practice.

Ideal cultural/arts projects:

• Are unique and not ongoing
• Increase/expand access to year-round residents of Maine
• Support an organization's strategic goals as defined in a strategic plan
• Include multiple funding sources

New England Funding Priorities

The Clowes Fund supports organizations and programs that focus primarily on socioeconomically disadvantaged individuals. New England funding is concentrated in four geographic regions, including parts of Massachusetts, New Hampshire and Maine, and the State of Vermont.

In New England, we accept Introductory Applications for first-time Immigrant Services and Workforce Development grants. All current and recent grantees, including those focused on K-12 Education and Arts Education, are welcome to submit a Continuation Grant Statement of Intent.

Maine

Geographic Priorities

The Fund supports immigrant services and workforce development and K-12 education requests serving southern and mid-coast parts of the state, which include Cumberland, Androscoggin and Knox counties.

Funding Priorities

• Immigrant Services – We are interested in supporting efforts to address the economic, linguistic, legal, and mental and emotional hurdles that immigrants, refugees and asylees and their children face during integration into the United States society and its economy.
• Workforce Development – We are interested in ensuring that all individuals have access to both jobs skills training and the support services necessary to enable them to participate fully in the economic life of their communities. In addition, we are interested in supporting youth development efforts that prevent students (ages 15 to 25) from dropping out of school and assist in their return to school or their pursuit of an alternate course to economic self-sufficiency.
• K-12 Education – We support primary and secondary education through efforts that emphasize classroom instruction, such as professional development for educators or programs that are fully integrated into the school day. We do not fund after-school or summer enrichment programs for elementary and middle school students. We consider such programs for teens as youth development within our workforce development interests.

Grant Application Process & Funding

There are two entry points to applying for a Clowes Fund grant, after you have reviewed Where and What We Fund and What We Do Not Fund. Your answer to the following question determines your application type (due November 1).

• Has your organization received a Clowes Fund competitive grant payment within the past five years?
  • If No - Apply for an Introductory Grant: $40K over 2 years ($20K/year) - For Immigrant Services or Workforce Development
    • Most Introductory Grants are awarded to organizations with operating budgets less than $2.5 million.
  • If Yes - Apply for a Continuation Grant - $60K, $90K or $150K over 3 years ($20K, $30K, $50K year, respectively) - For Immigrant Services, Workforce Development, Arts Education or K-12 Education

Transparency is core to strong relationships, so we are compelled to share that fewer than 10% of Introductory Applications will result in an Introductory Grant. The likelihood of funding is much higher for returning grantees seeking Continuation Grants.

Find Your Light Foundation

The work of FYL centers around 4 main pillars:

• Support
  • We provide direct support to organizations that provide an arts education to kids in under served communities.
• Education
  • Find Your Light is consistently working to improve the way arts education is integrated in the classroom through the organizations we fund and the content we provide.
• Outreach
  • Through our website, events, social media, e-newsletter, and more, Find Your Light is continually reaching more kids in need and spreading the importance of our mission.
• Advocacy
  • Under the leadership of Josh Groban, Find Your Light uses all resources available to push the importance of an arts education for our next generation.

Grant Information

The Find Your Light Foundation is dedicated to ensuring that every child has the opportunity to experience a quality arts education. We believe that is best achieved through direct support of exceptional arts programs combined with education, advocacy and outreach. We focus support where the need is greatest to educate and inspire others to recognize arts education as a critical component of a young person’s development.

Find Your Light Foundation grants are awarded to arts education based programs in low-income areas across North America. Awards are issued in the Summer and Winter of each year, and generally range between $5,000 and $15,000.

Grant Guidelines

For application-based grants, the Betterment fund’s minimum annual grant is $10,000. The maximum annual grant usually does not exceed $35,000. The average annual grant, whether for multiple years or a single year, is $15,000-$20,000. Three years is the maximum period of time the Betterment Fund will consider for a multi-year grant. The largest grants tend to be made to applicants with a successful history of grant management with the Betterment Fund

Current Grant Priorities

Education, health, conservation and community support are our primary grant categories. We also recognize that certain projects transcend these categories and have defined a number of “cross-sector” areas.

Community Support

We favor community-wide programs or regional systemic approaches to issues to improve well-being within the following current priority areas:

• Downtowns
• Basic Human Needs:
• Legal Protections

Proposals less likely to be funded include individual school programs, programming supplementary to the curricula of schools, and construction projects. Any funding of scholarships at Maine colleges and universities is done only at the initiative of the trustees rather than in response to grant requests.

Education

We believe that every Maine resident is entitled to an education which equips the individual to lead a satisfying, productive and economically independent life, and we are interested in funding broad-based educational policy initiatives to that end. Please see “Health” and the Cross-Sector areas of “Early Childhood” and “Economic Development” for initiatives related to education in those areas. More particularly we fund:

• Educational Quality
• Adult Education
• Arts Education
• Higher Education Aspirations

Proposals less likely to be funded include individual school programs, programming supplementary to the curricula of schools, and construction projects.

Conservation

Perpetuating a balanced, dynamic relationship between the natural and built environments in the three-million-acre corridor between the White Mountain National Forest and the Moosehead Lake region is of particular interest. To that end we sponsor the following initiatives within the extensive and varied landscape which covers most of Oxford, Franklin and Somerset counties:

• Preservation of special places, particularly those identified by the local communities, along the spine of the Appalachian Trail and in the Maine West and High Peaks Regions.
• Support of the responsible development of working forests and agriculture.
• Preservation and restoration of threatened natural habitats.
• Opportunities for traditional Maine recreation in the target region.
• Support of water quality preservation of lakes, rivers and ponds.

Occasionally we may fund projects of land trusts and environmental organizations located in the other rim counties, but we focus primarily on the Western Maine counties listed above.

Health

We are currently focusing our Health grants in the following areas:

• Maine Public Health Policy
• Oral Health
• Increasing Educational Opportunities for Health Careers
• Community Health Projects
• Substance Use Disorder

Please note that projects focused primarily on physical activity and healthy eating should be submitted under our cross-sector “Moving Communities to Health.”

Proposals that are not as likely to be funded include medical research, projects relating to a single disease, actual delivery of medical treatment and capital construction or equipment purchases

Cross-Sector Areas

We have identified these areas as being particularly susceptible to consideration under more than one of our traditional priority categories.

Economic Development

We recognize that the expansion of Maine’s economy will advance other areas of Betterment Fund concern. We particularly support the following programs:

• Entrepreneurship
  • Programs that promote scalable entrepreneurship, particularly in rural areas.
  • Areas of particular interest include women- and minority-owned businesses and improved coordination of existing entrepreneurship and economic development efforts, including with educational initiatives.
  • The development of careers and businesses in the trades is also of interest.
• Agricultural Capacity
  • Improvements to the competitiveness and long-term viability of Maine farms and farmers by providing technical support and improving access to distribution and markets.
• Tourism
  • Promotion and development of quality tourism as an engine for economic opportunity in the mountain and forest regions, with particular preference for the Western Mountains region.
• Broadband
  • Support of planning and implementation projects to increase access to broadband in local communities of Oxford, Franklin, Somerset, and northern Cumberland Counties, conditioned upon local municipal and/or nonprofit community entities’ commitment of resources to such projects.

Creative Economy

The Betterment Fund is primarily interested in regional and statewide strategies promoting the economic enhancement of communities through arts and culture.

Early Childhood

The Betterment Fund has prioritized improvement of the education, health, and general well-being of Maine’s youngest children, from before birth through preschool age. Our focus in this area is funding the development of best practices for the physical, mental, and psychosocial health and development of young children. We support policy work that leads to the adoption of state or federal policies to achieve these outcomes and the establishment and maintenance of the broad infrastructure to carry out this work. We also are interested in the development of an economically viable and accessible system of childcare for working families. We are unlikely to make grants to individual school or childcare center programs.

Moving Communities to Health

Of interest are community-scale initiatives taking advantage of natural and other qualities inherent in the community’s locale and promoting the participation of its residents in active recreation and other activities (such as healthy eating) conducive to healthy lifestyles and prevention of illness. Essential elements of this priority include:

• A demonstrated connection to individuals’ physical and/or mental health; and
• Initiation by and for the residents of an identified geographic-based community (as opposed to individuals with common interests or attributes drawn from more disparate geographic areas).

Philanthropy

The Betterment Fund embraces opportunities to collaborate with other state-wide philanthropic organizations that seek to improve grant-making and support charitable activities in Maine. In addition to making grants, the Betterment Fund supports and participates in a number of funder groups around specific issues.

FJ Brotherton Charitable Trust

The FJ Brotherton Charitable Trust was established in 2024 to continue the work of the Fred J. Brotherton Charitable Foundation, which was dissolved the same year. The FJ Brotherton Charitable Trust helps to fulfill the missions of charitable organizations falling within its grant making guidelines.

The Trust’s main areas of interest are:

• Arts and Culture
• Community, Housing and Social Services
• Education
• Historic Preservation
• Medical Programs
• Scientific Research

The primary geographic areas of funding are the northeastern United States, and along the eastern seaboard, however there are exceptions.

New England States Touring (NEST) funds performances, readings, and screenings of work by regional, national, and international artists presented by New England-based nonprofit organizations.

Program Goals

• Expand direct access to high quality artists and aesthetic diversity for all New England communities by artists from New England, the nation, and across the globe.
• Stimulate opportunities for collaboration and partnerships among New England cultural organizations and between artists and organizations.
• Encourage projects that provide meaningful interaction between artists and communities, extending beyond the stage.

NEST Artists

NEST artists are professional artists from New England who meet the NEST artist requirements. They represent a wide range of disciplines, including dance, folk art, interdisciplinary work, media, music, musical theater, opera, poetry, storytelling, and theater. NEST artists must be available for public performances and must maintain a permanent residence in New England.

About the New England States Touring Grant Program

There are three distinct grant opportunities for New England nonprofit organizations: NEST 1, NEST 2, and NEST 3. Organizations serving rural communities and/or deeply engaging Black, Indigenous, and People of Color (BIPOC) communities are encouraged to apply.

NEST 1

Funds the public presentation and engagement of a New England artist presented by a New England nonprofit organization based in a different New England state from the artist’s home state. 

NEST 2

Funds the public presentation and community engagement activities of a New England artist presented by two New England nonprofit organizations. Tours must include one presenting organization based inside of the artist’s home state and one other organization from outside of the artist’s home state.

NEST 3

Funds tours, including public presentation and community engagement activities, of regional, national, or international artists presented by New England nonprofit organizations. Tours must include a minimum of three New England organizations in different communities presenting the same artist. The organizations applying must be from at least two different New England states. 

• Each organization is responsible for reviewing the program goals and criteria, negotiating the terms of the engagement with the artist, and completing a NEST 3 application.
• Organizations may submit up to three NEST 3 applications.
• The annual deadline is the first business day of March.
• Grants provide up to 60% of the artist fee to a maximum of $10,000.
  • Applications with artist fees under $2,000 may request the full artist fee.
• New England artists must be listed as NEST-eligible on CreativeGround.
• For non-New England artists, an artist work sample must be submitted by one of the touring partners.
• Grant period: Touring projects must occur between June 1, 2025 - August 31, 2026.

Deadlines

NEST 1 & 2 grant deadlines occur three times a year, as follows:

• First business day of August, for projects beginning on or after November 1.
• First business day of December, for projects beginning on or after March 1.
• First business day of March, for projects beginning on or after June 1.

The annual NEST 3 grant deadline is the first business day of March.   

We must matter more in our communities.

We contribute to the strength and health of our communities through the Bangor Savings Bank Foundation and Corporate Giving. Together the Bank and its Foundation invested more than $2 million into the community in the form of nonprofit sponsorships, grants and partnership initiatives last year.

Making a significant and meaningful difference:

The Bangor Savings Bank Foundation's role is to focus philanthropic efforts on initiatives that will make our communities more prosperous, more livable, and more vibrant. With a growing endowment and strong support from the Bank, the Foundation is poised to truly impact its focus areas in workforce and economic development.

Grant Guidelines

The Foundation considers applications for grants ranging from $2,000 up to $25,000. For all proposals received, we have a preference to support projects and initiatives that do the following:

• Include a strategy for leveraging other resources and support.
• Produce cost-effective results which can be measured and evaluated.
• Provide incentive for the private and public sectors to work together in community problem solving.
• Encourage coordination with other efforts and do not duplicate programs in the community.
• Advance innovative and long-term strategies that will address recognized needs.
• Demonstrate an ability to obtain future funding if it will be needed.

Areas of Giving

Priority Giving

The Foundation focuses its philanthropic efforts on improving the vitality of Northern New England's regional and statewide economies through economic and workforce development in Maine, New Hampshire, and Massachusetts.

Additional Areas of Giving

While our primary outreach and resources will be dedicated to the priority areas listed above, in recognition of the many needs in our communities, the Foundation will continue to lend support to applications in the following areas:

• Education
• Initiatives that raise student readiness, academic success, achievement and aspirations at the primary, secondary, and post-secondary levels, including but not limited to STEM education initiatives.  
• Social and Civic Services
• Activities directed at improving quality of life in the communities we serve.
• Culture and Arts
• Initiatives supporting organizations that meet community needs, expand arts and cultural programming, or provide education.
• Health and Wellness
• Programs essential to the underlying medical care of a community, including initiatives focusing on physical and mental health and wellness for people of all ages. 

TD Charitable Foundation

The TD Charitable Foundation accomplishes this through our commitment to improve the access to safe, clean affordable housing, economic development, educational opportunities for community members, and the provision of basic human needs when otherwise unattainable. We foster and create collaborative opportunities that bring community partners together for the enrichment of communities where we live and serve. The thoughtful and meaningful disbursement of TDCF funds work to serve as a catalyst for the betterment of our local communities.

TD Bank Community Sponsorship Program

Support for events and activities from both for-profit and non-profit organizations that build awareness of TD and positively impact our communities.

Supporting the communities where we live, work and play is important to us. Developing and building partnerships is one of the many ways we do just that.

From Maine to Florida, TD Bank sponsors events, programs, projects, and activities that make a positive local impact. Through TD's corporate citizenship platform, The Ready Commitment, we're investing in opportunities for diverse groups to come together and get involved in their local area to create shared experiences for people from different walks of life, support arts and culture that reflect diverse voices, help people feel a sense of belonging to their local community, elevate the quality of the environment and drive economic well-being.

Program Areas

The Sam L. Cohen Foundation is a private, grantmaking foundation based in South Portland, Maine.  The Foundation funds in five program areas:

Arts and Culture

Enriching community life with music, dance, theater, visual arts, and creative writing.

We invest in organizations and programs that stimulate imagination, provide access to the arts and arts education, and foster community through the arts. We are especially interested in educational programming for low-income and underserved youth audiences that celebrates creativity and provides meaningful experiences with the arts. We support organizations that create and present performances and programs in southern Maine.

Civic and Community

Strengthening the social and economic fabric of underserved communities.

We are committed to supporting and improving the quality of life in southern Maine by ensuring individuals have access to opportunities to engage in civic life. To promote economic security and well-being, the Foundation invests in organizations that are working toward systemic change through public policy for social benefit. We are currently involved in and support the Immigrant and Refugee Funders Collaborative.

Education

Because education is the single most important investment a community can make.

We believe that access to educational opportunities is the key to a successful life. Our grantmaking spans the entire continuum of pre-K through college and adulthood, as we focus on providing opportunities for underserved populations in the areas of youth development, leadership, and enrichment. We collaborate with other funders, advocates, and experts in efforts that address school readiness and attendance, grade-level proficiency, high school graduation rates, and post-secondary enrollment and completion. We participate in or support several collaborative initiatives including: Portland ConnectED, The Campaign for Grade Level Reading, Count ME In, Maine Early Childhood Funders Group, Summer Learning Initiative, Right from the Start, and the Maine Resilience Building Network.Health and Human Services

Helping organizations expand access to help vulnerable and low-income people.

We believe providing support to historically and systemically disadvantaged individuals and communities is a compelling focus. Today’s social, economic, and political challenges require it. Our goal is to assist in increasing the number of people who are self-sufficient and lead healthy, productive lives. Our giving consistently targets access to healthcare, including prevention services, health support services, and ensuring food security. We currently are involved in and support the Maine Oral Health Funders Group.

Jewish Culture and Traditions

"Tzedekah"- the act of giving help to others

We participate in the Jewish community in southern Maine through support of institutions and programs that provide and preserve Jewish education, tradition, and culture. We partner with organizations that celebrate and promote Jewish art and creativity as well as agencies and synagogues who serve the vulnerable members of the Jewish community.

Funding

The Sam L. Cohen Foundation will consider responsive grant requests for amounts up to $50,000; however, the average grants size awarded is less than $15,000.

About Us

The Fuller Foundation seeks proposals from qualified agencies that carry on the life interests of Alvan and Viola Fuller in the fields of the arts, wildlife, and youth-at-risk. 

Focus Area: Wildlife, Endangered Species – Their Environment, And Animals Helping People

Areas of Interest:

• Species Protection: Programs that protect endangered species, the environment and habitat necessary for species survival, and programs that educate the public about their plight
• Animals Helping People: Horses, dogs, monkeys, and certain wildlife species interactions that better human lives
• Animal Shelters and Hospitals: Support for programs serving both wild and domestic animals

Funding

Typical Grant Range: $5,000 to $7,500

What We Do

The International Trans Fund (ITF) is a participatory grantmaking fund made up of trans activists and donors. The mission of the ITF is to mobilize sustainable resources for strong, trans-led movements and collective action, and to address and eliminate funding gaps impacting trans groups across the globe.

The ITF aims to increase the capacity of the trans movement to self-organize and advocate for trans people’s rights, self-determination and wellbeing. Our purpose is to:

• Build and sustain a mechanism to support trans-led groups of different sizes working on a range of issues at the international, regional, country, and local levels, with an emphasis on groups with access to fewer resources.
• Increase resources and enhance access to resources to support trans movements:
  • Increasing financial resources dedicated to trans-led organizations and groups through grantmaking.
  • Increasing access to non-financial resources for trans organizations, such as skills building, organizational strengthening, leadership development and activist support.
  • Increasing access to other and new donors.
• Educate our peers in the philanthropic community on trans issues and influence other funders and strategic allies in trans-related commitments and strategies.

Priorities

The ITF priorities in this funding cycle are to:

• Fund a diverse collection of groups, inclusive of various identities, strategies and issues, languages and regions.
• Reach trans communities facing greater levels of marginalization (e.g. racism, classism, ageism, ableism, misogyny and so on).
• Support trans-led organizations who work intersectionally and whose work contributes to social and economic justice, trans movement building and the liberation of trans people.

Activities

The ITF supports a wide range of movement building activities, which can include awareness raising events, direct action, educational seminars, trainings, support groups, media projects, political advocacy, resource development, art and activism collaborations, community-based research, community spaces, skills sharing courses, leadership or personal development programs, educational campaigns, demonstrations, mobilizing communities and many other activities. We are happy to support creative and innovative activities not listed above.

The ITF has Two Grant Types

SEED Grant (1-year)

The SEED grant is a 1-year general support and/or project grant for trans-led organizations that have never been funded by the ITF, or that prefer to apply for this grant instead of the THRIVE Grant. Grants range from $10,000 to $25,000 USD/year.

THRIVE Grant (1-year)

The THRIVE grant is a 1-year general support grant ONLY for trans-led organizations that have been previously funded by the ITF and are in good standing. Grants range from $25,000 to $50,000 USD/year.

Amateur Radio Digital Communications (ARDC) is a California-based foundation with roots in amateur radio and the technology of internet communication. Our mission is to support, promote, and enhance digital communication and broader communication science and technology, to promote amateur radio, scientific research, experimentation, education, development, open access, and innovation in information and communication technology.

Grantmaking Categories

• Support and growth of amateur radio. Grants in this category are core to our mission. We make grants to clubs for all types of projects, including licensing classes, continuing education, repeater infrastructure, and certain emergency communications projects that expand interest and access to amateur radio.
  • Examples:  Make Operating Radio Easier (MORE), CVARC Serves Its Community and Promotes Amateur Radio, Bridgerland ARC: Engaging and Educating Youth in Amateur Radio
• Education. Grants in this category include scholarships, as well as projects that aim to educate or mentor individuals, such as K-12 school programs and programs aimed at under-served groups. We are primarily interested in STEAM programs that are linked to amateur radio, wireless technology, or digital communications.
  • Examples:  West Bend Public Library, Walters State Community College (WSCC), South Eugene High School
• Research and development.  Projects in this category are projects that are advancing the state of the art in amateur radio and communication science and technology.
  • Examples: Rhizomatica: Digital HF Telecommunications for Civil and Amateur Uses, Tangerine SDR

Grantmaking Goals

ARDC makes grants to programs and organizations that aim to advance our mission and vision to create:

A thriving global community of learners, experimenters, and contributors advancing freedom with open source communication and information technology.

ARDC’s strategic approach to achieving this vision involves three main goals:

• Promoting learning: getting more people learning about amateur radio (AR) and digital communications (DC).
• Promoting experimenting: getting more people experimenting, innovating, and developing technology (in the context of AR and DC).
• Promoting doing: getting more people using new technology productively on more (and newer) bands, modes, and technologies (and other dimensions) within the context of AR and DC.

As we evaluate opportunities for our grantmaking and other program activities, we will be reviewing them based on their ability to meet the above objectives and, overall, help to manifest our vision.

Please review our vision and strategy pages for more detailed information.

Open Access Requirement

Because ARDC works with and for the public, we require that the work of the projects we fund be freely available to everyone who can benefit and to everyone who can contribute. Thus, all technology, documentation, and other materials produced using ARDC funds must be made freely available to the public, ideally using one of the below open source licenses:

• Software: GPL licenses (esp. AGPLv3), MIT, BSD, LGPL
• Hardware: CERN Open Hardware License
• Media, writing, images etc.: Free Culture subset of the Creative Commons licenses, particularly CC-BY-SA, as well as CC-BY and CC0

Background

McGraw Foundation, headquartered in Northbrook, Illinois, makes annual grants to not-for-profit organizations.  The Foundation’s areas of interest involve the fields of conservation, educational programs at all levels, and human services. Occasionally, grants are made in other areas such as health, medical research and cultural.

Grant requests are suggested to be within a range of $2,000 to $10,000. Grant recipients and amounts will be determined by several criteria. Naturally, availability of funds is a key factor.

The Foundation will occasionally make large grants ($25,000 or more) to support unusually promising efforts in any of its areas of interest. Innovative research, special education, and/or other activities will be considered if the Foundation’s support would assist an effort or a project in making a significant impact.

Areas of Focus

Education: Higher

The Foundation has been a pioneer in support of environmental education at the highest level by establishing three chaired professorships. 

Education: Elementary & Special

McGraw Foundation supports a wide array of organizations that focus on assisting the education and advancement of children as well as adults. McGraw Foundation also makes grants to elementary schools and organizations involved in all areas of special needs education. Funding in this arena has encompassed many organizations that provide services such as after-school tutoring, special education, and adult literacy.

In addition to F.A.I.T.H., McGraw Foundation also makes grants to elementary schools and organizations involved in all areas of special needs education. Funding in this arena has encompassed many organizations that provide services such as after-school tutoring, special education, and adult literacy.

Human Services

Since 1949, McGraw Foundation has been concerned with helping people in need. While the emphasis is on organizations serving children, funding also extends to people of all ages.

Children's issues such as these have been supported throughout the years:

• child welfare
• foster care and adoption
• family counseling
• enriching summer camps
• crisis intervention

Funding for quality-of-life issues for people of all ages has included:

• developmental disabilities
• health clinics
• domestic violence
• housing and homelessness
• job training and continued support
• seniors needs

Health & Medical 

Since its inception, McGraw Foundation has made grants in the health and medical fields.  Health and medical funding has included:

• specific medical research
• rehabilitation
• support programs for patients and their families
• medical attention for people without health insurance
• palliative care and hospice organizations

Civic & Cultural

Complimenting it's main focus on education and the environment, McGraw Foundation has supported some of Chicago's distinctive cultural and arts organizations.

Areas of interest include zoological societies' animal conservation, public communication, musical organizations, and civic organizations' promotion of science and the general welfare of society.

Community Building Grant Program

Purpose

This grant program supports projects and organizations focused on making communities stronger.

Criteria

All applicants must meet the Maine Community Foundation’s grant eligibility requirements. Please read our eligibility and grant guidelines before applying.

Your proposed project or organization must:

• Invest in people by increasing skills/abilities, knowledge, and/or well-being
• Engage the people you serve in the design, delivery, and/or evaluation of the work
• Strengthen community resources including organizations, partnerships, and built and natural environments.

Types of Funding

The Community Building Grant Program is one of the only grant programs in Maine that supports a broad range of projects and organizations across the entire state, including arts, education, environment, economic development, and human services. It is also MaineCF’s largest grant program and receives more than 500 applications annually. It provides project grants and general support grants.

Project Grants are for new projects (defined as within the first two years), including capital expenses. Your project must meet the Community Building criteria listed above AND your organization must:

• Be located in Maine, defined as your organization has a Maine address
• Have had expenses AT or ABOVE $500,000 in the most recent completed fiscal or financial year
  • Municipalities, government agencies, public schools, or faith-based organizations may apply regardless of expenses for their most recent completed fiscal or financial year
• Total project budget does not exceed $100,000
• Project expenses DO NOT to include endowments, annual appeals, or scholarships.

General Support Grants are for flexible funding of any type such as new/expanding/ongoing programs and operational needs including capital expenses. Your organization’s primary work must meet the Community Building criteria listed above AND your organization must:

• Be located in Maine, defined as your organization has a Maine address
• Have had expenses BELOW $500,000 in the most recent completed fiscal or financial year
• NOT be a municipality, government agency, public school, or faith-based organization. (These organizations may be eligible for NEW project grants only.)

Amount

Max Award: $10,000

About the Foundation

It was fitting — and only natural — that, upon her death in 1974, Marian Woodward Ottley would establish by Will, the David, Helen, and Marian Woodward Fund in loving memory of her parents, and in her words, “In order to carry out their wishes and mine in attempting to make this a better world for those who come after us.”Her Will created a distribution committee to direct the trustee to distribute income and principal exclusively to or for the benefit of non-profit institutions, corporations, and associations that are located in New York and in the New England states of Connecticut, Maine, Massachusetts, New Hampshire, Rhode Island, and Vermont that are organized and operated exclusively for religious, educational, charitable, or scientific purposes. The Fund also awards grants to governmental agencies.

The distribution committee has attempted to carry out Mrs. Ottley’s wishes. It will continue to do so in an effort to make this a better world for those who come after her generous family.

David, Helen and Marian Woodward Fund (Watertown) Grant

The David, Helen and Marian Woodward Fund (Watertown) makes grants to qualified 501(c)(3) organizations in New York and in the New England states of Connecticut, Maine, Massachusetts, New Hampshire, Rhode Island, and Vermont.

Mission

As stated in the Will of Marian Woodward Ottley, the fund’s mission is “to make this a better world for those who come after us.”

Program Areas

• Arts, culture, and humanities
• Education
• Environment, animals
• Health
• Human services
• Public/society benefit
• Religion

Our Mission 

The Green Family Foundation believes societies flourish when enriched with access to the arts, culture, education, and healthcare. We accomplish this by supporting grassroots initiatives and sustainable programs that foster thriving communities through prevention, education, and meaningful care.

Funding Priorities

At the Green Family Foundation, we believe in the power of community-driven solutions to create lasting change.

Our mission is to foster thriving societies enriched by access to the arts, culture, education, and healthcare. To achieve this, we partner with organizations that share our vision of building sustainable and inclusive communities.

We are proud to fund initiatives that prioritize equity, innovation, and collaboration in four key areas: Global Health and Development, Community Empowerment, The Arts, and Education and Leadership Development. These funding priorities reflect our commitment to addressing systemic barriers, amplifying historically excluded voices, and creating opportunities for individuals and communities to flourish.

We encourage grantseekers to review our four funding priorities thoroughly and ensure their proposed projects align with our mission. We are particularly interested in programs that demonstrate measurable impact, sustainability, and community-centered approaches.:

Global Health & Development:

The Green Family Foundation funds initiatives that address poverty by bridging gaps in education, healthcare, job access, and community engagement. We support holistic, sustainable programs that empower diverse communities to achieve long-term self-sufficiency. Priority is given to projects that provide equitable access to essential healthcare, deliver education and training, conduct community-led research, and implement sustainable development practices.

Community Empowerment:

From teaching digital skills to promoting civic participation, the Green Family Foundation invests in initiatives that strengthen community capacity, build social cohesion, and empower individuals to shape their futures.We support programs that equip individuals and communities with the tools, skills, and knowledge to drive meaningful change. Our focus areas include:

• Access to technology and digital literacy training
• Community-based advocacy and civic engagement
• Programs that amplify historically excluded voices and foster social equity

The Arts:

The Green Family Foundation champions programs that use the arts to inspire. We fund initiatives that encourage individuals to creatively express their ideas, explore their identities, and engage with their communities in positive and impactful ways.These programs should prioritize accessibility, skill-building, and personal development, offering individuals an opportunity to gain confidence, develop their talents, and envision successful futures through creative exploration.

Education and Leadership Development: 

By broadening horizons and nurturing leadership potential, the Green Family Foundation invests in the next generation of changemakers. We support educational programs that challenge young people to think critically, explore diverse perspectives, and expand their understanding of social issues, health equity, governance, and effective communication. Priority is given to initiatives that:

• Encourage young people to develop leadership skills
• Foster cross-cultural understanding and collaboration
• Empower young people to become informed and engaged citizens

Grant Size

Typical grants range from $1,500 - $30,000.

Welcome To the Stephen & Tabitha King Foundation

The Stephen and Tabitha King Foundation is a private non-profit organization that promotes strengthening and supporting communities and draws upon the values and spirituality of the founders. The Foundation has a special interest in organizations and people who have less recourse to usual channels of resources, focusing on community-based initiatives in the State of Maine only.

Our Mission

The Stephen & Tabitha King Foundation was created because its founders wanted to give back to their communities. The foundation will strive to fulfill its mission with respect, integrity, and consideration. Persons working for the foundation may not sit on the board of organizations applying for funding, nor may they receive gifts or services from organizations applying for funding. Grant decisions are made by the foundation in its sole discretion and are not subject to review or appeal. The foundation has absolutely no obligation whatsoever to any particular applicant.

Guidelines

The Stephen and Tabitha King Foundation was created in 1986 to provide support for Maine communities. As a family foundation, we are interested in projects that address the underlying causes of social and environmental problems, as well as those that address the consequences. We have a strong interest in literacy, community services and the arts. As community builders, we are particularly interested in organizations and projects that will affect or serve the most members of a community.

The Gladys Brooks Foundation was created under the will of Gladys Brooks Thayer of New York. 

Its purpose is to provide for the intellectual, moral and physical welfare of the people of this country by establishing and  supporting non-profit libraries, educational institutions, hospitals and clinics.

Scope of Grants Considered

The Foundation will consider major grant applications for innovative projects in the fields of libraries, education, hospitals and clinics.

Grants for Libraries 

Grant applications will be considered generally for resource Endowments (print, film, electronic database, speakers/workshops) capital construction and innovative equipment. Projects fostering broader public access to global information sources utilizing collaborative efforts, pioneering technologies and equipment are encouraged.

Grants for Educational Institutions

Grant applications from universities, colleges and secondary schools will be considered generally for:

• educational endowments to fund scholarships based solely on educational achievements, leadership and academic ability of the student; 
• endowments to support fellowships and teaching chairs for educators who confine their activities primarily to classroom instruction in the liberal arts, mathematics and the sciences during the academic year;
• erection or endowment of buildings, wings or additions thereto of buildings, and equipment for educational purposes;
• capital equipment for educational purposes.

Grants for Hospitals & Clinics

Grant proposals from hospitals and clinics where the proposal addresses a new health need, an improvement in the quality of health care or reduced health costs with better patient outcomes will be considered generally for:

• endowments for programs;
• erection or endowment of buildings, wings of or additions to buildings;
• capital equipment.

Levitt Music Series Grants - AMP

Levitt AMP is a multi-year matching grant opportunity bringing the joy of free, live music to small to mid-sized towns and cities.

Geared to towns and cities with populations under 250,000, Levitt AMP grantees reflect the three goals of the Levitt AMP program: Amplify community pride and a city’s unique character; enrich lives through the power of free, live Music; and illustrate the importance of inclusive and vibrant public Places. From rural Alaska to Appalachian Main Streets and Midwestern locales, the Levitt AMP Music Series is a catalytic opportunity engaging a wide range of towns and cities across America to realize a shared mission—building community through music to create a healthy and thriving future for all.

In addition to financial support, the Levitt Foundation provides grant recipients with valuable resources including best practices, program frameworks, toolkits, and trainings to deepen impact in their communities.

Launched in 2015, the Levitt Foundation has provided funding to more than 50 communities coast to coast through the Levitt AMP program, activating underused public spaces, ensuring access to the arts and strengthening the social fabric of communities through creative placemaking, bringing people together of all ages and backgrounds through free, outdoor concert series.

Special Music Series Grant - Tennessee-Based Nonprofits

The Levitt Foundation is thrilled to announce its partnership with the Tennessee Entertainment Commission to award up to six communities based in Tennessee with multi-year Levitt AMP matching grants, with support from the Tennessee Department of Economic & Community Development and the Tennessee Department of Tourist Development. This project marks the Levitt Foundation’s first joint partnership with a specific state.

Through this partnership, the State and the Foundation together will be awarding matching grants of up to $40K per year to small to mid-sized cities throughout Tennessee in through the next 3 years. The funding will go toward presenting free outdoor concerts featuring high-caliber entertainment in a broad array of music genres, amplifying stages across the state with up to 180 free concerts for Tennesseans of all ages and backgrounds to enjoy.

This partnership applies to the Levitt AMP grant opportunity only. There is no separate application process to be considered and interested Tennessee-based 501(c)(3) nonprofits should proceed with completing their online application on the Levitt Foundation website. Levitt AMP grant applicants from Tennessee that advance to the public voting phase will be in the running with other Tennessee-based Levitt AMP grant applicants only. Nonprofits based in Tennessee that are interested in applying for the Levitt VIBE or Levitt BLOC grant opportunity may still submit an online application, though if advanced to the public voting phase will be in the running with applicants from across the country.

Funding

U.S.-based 501(c)(3) nonprofits are eligible to receive a three-year matching grant of up to $40K/year (up to $120K total) to bring 7-10 free concerts to your community each year!

Adelard A. and Valeda Lea Roy Foundation Grant

The AV Roy Foundation has historically supported a broad range of organizations working in the areas of arts and culture, churches, education, environmental education, food access, health, land trusts, museums, and social services. The Trustees prioritize grants serving greater Boston and underserved rural and urban communities in Massachusetts, with some additional grantmaking in other areas of Northern New England.

In an effort to ensure that applications to the Foundation closely match current giving priorities, the Trustees will give priority to Massachusetts and Northern New England applicants focused on the following:

• Environment: requests focused on land conservation, in particular projects close to completion and projects resulting in easements held by accredited land trusts; environmental education; and climate change
• Health and Welfare: basic human needs (with priority given to food security and housing); hospice and home health care
• Arts and Culture: in particular, arts access and education for disadvantaged, elderly, or youth populations, and historic preservation
• Education: schools serving youth from low income backgrounds, including independent schools
• Churches providing basic needs support and other social services programming, as well as capital needs for facilities or historic preservation

Funding

Grants typically range from $2,500 to $10,000. In 2023, the average grant was $3,800. The Trustees anticipate a slightly higher average grant size this year, and fewer grants in total.