Ben B. Cheney Foundation Grant

The Foundation is open to a wide variety of programs serving the communities where we give. If you have any questions about the eligibility of your community or the Foundation's level of giving in your community, please see our Where we give page.

Type of Grant

The Foundation is open to a wide variety of programs serving the communities where we give. We prefer to focus on project grants rather than ongoing operating support. However, we know the needs in the nonprofit sector are anything but typical right now. At this time, we will consider requests for both project and operational grants.

A project has three distinguishing features:

• A specific time period with a beginning and an end,
• Specific accomplishments for the project, and
• A specific budget that outlines both what resources the organization needs to achieve the stated accomplishments and where the organization plans to obtain those resources.

Project Grants

We prefer to fund projects that:

• Invest in equipment or facilities that will have a long-lasting impact on community needs.
• Demonstrate local community support with a base of local community funding.
• Develop new and innovative approaches to community problems.
• Expand existing programs to serve more people and/or areas.

Project grants are generally given on a one-time basis. The Foundation will evaluate an organization's plans for sustaining the impact of project grants, especially those for program expansion or starting new programs. That evaluation will include these questions:

• Are there identified sources of support capable of sustaining the program?
• Is the organization committed to a strategy to gain those sources of support?
• Does the project plan include activities towards gaining that sustainability?

While the Foundation understands that fund raising is a part of many organizations' budgets, we feel that this approach allows us to respond to needs that go above and beyond the annual operating budget. As a result, projects for one-time capital or equipment needs often gain priority.

Through this approach the Foundation is able to make grants to a number of first time grantees every year. Since 1975 the Foundation has supported 1,200 organizations.

Program Areas

The Foundation organizes its grant making into eight categories. They are displayed here for information purposes only. The Foundation does not budget to categories in advance and grant seekers are not required to apply by category.

• Charity - Programs providing for basic needs such as food, shelter, and clothing.
• Civic - Programs improving the quality of life in a community as a whole such as museums and recreation facilities.
• Culture - Programs encompassing the arts.
• Education - Programs supporting capital projects and scholarships, primarily for six pre-selected colleges and universities with a record of service to Pierce County.
• Elderly - Programs serving the social, health, recreational, and other needs of older people.
• Health - Programs related to providing health care.
• Social Services - Programs serving people with physical or mental disabilities or other special needs.
• Youth - Programs helping young people to gain the skills needed to become responsible and productive adults.

Note: We do not accept unsolicited letters of inquiry and do not have an open application process. If you have thoroughly reviewed the Foundation’s priorities and grantmaking activity on the website and you believe your organization is a good match for our mission, you can email our staff with a brief description of your work. 

Laird Norton Family Foundation

The Laird Norton Family Foundation (LNFF) is a private family foundation in Seattle, Washington, with a mission to honor and reflect the family’s shared values through giving and engage the family in philanthropy as a platform for strengthening family connections. 

Programs

Arts in Education

The goal of the Arts in Education program is to increase arts education and to improve pre-K through grade 12 student learning through the arts. Funding will be directed toward programs that seek to enhance students’ educational outcomes rather than to simply increase participation in, or appreciation for, the arts.

The Arts in Education program will consider funding programs that:

• Encourage the adoption and/or growth of arts integration within a public school or school district. We will prioritize programs that integrate the arts as a tool within greater, diverse curriculum content areas over arts enrichment or direct arts instruction programs.
• Advocate systemic change within schools, districts, or at the state level to encourage arts in education, and
• Utilize the arts as a tool to reduce the educational achievement gap.

Climate Change

Climate change poses a significant global threat, one which we are addressing by striving to ensure an equitable, resilient, habitable, and enjoyable world for current and future generations. While our work is focused on climate change, we believe in the value of ecosystems services and in the stability and resiliency of healthy natural systems. We also believe it is essential that the cost of externalities be incorporated into lifestyle, policy, and business considerations.

 We are focused on investing in regenerative biological systems that influence the carbon cycle (“biocarbon”) and reducing dependency on fossil fuels. We have chosen to focus our grantmaking on efforts to hasten the demise of coal and other fossil fuels and on work that increases the abilities of the forests, agricultural lands, and estuaries of the Pacific Northwest to sequester carbon.

Human Services

The goal of the Human Services program is to support, empower, uplift, and create opportunities for long-term success and a brighter future for unaccompanied youth and young adults (age 12-24) who are in crisis, have experienced trauma, or are aging out of the foster care system. We want to support these youth and young adults in their journey from surviving to thriving.

We will consider funding organizations or programs that provide support for youth/young adults suffering from trauma, mental illness, or addiction, with priority given to homeless youth and those impacted by the foster care system. While the full spectrum of services for youth in crisis is essential, we expect to do the bulk of our grantmaking in two areas:

• Prevention and early intervention work to keep young people from sleeping in unsafe situations — or at a minimum make that a very brief and one-time occurrence, and
• Support for long-term stability support services.

Watershed Stewardship

Watersheds have social, ecological, and economic significance. The goal of the Watershed Stewardship program is to create enabling conditions for long-term social and ecological health and resilience in places of importance to the Laird Norton Family. Currently, we prioritize work in Minnesota and Wisconsin as well as a few key watersheds in the Western United States, consistent with the Laird Norton family's priorities.

NOTE:

• We are a small foundation, and since we leverage our funds by investing time in some way with most of our fund recipients, we consider only funding proposals that we have solicited, as either grant applications or requests for contribution.
• To make initial contact, please e-mail the Managing Director as described here.

The Leighty Foundation is a family foundation incorporated under Iowa law. Directors and advisors live in Colorado, Alaska, California, and Washington. We award charitable funds to tax-exempt nonprofit organizations. Distributions may be by a formal grant application process or by a contribution.

• Grants proceed from an invited, written application, on our form. Grants are usually made for one year or one project. A written evaluation of the project is required from each grantee. The majority of grants are $4,000 – $10,000.

• Contributions proceed from an invitation and do not require a formal application. Opportunities are researched by a Board member or advisor who then requests consideration by the Board. Contributions are made each year. The majority of contributions are $500 – $4,000.

Mission

To carry on the Leighty family legacy of service and stewardship by leveraging our time and talents, as well as our financial resources, primarily in the areas of Earth Protection, Education, Philanthropy, and Strategic Volunteer Engagement.Focus AreasEarth Protection“Environmental” has become trite, and does not convey the profound, urgent, and necessary changes in the way our species perceives and relates to our fellow species on Earth, and to its wonderful physical systems. The Leighty Foundation is especially interested in accelerating humanity’s transition to a sustainable, equitable, benign, affordable global energy system based entirely upon renewable energy sources — driven by radiant energy from our local star, the Sun, and by geothermal. Our earliest, most rewarding investments will be energy conservation and efficiency, while we invent and invest to “run the world on renewables.” We assist science education, so that we will better understand who and what and where we humans are, and to better understand Earth and our options for cooperation within its context and limits. Thus, we intend to invest wisely in Earth Protection, with both Foundation funds and with our personal involvement.An urgent Grand Challenge is transforming the world’s largest industry from about 80% fossil to nearly 100% renewable, CO2-emission-free energy sources, as quickly as we prudently and profitably can. Prudently: with acceptable social and economic disruption. Profitably: the huge amount of capital needed will flow only to attractive opportunities for returns. Electricity systems may be inadequate or technically and economically suboptimal for this transformation. Therefore, we now need to think beyond electricity, to comprehensively consider alternatives. Hydrogen (H2) and Anhydrous Ammonia (NH3) are attractive, energy carriers, storage media, and fuels – as complete renewable energy systems. The Leighty Foundation Earth Protection program focuses on the Big Three challenges of time-variable renewable generation:

• Gathering and transmission;
• Low-cost, annual-scale, firming storage;
• Distribution, integration, and end-use of energy services.

Volunteer EngagementOur nation finds itself faced with a perfect storm with shrinking resources and escalating needs. Meeting these needs will require a dramatic increase in the number of people willing to give their time and skills as well as their financial resources. However, the challenge may be less about increasing the number of people who volunteer, and more about building infrastructures which connect people with worthy opportunities, and empower them to make a meaningful difference.There is a growing awareness that even if Americans respond to the myriad of calls for service, many charities are not prepared to effectively engage them. A recent survey found that more than 30% of charities do not currently have the infrastructure to effectively deploy volunteers. Now is the time for us as funders to seize this unique opportunity to financially support nonprofits in building their capacity.

About

The Medina Foundation is a private family foundation working to improve lives by funding human service organizations that provide direct support to Puget Sound residents.

We support organizations across our 14 county funding region that are addressing a wide range of human services, including homelessness, youth development, education and economic opportunity.   

Since our founding in 1947, we have granted over $93 million in grant dollars resulting in countless services and programs that help make lives better.

Funding Areas

The Medina Foundation funds in the following focus areas:

Positive Pathways for Youth: Helping youth achieve positive outcomes.

We support organizations that:

• Ensure that young people’s basic needs such as safe, stable housing are met
• Mentor, tutor, and support youth as they find their own voice, achieve their own goals, and build new skills
• Support transition points through school, from early education through postsecondary, including job training

Stabilization for Families and Individuals: Ensuring basic needs are met. 

We support organizations that:

• Alleviate hunger, primarily through larger food distribution networks or rural food banks that are also a hub of additional services
• Prevent homelessness or quickly stabilize people who are experiencing homelessness
• Offer programs that prevent or reduce the effects of domestic violence, sexual assault, trauma, and abuse

Economic Opportunities: Helping people secure employment, increase income, and build assets.

We support organizations that:

• Offer job training and entrepreneurship opportunities
• Teach skills and assist with obtaining credentials needed for career advancement
• Provide financial education

What Makes a Strong Proposal

The Medina Foundation considers many qualities of an organization when reviewing proposals.

We look for organizations that are addressing critical community needs, engaging in strategic planning to meet well-mapped programmatic and financial goals, and seeing positive results through their programs. We believe organizations that are driven by strong leadership, through a diverse and engaged board and a dedicated executive director and staff, have a high likelihood of success.

Grant amounts awarded reflect both the needs of the nonprofit and the Foundation's desire to see the presence of other support. Generally, this means no more than 10% of an operating or capital budget. We do consider making exceptions for innovative start-ups. Since grant sizes vary widely, please review the grants list to see the size and types of grants that we have recently awarded. The Foundation’s median grant size is around $25,000.

Mission

The mission of the Paul M. Angell Family Foundation is to advance society through the performing arts, conservation of the world’s oceans, and alleviation of poverty. The foundation was created in 2011 to honor Paul M. Angell, and strives to embody the legacy of his compassion, ingenuity and industriousness.

What We Fund

The Paul M. Angell Family Foundation makes grants in three priority areas: Conservation, Performing Arts and Social Causes. Grants for Conservation can be found here.

Performing Arts

The goal of the Performing Arts program is to support the presentation, perpetuation, and propagation of performing arts events, focusing on classical music and theater. Grantee organizations include professional performers, presenters, (including broadcasters) and educators. We are currently considering grants to the Chicago area, Cleveland, Detroit, and the Mid-Atlantic Region (from Washington, D.C. north to Philadelphia, PA). Please note that we currently do not fund dance or film.

Types of Support

• General Operating
  • This is the most flexible type of grant. Funds may be applied in any manner in which the organization sees fit, subject to its mission.
• Program/Project Grants
  • These grants are targeted to a specific program or goal. Applicants must submit a program budget and narrative to support their applications.
• Education
  • Education grants support programs which disseminate information crucial to the organization’s mission. They may include, but are not necessarily limited to: lectures, demonstrations, workshops, guided tours, exhibitions, and distribution of printed or online materials.

NOTE: Requests will be considered quarterly.

Ash Grove Charitable Foundation Grant

As one of the largest cement companies in the United States and one of the oldest still in operation, Ash Grove plays an important part in the foundation and infrastructure of our country. And with plants from coast to coast, being a good neighbor in the communities in which we live and serve is a priority and part of our DNA.

Ash Grove territory is a lot of ground to cover. We believe in active participation to improve the existing and future quality of life in the communities we serve. This participation includes financial support to charitable activities. We aren’t just focused on building highways and buildings – we are also helping to build better communities.

We're honored to be part of the communities in which our employees live and work. 

Funding

The Foundation’s goal is to provide significant support to organizations each year. In general, the following grant types are funded within these ranges:

• Capital grants and special projects – up to $25,000
• Program grants – up to $10,000
• Only monetary grants are funded through the Foundation

NOTE: There are so many deserving organizations serving our communities, if your organization received a grant last year, you will not be eligible this year. 

The mission of The Stimson-Miller Foundation is to carry on the civic, cultural, educational, and health and human services charitable interests and concerns of the shareholders of Stimson Lumber Company in the greater Portland area and communities throughout the United States where Stimson Lumber Company conducts its business. 

The Glaser Foundation's Board of Directors is currently focusing on direct-line services, mainly to children and the elderly.

Grant Focus Areas

Medical

The roots of the Foundation’s Medical funding began when Paul Glaser sponsored a bed at Swedish Medical Center for low income patients. As medical funding models changed through the advent of Medicare and Medicaid, the Foundation’s support adapted to support immediate needs, hospital programs, and cutting-edge research. Through the Medical category, the Foundation funds innovative research and direct clinical services to low income residents of King County.

Services to Children with Disabilities

The Foundation makes grants to 501(c)(3) organizations that provide Services to Children with Disabilities with a particular focus on early intervention programs that address the needs of children from birth to five years old. Requests that address the needs of children from birth to twenty-one years will be also be considered.

Education

Education requests should share the goal of keeping kids excited about school and addressing the underlying conditions that contribute to the drop-out rate. Programs may include after school programs from the elementary level through community college and vocational programs are viewed favorably.

Services to the Elderly

The focus of the Services to the Elderly requests should be to enrich the lives of the elderly, particularly economically disadvantaged seniors. Grant requests that seek to address the physical needs, isolation, lack of mobility, and lack of intellectual stimulation will be considered. The Foundation prefers to fund direct line services, not large capital campaigns, and is supportive of new innovative programs and organizations.

Services to Children and Families from Disadvantaged Backgrounds

The focus of this category is to address challenges stemming from or contributing to poverty and economic insecurity. Grants will support programs that target food, shelter and clothing needs as well as domestic violence, addiction and homelessness.

Services to At-Risk Youth

Grants in this category seek to address systematic issues that keep youth vulnerable to interrupted education, homelessness, sex trafficking as well as addressing the needs of youth in foster care.

About Us

The Petfinder Foundation is a public charity that works to end the euthanasia of adoptable pets by assisting animal shelters and rescue groups across North America. Founded in 2003, the Petfinder Foundation has given more than $20 million in cash and product grants to help organizations save the lives of pets in need.  

Our grant programs are designed to make homeless pets more adoptable by keeping them happy and healthy, to make shelter operations more sustainable, and to aid adoption groups during times of natural or man-made disaster. Our grant recipients include more than 13,000 organizations, caring for more than 300,000 homeless pets at any given time, throughout the U.S., Canada and Mexico. 

P.L.A.Y. Pet Beds 

The Petfinder Foundation has partnered with P.L.A.Y. Pet (Lifestyle and You) through the Warm Bellies Initiative to give luxury beds to shelter pets. P.L.A.Y. joins us in the belief that every pet deserves a warm and cozy place to sleep.

P.L.A.Y. Pet Beds Product Grant is available to all species of adoptable pets. P.L.A.Y. in partnership with the Petfinder Foundation is accepting grant applications from Petfinder members interested in receiving a total of ten pet beds valued at $528.00.  

Submit your application today as this product grant is awarded according to the following regional schedule:

• JAN:
• Northeast: Maine, New Hampshire, Vermont, Massachusetts, Rhode Island, Connecticut
• FEB:
• Northeast-Mid Atlantic: New York, Pennsylvania, New Jersey
• MAR
• Warm Bellies Initiative
• APR:
• Northeast-South Atlantic: Delaware, Maryland, DC, Virginia, West Virginia, North Carolina, South Caroline, Georgia, Florida
• MAY:
• South-Southeast: Alabama, Kentucky, Tennessee, Missouri, Mississippi
• JUNE:
• Warm Bellies Initiative
• JULY:
• South-US Center: Oklahoma, Arkansas, Louisiana, Texas
• AUG:
• Midwest-East: Wisconsin, Michigan, Illinois, Indiana, Ohio
• SEP:
• Warm Bellies Initiative
• OCT:
• Midwest-West: North Dakota, South Dakota, Nebraska, Kansas, Minnesota, Iowa
• NOV:
• West-Mountain: Idaho, Montana, Wyoming, Nevada, Utah, Colorado, Arizona, New Mexico
• DEC:
• West-Pacific: Washington, Oregon, California

NOTE: There is no need to apply in the month your region is under consideration. We hold all P.L.A.Y. Grant applications and sort/review applicants based on the geographical region schedule.