Search Through Worcester County Grants for Nonprofits in Massachusetts

Who We Are

The Creag Foundation is a private grant making foundation established in 2009 in Woodinville, Washington.

The founders of the Creag Foundation believe that meaningful change can only be achieved through hard work, creativity and passion. They also understand the practical mechanisms that allow charitable organizations to succeed and grow. As a group, Creag Foundation principals are dedicated to helping today’s most innovative programs improve the human condition in a wide variety of ways.

Our Focus

The broad purpose of the Foundation is to support the efforts of nonprofit organizations who are innovators in the field of human services. Our particular focus is on smaller organizations that are starting out or established organizations that are looking for funding to take their organization in a new direction.

What We Fund

/ What We Fund

The Creag Foundation is focused on innovation in the industry. We will consider proposals from 501(c)(3) organizations that are finding new ways to address societal issues facing the nonprofit community. Applicants must have held 501(c)(3) status for one year before submitting. If your organization has held 501(c)(3) status for over a year, and your believe that your organization has a new approach to an existing social problem or is addressing a previously unaddressed social issue, you are welcome to contact us and request that we consider your organization for a funding opportunity.

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

Identifying and incubating innovative early-stage solutions. We identify, incubate, and develop innovative early-stage solutions with the highest potential for impact. Global Impact Cash Grants go to nonprofit organizations (NPOs) and nongovernmental organizations (NGOs) that address a significant social problem. We're looking for programs that fit within our investment sectors, focus on the underserved, and use technology to improve the reach and efficiency of services.

We accept applications year-round from eligible organizations. A brief Letter of Inquiry (LOI) is used to determine whether your organization will be invited to complete a full application. Please expand and carefully review each of the three sections below to learn more

Our priority social impact sectors

We focus on investing in innovative, tech-enabled solutions to the challenges and opportunities that matter most to communities in need, prioritizing four social impact sectors:

Cisco Crisis Response

Mobilizing to provide essentials to communities in need and those in crisis, including food, housing, secure connectivity, and disaster relief

By leveraging Cisco’s people, technology, financial resources, and strategic partnerships, we help strengthen community resilience and drive long-term recovery from crises.

Education

Supporting students, teachers, and schools by increasing engagement, building skills, promoting subject mastery, and expanding their capacity to thrive

Cisco is committed to inclusive access to digital skills training and supporting those who use technology to educate. Through programs like Cisco Networking Academy and social investments in education, we create new opportunities for individuals to thrive.

Economic Empowerment

Transforming communities through skill development, long-term career opportunities, entrepreneurship, and access to financial products and services

Strategic grants that unlock economic prosperity and growth for individuals and communities.

Climate Regeneration

Building an inclusive, regenerative, and resilient climate future through education, regenerative agriculture, conservation, protection, and clean energy solutions

Our efforts began in 2021, when the Cisco Foundation committed US$100 million over 10 years to fund nonprofit grants and impact investing in climate solutions. 

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

Background

The Memorial Foundation for the Blind is a private charitable foundation that provides funding to those organizations in Worcester County that serve the needs of persons with visual impairments. The foundation also provides funding to individuals who are certified as legally blind with the Massachusetts Commission for the blind, to purchase adaptive equipment, assistive technology, and other equipment that enhances the quality of life for the individual. In addition, the MFB provides scholarships to higher education to those who apply and meet the requirements outlined in the scholarship section of this websight.

The mission of the Memorial Foundation for the Blind shall be to serve the needs of and to promote the general welfare of visually impaired residents of Worcester County, Massachusetts and to provide grants to further this purpose

Program Grants

MFB welcomes grant proposals from nonprofit charitable organizations to improve the quality of life and encourage the independence of people with visual impairments. Proposals may include programs to improve access to the arts and culture, employment training opportunities, recreation and leisure time activities, and more. Applicants are encouraged to call and leave a message and a member of our Grants Committee will return your call to discuss your request.Application Procedure Please send a brief letter of intent describing your proposal idea. If your letter of intent is accepted, we will forward an application summary sheet which must be completed along with a brief narrative and budget for the program or project.

Michael & Susan Dell Foundation Grants

The Michael & Susan Dell Foundation only accepts unsolicited proposals for specific areas within the education, family economic stability and childhood health sectors in select countries where we work, namely the United States, India and South Africa.

As a guideline, the foundation does not fund more than 25% of a project’s budget or more than 10% of an organization’s total annual operating expenses.

The Michael & Susan Dell Foundation has always recognized the power of providing grants to partner organizations that we knew were already working hard to improve the lives of urban children living in poverty. By aligning with organizations that are already making a difference, we continue to make an immediate impact on the lives of thousands of children.

Foundation priorities:

We fund social enterprises that directly serve or impact children or youth from urban low-income communities in the areas of education, health, and family economic stability (including livelihoods and financial inclusion). These social enterprises may be structured as for-profit or nonprofit entities.

Partnerships

We collaborate with a range of organizations focused on creating opportunities for children and families living in urban poverty, with a deep emphasis on measuring impact. Our funding advances projects already making an impact in education, health, and family economic stability. Through these enduring and long-standing partnerships, we create lasting change together.

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. 

Rockland Trust is founded on a set of core values.

We build strong relationships with our customers, helping business owners grow their companies, and helping individual consumers be successful by providing straightforward products and convenient service. Our success is based on having respectful and knowledgeable bankers, as well as robust technology available to our customers. These values instilled within our company are reflected in our level of service as well as our ongoing commitment to our community.

At Rockland Trust each relationship matters. No matter large or small, old or new, we are committed to serving and meeting every customer’s needs. As a result, we have very loyal customers who stay with us, deepen their relationship, and tell their friends about Rockland Trust.Rockland Trust

Rockland Trust's philanthropic mission is to strengthen the communities served by Rockland Trust Bank, enabling individuals and their families to access opportunity and improve the quality of their lives.

Rockland Trust Charitable Giving

Rockland Trust's philanthropic mission is to strengthen the communities served by Rockland Trust Bank, enabling individuals and their families to access opportunity and improve the quality of their lives.

Event Sponsorships 

Description

Event Sponsorships are requests for funding for date-specific events to 501(c)(3) nonprofit and community-based organizations.

Funding Priorities

Support for upcoming gala or golf events, walks/runs, cultural performances or other community events.

The Sidney Stern Memorial Trust is devoted solely to the funding of charitable, scientific, medical and educational organizations.

The Board endeavors to support soundly-managed charitable organizations that give service with a broad scope, have a substantial effect on their target populations, and contribute materially to the general welfare. The Board does not discriminate on the basis of ethnicity, race, gender, sexual orientation or religion.

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. 

Wells Fargo and the Wells Fargo Foundation collaborate with a wide range of nonprofit organizations that align with our strategic funding priorities. We prioritize our funding to activities and programs that have a broad reach and support the needs of underserved communities. We aspire to have a positive impact on the communities we serve by using our financial and volunteer resources and business expertise in collaboration with community organizations to help solve complex societal problems.

• Financial health
• Housing affordability
• Small business growth
• Sustainability

We may also support other local needs in eligible communities such as disaster relief, arts and culture, civic engagement, education, human and social services, and workforce development. However, opportunities are limited as our intent is to direct the majority of our giving within our major focus areas.

Franklin Square House Foundation

The Foundation, started in 2008, traditionally provides bricks and mortar grants for capital improvements to shelter projects that support women and women and their children, as well as capital improvement grants for economically and racially integrated childcare centers. Since becoming a foundation in 2008, FSHF has made grants totaling $13.2 million. 

Capital Improvements Grant - Projects to Childcare Centers

Evaluation and Ranking Criteria

• Creation of new childcare slots
• Administrative capacity of the organization
• Financial condition of the organization
• Track record of the organization
• Past standing of the grantee with the Foundation
• Alignment of the organization and the project with the mission and goals of the Foundation
• Proportions of subsidized slots to the overall population of the center. We generally like to see greater than our required minimum of 50% subsidized slots
• Completeness and coherence of the grant application
• Readiness to proceed with the project. All projects must be ready to start within 90 days of the date on the grant award letter and be completed within six months of the grant award
• The presence of slots reserved for homeless children
• The grantee’s offering of comprehensive services for families it serves (or access to those services through partnerships)
• The responsiveness of the grantee to requests for supplemental information regarding the grant proposal
• Results of the Foundation site visit

Funding

The maximum Childcare Grant is $100,000. If the cost of the work you wish to perform is greater than your request to the Foundation, you must provide evidence of plans to pay for the remaining balance of the work. If you are applying for other grants, please provide a detailed table of grants applied for, amounts expected to receive, the timing of the submission and award, and status of the application (it is acceptable to say you will be applying for something).

The Foundation is dedicated to providing financial assistance to organizations committed to improving our world. Solutions to the problems of today's world still lie in the values of innovation, practicality, hard work, and compassion.

The Foundation considers applications for grants in the following areas:

• Education
• Social Service
• Health care
• Civic and cultural
• Environmental

The categories above are not intended to limit the interest of the Foundation from considering other worthwhile projects. In general, the Foundation guidelines are broad to give us flexibility in providing grants.

The majority of our grants are made in the U.S. However, like Dr. Scholl, we recognize the need for a global outlook. Non-U.S. grants are given to organizations where directors have knowledge of the grantee.

Scholarship America Inc 

Scholarship America is a national nonprofit organization dedicated to eliminating financial barriers to higher education and ensuring every student has the opportunity to achieve their academic goals. Founded in 1958, the organization has awarded more than $5.7 billion in scholarships to over 3.2 million students. By partnering with corporations, foundations, and educational institutions, Scholarship America designs and administers scholarship and student aid programs that make education more accessible, equitable, and sustainable for learners across the country.

Mission: To eliminate financial barriers to educational success so that every student can pursue their dream.

Vision: A world in which every student has access to the resources and support needed to learn, grow, and complete their education with manageable debt.

Priorities

• Administering impactful, high-quality scholarship and tuition assistance programs that align with donor goals and student needs.
• Expanding access and affordability for underrepresented and underserved students through partnerships and community collaboration.
• Providing emergency aid and retention support to help students persist and complete their education successfully.

The Hanover Insurance Community and AVID Scholarship Program

The Hanover Insurance Group, Inc. and Citizens Insurance have established a competitive scholarship program to recognize high school seniors who plan to continue their education at a college or university.

The program is administered by Scholarship America®, the nation’s largest designer and manager of scholarships and other education support programs for corporations, foundations, associations, and individuals. Eligibility for individual programs is determined at the sole discretion of the sponsor and eligible applications are reviewed by Scholarship America’s evaluation team.

JMAC Access Grant Program

Providing resources to support artists and organizations in presenting their projects at the Jean McDonough Arts Center.

The Jean McDonough Arts Center, in partnership with the Greater Worcester Community Foundation, and thanks to the support of the Barr Foundation, is pleased to announce the continuation of the JMAC Access Grant Program.

The JMAC strives to ensure that every cultural organization, large and small, can have a home in downtown Worcester. The venue has proven especially critical for Worcester’s BIPOC and underserved artists – by helping artists create new work, generate income, and positively impact their community. Through the Access Grant Program, selected nonprofit cultural organizations and individual artists will receive the resources needed to create their stories and programs at the JMAC to share with Central Massachusetts audiences.

Through a three-phase application process, organizations and artists can apply for financial support to present their projects at the JMAC in the near future. The grant covers project development, implementation and marketing costs incurred by the organizations and artists, as well as the usage costs of the JMAC space desired for the project.

Funding

In both application rounds, the requested budget will reflect only the organization’s or artist’s discretionary expenses, and exclude expenses related to rental or usage of the JMAC. When grants are awarded, recipients will receive direct payment for their discretionary expenses. Concurrently, the JMAC will receive payment for their rental and usage expenses, at the following rates:

• Worcester PopUp, One Day: $2,500
• Worcester PopUp, One Week: $3,500
• BrickBox Theater, Half Day (6 Hours): $3,750
• BrickBox Theater, Full Day (Up to 12 Hours): $6,250
• BrickBox Theater, Two Days: $8,750
• BrickBox Theater, Four Days: $14,250

The Nonprofit Effectiveness Grant Program is a resource to support your internal organizational journey. It is designed to focus on a specific project or piece of your work in the areas of navigating change, leadership development, and growing your internal structures.We believe these small investments in capacity building are critical to your ability to fulfill your mission, deliver critical services, and lead as equitable employers.

Areas of Support

Our Nonprofit Effectiveness grants support the following areas:

• Building Internal Capacity: such as organizational audits and departmental infrastructure building
• Navigating Change: such as executive transitions and succession planning, and strategic plans that support major changes in mission.
• Inclusive Leadership Development and Support: such as governance and board support, executive coaching, DEIA education, and leadership training for mid-level staff.

For more details about areas of support, please view the grant guidelines.

How and Why Giving Back to Communities is Important to O’Reilly

From O’Reilly Auto Parts’ inception, O’Reilly co-founder C.H. “Chub” O’Reilly instilled the culture of maintaining high standards for every endeavor, including the area of building civic pride. With Chub’s good example to guide them, all four of his children adopted a business and family philosophy of “giving back” to the community as the Company grew and prospered. Supporting a large number of charitable organizations in all communities in which we operate has long been a focal point for O’Reilly Auto Parts. In order to make an even greater impact, the O’Reilly Automotive Foundation was established in 2020.

O’Reilly Automotive Foundation, Inc.

Impact

The O’Reilly Automotive Foundation complements O’Reilly Auto Parts’ role as the Friendliest Parts Store in Town. The Foundation serves as an additional conduit to connect with, support, and strengthen the communities in which O’Reilly Auto Parts’ team members and customers live and work. The Foundation continues the philanthropic legacy of the O’Reilly family as dependable community partners, seeking to support critical services in times of need to build stronger communities.

Mission

The O’Reilly Automotive Foundation strives to have a lasting, positive impact in the communities where O’Reilly Auto Parts’ team members and customers live and work by supporting organizations and programs which address issues critical to improving the quality of life for underserved and underrepresented individuals and families. In particular, the Foundation will concentrate its giving in support of organizations and programs addressing economic stability and mobility, workforce development, health and social services, and disaster relief.

Economic Stability and Mobility

Advocating for and endowing programs which provide assistance with issues including hunger, homelessness, and poverty for the economic betterment of the communities in which we operate.

Workforce Development

Promoting programs which aid in workforce readiness, technical training, and literacy, including children’s literacy, to ensure the continuance of an educated society and a capable, innovative workforce.

Health and Social Services

Championing and prioritizing matters of health, including mental and behavioral health, access to basic needs such as medical and dental care for underprivileged communities, and providing funding for organizations focused on childhood development and children’s advocacy as well as care and support for victims of domestic violence.

Disaster Relief

Providing funding and visibility to organizations specializing in providing relief from natural disasters and state of emergency, including providing temporary shelter, food, water, and hygiene or sanitation products to those affected and aiding in cleanup efforts.

Application Requirements

We will consider three principal types of grants:

Project Support Grants support specific projects or programs aligned with our mission. These requests may include some funds earmarked for the overhead costs associated with running a project.

General Operating Support Grants provide limited general operating support for the core operations or organizations whose missions and activities are aligned with our mission. These grants will often help the grantee build organizational, programmatic, and fundraising capacity. Operating support is not intended to help organizations in fiscal crisis. Applicants must have a current strategic or business plan that clearly outlines the organization’s goals and presents a plan for achieving results. Operating support grants must not exceed 15% of an organization’s total agency budget.

Capital Support Grants provide limited support for capital campaigns to fund the acquisition and construction of facilities, existing property renovation, or the purchase of major equipment. The program has a comprehensive approach to funding capital initiatives, which also includes funding for increased program capacity. A feasibility study may be required for capital initiatives to be considered.

The Worcester County Food Bank (WCFB) Fund to end Hunger was established in 2011 by the WCFB as a resource to support nonprofit organizations working towards a hunger-free Worcester County.

Areas of Support

Our Worcester County Food Bank (WCFB) Fund to end Hunger supports the following areas:

• Increasing Access to Healthy Foods: such as formal meal programs, community food & nutrition resources, programs supporting marginalized communities, and programs promoting economic self-sufficiency and skillbuilding.
• Building Capacity for Food Serving Organizations: such as equipment & materials and efforts to increase diversity, inclusion, equity and access.
• Advocacy & Policy Change: such as advocacy efforts for Supplemental Nutritional Assistance Program (SNAP) and/or the Healthy Incentives Program (HIP) and efforts to support those considered benefit ineligible.

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.

Community Grant Program

The Community Grant Program is Greater Worcester Community Foundation’s signature funding opportunity, awarding close to $2 million annually across five strategic focus areas for both discrete project/programming and general operating support.

Scope:

• Grant range is $2,500 - $25,000.
• Partial grants can be awarded.
• Support can be for a pilot, programmatic expansion, and/or support for ongoing program.
• Organizations should be in good financial standing with an intact governance structure

Focus Areas:

We are interested in supporting requests that have goals/outcomes highly aligned with one of the following focus areas.

Arts & Creativity: Projects or programs that use the arts as a vehicle for community cohesion.

• Creative placemaking (process that uses art, culture and design to improve the physical and social wellbeing of a community).
• Projects that are intersectional in nature and promote arts and non-arts partnerships. 

Basic Needs: Projects or programs that ensure all residents have access to food, shelter and resources to achieve permanency.

Economic Opportunity: Programs and projects that help individuals and families have opportunities to develop wealth and work towards financial self-sufficiency, such as: 

• English language learning programs.
• Culturally responsive workforce programs (especially within healthcare, social services and the arts).

Health & Wellbeing: Projects or programs within physical and behavioral health systems that increase ease of access and improve outcomes, particularly: 

• Healthcare & social services navigation (helping people gain access to care).
• Complementary & palliative care (the important things insurance won’t cover).
• Healthy pregnancies & strong starts for new families.

Youth Development: Projects or programs that provide young people with meaningful resources/experiences/leadership development opportunities that are often hard to access.

• Services that are typically not offered in a school setting (enhancement, skill building, leadership opportunities, other unique development opportunities).
• Postsecondary training, education opportunities, job training.

Lenses:

In addition to the focus areas, we also strive to be in relationship with projects and organizations who: 

• Have an authentic presence and connection to Worcester County (have local relationships, are engaged in local conversations and/or are helping to change pressing local needs in this region). 
• Strive to be equitable
• Are the appropriate organizations to be leading the proposed work (possess the relevant knowledge, relationships and expertise to be the ones delivering the program, with the work tethered to organizational mission and vision).
• Involve clients and participants in the development of programs and organizational leadership.

For more details about focus areas and lenses, please view the grant guidelines.

Mission Statement

The Beim Foundation, a multi-generational family foundation, honors the past while embracing the future. Founded over 70 years ago by Nels Christian Beim, an immigrant from Norway, the Foundation has both a Minnesota-focused granting component and a program that serves other regions of interest to the Directors. The Foundation’s philanthropic priorities favor small, community-based, and developing organizations. Grants are made in the areas of arts, environment, human services and education.

Regional Grant Program 

The Beim Foundation’s Regional Grant program is a small funding program awarding grants in specific geographic communities throughout the United States

In 2025, The Beim Foundation will accept proposals from environmental education programs or projects that serve children and youth from under-resourced communities. 

• Address ethnic and racial inequality.
• Work to heal historical or community trauma.
• Include a focus on
  • Trauma informed care and
  • Culturally competent and sensitive services

As directors are most interested in supporting programming that provides services directly to program participants, the Foundation will not consider requests that are focused on staff training, curriculum development, or program development.

Funding

Funding awards are anticipated to be in the $5,000 to $15,000 range.

About Us

Since our founding in 1975, Greater Worcester Community has sought to make Worcester County a better place to live, work, and thrive. One of the ways we have accomplished this is by maximizing our grant-making opportunities to support projects and organizations that strengthen and enliven our community. The Community Foundation offers both competitive and non-competitive grant opportunities, and provides grant support in many areas of community life.

The Community Grant Program is rooted in the belief that we can collectively work towards a more equitable, vibrant and just community by offering flexible grant options, implementing strategic focus areas, and emphasizing the underlying approaches nonprofit organizations apply to their work.

The Community Grant Program for Operating Support seeks to support organizations with:

• missions that are highly aligned to one of our expressed focus areas (Health & Wellbeing, Arts & Creativity, Youth & Families or Basic Needs)
• sound organizational practices
• expressed commitments to equity, community voice, systems disruption
• Annual operating budgets within the limits of our available resources

Additionally, we seek to make grant investments that are as transformative as possible given our financial resources and the current needs of our local nonprofit sector and community. We are aspirational in our role to correct larger historical philanthropic trends and practices that have created barriers to accessing funding for certain types of organizations. Finally, we hope to continue to sharpen our guidance for applicants on the amount requested for operating support that is in line with our resources. To that end, we are piloting the following funding structure for the 2023 cycle.

Requested Amount Ranges Based on Annual Organizational Budget:

• Under $400,000 – up to 10%
• $400,000- $1,000,000 – up to 5%
• $1,000,001- $5,000,000 – up to $25,000
• Over $5,000,000 – ineligible

Focus Areas

Requests will be measured against their alignment to one of the focus areas along with the lenses listed below. We recognize the limitations of our total grant allotment and seek to be in partnership with organizations where our grant would make a transformative difference for that nonprofit, as opposed to being a drop in the bucket. Specific strategies for each area can be found on the full guidelines page.

Health & Wellbeing- Strengthening the systems that ensure those from historically excluded populations have equitable access to healthcare.

Arts & Creativity- Building and supporting a diverse and strong Arts & Culture Ecosystem where all belong.

Youth & Families- Ensuring families have what they need to thrive and that young people have access to critical supports and meaningful experiences.

Basic Needs- Working to ensure all residents of our community have food and shelter.

Economic Opportunity- Supporting individuals in building skills and creating opportunity for career preparation, advancement and/or wealth building. 

Lenses

In addition to the focus areas, we also strive to be in relationship with organizations who are on a journey to examine, learn, and pivot in the areas of equity, community voice and disrupting systems. We look for honest and authentic reflections vs. advanced responses.

Equity: We believe equity is one part of racial justice, and thus we include in our approach work that addresses root causes of inequities, not just their manifestations. Requests should demonstrate a thoughtful approach to who will benefit and how inclusion and equity are approached throughout your organization and programming.

Community Voice: Organizations with strong community voice co-create and lead programming together, create structures in partnership or are led by those more impacted by the issue.

Disrupting Systems: We are interested in being in relationship with organizations looking closely at ways to move our community to a more equitable place by understanding root causes of inequities and engaging in partnerships, coalitions and advocacy work that results in changed systems. While we recognize many small direct service providers do not have the bandwidth to engage in this work on a wide scale level, we believe all organizations have something meaningful to share in this area.

Examples include:

• Championing the gathering and sharing of important data and research
• Aligning with others in partnership to move issues forward
• Engaging in formal advocacy and policy issue work
• Attending community meetings and uplifting your voice on important issue

Gupta Family Foundation is a private, nonprofit foundation headquartered in Herndon, Virginia, USA. Our mission is to support organizations that provide focused intervention in the lives of people who have been disadvantaged in some way to help them become self-reliant. We take a very broad view of “disadvantage” to include anything that holds a person back from realizing their potential, such as poverty, physical or mental disability, social alienation, etc. The foundation also supports relief agencies that serve people affected by emergencies such as natural disasters.

The foundation evaluates and awards annual and multi-year grants ranging from $5,000 to over $250,000 (USD). Our focus is on funding smaller organizations all around the world that are led by individuals with a deep personal commitment to their missions. 

Our selection criteria include:

• Mission alignment
• The organization is run by the founder or, if not, by a successor who embodies the original inspiration, passion and commitment of the founder.
• At least 90% of grant monies reaches the intended beneficiaries.
• The organization is non-sectarian, i.e.,
  • It does not, directly or indirectly, support or condone the proselytization of any religion,
  • It is not supported by or affiliated to a religious organization.

Our Mission

The Hansen Family Foundation provides opportunities to domestic, international, secular, and non-secular organizations that support the American way of life, which is defined by the principles of “life, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness.” 

Causes

Children

The Hansen Family Foundation supports causes dedicated to helping children both home as well as abroad. Learn More

Education

The Hansen Family Foundation believes that a decent education should be made available to everyone, young or old, the world over. Learn More

Animals

The Hansen Family Foundation believes in helping those who cannot speak on their own behalf. Learn More

Environmental

The Hansen Family Foundation is dedicated to preserving the world we all share. Learn More

Humanitarian

The Hansen Family Foundation views the plight of our fellow man as an opportunity to actively engage and effect change. Learn More

Arts & Culture

The Hansen Family Foundation supports all forms of artistic and cultural endeavors. Learn More

Helping Build Better Futures

Our mission is to deliver great value to our customers every day. For over four decades, our deep commitment to the principles of providing value and caring for others has helped define our culture. It extends beyond the walls of our stores, distribution centers, and offices, and into our local communities around the world. The intersection of these principles defines our global community mission:

Deliver great value to our communities by helping vulnerable families and children access the resources and opportunities they need to build a better future.

Our Social Impact Areas

We bring our community relations mission to life around the world by focusing our giving on four social impact areas where we believe we can have the most impact and are critical to helping families and children succeed and thrive.

Basic Needs

We are passionate about supporting nonprofit organizations that help fill critical basic needs such as a warm meal, clean clothing, and a safe place to sleep for vulnerable families.

Education & Training

Our efforts have focused on quality enrichment and extracurricular programs that provide skills, resources, and opportunities to support school and career success for children, teens, and young adults.

Patient Care & Research

We support organizations that deliver services to families and children facing health challenges and life-threatening illnesses.

Empowering Women

We support programs that provide services ranging from help for those fleeing domestic violence, to others that offer education, training, and job placement resources.

About Us

Ours is a citizen-run model of philanthropy dedicated to enhancing the community in perpetuity.

In establishing the Greater Worcester Community Foundation, our founders sought to develop an organization that engaged Worcester County in its own betterment. This neighborly experiment built on self-reliance embraces and engages diverse sectors united in their vision of a better Worcester.

In our first 40 years, we’ve used the simple, accountable and flexible model of the community foundation to build an endowment of $198 million, raise $142 million and award $169 million in grants. Each year, we continue to grow our resources—knowledge, relationships and funds—and do more for our community.

Youth for Community Improvement (YCI) Fund

Youth for Community Improvement (YCI), an advisory committee of the Greater Worcester Community Foundation comprised of area high school students, requests proposals from Worcester County nonprofit organizations.

Proposals must speak to youth voice to be considered. Youth voice is the empowerment of young people through leadership roles, holding decision making power, and/or involvement of youth in program organization.

Areas of Interest

After an extensive community learning process, funding priorities are determined annually by each YCI class. The areas of interest for this year are:

Mental Health 

YCI is interested in organizations supporting the mental health of young people in the following ways:

• Efforts that increase awareness, reduce stigma and/or provide education on issues impacting young people’s mental health.
• Increasing access to care (efforts that reduce waitlists, connect young people to clinicians and especially those focused on serving young people who are neurodivergent).
• Innovative programs in self-care and treatment options.

Educational Support Programs

YCI is especially interested in programs that support the following:

• Alternative pathways (Jobs training, educations in the trade, night classes, etc.)
• College support (guidance, access, navigating financial aid and scholarships, test preparation courses and fees).
• Access to arts (programming costs, scholarships, supplies).

Housing/Food & Basic Needs

YCI is interested in helping ensure all residents have access to their basic needs especially in the following areas:

• Organizations and efforts that distribute care packages of basic needs items (blankets, clothing, shoes, etc.)
• Pantries and groups distributing hygiene items.
• Efforts to increase shelter access & services (advocacy, program expansion, resettling new arrival and migrant families, etc.)

Scope and Limitations

Grants will not exceed $5,000.