welcome

You will find here all the information you need to apply for a grant from the Grays Harbor Community Foundation. The guidelines and instructions below are reproduced from our Grant Application & Guidelines packet. To print a copy of the packet, click here:

If you have any questions about our program, please contact us.

Purpose

The Grays Harbor Community Foundation addresses community needs by supporting nonprofit organizations throughout Grays Harbor County, Washington. We recognize that the needs of our community are many; its problems, complex. We support organizations in arts and culture, education, health, human services, and community development. We welcome and encourage grant applications from all nonprofit organizations directly serving local residents.

(Please note: we do not make grants for projects that do not directly serve residents of Grays Harbor County.)

We hope these guidelines will help and encourage nonprofit organizations in requesting financial support from the Grays Harbor Community Foundation.

We encourage you to call our office (360-532-1600) if you have any questions about our community grants program.

Values

We recognize that as a grantmaking foundation we have several responsibilities toward those who seek our support. We take these responsibilities seriously. We will:

Make ourselves accessible to all people interested in the community foundation;
Work to meet the highest standards: from promptly acknowledging receipt of every application, to sharing and explaining the basis for each of our decisions;
Treat all grant seekers with respect and openness.

We invite grant seekers to approach the grant application process with a sense of imagination. At its best, the process is a creative and mutual exploration of possibilities.

We recognize that our effectiveness as a grantmaking foundation depends heavily upon the insight, imagination and hard work of those who work and volunteer at local nonprofit organizations. We look forward to working with the groups and individuals who are working directly to improve our community.

Priorities and limitations

The Foundation will:

Make grants only to qualified, tax-exempt nonprofit organizations for work directly benefiting residents of Grays Harbor County, Washington;
Place a priority on projects that help build community and help strengthen community connections;
Favor those applications that show the greatest promise of leveraging additional support from the community;
Favor creative projects that meet specific community needs and benefit a broad segment of the local population;
Make grants in the range of $500 to $5,000.

The Foundation is less likely to:

Make grants over $5,000;
Make grants for more than one year;
Make grants for operating support without special circumstances.

The Foundation will not:

Make grants when the activities are not clearly described;
Make grants when the goals are not specific or realistic;
Make grants when the income and expense statements are incomplete or unclear;
Make grants to individuals, government agencies, or religious organizations for religious purposes;
Make grants for endowments, debt retirement, political campaigns, fundraising events, advertising, or conferences;
Make grants to organizations that discriminate on the basis of ethnicity, gender, religion, or physical ability.

THE APPLICATION PROCESS

What to Include

Please include in your application one (1) original and seven (7) copies of each of the following:

1. A cover letter signed by your chairman, president, or executive director, stating the purpose and amount of the grant request;

2. A completed copy of our Grant Application Cover Sheet;

3. Your full proposal narrative (based on the questions below);

4. A copy of the most recently audited financial statement, if available (if not available, a copy of the unaudited statement for the most recently completed year);

5. The financial statement for the current year to date, including both expense and income;

6. The operating budget for the current year and for the period covered by the proposal, including a description of anticipated income sources;

7. A list of the members of the governing board;

8. The number of current staff, indicating full-time and part-time status;

9. Optional supporting materials, as relevant, including:

    a.      Letters of support (recommended if the project involves collaboration with other groups);

    b.      Press releases and media clippings relevant to the organization or proposed project;

    c.      Brochures and other printed materials relevant to the project or organization.

Please also include one (1) copy of your tax-exempt status determination letter from the IRS. We will keep your organization’s letter on file for future applications.

Format

We prefer all eight copies of your application and related materials to be:

8-1/2 x 11-inch paper;

In a readable font;

Without bindings;

Paperclipped, not stapled;

Page-numbered;

Collated and ready to be read.

Proposal Narrative

Please structure your narrative using the following questions, keeping in mind that some members of our grants committee may not be familiar with your organization or its current projects. We prefer that you copy each question (or use appropriate headings) to help us follow your narrative.

Please limit your narrative to between 3 and 6 pages. As all readers, we appreciate concise, clear and to-the-point writing.

1. What is the history and purpose of your organization? Include mission, founding date, major programs, key staff, etc.

2. What are the specific community needs or problems that you are trying to solve through the proposed project? Provide sufficient background and details to explain why your proposed project is important to Grays Harbor.

3. Describe your proposed project. What are its objectives? How will it help solve the problems you describe above? Why do you want to do the work? How does the project fit into your organization’s long-range strategy and mission? What is the role of the board in developing the project?

4. Explain what activities are involved in completing your project, and the steps you will take to carry it out. Include a timeline, if relevant, and identify staff, volunteers, and board members who will be responsible for key parts.

5. How will you evaluate your project? What questions would help determine whether your project was successful? Who will be responsible for completing the evaluation and reporting to the community foundation?

6. [Optional] Address any other important issues or details about your project not requested by this application.

timeline

We operate our community grants program on a quarterly cycle. Our deadlines for accepting grant applications to be considered each quarter are the first business days of January, April, July, and October. Applications must be received on these deadlines, not postmarked.

Most decisions are made on this quarterly cycle, although some major decisions may be deferred to later quarters, and requests for emergency assistance may be considered immediately. We welcome phone calls and letters of inquiry at all times.

Proposal review

IF A GRANT IS AWARDED

If a grant is awarded, a grant record form will accompany the letter of notification. This form includes:

Within 30 days of our award letter, each grant recipient must sign and return the receipt attached to the grant record form.

REPORTING REQUIREMENTS

All reporting requirements are included with the letter of notification. A timetable for reporting will be agreed upon for each grant, but generally we expect to receive some report within six months of our award letter. Our staff will monitor the organization’s compliance, and failure to submit timely reports may affect future funding requests.

QUESTIONS AND FURTHER INFORMATION

We welcome questions about our community grants program or about pending grant applications at any time.

Copies of this grant application and guidelines may be downloaded from our website, at www.gh-cf.org, or may be requested from our office at the following address and phone number.