Apply Now for COVID-19 Relief Grants

Deadline: 30-Sep-21

The Northwest Connecticut Community Foundation is seeking applications for its COVID-19 Relief Grants to support programs and services that improve their communities through arts and culture, civic and education, the environment, and health and human services.

Its mission is to enrich the quality of life for residents of their 20-town service area in Connecticut’s Northwest corner through the generosity of fund holders. They seek to enrich the quality of life for residents of Northwest Connecticut by inspiring local philanthropy, convening stakeholders in community welfare, strengthening the regional nonprofits network and fostering collaborative funding partnerships.

The Community Foundation serves Connecticut’s Northwest Corner, including the 20 towns of Barkhamsted, Bethlehem, Canaan (Falls Village), Colebrook, Cornwall, Goshen, Hartland, Harwinton, Kent, Litchfield, Morris, New Hartford, Norfolk, North Canaan, Salisbury, Sharon, Torrington, Warren, Washington, and Winchester/Winsted.

The Northwest Connecticut Community Foundation, Inc. (“Foundation”) is the community foundation located in and serving Northwest Connecticut. The Foundation enhances life for citizens in its 20-town service area by:

Awarding grants to non-profit organizations and scholarships to students
Helping donors create lasting, local legacies
Encouraging local philanthropy and volunteerism
Building endowments for future generations

Focus Areas

The Foundation has five areas of concentration:

Arts & Culture
Civic & Education
Environment
Health
Social Services

Funding Information

Small ($1,500 and under); or
Traditional (over $1,500).

What they fund?

To qualify for a grant from the Foundation, an applicant must:

Qualify per the Internal Revenue Code as a tax-exempt organization. Most grantees qualify under Section 501(c)(3), although there are other eligible nonprofits such as schools or governmental agencies, for certain projects. Organizations may contact the Foundation to discuss eligibility;
Serve residents in one or more of the 20 towns within the Foundation’s service area;
Provide a service that meets one of the Foundation’s five focus areas of concentration

What they Decline to fund?

The Foundation will not consider requests to fund the following:

Organizations that, in their constitution, bylaws or practice, discriminate against or show favoritism toward a person or group on the basis of race, color, religion (creed), gender, gender expression, age, national origin (ancestry), disability, marital status, sexual orientation, or military status;
Grants to schools for programs that would be included in the operating budget of most schools;
Grants to governmental agencies for programs that should be part of their operating budget;
Debt retirement;
Endowments or other reserve funds (with the exception of applications to the Edwards Community Endowment Project);
Membership or affiliation campaigns;
Grants that further political or religious doctrine;
Grants to individuals;
Individual medical procedures;
Grants requested for the purpose of re-granting;
Activities, projects, or programs that will be completed before funding becomes available (in general, no retroactive funding);
Staff positions for which long-term funding has not been established or planned.