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Non Profit Faith Based Grants

Despite an all-out effort on the part of the President to create a level playing field for faith based organizations to apply for and receive faith based grants, many faith based grants go to non-faith based community organizations.

One of President's first official acts as President was to create the White House Office of Faith-Based and Community Initiatives. At its inception the Office was tasked with strengthening and expanding the role of faith-based and community organizations in addressing the nation’s social problems through faith based grants. The President envisioned a faith-friendly public square where faith-based organizations could compete equally with other groups to receive faith based grants. Centers for Faith-Based and Community Initiatives were also established in seven cabinet departments – the United States Department of Justice, Agriculture, Labor, Health and Human Services, Housing and Urban Development, and Education and the Agency for International Development. Priority areas for federal faith based grants include:

• At-risk youth
  
• Ex-offenders
  
• Homeless and hungry
  
• Substance abusers
  
• Those with HIV/AIDS
  
• Welfare-to-work families

To find out more about federal faith based grants visit www.fbci.gov, www.grants.gov, or www.fedbizopps.gov. There are many free grant writing courses available by federal agencies to learn how to apply for grants.

For years, churches have played a vital role in assisting people in need. Unfortunately, many churches do not qualify for faith based grants because they do not have a separate 501(c)(3) organization.

By obtaining the 501(c)(3) status with the I.R.S. faith based organizations become eligible for grants from private foundations, as well as from federal, state, and local governments. In the U.S. there are over 2,200 private foundations that are interested in giving grants to Christian organizations and agencies, and thousands more that give grants to faith based 501(c)(3) organizations to provide programs that run the gamut from A-Z, including abuse prevention, aging, AIDS, child development, family services, food distribution, health care, homelessness, human services, housing, mental health, music, Native Americans, performing arts, substance abuse, women, youth development, and zoos. The DeMoss Foundation, Huntsman Foundation, Stewardship Foundation, Bonner Foundation, and Bolthouse Foundation all give grants nationally to Christian organizations and agencies. Other foundations that provide grants nationally to faith based organizations include the Heritage Mark Foundation, Davis Family Foundation, Mustard Seed Foundation, Generation Trust, Rushing Wind, Ltd. and many more.