Quality of Life in Pennsylvania

The Community Fund is an annual grant program by the Philadelphia City Fund, aligning with the city's goals to enhance residents' quality of life. This initiative supports charitable projects addressing Philadelphia's most pressing needs. The funding is a result of a partnership with the Philadelphia Marathon Weekend, which contributes a portion of its annual revenues to the fund. For the 2024 cycle, the program specifically focuses on youth wellness, promoting lifelong healthy activity, and nurturing healthy minds, bodies, and spirits through out-of-school time programming. The target beneficiaries are youth aged pre-K through 12th grade in Philadelphia, particularly those participating in out-of-school time (OST) programs. The program aims to support their healthy physical, social, educational, and emotional development. The impact goal is to increase equitable access to OST programming across the city, with a preference for organizations serving specific Priority ZIP Codes (19120, 19124, 19132, 19134, 19138, 19139, 19141, and 19144) identified through an analysis of quality of life metrics and OST slot distribution. The fund prioritizes small nonprofit organizations with annual operating budgets not exceeding $5 million that provide OST programming to youth in Philadelphia. Grantees will receive $25,000 in unrestricted funds, which can be used for general operations, programmatic activities, or other mission-supporting costs. Applicants are expected to demonstrate how their organization's mission and/or programming aligns with the "Nurturing healthy minds, bodies, and spirits through out-of-school time programming" theme. The expected outcome is improved well-being and safety for youth in Philadelphia through enhanced access to comprehensive OST programming. While specific measurable results beyond the funding allocation and unrestricted nature of the grants are not explicitly detailed, the focus on priority ZIP codes and the definition of OST programming suggest an intention to measure the reach and impact on youth development in underserved areas. Grantees will be expected to comply with Pennsylvania childcare regulations and maintain necessary insurance coverage during the one-year grant term, starting February 2025.