Fremont County Community Foundation Grant

The Community Foundations of Southwest Iowa, affiliates of the Omaha Community Foundation, manage competitive spring and fall grant programs designed to enhance quality of life within a nine-county service area. These programs focus on supporting needs in civic engagement, culture, health, education, and social services, with an emphasis on projects that deliver lasting impact in the local community. County-specific Community Foundation Advisory Boards review all applications and make final funding determinations. Crawford and Page Counties accept open proposals only during the spring cycle, with fall cycle applications in these counties available by invitation only. Applications must be submitted through the Grants Lifecycle Management (GLM) online system, with all communication sent to the email address used to create the applicant’s account. Spring applications close on February 1 at 11:59 p.m. CST, with award decisions announced in late March or early April; funded projects must be completed and evaluated by December 31 of the award year. Fall applications close on September 1 at 11:59 p.m. CST, with decisions announced in late October or early November, and project evaluations due by May 31 of the following year. Deadlines are fixed, with no extensions for weekends or holidays. The grant cycle repeats annually. Eligible applicants include federally recognized and certified 501(c)(3) public charities or municipal entities serving the designated county. Iowa nonprofit status alone does not qualify an applicant. Organizations lacking 501(c)(3) status or municipal designation may apply with a fiscal sponsor that is a certified public charity or governmental entity. Fiscal sponsors must complete a sponsorship agreement form before funding is considered, and awarded funds will be paid directly to the fiscal sponsor. Certain organizations, such as public libraries, fire departments, county extension offices, county conservation offices, and fair boards, typically require fiscal sponsorship unless they hold their own public charity status. Funding is available for capital support, such as the purchase of equipment, construction, or renovations, as well as program support for defined projects with specific objectives. Advisory boards tend to prioritize capital support and impactful program initiatives. Operating support is a lower priority and is generally considered only for one-time capacity-building needs. Projects less likely to be funded include those from tax-supported entities, religious organizations, cemetery associations, veteran and labor organizations, social clubs, or fraternal organizations unless fiscally sponsored. Funding is typically not provided for endowment campaigns, deficit financing, annual drives, fundraising activities, training fees, operational expenses, consumables, salaries, food, promotional items, band uniforms, or holiday decorations. Applications must be complete and submitted online, following the outlined sections: organization information, financials, project description and evaluation, sustainability plan, comparative programs, and project reach. Applicants must specify whether the request is capital-, program-, or operations-based, the project focus area, summary, and requested and total project costs. Project financials require itemized costs matching the requested amount. Applicants proposing work on property they do not own must confirm necessary permissions have been obtained. For questions, applicants may contact Sunni Kamp (sunni@omahafoundation.org) or Sarah Beth Ray (sarahbeth@omahafoundation.org), toll-free at 402-342-3458. Applicants are encouraged to review “Helpful Tips,” ensure system emails are not blocked, and consider the published funding priorities before applying. Past recipient lists and county-specific funding information are available on the program website at www.swiowafoundations.org.

Be clear and concise; avoid exceeding word count; avoid bullets and ALL CAPS; round to nearest dollar; whitelist grant system emails