Grants awarded will be $500 – $5,000 to nonprofit organizations working to address community needs in Georgetown and Millsboro.

Nonprofits organizations located in Georgetown or Millsboro will be given priority, but other organizations operating statewide can apply if they are a state agency.

Sample application (for reference only – must apply online)

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The Kent County Youth Philanthropy Board believes in the conservation of a sustainable mind, body and environment. In 2024 they invite nonprofits to apply that prioritize the wellbeing of the individual and the planet, e.g. via environmental protection, health, homelessness, domestic violence and/or substance/alcohol abuse.

Sample Application(for reference only – must apply online)

Rubric

The New Castle County Youth Philanthropy Board understand the importance of youth mental health. The board invites and encourages nonprofits that focus on the impact of gun violence, food insecurity, learning disabilities and other forms of trauma on youth to apply.

Sample Application(for reference only – must apply online)

Rubric

The Sussex County Youth Philanthropy Board believes in helping conserve the land and addressing the wellbeing of the individual. For their 2024 grants, nonprofits that focus on land conservation, mental health, homelessness and/or drug/alcohol addiction are encouraged to apply.

Sample Application(for reference only – must apply online)

Rubric

The FFW accepts applications from nonprofit, tax-exempt, 501(c)(3) organizations for programs that address the needs and enhance the worth and potential of women and girls in Delaware by helping them to lead productive, self-sufficient lives. The FFW’s one-year grant offers organizations an opportunity to obtain seed money for innovative, creative programming or funding to continue or expand programs where effectiveness has been demonstrated. Grants will not be awarded to individuals.

Fund for Women hosted two grant application workshops to answer any questions about key dates and how to submit a Grant application. Please use the links below to reference resources from the Workshop.

• Presentation PDF
• 2024 Grant Rubric

Questions regarding 2024 Grant Applications can be directed to [email protected].

Grants are available to any nonprofit organization, including any qualified school (public or private) on the Delmarva Peninsula, with particular emphasis given to Western Sussex County. All applicants within the Delmarva region will be considered by the Foundation Committee. No applications for programs outside of Sussex County will be considered. 

Sample Application (for reference only – must apply online)

There are a variety of funds at the DCF that provide a structured opportunity for eligible nonprofits whose missions align with specific interest areas to apply for grants. These specific areas include: 

• Dave Ryerson Fund and the Beekhuis Community Fund: Statewide small arts grants programs and projects  
• Walls and Turner Charitable Fund & Freida Dolby Fund: Educational programs and projects that support animals and animal welfare. 
• Quintin E. Primo Jr. Fund for Racial Justice and the African American Empowerment Fund: Educational programs and projects that promote racial justice and the empowerment of African Americans  
• The Tubby Raymond Charitable Fund *one time*: small grants funding athletic based educational and mentoring programs that support at-risk youth. 
• 21st Century Children’s Fund: Education programming or Financial assistance programs for at-risk children or young adults up to age 21 to participate in programs or experiences that help them define their strengths, improve their self-esteem, and build a sense of hope for the future. 

Specific Interest Grants Guidelines

Sample Application (for reference only – must apply online)

Rubric

The Delaware Resilient Food Systems Infrastructure Grant Program is a cooperative agreement between the Delaware Department of Agriculture (DDA) and the United States Department of Agriculture (USDA) Agricultural Marketing Service (AMS) to build resilience across the middle of Delaware’s food supply chain. Funds will support expanded capacity for aggregating, processing, manufacturing, storing, transporting, wholesaling, and distributing locally and regionally produced food products. The DCF facilitates the grant application process, but this is not a DCF grant program.

Complete program information can be found here: https://de.gov/rfsi.

All questions should be directed to the Delaware Council on Farm and Food Policy at  [email protected].

Sample Application (for reference only – must apply online)

The First State Food System Program, administered by the Delaware Council on Farm & Food Policy (a subset of the Delaware Department of Agriculture) provides grant funding to entities that grow, process, store, transport, distribute, or sell food in the State of Delaware. The DCF is facilitating the grant application process, but this is not a grant program of the DCF.

All questions should be directed to the Delaware Council on Farm and Food Policy at [email protected].

Full program information can be found here: https://farm-and-food-delaware.hub.arcgis.com/

Program FAQs

Sample Application (for reference only – must apply online)

There are several funds at the DCF that support very defined purposes. Eligible nonprofits whose missions align with these narrow areas of activity or service can apply to these funds for general operating grants. Requests will be evaluated primarily on the alignment of the organization’s mission to the defined purpose, as well as demonstration of the organization’s impact in the community. 

• Therapeutic Riding at Carousel Fund: 
  Education programming supporting therapeutic riding  

• Lynn W. Williams Natural Science Education Fund for Girls: 
  Education programming for experiential science learning for underprivileged girls 

• Walls & Turner Charitable Fund
  Education programming that fulfills terminally ill children’s wishes  

• Lee & Florence Kvalnes Charitable Fund 
  Programs that support at-risk families to them become self-sufficient.  

• The C.A.R.E. Fund 
  Programs benefit Delawareans in need of long-term health care and research into alternate methods of long-term health care. 

Sample Application (for reference only – must apply online)

Nonprofit organizations supporting the needy in Kent County are invited to apply for grants from the Benjamin F. Potter Trust through the Delaware Community Foundation.

The purpose of the Benjamin F. Potter Trust, created in 1843 and one of the oldest continuing trusts of its type in the nation, is to aid the economically underprivileged in Kent County by supporting charitable organizations serving these individuals. The CenDel Foundation, which brings expertise in needs in Kent County, serves as the grant recommendation committee. The areas of focus considered for funding are: 

• Crisis/emergency assistance funding for basic needs 
• Homelessness 
• Hunger 
• Health care 

Grants will support proposals for charitable organizations and activities involving programs that have a lasting, positive impact on Kent County.  

All applicants will be notified of the committee’s decision in August 2024. For more information, please contact Mike DiPaolo at 302.355.6933. To find out more about CenDel, visit www.cendelfoundation.org. 

Sample Application (for reference only – must apply online)

The Roy Klein Education Fund supports nonprofits’ projects or programs that support improvements to life in central Delaware through economic development initiatives and related career and occupational education in Kent County, including all of Smyrna and Milford.

The fund is available to all 501(c)(3) organizations in Kent County or organizations that run programming that directly benefit the county.  

The maximum award is $3,000.

Sample application (for reference only – must apply online)

Grants supports programs addressing addiction treatment, family services, emergency housing and homelessness prevention. 

The Next Gen South Grant total is $10,000.

Since its inception in 2012, Next Gen South has supported initiatives that address the underlying social challenges facing vulnerable Delawareans in Kent and Sussex. Grant recipients from 2023 will NOT be eligible to receive funds for this year’s grants.

Sample application(for reference only – must apply online)

Next Gen South Grants Guidelines

The Caesar Rodney Rotary Foundation grant opportunity is available to nonprofit organizations in New Castle County, DE serving youth and young adults ages birth through 25 years who are underserved and at risk for not having the skills and support for a self-sufficient future. The grant maximum is $5,000.

The Caesar Rodney Rotary Foundation (CRRF) was formed in 2018, as a means for the Caesar Rodney Rotary Club to accelerate the mission of educating the community and addressing the needs of youth at risk in New Castle County, Delaware. Educating the community includes providing public awareness of the need as well as encouraging volunteer opportunities to address the needs. More information about the CRRF can be found on website www.crrfoundation.org.

Sample Application (for reference only – must apply online)

Quarterly grants from Highmark’s BluePrints for the Community fund, administered by the DCF, support health-related projects, programs and supportive services. Preference will be given to programs that address the following BluePrints priority areas faced by Delaware’s communities.

1. Healthcare Access
   For example: preventative care, disease specific, health literacy, research, etc.
2. Economic Stability for families and individuals
   For example: financial resources strains, food insecurity, housing stability, etc.
3. Social and Community Context
   For example: mental
   health, physical activities, social connections, etc.
4. Neighborhood and Built Environment
   For example: safety, transportation, environmental health, infrastructure, etc.

Occasional Special Grants focused on meeting a more specific need may be announced in place of Standard Grants.

2024 Application Periods

• Quarter 2 application opens March 18, 2024
  • Deadline April 5, at 11:59 pm
  • Notifications TBD
• Quarter 3 application opens June 24, 2024
  • Deadline July 12, at 11:59 pm
  • Notifications TBD
• Quarter 4 application opens Sept. 9, 2024
  • Deadline Sept. 27, at 11:59 pm
  • Notifications TBD

Grant Guidelines

Q4 Sample Application

The Borkee Hagley Fund grants specifically support clinical research, care and social and emotional support services for the comprehensive and complex care of patients and families suffering from neurodegenerative diseases. This includes cognitive and movement disorders like Huntington’s Disease, ALS, Parkinson’s Disease and Alzheimer’s. Previous and new potential grantees are welcomed to apply if their programs fit the Borkee Hagley Fund area of priority.

Sample Application (for reference only – must apply online)

DCF capital grants assist with the acquisition, final-stage design, construction, repair, renovation, rehabilitation, or other capital improvements of facilities, so nonprofits in all three counties can operate as efficiently and effectively as possible.

An ideal capital grant does more than just renovate or repair. It helps an organization that is already strong to serve its community even better. Supported capital projects will have a lasting, positive impact on the population or community served by the grantee organization.

Grants will not exceed $20,000 other than on rare occasions due to their exceptional merits, based on the discretion of the DCF Grants Committee. The capital grants are the only grants from the DCF that have a waiting period for grantees. Once an award is provided, grantees must wait two full grant cycles before applying again.

Sign up for Office Hours. Contact Yolanda Rushdan for more information.

Watch the Workshop 

Rubric

Sample Application(for reference only – must apply online)