(November 3, 2020 – Youngstown/Warren, OH) – Together, three Valley foundations issued a final call for 2020 grant proposals coming through the joint COVID-19 Crisis Relief and Stabilization Application. The Community Foundation of the Mahoning Valley, The Raymond John Wean Foundation and The Youngstown Foundation set Friday, November 20 as the final 2020 deadline for this grant opportunity, and applicants are encouraged to submit requests as soon as possible.
In March, the foundations released the joint application, which leverages grant dollars and connects grant seekers directly with all three foundations for quick funding decisions. Together, the foundations have invested more than $1.6 million in the Mahoning Valley through 104 grants aimed at addressing both crisis relief and stabilization efforts.
The application allows charitable organizations to submit the same proposal to any one of the foundations or all three at the same time, and the link continues to be available on all three foundation websites: www.cfmv.org; www.rjweanfdn.org; www.youngstownfoundation.org.
“While we are grateful to have partnered with the Community Foundation and the Youngstown Foundation, the declining number of grant applications and the responses from our community survey suggest a shift in the approach to the pandemic this fall,” said Jennifer Roller, Wean Foundation president. “We are now focusing on what we’ve learned collectively in an effort to stabilize organizations long term.”
Possible future deadlines for the joint COVID-19 application, as well as additional opportunities for collaborative grantmaking, are currently being explored. After the November 20 deadline, grant seekers should visit each foundation’s website or else contact staff at each entity for more information on grant strategies through the end of 2020 and into 2021.
“The common application has been a powerful tool for the community,” said Shari Harrell, president of the Community Foundation. “And we will use all of the lessons learned from this collaborative work as we continue exploring the best ways to support our nonprofit partners during this extended crisis.”
Staff and board members of the three organizations expressed their gratitude for the partnership of grantees in making this common application work over the past nine months. The Community Foundation, Wean Foundation and The Youngstown Foundation intend to continue working closely to combat COVID-19’s negative impacts on our community.
“This in no way diminishes local philanthropy’s prioritization of addressing the growing and devastating impact of this pandemic on our community,” added Jan Strasfeld, executive director of The Youngstown Foundation. “We are just as committed as ever to meet the needs head on.”