SERVICES
GRANTSEEKERS
When you run a small nonprofit, you wear so many hats that your closet can’t hold them all: program designer, fundraiser, special events coordinator, marketing guru, and tech support, just to name a few.
Your work is even more complicated if you’re serving a rural area that’s not populous enough to generate much local funding. Foundations supporting rural areas do exist. But finding the time and brain space to look for foundation grants seems impossible. Plus, foundations can look impenetrable and mysterious—like the Wizard of Oz shouting, “Pay no attention to the man behind the curtain!”
After 30 years in the sector, on both sides, I can pull back that curtain for you. I know how to find the right foundation prospects and write a strong proposal.
My services include:
Assessing your organization’s readiness to approach foundations for funding.
Reviewing your existing draft grant proposals to suggest enhancements.
Identifying appropriate grant prospects.
Drafting new grant proposals tailored to those prospects and helping you monitor the submission process.*
Drafting reports to funders as required at grant completion.
FEES: $50 per hour for nonprofits with annual operating budgets under $500,000 serving rural areas in the Southwest.
*To avoid conflicts of interest, I will not write proposals for submission to the Carl B. & Florence E. King Foundation in 2025 and 2026.
GRANTMAKERS
After both raising money and giving it away, I believe two things.
Fundraising is harder.
Grantmaking is harder than people think it is.
From the outside, grantmaking might seem like being Santa Claus every day. But you know it is so much more complex than that. The millions of dollars that foundations distribute annually are no match for the enormous needs in our communities. Managing and distributing those precious charitable dollars require sector insight and sound judgment.
Your foundation’s specific needs—based on its size, complexity, staffing, and scope—will drive the service package best for you.
That package could include:
Serving as your foundation administrator if your foundation does not require full-time staff.
Developing grant guidelines.
Evaluating grant proposals and preparing materials for board consideration.
Evaluating and structuring grants management systems.
Coordinating with your accountants, attorneys, and investment advisors to ensure regulatory compliance and financial capacity.
Coaching your grantees on grantwriting skills.
FEES: $250 per hour on a project basis or another rate as a negotiated retainer based on the range of services needed.