Grants can support your Work!

Elevated Bed Gardens, installed in the homes of people who were no longer able to garden at ground level, were funded by an AARP Challenge Grant

Grants are lifeblood for many Lifelong Communities – as we finance ambitious and much-needed projects that help many people.

Yet, for many committee leaders, the idea of applying for a grant strikes terror. The data gathering may be arduous and stressful. Who remembered to collect data for that project? How many hours did the volunteers contribute? Why does that matter? What budget?

And most lifelong community leaders have not taken Grant-writing 101 – their learning may be strictly D-I-Y. For the fortunate, a seasoned mentor is nearby and smooths the path. In lieu of a mentor, free trainings offered during the master class will soon be available on the Lifelong Communities website. During the 2022 Master Class, Dr. Holly Korda was very well-received with her presentation Grant Writing for Lifelong Communities.

In this article, we have gathered insight from four different communities. Our thanks to Cheyenne Stevens of Madison, Tara Mozdziez of Danforth, Sharon Kelly of Berwick and Lisa Joyce of South Portland for their time. Dot Grady of Chelsea and Donna Palmer of North Yarmouth also contributed to this story.

Their shared experience in the field may sound familiar and may be enlightening.

Lisa Joyce, Chair of Age-Friendly South Portland, as a knack for securing grant funding. Her approach is relationship-based and thus, quite personal. This is often the case in smaller towns – everyone knows everyone and reputation matters. If your committee is well-respected and appreciated, donors, large and small, will, naturally, feel more generous.

In Danforth, Tara Mozdziez, along with Town Manager Ardis Brown, scour the internet for grant opportunities. Staying in touch with known funders, such as the Maine Community Foundation and AARP, is a routine part of their strategy. Cheyenne Stevens, in Madison, credits Lifelong Maine as another great resource. Health care organizations have helped Sharon Kelly in Berwick fund their programs.

Tara advocates for using “existing demographics (census stats), survey results (e.g., A-F surveys) and program data collected usually by town or group related to grant request (e.g., library board).” In Chelsea, Dot Grady created data collection forms to record, for example, volunteer hours and in-kind donations. This information is meaningful to funders because it shows your level of community engagement. In Madison, Cheyenne partners with the town manager to collect data. Sharon serves as her own data collection agent, as she is responsible for state and town reports for her library.

Projects and timelines are routinely adjusted to meet the requirements of the grantors, said Cheyenne. “If there is a project that we are working on and there is an option to get additional funding to be able expand or improve the initiative we are working on, we will adjust to the timeline or requirements for the grant application.”

When Danforth wanted to build a raised bed garden at their Community Center, they incorporated eco-friendly materials to honor the philosophy of the funder. They also used familiar “eco-friendly” language in the application.

Grants have enabled Sharon to offer a broad range of programming. They now have a Handy Helper Tool collection and over 30 large print books for the library. Refreshments for the weekly senior meetups and the Berwick Walkers – who are active even in winter! – are grant-funded. Berwick for a Lifetime created dementia inclusion kits last summer, with funding through the UNE Geriatric Workforce Enhancement Program. Partnerships with nearby hospitals have enabled Lunch and Learn sessions that featured health topics offered through in-kind donations by healthcare professionals. These grants also provided two six week sessions of gentle yoga classes and two sessions of Zentangle.

The Living Well in North Yarmouth committee partnered with their Fire Rescue Department for an AARP Challenge Grant. That grant funded the purchase of Knox Boxes, a security device giving emergency access to homes where high-risk people live. The partnership benefited many town residents. And it was the inspiration for other lifelong communities to follow suit.

All agreed that chasing rainbows was wasted time – be realistic. But - when it looks even a bit positive, go for it.

Cheyenne: “Even if you do not get every grant that you apply for you will walk away more prepared for a goal or project than before the application. Be thorough and think of reasonable, achievable goals because you can always expand later.”

Tara: “We have learned that to be successful, just throw your hat in- you never know and as they say about the lottery, you have to be in it to win it!”

Sharon: “Think of it like a complicated knitting pattern - at first glance it looks ridiculously difficult and you think "forget it". When you take the time to really read it through, you think "well, maybe", when you prepare your supplies (in our case information), and you begin on the first small section, you think "ok, I can do this".”

Lisa: “For me, relationships are vital to our success. I have had people call me and ask if we could use a few extra dollars! That is a very good feeling!”