introduction to Grant writing

Mary Krebs, MS, MPPM
Community Strategy Partners

Grant writing is beneficial to community advocacy that is focused on the unmet needs of older adults. It can provide the necessary resources to develop sustainable change in the form of improved programs, services, and supports. In the following sections you will learn about the steps in the process, strategies for finding funding partners, alongside tips for submitting strong applications to get a grant.

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Steps in the Process

WHY?

Grants help facilitate urgent, positive & lasting change across communities.

Articulate your vision & mission statement

HOW?

Assess which criteria are essential for funding eligibility.

Nonprofit or municipal status is vital for grant eligibility.

WHERE TO BEGIN?

Draft a vision & a mission statement for your organization

Statements should be succinct, memorable, and reflect your organization's values and goals.

Grant Strategies for Age-Friendly Communities

Identifying partners is a good first step when you begin looking for funding grants. Most grant opportunities require organizations to have legal status as a non-profit or municipality. If you are not a 501c3 or municipal initiative you will need to find an organization willing to receive funds on behalf of your age-friendly team and distribute them to you. An added bonus of finding partners is that grant makers like seeing projects built on strong collaborations.

"Piggybacking" allows organizations to avoid duplicating efforts and resources by leveraging existing programs, networks, and expertise. These collaborations enhance efficiency, reduce costs, and amplify impact. They focus on complementary strengths rather than redundant activities. Additionally, they foster innovation and community trust, because combined resources and shared goals lead to more effective and sustainable outcomes.

By aligning with your municipality or a reputable nonprofit, your age-friendly initiative can enhance it's credibility, strengthen grant proposals, and increase its likelihood of receiving grants.

After you have nonprofit status, or have identified a fiduciary agent (generally your municipality or another nonprofit), look for grants that can support the mission and goals of age-friendly. Use the grant seeking worksheet below to list potential grantors. Organize your timeline according to the application deadlines. Create a plan to draft, proofread, revise, and produce a well-written and compelling final version for submission. It is always best to submit the application prior to the deadline so that, if the technology fails as you are submitting, you still have some time.

Composing Mission and Vision Statements

Compose succinct, memorable statements that reflect age-friendly's values and goals.

Mission Statement:

A mission statement defines age-friendly's purpose and primary objectives. It answers “What do we do?” and “Why do we do it?” It should be concise, clear, and focused on the organization’s core activities.

Writing Tips:

- Be specific about what your age-friendly team does.
- Include your target audience or community.
- Highlight the core values or principles guiding your work.

Vision Statement:

A vision statement outlines the long-term impact or change your age-friendly initiative hopes to achieve. It answers “What do we want to achieve in the future?” and should be inspiring and forward-looking.

Writing Tips:

- Focus on long-term goals and the desired future impact.
- Use aspirational language to inspire and motivate.
- Ensure it aligns with your mission and overarching goals.

Applying for Grants

Visit Lifelong Maine's Funding Page to Guide Your Development of a Funding Strategy and to Identify Grant Makers

Activity - Practice researching funding sources and prioritizing applications for support.

Using the worksheet on the right and the Lifelong Maine Funding Page Grant Resource List, identify grant opportunities that will support age-friendly goals.

Be realistic about the alignment between your goals and the grant maker's goals.

Consider your history of working with grants. If you are new to grant-making, start with a funder that supports small community-driven initiatives. You can also apply for grants that are specifically tailored to age-friendly. Many of Maine's age-friendly communities received their first grant through the AARP Challenge Grant.

Consider small, entry-level funding opportunities when applying to a new funder for the first time. This can help develop your grant-managing skills and build your credibility with the funder.

Use the diagram to the right to plan your grant-writing actions. Organize your foundations and grantors by application deadline date. This will help you to clearly prioritize efforts and meet application deadlines.

Grant Seeking Worksheet.pdf

Reflection:

Which grant opportunities most closely align with your age-friendly mission? With your goals?
What are your funding needs in the upcoming year? Do you need to apply for a grant or is the need better served by local fund and friend-raising? A combination of both?
Think about your age-friendly team's capacity to manage grants. Reflect on the grant strategy you will adopt in the upcoming year.

Click here to complete the first of two reflections in this chapter. Entering your reflection will also record your progress. Important: Complete each section before moving on to its corresponding reflection. When you return to the form, you will automatically be taken to where you last left off.

Develop a compelling Letter of Intent

A Letter of intent writing activity with example

LOI exercise.pdf

Grant Writing Activity - Craft a Powerful & Effective Letter of Intent (LOI)

Craft a powerful and effective LOI of your own using the worksheet below.
What story will you tell and why do you believe it will resonate with key decision makers?
How do you believe it will persuade others to support your cause?

Reflection

What aspects of community history or values did you tap into to develop a compelling story that will resonate with key decision makers? How did you decide if the message would persuade others to support your cause?

Click here to complete the final reflection in this chapter and record successful completion of the Grant Writing chapter. Note: Clicking will bring you back to where you left off when you completed your last reflection. When you have finished, please click "submit" to record completion of the Grant Writing chapter.

Skills & Knowledge for Submitting Your Grant Proposal for Review by Funders

Grant proposal example.pdf

You've been asked to submit a proposal?

Grant writing requires developing focused, compelling, succinct proposals that communicate your age-friendly teams's mission, needs, and impact. Well-crafted grant applications increase the likelihood of success by demonstrating clear purpose, innovative solutions, and measurable community benefits.

This template can help guide your efforts to develop a grant proposal.

PRO TIP: Work together to make it happen! Writing in teams of 2-4 individuals can be an effective way to craft a concise, effective, and successful proposal for the competitive environment of receiving grant awards.

Additional Resources

Lifelong Maine Funding Tool-Kit
Learn how to develop an effective strategy to fund your age-friendly initiaitves. Are you interested in getting a few ideas for successful fund and friend-raisers? Looking for grant writing tips? Find resources developed specifically for age-friendly communities by age-friendly communities.

Training to get funding and create change. The Grantsmanship Center
Their mission is to help private and public nonprofits make better communities. They provide training and publications that help organizations plan solid programs, write logical, compelling grant proposals, secure and manage grants, and create earned income opportunities.

Help with the writing process. Purdue OWL
While the writing process may be different for each person and for each particular assignment, the resources contained in this section follow the general work flow of pre-writing, organizing, and revising.These OWL resources will help you with the writing process.

Tools and Resources for Funding. Maine Philanthropy Center
Maine Philanthropy Center is a membership organization for funders, nonprofits, and consultants that works to make philanthropy more effective and equitable by building relationships, providing valuable tools and resources, and creating opportunities to learn and move our sector forward.

Meet Your Chapter Guide - Mary Krebs

Mary Krebs, MS, MPPM is the founder of Community Strategy Partners and a consulting member of the Lifelong Maine team. She has managed projects since 2012 conducting research focused on a wide variety of policy issues important to families and communities. Since 2019, Mary has served as a team member at UMass Boston's Gerontology Institute and the Collins Center for Public Management. Her work there assists over 20 municipalities to address livability challenges experienced by older adults. Her passion is to develop age-friendly action planning for improved vibrant communities.

During this chapter, we reviewed key skills and a few tools for identifying funding and grant writing activities.
If you have any questions as you are going through the material, please email: lifelong@maine.edu.

The Lifelong Maine Skill Building Series was developed as part of the Community Connections project.
Funding for the project was provided through support of the Governor's Cabinet on Aging and Office of Aging and Disability Services.
We are deeply grateful for the funding and for the thought leadership provided by Elizabeth Gattien, Coordinator of the Governor's Cabinet on Aging.

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