Community Foundation of Northern Illinois

Confirmed in Compliance with National Standards for U.S. Community Foundations.

Grants

Margaret K. Aldeen Christian Ministry Fund

The fund shall exist "to meet the food, housing and medical needs of the poor, primarily through organizations with a Christian emphasis." - Margaret K. Aldeen

Eligibility

To be eligible for funding, an applicant must:

Be a 501(c)(3) tax-exempt, not-for-profit organization or an organized group carrying out a charitable purpose for the public good in an efficient manner
Provide services within the Illinois counties of Winnebago, Boone, Ogle, and Stephenson
Be operated and organized in such a manner that no applicable anti-discrimination laws are violated
Be current on all final reports for grants from the Community Foundation; if your agency has a program currently being funded with a Community Foundation grant and your final report is not yet due, you must submit an interim letter letting us know the progress of your program (do not use the online final report form for this)

We Look For

The Margaret K. Aldeen Christian Ministry Grant Committee of the Community Foundation of Northern Illinois will give priority to organizations that have a Christian emphasis or background. We look for projects that:

Address the needs of the economically disadvantaged, especially with regard to their food, shelter,
and medical needs
Address the root causes of hunger, homelessness, inadequate medical care and a lack of other basic needs for the underprivileged
Build positively on the rich diversity of our community
Present innovative, creative, clear and practical proposals which build on community strengths
Present clear work plans which show the ability to achieve the project’s goal
Encourage cooperation and reduce duplication of services
Demonstrate leadership and develop the leadership potential of the community
Demonstrate quality, vision, effectiveness, collaboration and good management
Provide long-range fund development planning beyond the funding period

Grants from the Aldeen Christian Ministry Fund are typically between $1,000 and $3,000.

Grant Cycle

The deadlines for submitting all applications are January 15th and July 15th of each year. If the deadline falls on a weekend or holiday, proposals are due on the next business day. Grants under $10,000 are typically awarded in mid April for the January grant cycle and mid October for the July grant cycle. Grants of $10,000 and over are typically awarded in June for the January grant cycle and in December for the July grant cycle.

Carefully consider the funding cycle that allows you to receive funds prior to the start of your program. Grant applications for summer programs should apply to the July grant cycle the year before the program begins.

Only one proposal per organization per grant program will be considered during the Community Foundation's fiscal year (July 1st through June 30th).

Exceptions to this rule:

You are invited by a Grants Committee to resubmit an application in the following grant cycle.
Organizations participating in a collaborative may apply once a year as a member of the collaborative, and once as itself or as part of a second collaborative.

Grant Committees are comprised of Community Foundation Trustees and Community Advisors. The Community Foundation's Board of Trustees approves all grant awards.

All grant recipients are required to submit an online final report upon completion of the project for which the grant was made. This report must include the outcomes achieved by the project and a detailed budget explaining how the funds were used. The report may also include an oral presentation or other components as deemed necessary by the Community Foundation.

Final reports are due within one year of grant approval. You may access the final report by clicking here. Past grant recipients will be excluded from future grant consideration if a final report has not been completed for prior funding. If an organization submits an additional application while a Community Foundation funded project is still in progress, an interim letter must be completed and returned by the grant cycle deadline. (Do not use the online final report form for this.)

Grants are made for one year only; should circumstances allow, a multi-year commitment may be considered.

Exclusions

Grants are not made from the Margaret K. Aldeen Christian Ministry Fund for the following:

Ongoing operating and project support
Annual & capital campaigns
Budget deficit
Endowments
Regranting of funds
Projects and programs that promote a religion or require participation in a religious activity as a condition for receiving services. However, grants may be made to faith-based organizations for other purposes.
Or to individuals

Online Application

Please Note: As the Community Foundation strives for complete accuracy in its grant programs, we reserve the right to update grant application forms 60 days before the deadline. Only applications started within 60 days of deadline will be accepted. While you may browse the online application at any time, you are reminded to check your calendar before you begin filling out any grant application.

To start a new application, click New Application .

To access an application that you chose to save and finish later, click Saved Application.

Please Note: Your computer must use one of the following commonly used internet browsers and have cookies enabled in order to access the online application.

Internet Explorer version 5.5 SP-2 or higher
Netscape 6.2.2 or higher
Netscape Communicator 4.76 or higher
Internet Explorer 5.1.4 for Mac OS X

Budget Worksheet: For your convenience, we are providing a budget worksheet that you can download by clicking the link below. You may find it easier to complete this worksheet in paper form before entering the information into the online form.

Budget Worksheet

If you have questions, please contact Linda Sandquist, Program Officer at (815) 962-2110 ext 12 or lsandquist@cfnil.org.