Kicking off the New Year with a Grant Cycle!

Starting Thursday, January 6, 2022 the Mary Black Foundation will be accepting grant applications for its first grant cycle of 2022. The mission of the Mary Black Foundation is to invest in people and communities for improved health, wellness, and success in Spartanburg County. The Foundation has funds available for grant requests within its two priority areas: Early Childhood Development and Healthy Eating & Active Living.

Early Childhood Development

Early childhood development is defined by the Foundation as the process of growth that occurs prenatally through the first five years of life. Improving the health and wellness of Spartanburg County through a focus on early childhood development will require efforts that address:

1. Children’s relationships with families and other caregivers
2. Children’s physical, emotional, social, and cognitive development
3.  Adolescent pregnancy and improving birth outcomes

Healthy Eating | Active Living

Efforts to increase the availability and affordability of fresh, healthy foods will include:

1. Addressing the underlying causes – i.e. food desert mitigation strategies
2. Reducing barriers to making healthy eating decisions, and
3. Encouraging connections between existing infrastructure, such as farms and schools, to help create better community access to healthy foods

Improving the health and wellness of Spartanburg County through increased physical activity will require efforts that:

1. Remove barriers to engaging in physical activity
2. Create more opportunities for active transportation and physical activity, and
3. Encourage the use of existing active transportation infrastructure and  physical activity resources

To determine if your organization should apply for funding from the Mary Black Foundation, first review information about our Focus Areas: Early Childhood Development and Healthy Eating | Active Living.

Before submitting an application for a grant in Early Childhood Development or Healthy Eating | Active Living, potential applicants must meet with the Foundation’s program staff.  We strongly recommend that you meet with staff at least 30 days prior to the grant deadline. Contact Amy Page, on 1/6/2022 or after, to schedule a grant consultation.

The grant deadline is 5:00 p.m. on February 10, 2022 for both Early Childhood Development and Healthy Eating & Active Living applications.

More information will be available under the ‘Apply for a Grant’ section of the website on Thursday, 1/6/2022.