Most people think that if they find a Christian foundation that gives grants to Christian organizations, then they have found the solution to their problems. They think: Christian organization + Christian foundation = money. The answer is not that simple, unfortunately.
There are over 80,000 foundations in the United States. However, that number can be reduced dramatically. Many of these foundations don't give to Christian organizations. There are only approximately 5,000 plus foundations that give to Christian organizations. Even among the foundations that identify themselves as Christian, there are only a small number of these foundations that actually accept grant requests.
It is important to know which foundations are Christian, and which accept applications. It is likewise important to know those foundations which don't identify themselves as Christian, yet still give to faith based organizations. There are many that do support faith based organizations yet do not identify themselves specifically as Christian. That's where databases like www.christianfoundationgrants.com come into play. These databases help cut down the 80,000 foundations into a manageable number.
Once the search is down to a manageable number, the specific search for those foundations that might fund your organization can begin in earnest. My next blog will talk about the the steps in the grant process.
--William High