Domestic Hunger Grants

How to Apply: Domestic Hunger Grant

Grant Awards

• Awards will be for a three-year cycle, with a maximum award of $10,000 per year, contingent upon fund availability and the completion of annual evaluations.
• New applications are accepted annually. The application period typically opens in spring.

Priority Focus Areas

Domestic Hunger Grant Application draw on the strengths of communities to identify and address local issues such as:

• Food security
• Clean water
• Housing
• Job access
• Human rights
• Policy change
• and more

Eligibility & Criteria

• At a minimum, ELCA World Hunger Domestic Hunger Grant applicants must be:
• a 501(c)3 nonprofit organization;
• able to demonstrate a strong, recognized and established relationship with a congregation, ministry or institution of the ELCA;
• able to demonstrate a strong, recognized and established relationship with the community in which the work will take place; and
• actively engaged in the work described in the application.
• Given the priority areas described above, ELCA World Hunger especially seeks to support ministries that:
• clearly address root causes of hunger in communities;
• demonstrate strong commitment to diversity and inclusion in leadership and decision-making, including direct engagement of people who themselves are experiencing hunger or poverty;
• create or foster opportunities for advocacy toward systemic change;
• leverage local assets through partnerships with other local ministries and organizations and invest their own time and financial resources in the ministry.
• As a ministry of the church, ELCA World Hunger will prioritize ELCA congregations in the award process.
• Organizations that discriminate among guests and neighbors, require participation in faith-related activities as a prerequisite for services or apply as “pass-through” organizations will not be considered for funding.

What you need to apply

• To apply, you will need to answer the following questions:
• What systemic issues are being addressed in the communities served?
• How does your organization or project plan to address systemic issues in the communities served?
• Who are the participants?
• What is the total amount you are requesting?
• Is this a single year or a multi-year request?
• Is this request part of an existing organization or ministry or a new ministry or organization?
• Is the organization or ministry directly implementing or is it in partnership with other entities?
• To apply, please fill out our Letter of Inquiry form linked below under the “Apply” section beginning May 1, 2024.

If invited to complete a full grant application in ELCA GrantMaker, you will need:

• Your organization’s contact and tax identification information. If awarded a grant, you will be required to provide a current letter verifying your organization’s 501(c)(3) status.
• The current budget for your organization and the projected budget for the ministry described in your application.
• A personal testimonial from a stakeholder in your project or ministry who has lived experience of poverty or hunger, describing the ministry's impact and importance for them and/or their community - in their own words.
• A letter of support, from rostered or lay leadership of an ELCA congregation, that illustrates the relationship between the ministry and the congregation. How does the ministry’s relationship with the congregation nurture life-changing relationships with God, one another and the world? If the applicant is an ELCA congregation itself, the letter can come from its own leadership.
• All documents included with your application must be PDFs.

Application Timeline

• Letter of inquiry form open: May 1–June 16, 2024
• Letter of inquiry review: June 17–August 4, 2024
• Response to the letter of inquiry (decline or accept): August 23, 2024
• Invited applicants to complete grant application in ELCA GrantMaker: August–September 2024
• Review and communication between ELCA World Hunger staff and grant applicants on proposal: August–October 2024
• Award notifications shared with applicants: November 2024
• 2025 Domestic Hunger Grants start date: March 2025