Category Archives: Veterans

Bass Pro Shops and Cabela’s Grants

Leave a reply

Bass Pro Shops and Cabela’s offer grant funding to projects in the United States and Canada in:

  • Conserving Wildlife and Habitat
  • Connecting New Audiences to the Outdoors
  • Advocating for Access and Sportsmen’s Rights
  • Supporting Military and Veterans
  • Strengthening Communities in the Missouri Ozarks

Applications are accepted on a continual basis.

Eligibility

This grant is open to:

  • 501(c)3 nonprofit organizations
  • 501(c)4 nonprofit organizations
  • Municipalities
  • Public institutions

Applicants must also:

  • Be located in the Missouri Ozarks Region, OR
  • Be located near a Bass Pro Shop, Cabela’s, or Tracker Boat Center, OR
  • Propose a project with a national scope

Funding

The application has the following options for request amount:

  • Less than $500
  • $500 to $2,500
  • $2,501 to $10,000
  • More than $10,000

The application has the following options for request type:

  • Support for a project or initiative
  • Support for an event
  • General operating support
  • Capital request for major support

Focus Areas

Conserving Wildlife and Habitat

Projects under this focus area might concentrate on:

  • Species Health through the North American Model of Conservation
  • Habitat Improvement and Restoration
  • Water Quality

Connecting New Audiences to the Outdoors

Image by Oladapo Olusola

Projects under this focus area might concentrate on:

  • Youth and Family Outdoor Adventures
  • Outdoor Skills Training
  • Multicultural Outreach

Advocating for Access and Sportsmen’s Rights

Projects under this focus area might concentrate on:

  • 2nd Amendment Rights
  • Outdoor Recreation Access Issues
  • Conservation Leadership & Advocacy

Supporting Military and Veterans

Projects under this focus area might concentrate on:

  • Caring for men and women in uniform
  • Connecting veterans to the outdoors

Strengthening Communities in the Missouri Ozarks

Projects under this focus area might concentrate on:

  • Health and Wellness
  • Economic Development and Poverty Reduction Initiatives
  • Arts and Quality of Life

Veterans and Nature Grant Program

The Veterans and Nature Grant Program is a joint project of the National Environmental Education Foundation and the U.S. Forest Service. They support projects that expose veterans to the physical and mental health benefits of time spent in nature.

Applications for up to $10,000 are due by March 1, 2024 at 11:59 PM PT.

Eligibility

This grant is open to 501(c)3 nonprofit organizations and groups with a fiscal sponsor who have a partnership with a public lands entity. Public lands staff must be involved in both the preparation of the application and adminstration of the project.

Public Lands – “Any federal, state, local, county, or regional land or waterway held in the public trust and/or spaces that are accessible to the public.”

Allowable Expenses

Grant funds may be used for:

  • Recreational and educational services
  • Equipment and supplies
  • Administrative costs
  • Billed labor

Funds may not be used to pay for transportation.

Potential Activities

Potential activities under this grant include:

  • Outdoor recreation (hiking, biking, fishing, etc.)
  • Community science programming
  • Environmental service projects
  • Adaptive programming
  • Conservation

Priority Consideration

Priority consideration will be given to projects that:

  • Work with an organization that serves veterans and include a letter of support from them
  • Discuss how they will address accessibility issues
  • Work with veterans who are BIPOC, LGBTQ+, and/or have disabilities
  • Involve Forest Service staff

Creative Forces Community Engagement Grant

The Creative Forces Community Engagement Grant is a joint program of the National Endowment for the Arts and the Mid-America Arts Alliance. The program funds projects that improve the health and well being of service members, veterans, and their families and caregivers through participation in the arts.

Applications are due by January 17, 2024 for all project types and funding levels:

  • One year emerging projects – up to $10,000
  • One year advanced projects – up to $25,000
  • Two year advanced projects – up to $50,000

All projects have a required 1:1 match of cash and/or in kind resources.

Eligibility

This grant is open to:

  • 501(c)3 nonprofit organizations
  • Units of state and local government
  • Federally recognized Native American tribes

who:

  • Are located in the United States including Washington D.C. and U.S. territories
  • Have at least three years’ experience with either programming for military communities or presenting arts based projects

Expected Outcomes

Participants

Photo by RDNE Stock project: https://www.pexels.com/photo/photo-of-soldiers-listening-to-others-7467857/

Participants in funded programs are expected to achieve gains in one or more of these areas:

  • Creative expression
  • Social connectedness
  • Resilience
  • Independence and successful adaptation to civilian life

Applicants and their partners are expected to achieve gains in one or more of these areas:

  • Building networks to support the creation and evaluation of improved programming
  • Strengthening their capacity to create and evaluate programs to better meet participants needs
  • Increased understanding of the value and impact of the arts

Program Requirements

Funded programs must work with at least one of the following populations:

  • Active-duty service members
  • Guardsmen and/or Reservists
  • Veterans
  • Family members of any of the above
  • Military Caregivers (family, residential and clinical)
  • Health care workers serving military-connected populations

Programs must also:

  • Be accessible to people with disabilities
  • Include the perspective of one or more local members of the target group in project design, planning, and implementation

Allowable Activities

Project Types

Image by renemilone

Projects may include:

  • Arts instruction
  • Creation of a work of art
  • Concert/performance or exhibition
  • Recording/filming/taping
  • Apprenticeship/internship/residency
  • Military/veteran family, and caregiver support

Delivery Models

Services may take the form of:

  • In-person or virtual classes that meet regularly
  • “Drop-in” style programs where no reservation/or enrollment is required
  • Participant cohort performance or exhibition showcasing the cohort’s work
  • Community or network building
  • A single, one time event

Art Disciplines

Participants may engage in creative pursuits including:

Photo by Tahir Xalfakuliyev: https://www.pexels.com/photo/sculptor-working-with-sculpture-18766826/
  • Crafts
  • Dance/movement
  • Design arts
  • Folk/Traditional Arts
  • Humanities
  • Literature
  • Media arts
  • Music
  • Musical Theatre/Opera
  • Oral Traditions
  • Theater
  • Visual Arts

Disabled Veterans National Foundation Capacity Building Grant

The Disabled Veterans National Foundation was founded in 2007 to address the gap in services for disabled and at-risk veterans. The Capacity Building Grant program provides funding to organizations across the United States assisting veterans with their physical and mental health recovery.

Letters of Intent for requests of up to $25,000 will be accepted November 1 – 30, 2023. Applicants will receive notification of approval on December 31 and full applications will be due on January 31, 2024.

Eligibility

This grant is open to:

  • 501(c)3 nonprofit organizations
  • 501(c)4 nonprofit organizations
  • Insitutions of higher education

Allowable Expenses

DVNF allows both direct and indirect expenses, but only in certain percentages.

  1. General programming projects – indirect costs of up to 15% of direct costs
  2. Professional development projects – indirect costs of up to 7.5% of direct costs

Direct costs may include:

  • Salaries, fellowships, and benefits
  • Consultants
  • Subcontractors
  • Equipment
  • Travel

Indirect costs include overhead and administrative costs that cannot be directly attributed to a single project

Potential Projects

Image by Krista Grear

All proposed projects must directly benefit veterans of the U.S. military. These might include:

  • Service animals
  • Equine therapy
  • Yoga
  • Art therapy
  • Recreational therapy

Review Criteria

All LOIs will be reviewed based on:

  • Meeting Foundation criteria
  • Aligning with the Foundation’s mission, vision, and funding focus areas
  • Furthering the Foundation’s philanthropic mission and strategic plan
  • Complying with the Foundation’s Conflict of Interest Policy