The Anita Weaver Fund was established in 1997 through a generous bequest whose purpose was to “meet the housing needs of the indigent elderly.” The Anita Weaver Fund is held in trust and invested by the Episcopal Foundation of Northern California (EFNC). Grants from the Anita Weaver Fund are administered by Episcopal Community Services of Northern California (ECSNC) on behalf of EFNC.

Episcopal Foundation of Northern California (EFNC)

The mission of EFNC is to make disciples, raise up saints, and transform communities for Christ by enhancing the financial vitality of the congregations and institutions of the Episcopal Diocese of Northern California. EFNC accomplishes this through education, consultation, management, and coordination with individuals and local and diocesan leadership.

Episcopal Community Services of Northern California (ECSNC)

The mission of ECSNC is to support, empower, and equip congregations as they seek to transform the communities they serve in the name of Christ. ECSNC accomplishes this through grantmaking, mentoring, and training for congregations engaged in community service and social justice work.

Organizations Eligible to Apply

All Episcopal parishes, missions, and recognized ministries in the Episcopal Diocese of Northern California are eligible to apply for Anita Weaver Grants. If two or more congregations wish to apply jointly for a shared program, one should be designated as the lead grant recipient for administrative, legal, and financial purposes. Congregations are encouraged to collaborate with other faith communities, with nonprofit organizations, and with government agencies if appropriate; however, only Episcopal parishes, missions, and recognized ministries may receive grants directly from the Anita Weaver Fund. Applicants are encouraged to develop broad support for the proposed program within the congregation; these grants are not available to individuals, whether clergy or lay, or to subgroups within congregations. If funded, the grant agreement must be signed by the designated Program Leader, by the Senior Warden, and by the Rector/Vicar/Clergy-in-Charge.

Types of Programs Funded

The purpose of the Anita Weaver Grants, in keeping with the donor’s intent, is to address the housing needs of lower-income older adults. “Housing needs” may be addressed by programs designed to help people to move from homelessness to permanent housing, such as emergency shelter, rapid rehousing, transitional housing, permanent supportive housing, or affordable housing. Housing needs may also be addressed by programs designed to prevent at-risk residents from becoming homeless, such as short-term rental or mortgage payment assistance, short-term utility payment assistance, or assistance with emergency repairs to housing. We welcome proposals for other types of programs that address the housing needs of lower-income older adults. All programs funded by the Anita Weaver grants must be in compliance with applicable federal, state, and local fair housing laws.

Population Served

Programs funded by the Anita Weaver grants should serve primarily lower-income older persons. For grant purposes, “lower income” refers to residents at or below 80% of Area Median Income, as adjusted for household size; these income limits are published annually for each county by the California Department of Housing and Community Development. For grant purposes, “older adults” refers to people 50 years of age and older. (While terms like “elder” and “senior” typically refer to persons over 65 years in age, people ages 50-64 are often vulnerable to housing problems and homelessness due to age discrimination in employment, age-related disabilities, and minimum age requirements for Social Security, Medicare, and other benefits.) Recognizing that community-based programs may serve people of a variety of income levels and ages, programs seeking Anita Weaver grants should attest that at least 50% of those to be served will qualify as “lower-income older adults.”

Multi-Year Grant Options

The total amount of an Anita Weaver Grant is up to $15,000 over a three-year period. Applicants may request one of three payment options:

• Startup Grant: $7.5K Year One + $5K Year Two + $2.5K Year Three
• Level Grant: $5K Year One + $5K Year Two + $5K Year Three
• Growth Grant: $2.5K Year One + $5K Year Two + $7.5K Year Three

For all options, funding for Years Two and Three is contingent upon timely submission and ECSNC approval of an annual report from the funded congregation or ministry. Applicants may request less than the full amount of $15,000 if desired.

Grant Application, Funding, and Reporting Timeline for 2021 Applications

January 1, 2022: Applications Open for 2022; ECSNC Mentors Available for Consultation

March 15, 2022: Optional One-Page Letter of Interest Due; ECSNC Mentors Matched to LOIs

May 1, 2022: Full Application Due to ECSNC

July 1, 2022: Year One Grant Awarded

Spring 2023: ECSNC Mentor Site Visit

May 1, 2023: Year One Report Due

July 1, 2023: Year Two Grant Awarded upon ECSNC Approval of Year One Report

Spring 2024: ECSNC Mentor Site Visit

May 1, 2024: Year Two Report Due

July 1, 2024: Year Three Grant Awarded upon ECSNC Approval of Year Two Report

Spring 2025: ECSNC Mentor Site Visit

October 1, 2025: Final Report (Year Three and Overall Due)

All applications are to be submitted in Microsoft Word format (.docx or .doc) for the proposal narrative and Microsoft Excel (.xlsx or .xls) for the proposal budget. All reports are to be submitted in Microsoft Word format for the narrative report and Microsoft Excel for the financial report. Any pictures, tables, charts, or graphs should be incorporated in the Word and Excel files. Any letters of support or other externally sourced documents may be scanned and sent in Adobe Acrobat (.pdf) format along with the application.

Submitting Applications, Reports, and Correspondence

Please send applications, reports, and any other correspondence to Betty Harrison-Smith, ECSNC Vice President, at bettyharrisonsmith@gmail.com.

All applications are to be submitted in Microsoft Word format (.docx or .doc) for the proposal narrative and Microsoft Excel (.xlsx or .xls) for the proposal budget. All reports are to be submitted in Microsoft Word format for the narrative report and Microsoft Excel for the financial report. Any pictures, tables, charts, or graphs should be incorporated in the Word and Excel files. Any letters of support or other externally sourced documents may be scanned and sent in Adobe Acrobat (.pdf) format along with the application.

Letter of Interest

The Letter of Interest is due by March 15, 2022.

Please email your Letter of Interest to: bettyharrisonsmith@gmail.com .  Please do not send it to any other address.

A Letter of Interest for the 2022 Anita Weaver Grant should include the following:

1. Please identify the project and describe in one paragraph how it will meet the needs of the housing needs of lower-income older adults and which category of housing: emergency shelter, rapid rehousing, transitional housing, permanent supportive housing, and/or affordable housing.

2.  A description of the need for this ministry.  What do you want to accomplish?
3.  The amount of your planned request for all three years.
4. The endorsement of your clergy in charge and your Senior Warden.

Application and Report Format

All applications are to be submitted in Microsoft Word format (.docx or .doc) for the proposal narrative and Microsoft Excel (.xlsx or .xls) for the proposal budget. All reports are to be submitted in Microsoft Word format for the narrative report and Microsoft Excel for the financial report. Any pictures, tables, charts, or graphs should be incorporated in the Word and Excel files. Any letters of support or other externally sourced documents may be scanned and sent in Adobe Acrobat (.pdf) format along with the application.

Submitting Applications, Reports, and Correspondence

Please send applications, reports, and any other correspondence to Betty Harrison-Smith, ECSNC Grants Chair, at bettyharrisonsmith@gmail.com.

To provide maximum flexibility, applying organizations are not required to fill out an online or paper application form. Instead, we ask you to prepare a single Word document following the outline below, accompanied by an Excel spreadsheet for the program budget and a Word table or an Excel spreadsheet for the program timeline.

Applying Organization

Please enter on separate lines:

Name of Proposed Program

Name of Organization (parish, mission, or recognized ministry)

Street Address

City, State, Zip

Organization Email

Organization Phone

Application Contact Person
Full Name of Contact Person (first, last)

Title/Position in Applying Organization

Contact Email

Contact Phone

List of Collaborating Organization

List any other organizations that will provide funding, in-kind donations, staffing, facilities, formal consultation, or any other form of program support. These may include other faith communities, nonprofit organizations, foundations, business organizations, or government agencies.

Program Summary for Public Communication (100 words)

In 100 words or less, please provide a summary description of the proposed project suitable for use in public communications by ECSNC, EFNC, and the Office of the Bishop.

Executive Summary (1 page)

In one page or less, provide an executive summary of the proposed program addressing the major areas of program design listed below. This is a program summary for grantmaking review by ECSNC, EFNC, and the Office of the Bishop. We suggest that you write it after completing the sections below.

Needs Statement (1 page)

In one page or less, describe the need(s) to be addressed by the proposed program. Be as specific as possible: for example, “lack of transitional housing in our town for lower-income older-adult couples currently staying separately in emergency shelters” rather than something more general like “homelessness in California.” If applicable, describe the need as part of the Continuum of Care in your community for persons experiencing homelessness or at risk of homelessness. Provide current or recent statistical information to document the need in your locality. Such information may be obtained from your county’s HUD Homeless Point-in-Time Count, U.S. Census and American Community Survey data, public housing agencies, homeless-serving organizations, or news media. Please feel free to include a brief anonymous story about a person in your community who has been affected by this need.

Organizational Qualifications (1 page)

In one page or less, describe your organization’s experience and capacity to address the need described above. You may include the applying organization (parish, mission, or recognized ministry) and any collaborating organizations listed above. If this is an established program, briefly describe its history, its current capacity in terms of the number of people served, the number of employed staff, and the number of volunteers involved. If this is a new program, briefly describe any other programs (such as rotating shelters, feeding programs, or clothing programs) that have given your organization experience with the population to be served by the new program. If your proposed program calls for specific facilities, please describe the facilities available or needed. If your proposed program calls for specific cultural or language competencies, please describe how your organization will address those.

Goals, Objectives, and Measurable Outcomes (2 pages)

In two pages or less, please state three strategic goals of your proposed program. Goals are strategic expressions of your organization’s vision and mission that take into account your context, your capacity, and the need to be addressed. For example, if your program’s vision is to “create a community where all people have adequate and affordable housing,” and your program’s mission is “to ensure that all residents have basic utilities for safe and healthy housing,” then one strategic goal might be “to ensure that older adult do not lose access to basic utilities in their home due to temporary inability to pay utility bills.”

For each strategic goal, list one or more operational objectives. Objectives are operational implementations of your strategic goals that are relevant, realistic, and actionable. To continue the example above, objectives might include “refer lower-income older adults to public utility assistance programs,” “provide clients with up to 3 months of payment assistance for basic utilities,” and “educate clients about water conservation and energy efficiency to lower future utility bills.”

For each operational objective, indicate one or more ways of measuring outcomes. These might include metrics (quantitative measures), milestones (time-based measures), or benchmarks (comparative measures relative to external standards). For example, measurable outcomes might include the metric “refer 50 residents to California LIHEAP home energy assistance program,” the milestone “within the first year,” and the benchmark “match 100% of one-time emergency LIHEAP grant for two additional months.” Indicate what qualitative difference this measurable outcome might make for the people served, such as “prevent hypothermia from lack of home heating, reduce cold-related health problems, and improve winter comfort for lower-income older adults.”

Program Activities (2 pages)

In two pages or less, describe the activities that the proposed program will undertake to complete the operational objectives and attain the strategic goals. In the example above, these might include “meet with local provider for California LIHEAP home energy assistance program,” “meet with local senior center and elder-serving organizations,” “set up payment mechanism and tracking system for LIHEAP matching grants,” “list our church in community resource directories,” and “post program information on our church website.”

Program Timeline (1 page, Word table or Excel spreadsheet)

In a Word table or an Excel spreadsheet, please provide a summary timeline of program activities. In rows, list major activities to be performed. In columns, note “start,” “finish,” “repeat,” or “update” by quarter for each of the three program years. For example: in a row for “set up program web page,” list “start” in column for PY1 Q1, “finish” in PY1 Q2 and “update” in PY2 Q1.

Program Budget (Excel spreadsheet)

In an Excel spreadsheet, please create a program budget including projected expenses and income for the three-year grant period (July 1, 2021 – June 30, 2024). In rows, categorize expenses under staffing, program, facilities, communications, fundraising, finance, and administration; provide additional rows for total expenses, total income, and net income. For income, please distinguish potential income (e.g., example, grants pending or prospective) from actual income (e.g., grants received). In columns, list each program year separately; provide three-year total column for each category. If this is an established program, list actual expenses and income for the past year in a separate column.

If your budget is already set up in Quickbooks or a similar accounting system, please export the budget to an Excel spreadsheet in the format described above.

Program Sustainability (1 page)

In one page or less, describe your plan for the long-term sustainability of the program. Consider financial sustainability (including plans for budget oversight, fundraising, diversification of income streams, and any debt financing or insurance needed). Consider human resource sustainability (including staff and volunteer recruitment, training, and retention). Consider environmental sustainability (including energy conservation, water conservation, solid waste reduction, recycling/composting, and any relevant land use or environmental health concerns). Finally, consider program resilience in the event of disaster, pandemic, or other emergencies. Note that a well-designed program will not only anticipate problems but can also contribute to solutions that enhance the sustainability and resilience of your congregation and your community.

Evaluation (1 page)

In one page or less, describe your plans for evaluating the proposed program. The evaluation methodology should relate directly to the goals, objectives, and outcomes described above. Evaluation tools might include intake surveys, outcome surveys, data analyses, financial analyses, client interviews, and stakeholder focus groups. Well-designed programs will gather data and provide feedback throughout the grant period.

We welcome up to three letters of support from collaborating organizations, public officials, or program clients. Please request letters of support well in advance, preferably on official letterhead, and scan them to Adobe Acrobat (.pdf) files. Submit any letters of support by email together with the grant application.

As indicated in the grantmaking timeline above, annual reports will be due 10 months into each grant year (annual report due May 1) in order for the applying organization to be eligible for funding for the following grant year (grant released July 1). The final report is due three months after the end of the final grant year (final report due October 1) to permit sufficient time for data analysis and retrospective evaluation. An ECSNC mentor may make a site visit once per year.