To help serve people in need, Wilmington to take applications for service grant

Megan Pociask, Wilmington StarNews
·2 min read
Coastal Horizons, one of the organizations that has previously received funding from Wilmington's Human Service Grant.
Coastal Horizons, one of the organizations that has previously received funding from Wilmington's Human Service Grant.

On the heels of New Hanover Community Endowment grants, in which $53 million was given to philanthropic organizations, the city of Wilmington has opened its grant applications for the biennial Human Service Grant.

According to the city, the grant is intended to support organizations that provide services to Wilmington residents who are disproportionately impacted by adversity. The deadline for local organizations to apply is 5 p.m. on Friday, Jan. 26.

The Human Services Grant intends to focus on these five areas:

  • Lowering the risk of youth violence by providing programming that enhances academic success.

  • Improving economic conditions and promoting prosperity for low-to-moderate-income residents through services like job skills training.

  • Providing a safe haven for vulnerable residents including survivors of domestic and sexual violence.

  • Preventing displacement and loss of housing by providing housing repair for low-income homeowners.

  • Increasing access to healthy foods for households experiencing food insecurity or residing in a food desert.

Find more: How 19 New Hanover Community Endowment grants totaling $53 million will be spent

The city’s last Human Service Grant cycle received 38 applications, and the city provided more than $600,000 in funding. A significant portion of the applications came from programs offering youth violence prevention, economic improvement and access to nutritious food.

Funding the program is possible because it comes from the Community Development Block Grant and the U.S. Housing and Urban Development’s HOME Investment Partnership.

The budget for the fiscal year 2023-2024 is $689,489 with a $10,000 minimum and $50,000 maximum per program. While one organization could apply for multiple programs, no organization can receive more than $75,000 total.

Funded agencies can request up to 25% of the awarded grant at the time of the funding agreement, while the remainder of payments will be reimbursed once documents are submitted to show how the money was spent.

Organizations interested in applying must attend one of two mandatory Human Service Grant workshops on Jan. 5 at 2 p.m. or Jan. 12 at 10 a.m.

This article originally appeared on Wilmington StarNews: Wilmington, NC opens applications for Human Service Grant