THE CHARIS FUND IS A SMALL PRIVATE FOUNDATION WITH 11 VOLUNTEER TRUSTEES. WE HAVE A LIMITED AMOUNT OF ANNUAL FUNDING AND IN RECENT YEARS HAVE SEEN REQUESTS FOR GRANTS INCREASE FAR BEYOND OUR FUNDING CAPABILITIES. AT THE SAME TIME, THE DOLLARS GIVEN DO NOT GO AS FAR AS THEY USED TO. BECAUSE WE HAVE LIMITED FUNDS, THE CHARIS FUND LIMITS THE NUMBER OF GRANT REQUESTS CONSIDERED TO 50 IN SPRING AND 50 IN FALL. IN THE HOPES OF A MORE EQUITABLE PROCESS, WE HAVE SET-UP A 2-PART PROCESS. FIRST PHASE IS SUBMISSION OF A SINGLE PAGE EXECUTIVE SUMMARY FOR REQUESTING A GRANT: O ORGANIZATIONS ARE ASKED TO PREPARE A SINGLE PAGE PDF REQUEST WITH THE FOLLOWING INFORMATION: O NAME, ADDRESS AND WEBSITE OF ORGANIZATION O AMOUNT OF FUNDING REQUESTED (NOT MORE THAN 7,500) O A SHORT, 2-3 PARAGRAPH EXECUTIVE SUMMARY WITH SOME INFORMATION ABOUT YOUR ORGANIZATION BUT MORE IMPORTANTLY, THE PROJECT OR PROGRAM FOR WHICH FUNDING IS REQUESTED. O YOUR ORGANIZATION'S NAME MUST BE ON THE SUMMARY AND IN THE NAME OF THE P

THE GOAL OF THE CHARIS FUND IS TO GIVE "SEED MONEY" TO HELP INITIATE OR EXPAND PROGRAMS THAT, ONCE ESTABLISHED, WILL DEVELOP ONGOING AND SUSTAINABLE COMMUNITY SUPPORT RATHER THAN PROVIDING ONGOING SUPPORT TO ESTABLISHED PROGRAMS AND CHARITIES. WE PREFER TO SUPPORT NOVEL PROGRAMS AIMED AT THE CAUSE OF A PROBLEM RATHER THAN "TREATING THE SYMPTOMS." LARGE ORGANIZATIONS ARE WELCOME TO REQUEST A GRANT AND ARE OFTEN FUNDED, BUT WE OFTEN GIVE PREFERENCE TO SMALLER ORGANIZATIONS WHERE OUR MODEST GRANTS MIGHT MAKE A BIGGER IMPACT. CHARIS FUND DOES NOT GIVE TO "THE ARTS," NOR TO COLLEGES AND UNIVERSITIES WHOSE ALUMNI/AE CAN PROVIDE NEEDED FINANCIAL SUPPORT. CHARIS IS PROHIBITED BY LAW FROM GIVING TO POLITICAL OR LOBBYING ORGANIZATIONS OR TO ONLY PRE-SELECTED CHARITIES. IT IS ALSO PROHIBITED FROM PROVIDING SCHOLARSHIPS OR SPONSORING INDIVIDUALS. CHARIS GRANTS TYPICALLY FALL IN THE 3,000-6,000 RANGE, SELDOM EXCEEDING 10,000. GRANTS ARE SOMETIMES MADE FOR LESSER AMOUNTS THAN REQUESTED. EACH GROUP T