Brother, Help Thyself now accepting applications for grants
All organizations wishing to receive grants for the 2016 cycle must apply by Aug. 31
Brother, Help Thyself (BHT), the local organization that provides financial support to D.C. and Baltimore-area nonprofits dealing with the LGBT community or HIV/AIDS, is now accepting applications as part of its 2016 grant cycle. Throughout its 38-year history, the group has given out more than 1,000 grants totaling over $3 million to 178 different nonprofits, many of whom would be unable to continue operating if not for infusions of grant money.
The application process for grants went live last week, with all LGBT-serving 501(c)3s encouraged to apply. Applications can be found online on BHT’s website and will be accepted until 11:59 p.m. on Wednesday, Aug. 31. To qualify for a grant, a nonprofit organization must have a gross revenue below $2 million during 2015.
BHT awards grants from three funds: the Richard Van Der Karr Memorial HIV/AIDS Fund, which is designated specifically for nonprofits engaged in direct services to individuals living with HIV/AIDS and HIV-prevention or educational efforts; the Medford Fund, for the purchase of tangible capital goods, such as computers, refrigerators, and air conditioners, to benefit LGBT or HIV/AIDS communities; and the General Fund, which primarily deals with athletic, cultural, educational, or social programs that are not related to HIV/AIDS but benefit the wider LGBT community.
Once applications are submitted, qualified applicants will be asked to justify their application at grant hearings during the early fall. BHT will later internally deliberate and decide on whether to approve grants, and in which amounts, with recipients being notified in early December. The grants will officially be given out at a reception in January. Held in Baltimore and the District of Columbia on an alternating schedule, next year’s grant awards reception will be held at in the District. Dates and details on the grant hearings and the reception will be released in the coming months.
“The BHT Board each year looks forward to hearing from our grantees — both new and old — with their bold ideas and new and continuing projects,” BHT President Jim Slattery said in a statement. “We’ve already had a few inquiries about our grant application throughout the year from organizations new to us, so that’s a great thing. We always love to get applications from new groups, as this means we can help a new batch of LGBTQ people.”
Brother, Help Thyself’s 2016 grant application can be found at brotherhelpthyself.net/grants. All applications must be submitted by 11:59 p.m. on Wednesday, Aug. 31. For more information or further question, contact grant chair Dustin Dunn at grants.bht@gmail.com.
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