COVID-19 Resiliency Request for Proposals, 2021-2022
To meet the continuing and emerging needs of the community, the United Way of Western Connecticut (UWWC) COVID-19 Resiliency Grant will fund applicants seeking to address the following:
- The immediate and critical needs of the residents of greater Danbury, the city of Stamford, and greater New Milford affected by the COVID-19 pandemic. Services include housing supports, food insecurity, physical and mental health, or child care. Applicants can apply for funds to address the increased demand for services, operational distress, and/or increased costs to continue current services.
- The immediate and longer-lasting effects of the pandemic on the organization and/or clients. Applicants can apply for funds to implement strategies and solutions to bridge this crisis and to continue providing vital community services. Such efforts could include capacity building, improving internal processes and/or service delivery, equipping staff with appropriate technology and strategic planning.
Eligibility
- All 501(c)(3) organizations are eligible for United Way of Western Connecticut funding including those not funded in the past.
- Services must be provided in at least one of the 15 towns of UWWC's coverage area: Bethel, Brookfield, Bridgewater, Danbury, Kent, New Fairfield, New Milford, Newtown, Redding, Ridgefield, Roxbury, Sherman, Stamford, Warren, and Washington.
Amount of Grant
A maximum of $20,000 can be requested, with United Way reserving the option to award a lesser amount, based on demonstrated need and available resources. United Way encourages agencies of all sizes to apply for these funds; all amounts up to and including $20,000 will be reviewed with the same level of interest and scrutiny.
Timeline
Requests for Proposals are due by Wednesday, March 31, 2021. The applications will then be reviewed by UWWC Community Councils and staff through the month of April, with final funding decisions being announced Tuesday, June 1, 2021.
Application Attachments/Uploads
You will be required to complete and upload the following documents with your application:
- Organizational Organizational Diversity Breakdown Worksheet (Excel xls)
- Anti-Terrorism Compliance Policy (Word doc)
Additionally, we request that you submit a copy of your organization’s
- latest Form 990
- IRS determination letter
- current year organization budget
- most recent organization balance sheet with narrative, and
- a detailed description on how funds from this grant will be used to continue services--preferably provided in a budget format with narrative.
Grant Requirements
By applying for this grant, all applicants are required to fulfill the following grant requirements.
- Publicity - As a condition of this grant, the applicant is required to acknowledge UWWC in all media communications, public announcements (such as press releases), printed materials (such as agency newsletters and annual reports), and on your website and e-communications pertinent to the funded project. Please see UWWC’s Guidelines for Publicizing and Acknowledging Your Grant (PDF) for publicizing your grant in print, radio, and/or through social media. We appreciate advance notice of events with photograph opportunities as well as emailed jpegs of the photographs after they are taken for possible inclusion in UWWC’s Annual Report and other communication materials.
- Success Stories - We request at least one written or verbal success story from participants of the funded program and the funded agency itself to be submitted to UWWC quarterly. Please see UWWC’s Guidelines for Impactful Success Stories (PDF) which provides best practices for sending us stories. Submission for these stories for the most part will be via email and are due by the end of each of the following months: September 2021, December 2021, March 2022, and June 2022.
- United Way of Western Connecticut Programs - We consider all funded organizations to be a partner in our work to fight for the education, health, and financial stability of the people who live in the communities we serve. As such, we request that the agency help to actively promote and refer clients for UWWC programs. These programs consist of the ALICE Enrichment Fund, Healthy Savings Program, ALICE Saves, etc. We will provide all materials and training to help you promote and refer your clients to these programs, if appropriate. A virtual training will be provided to all agencies awarded funds in July 2021. To review all of our current programs, please explore our website.
- Reporting Requirements – We require reports to be completed for any funded program. You will be asked to upload required reports to the UWWC website in the same manner as you are completing this Request for Proposal (RFP). These reports will have the following deadlines:
- Interim Report Due Date: 01/31/2022
- Final Report Due Date: 06/30/2022
Deadline
The application is due by 5 p.m. on Wednesday, March 31, 2021.
Application Management
- Please include your organization name in the filenames you upload, for example: "Program Budget_ABC Agency"
- After clicking "Submit", an email with a copy of the form will be sent to the Primary Contact Email Address you provide below. Please retain this message for your records.
- If you register for an account, you may access a save feature that will allow you to save and return to your application prior to submission.
If you have an account, you may log-in and save your progress and submission by utilizing "Save Draft" and "Preview" at the bottom of this form.- Help Guide: Accessing Your Saved Draft (PDF) Acceder a su borrador guardado (PDF)
Contact
If you have any questions about the application, please contact your local United Way of Western Connecticut Community Impact Coordinator:-
Greater Danbury/Northern Fairfield County and City of Stamford (Danbury, Bethel, Brookfield, Newtown, New Fairfield, Redding, Ridgefield, Stamford)
Victoria Scofield at 203-883-6704 -
Greater New Milford/Southern Litchfield County (New Milford, Bridgewater, Kent, Roxbury, Sherman, Warren, and Washington)
Katy Francis at 860-354-8800