Brookfield, Wis. – The Funeral Service Foundation has issued a call for grant proposals from funeral service-related businesses and charitable institutions throughout the United States and Canada who are providing elevated/emergency assistance or grief support to communities impacted by COVID-19. Grants will be awarded through the Foundation’s COVID-19 Crisis Response Fund.
Funding Priorities
Designed to be flexible, the fund provides grants for immediate needs within funeral service including emergency response to significant loss of life; grants to organizations providing services and resources to families with unresolved and complicated grief due to loss during this crisis; and grants for other important needs as funeral service continues to serve families during this rapidly evolving crisis. The costs associated with burials, memorialization, cremations, etc. are not eligible for funding.
“The grants are intended to ensure funeral service professionals have access to the supplies, equipment, personnel and resources necessary to safely and compassionately care for the deceased and their grieving families,” says Foundation Chair Anthony Guerra. “We’ve cast a wide net, understanding that the urgent needs will vary from community to community.”
How to Apply
Funeral service-related businesses and charitable organizations may apply online at https://www.funeralservicefoundation.org/covid19fund/. Applicants are required to provide a brief project narrative, a detailed budget, and will be asked to discuss the capacity to deliver on the request and define its success.
The Foundation’s Fund Advisory Committee reviews the grant proposals weekly allowing for swift deployment of urgently needed funding and resources.
Support the COVID-19 Crisis Response Fund
Gifts to the Funeral Service Foundation COVID-19 Crisis Response Fund directly support funeral service and grieving families in this time of loss and uncertainty. Since its launch last month, which began with a $200,000 allocation from the Funeral Service Foundation, individuals, funeral homes, organizations and businesses across the US and Canada have already answered the call to give. Notable contributions include a $50,000 lead gift from the National Funeral Directors Association, and a $100,000 matching gift from Homesteaders Life Company, which allows donors to double their impact.
One-time or monthly gifts at every level can be made online at https://www.funeralservicefoundation.org/covid19fund/. Those interested in supporting may also send checks, made payable to the Funeral Service Foundation to the FSF COVID-19 Crisis Response Fund, 13625 Bishop’s Drive, Brookfield, WI 53005, or call 262-814-1549 to make a gift by phone.
About the Funeral Service Foundation – FuneralServiceFoundation.org
Since 1945, the Funeral Service Foundation has served as the profession’s philanthropic voice. As the charitable arm of the National Funeral Directors Association since 1997, the Foundation receives operational support from NFDA and donors across the profession to help advance its mission to support funeral service in building meaningful relationships with the families and the communities it serves.
