How the Montgomery County Community Foundation Gives Close to Home in Texas

With a total of 254, Texas has more counties than any other state in the U.S. Not every county has its own community foundation to address local needs, but a lot of them do, including Montgomery County. Just north of Houston and headquartered in The Woodlands, the Montgomery County Community Foundation (MCCF) is interested in a lot of different things going on in this part of Texas.

At the close of last year, MCCF hosted its annual award reception and announced its commitment to 42 local groups. The funding, which totaled $180,200, came from 29 funds that span a vast array of interest areas. These include everything from helping the elderly and disabled to heritage preservation, children in foster care, and arts and culture. Meanwhile, other funds here support local wildlife, the poor, and equipment needs for nonprofit operations.

MCCF has been awarding grants since 1999, mainly channeling donor-directed funds. However, there are three unrestricted funds that are a little more flexible for emerging needs in the county. For these—Buckalew Endowment Fund, Frankie Alexander Benevolent Fund, and Jason & Marti Mann Family Fund—the foundation’s board of directors and distribution committee decide where support goes, instead of the donors themselves. This board is made up of private citizens who are involved with diverse sectors in the county.

Newer Funding

To add even a little more variance of support into the mix, MCCF had a new fund that awarded grants during the last year called the Randolph Yeakley Animal Welfare Fund. Animal-focused groups, like The Woodlands Dog Park and Henry’s Home and Human Sanctuary, received these grants recently. Meanwhile, other newly funded groups include the Conroe Symphony Orchestra, Crisis Assistance Center, and Interfaith Community Clinic.

County pride is strong in Texas, and like many funders here, this one works with donors to specifically benefit the people of Montgomery County. Despite the fact that MCCF mostly operates through restricted funds, local grantseekers will be pleased to know that unsolicited grant applications are still welcome here.

Better yet, grantseekers don’t have figure out which of the many funds held at MCCF are most relevant to their operations because there’s just a single grant application to cover them all. Yet it’s still a good idea to get familiar with the different funds and who’s behind them in case your organization is selected for an award in the future.

A Single Application

The foundation provides a link to its grant application on its website. Applications are due by September 15 of each year. This is not an online process though, so completed applications must be mailed or hand-delivered to the foundation office by the due date. Slowly but surely, the total amount of grants awarded to local groups has been increasing each year at MCCF.

Learn more about how this foundation gives locally in IP’s full profile of the Montgomery County Community Foundation.

Related: