Ben B. Cheney Foundation
/OVERVIEW: The Ben B. Cheney Foundation supports basic needs, civic life, arts and culture, education, the elderly, health, social services and youth in Washington and Oregon.
IP TAKE: Nonprofits that work on multiple issues should contact this accessible, regional funder for project support, especially for one-time equipment and capital needs.
The Ben B. Cheney Foundation primarily awards project grants, but considers some requests for operational grants as well. Many grants fund starting new programs, investing in equipment, expanding programs to serve more people and developing new approaches to problems. The foundation prioritizes one-time capital and equipment needs, often supporting a few first-time grantees each year.
PROFILE: Established in 1975, the Ben B. Cheney Foundation is a private foundation based in Tacoma, Washington. Cheney started the Cheney Lumber Company in 1936 and worked in the lumber industry until his death in 1971. During his lifetime, Cheney was passionate about athletics and the game of basketball, as well as youth engagement and providing for the basic needs of underprivileged people. The foundation aims to "carry on the founder’s hopes and dreams for the people and communities that he knew and loved.” It funds local efforts for basic needs, civic life, arts and culture, education, the elderly, health, social services and youth.
Major interests include food, shelter, museums, recreation facilities, artistic performances and local universities. It also regularly funds the needs of older adults, health care programs, the needs of people with disabilities and programs to help youth become productive adults. In addition to grants, the foundation also awards scholarships to scholar-athletes from Pierce County and South Bend.
Grants range between about $10,000 and $40,000. Learn more about this funder’s local giving by examining its recent tax records. Grantmaking focuses on portions of Washington, Oregon and California. Most grants are in Pierce County Washington; however, the funder also supports communities in southwest Washington, the Olympic Peninsula (Thurston, Mason, Jefferson and Clallam counties) and Kitsap County. In Oregon, the Cheney Foundation mostly supports Medford and Jackson County, with a few other grants going to Grants Pass and Josephine County. The funder’s Northern California giving extends to Del Norte, Siskiyou, Humbolt, Trinity, Shasta, Lassen and Plumas counties. Past local grantees include the Boys and Girls Club of South Puget Sound, ARK Institute of Learning and the Children’s Museum of Tacoma.
This foundation accepts unsolicited letters of inquiry from nonprofits. There are no LOI deadlines. The board meets four times per year to review requests but may take six to nine months to notify applicants of its decisions. LOIs should be sent to the foundation by mail and also saved as a PDF and uploaded to the funder’s online grant management system. Direct general questions to the staff at info@benbcheneyfoundation.org or 253-572-2442.
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