Hershey Heartwarming Young Heroes GYSD Grant

The Hershey Heartwarming Young Heroes GYSD Grant supports youth-led projects for Youth Service Month and Global Youth Service Day. Open to U.S. and Canadian youth aged 5-25, grants of $250 or $500 are available, depending on volunteer engagement. Projects should address community needs and foster inclusivity among diverse youth volunteers. Successful applications will partner with local organizations and focus on relationship-building. A total of $50,000 in grants will be awarded, encouraging meaningful community service.

NOTE: The application is due at 11:59pm Your Local Time.
In partnership with The Hershey Company and Hershey’s Heartwarming Project, YSA will award Hershey Heartwarming Young Heroes Youth Grants for Youth Service Month & Global Youth Service Day projects. Youth changemakers—aged 5 to 25—in the U.S. and Canada are eligible to apply for these grants to lead and engage their peers in awareness, service, advocacy, and philanthropy projects in their communities.
This year, youth may apply for grants of either $250 or $500 depending on the number of youth who will be participating as volunteers (project planners, project leaders, and day-of volunteers). $250 grantees will be required to engage at least 25 other youth as volunteers while $500 grantees have a 50-youth volunteer minimum requirement. A total of $50,000 in grants will be awarded.
Projects may address any issue or community need that is important to the youth project leaders and their peers. All proposed projects should engage a diverse group of youth volunteers from different social backgrounds and provide opportunities for those youth volunteers to create meaningful connections with their peers, caring adults, and community partners, while developing social awareness and relationship skills.
The strongest applications will have a partnership with community organizations that work on the issue being addressed and/or start or expand an ongoing service program. They will also include opportunities for relationship-building among participants and the community both during the project as well as once it has been completed.

Eligibility

Proposed projects must be youth-designed and youth-led;
Projects must take place during Youth Service Month, with some activity on Global Youth Service Day strongly encouraged;Please see the website for specific dates and timeframes.Projects must take place in and impact the community where the youth applicant lives;
Youth applicants must engage youth from different social backgrounds as volunteers (including, but not limited to young people of color; young people from low-income families or neighborhoods; and other youth who are usually served, but not asked to serve such as youth with disabilities, youth in the foster care system, youth from military families, youth in the juvenile justice system, youth who are immigrants or refugees, youth who are English Language Learners, etc.) as well as first-time volunteers;
Youth applicants must engage their peers as volunteers throughout all facets of their proposed project—from planning and implementation to celebration and recognition.
All youth ages 5-25 in the United States (including U.S. territories and military bases & DoD schools) and Canada are eligible to apply.Grant funds may be used for:Supplies you need to complete your project
Ex. Lumber for pantries or garden beds, yarn for hats and scarves, paper for promotional flyers
Recognition items and refreshments for volunteers that do not exceed 40% of the awarded grant
Local transportation for youth doing service
Postage, copying, and printing directly related to your project

Ineligibility

Grant funds may not be used for:
Food or supplies that will be directly donated to project recipients.Food or supplies that will be used to make meals or supplement a donation drive for a packing event are allowed
Ex. You cannot purchase cans of food for a food drive, but you can purchase food that will be used to teach a budget-friendly cooking class
Expensive equipment that will only be used once. If the equipment will be used many times in the future, be sure to explain that in your budget
Direct payments to people, like hiring someone to speak at your event
Anything called “miscellaneous” that you do not fully explain
Funding of daily operations for ongoing programs or any long-range expenses not directly related to the proposed project