John W. Alden Trust Grant

The John W. Alden Trust Grant supports organizations in Eastern Massachusetts that provide care and services to children and youth (ages 0-24) with disabilities or those at risk due to social factors. Grants can fund capacity building, program support, and more, but applicants must demonstrate a focus on high-risk youth and meet specific criteria. The Trust emphasizes sustainability and may require matching funds for grant approval.

The John W. Alden Trust was established under the will of Priscilla Alden in honor of her father. In her will, Miss Alden specified that grant support should be directed toward "organizations providing care and administering to the needs of children who are blind, retarded, disabled or who are either mentally or physically ill ... or organizations engaged in medical and scientific research directed toward the prevention or cure of diseases and disabilities particularly affecting children."
The Alden Trust provides support to organizations serving children and youth (ages 0-24) with physical, mental, or intellectual disabilities; and to organizations engaged in research focused on the prevention or cure of diseases and disabilities affecting children.
Organizations serving high-risk youth who are high risk by social or environmental factors and/or are engaged in behaviors that increase the likelihood of adverse health outcomes may meet the Trust’s criteria if the youth they serve are experiencing measurable effects from at least two of the following recognized risk factors:

• living at or below the poverty level
• experiencing school failure (having dropped out of high school)
• living in a foster home or group home
• living in a homeless shelter or motel
• having involvement with the juvenile justice system
• are pregnant or parenting
• having known involvement with drugs or alcohol

Eligibility

Grants are limited to organizations serving youth in Eastern Massachusetts.Grants will be considered for the following purposes: capacity building, program support, capital campaigns, multi-year projects, start-up support and general operating support.Note: Grants for general operating support will only be considered if the entire organization is focused on serving disabled or high-risk youth, as defined above.The Trustees will frequently require an applicant organization to seek funds to match a grant from the Trust.

Ineligibility

Grants will not be made to support endowment campaigns.
Applicant organizations that neglect to submit a final report on previous programs supported by the Trust should not expect to receive a favorable response on a current request.
The Trustees generally will not fund projects as the sole funder as it raises concerns about the sustainability of a program.Organizations where a service/program for disabled or high-risk youth is only one component of several services will not be considered for general operating grants; those organizations should request support for their specific programs/projects.