Schwemm Family Foundation Grant

The Schwemm Family Foundation Grant supports initiatives promoting environmental enhancement, local history preservation, and community health. It aims to strengthen communities in Oregon, California, and the Chicago area by funding projects that protect ecosystems, document culture, and foster equitable access to resources. Eligible applicants include 501(c)(3) non-profits dedicated to measurable outcomes that align with the Foundation's goals. The Foundation does not fund operating support or scientific research.

Philosophy
John and Nancy Schwemm, lived outwardly their core beliefs that compassion and personal integrity should serve as the guiding principles of life’s endeavors, and that our lives are more meaningful if we participate in bettering our communities.
Based on those principals, the Schwemm Family Foundation seeks to promote programs and initiatives that connect people to the past, help improve the way we live in the present, and identify and promote healthy land stewardship far into the future.
Enhancing natural environments
The Foundation seeks to promote programs and initiatives that strengthen communities through the enhancement of natural environments.
The Foundation will consider grant requests that sustain and protect resilient, local ecosystems and related biodiversity by focusing on proactive conservation, and/or comprehensive restoration.
Funded Projects Will:
Target environmental protection/enhancement efforts at local scales that contribute to ecosystem resiliencyHave clear, measurable goals with long-term ecological benefitsBe based on scientific principles of ecology and/or ecosystem restoration
Preserving local history and culture
The Foundation seeks to promote programs and initiatives that help instill a sense of connection and belonging to one’s community through the preservation of local history and culture. The Foundation will consider grant requests that better communities by preserving and sharing history and cultural heritage through literature, digital archiving, and/or other interpretive means.
Funded Projects Will:
Document or interpret some portion of pre-1935 community history or cultureFocus on a specific local communitySpeak to a wide audienceProvide an enduring component accessible to the general population
Promoting healthy communities for all
The Foundation seeks to foster thriving communities by supporting projects that build healthier and more equitable communities.
Funded Projects Will:
Promote local communities in the planning and implementation of environmentally focused land use decisions and/or support parks, green spaces, urban trail corridors, community gardens, and urban farms.Integrate with ongoing community efforts aimed at enhancing equitable access of resources to individuals in underserved communities.

Eligibility

You are eligible for a SFF grant if:You are a current 501(c)(3) non-profit organizationYou are working in Oregon, California, or the Chicago areaYour proposed project aligns with at least one of the Foundation’s three goals and meets each of the specific bulleted criteria of said goal(s)Your proposed project can likely be completed within 12 months of fundingYour proposed project has clearly defined and measurable outcomesYour proposed project does not seek to influence legislation or participate in any political campaign

Ineligibility

Grant requests for operating support, loans, endowments, and unrestricted funds, will not be considered.The Foundation does not fund scientific research and generally does not fund salaries, travel, or building construction.