HENDERSON, Ky. – Partnership of Women, known as POW! (pronounced like WOW), has completed its annual membership fundraising drive and will launch the 2021grant cycle on June 15^th. This is the ninth year for POW!

One successful Henderson organization will be awarded a single grant of $15,000 and two runners up will be issued grants of $3,000 each in November.

The first step in the grant cycle begins with a preliminary questionnaire which is available on the website www.POWFund.org or by request starting June 15^th. Deadline for the preliminary questionnaire is Friday, July 16, 2021 at 5 p.m. via email to POWGrants2021@gmail.com.

Only organizations in Henderson County, Kentucky, that serve residents of Henderson County are eligible to apply. This includes 501(c) (3) non-profits as well as governmental agencies including educators with school-based projects and other programs in Henderson County that have a 501(c) (3) non-profit designation fiscal sponsor.

Non-profit project areas that will be eligible for funding are as follows:

• Community Development: Activities that benefit residents within all segments of the population
• Education: Activities that promote or strengthen educational attainment, both in and out of the classroom in Henderson
• Health: Activities that improve health outcomes for Henderson residents
• Human Services: Activities that support public protection, employment/jobs, food and nutrition, agriculture, housing and shelter, public safety, disaster preparedness, and relief
• Capital Projects: Small capital projects that will be completed within two years from the date of the grant award

After review of preliminary questionnaires, semi-finalists will receive a formal invitation to submit a full grant proposal which must be submitted by August 31.

In 2020 POW! awarded $21,000 in impact grants to three local non-profits. The $15,000 grant was awarded to The Salvation Army and $3,000 grants were awarded to Henderson County Humane Society and OVAL/Tourism Commission.  Funds were also placed in the endowment.  POW! is committed to granting roughly half of the funds raised from membership into the community each year while setting aside remaining member funds for growth and future giving in a Community Foundation of Henderson endowment.

The following is the POW! 2021 grant cycle calendar:

ROUND 1 Review Preliminary Questionnaires and Naming of Semi-Finalists

June 15^th – July 16^th   Accepting Preliminary Questionnaires

July 17^th – Aug. 4^th    Grants committee screens all Preliminary Questionnaires and selects 6-8 semi-finalists.  Invitations to submit full grant proposals will be sent out via email with the full grant application. Semi-finalists will also be asked to schedule site visits in early to mid-September.  Emails will be sent to those not chosen as semi-finalists by August 4, 2021.

ROUND 2 Full Grant Review, Site Visits and Naming of Finalists

Aug. 5^th – Aug 31^st   Full grant submissions

Sept. 1^st – Sept. 22^nd Semi-finalists’ site visits will be completed.  Invitations to site visits will be sent to the full POW! Membership.

Sept. 23^rd – Oct. 13^th Grants committee selects finalists; Emails will be sent to finalists as well as those not chosen.

ROUND 3 Recipient Named
November 4^th Annual Dinner – Three finalists will make presentations and POW! members in attendance will vote immediately following.  Award recipients will be announced at the end of the dinner.

For more information regarding the 2021 Grant Cycle, please email Elizabeth Goeltz POW! Grants Co-Chair at POWGrants2021@gmail.com

POW! Partnership of Women is an organization made up of women motivated by the desire to create positive social change by collectively pooling financial resources to fund programs that invest in the advancement of our community. POW! garners gifts of all sizes from a broad base of women donors to support POW!’s grant-making objectives as well as increase the education and advocacy work on the benefits of long-term and sustainable giving. Annually, POW! collects membership gifts endowing half of the monies and granting the other half in a given year — growing the individual size of the grant each year with help of the Community Foundation of Henderson and the Western Kentucky Community Foundation of which POW! is an affiliate of both foundations. New membership will resume following the annual meeting in 2021 for the 2022 grant cycle. For more information, visit www.PowFund.org or www.Facebook.com/PartnershipofWomen or email POW! at info@PowFund.org