Grants and Other Resources
Connecticut Foodshare Community Impact Grants
2025 Connecticut Foodshare Community Impact Grant
The Connecticut Foodshare 2025 Community Impact Grant Program is now open and accepting applications to support projects at select food assistance programs in the Connecticut Foodshare network.
This competitive grant program is part of Connecticut Foodshare’s 2022-2025 Community Impact Plan to increase food access and transform the experience of obtaining food assistance in communities across the state. Food pantries, community kitchens, emergency shelters, and backpack programs that are active Connecticut Foodshare agency partners in good standing can apply. Only grant requests between $1,000 and $15,000 for eligible expenses will be considered, as outlined in the Grant Guidelines linked below.
Grant applications are due by 11:59 PM on Friday, February 28.
- IMPORTANT! Before you apply, be sure to review the full Grant Guidelines here.
- Access the online Grant Application Form here.
View the recording and slides from our January 22 informational webinar for an overview of the grant guidelines and examples form past recipients.
Partners that received 2024 Community Impact Grant funding may apply for 2025 funding if they have completed their 2024 funded project and submitted their final report by the grant application deadline, February 28, 2025. Submit your grant report here.
Previous Connecticut Foodshare Community Impact Grant Information
2024
View a list of 2024 Community Impact Grant recipients.
Final written reports for 2024 Community Impact Grants are due by April 30, 2025 using this form.
2023
View the 2023 Community Impact Grant Recipients
Additional Grant Resources Beyond Connecticut Foodshare
Foundation Fundraising and Grant Writing
Promotional Products Grant
4Imprint Promotional Products Grant: the One by One program offers $500 grants to nonprofits. Visit onebyone.4imprint.com/ to apply.
Mansfield Paper Company Discount Program
Connecticut Foodshare offers a partnership with Mansfield Paper to help programs lower their supply costs. Mansfield Paper is veteran owned and the area’s oldest distributor of food service disposables, janitorial supplies, and packaging products. They are offering a special discount to Connecticut Foodshare partner programs.
ReThink Disposable
Reduce your costs by replacing disposable serviceware with reusable products. ReThink Disposable, a program of Clean Water Action and Clean Water Fund, aims to minimize single use disposable packaging in food service to conserve resources and prevent waste.
New England Zero Waste Organizer, Amber Schmidt, can support any Connecticut Foodshare agency partner who wants to reduce their reliance on disposable products with logistics management and funding. Email jriberdy@ctfoodshare.org to get involved.
House of Bread, an agency partner and community kitchen in Hartford, decided to embrace a change in operations by switching to reuseable serviceware.
Resources for Running a Strong Nonprofit
Training and Development
Finance 101 for Nonprofits, presented by Connecticut Foodshare CFO Jeff Bartholomay. Review the slides from the presentation here.
Access resources you can shared from the presentation that you can adapt for your use:
- Donation acknowledgement letter
- Gift acceptance policy
- Record retention schedule
- In-kind gift processing form
- Conflict of interest policy
- Budget reforecast sample
- Privacy policy
The Alliance for Nonprofit Growth and Opportunity (TANGO)
Connecticut Nonprofit Alliance
Social Media Strategies
Connecticut Foodshare staff have gathered a list of strategies used by network partners to help raise food, funds, and awareness for their programs. Download the list.
Watch the recording from Connecticut Foodshare Marketing and Communication Director Merry Renduchintala and network partners from Enfield Loaves and Fishes and Norwalk Open Doors to learn about getting started or upping your game in social media. View the slides from the presentation.
New to Facebook? This video brings you through how to create a Facebook Page for your organization step-by-step.
Canva for Free Graphic Design
Canva is a powerful design tool to create logos, graphics, flyers, and more. There is a free version and a premium version. Nonprofits can apply to receive Canva premium features for free.
Watch this Video on How to Get Started
Welcome to Canva Instructional Video
Canva’s YouTube Channel has a playlist of 11 short videos (approx. 3 minutes each) on how to use different aspects of Canva.
Volunteer Management
There were many resources shared by agency partners at the 2024 agency partner conference.
Caring for Bethlehem, Enfield Loaves and Fishes, and Connecticut Foodshare's Volunteer Services Department shared tools and strategies for managing volunteers.
View or download presentations:
Share Best Practices
Connecticut Foodshare Network Connection is a free online discussion tool that helps connect you to your peers. It can help you share information, inspiration, and tips to support your work and create a more accessible and welcoming experience for your neighbors. Read an introduction and read the Network Connection User Guide.
Log in or sign up here.
Tips for Raising Community Support
Tips for Finding Food & Funds
There were many resources shared by agency partners at the 2024 Agency Partner Conference.
Diving into the “Donor Relationship Toolbox”
Cheshire Community Food Pantry's Executive Director, Dave DeFeo, shared the methods used to develop and stay connected to the donor community in Cheshire where there is an average of 250 discreet pantry item donations a month and near daily financial donations.
Cheshire Community Food Pantry brochure
Cheshire Community Food Pantry flyer
Leveraging the Letter Carriers/Stamp Out Hunger Food Drive
Kristen Skulte, President of the Board of the Farmington Food Pantry (and Connecticut Foodshare Network Relations Representative), shared how their program increased donations from the annual Stamp Out Hunger Food Drive.
Community Fundraising – Simple Ways to Raise More Money
Al Marino, former Director of Corporate Giving and Community Giving at Connecticut Foodshare, shared ways to find funds in your community. Chambers of Commerce, Third-Party Events, Connecticut Foodshare Walk Against Hunger, Event Sponsorships are all ways to bring funds in-house.
Creative Fundraising Tips
Chelsea French, Resource Developer at Thompson Ecumenical Empowerment Group (TEEG), shared innovative ways to engage the community in supporting your mission and work. TEEG has a long-standing partnership with the communities it serves and relies on each partnership to help keep their markets stocked with food. Through donation and drives at local churches, schools, and municipalities they have been able to increase the number of people they serve and the number of days they are open.
Building a Diversified Revenue Stream While Supporting Clients Served
Executive Director of Bread for Life, Missy Cipriano, shared how a community garden and apiary offer a way of growing community and supplying additional income to the nonprofit, while offering fresh farm to table meals for those served.
Community Relationship Building
Dona Ditrio of New Opportunities of Greater Meriden shared how communities have potential opportunities in their areas to build relationships with other potential contributors to pantry operations. Learn about Operation Pantry and Meriden Public Schools working partnership to address food security and other partners identified to support the community.
Give Healthy Fundraising Tool
#GiveHealthy is an online platform for raising food for your program that helps you get the foods you need, when you need them. The tool is easy to use and helps your community provide support through food purchases delivered to your organization on a schedule that works for you. Hear from partner program Neighbor to Neighbor’s Interim Director Duncan Lawson and #GiveHealthy representative Nora Noll about how the program works and how your program can get started.
Simplified Hydroponics: Increasing Access to Healthy Food
Levo International, a hydroponics nonprofit, joined the 2024 Agency Partner Conference to share a simple and effective way to provide more fresh food to your community.
