Board of Outreach Ministries

The Grant Process
Reflecting AHCC's long tradition of service to the community, each year the church provides funding to worthwhile projects and agencies which serve our neighbors. The responsibility for making funding decisions for almost all church outreach funds is managed by the Board of Outreach Ministries (BOOM). Grant funds are provided in the church's operating budget.  These grant funds have remained at approximately $210,000 for several years. BOOM also administers several restricted endowment funds which provide an additional $20,000-25,000 for support to domestic and international programs, as well as various fundraising events for special purposes.

From the church's budgeted funds, the Board has focused on funding programs which benefit our immediate neighborhood of Asylum Hill, but also funds other worthy causes that benefit people in other areas of Hartford. Typically, the opportunity to make a grant request is offered to organizations which received funding in the past and to other new programs that meet the criteria.


Grant Criteria
As the Board considers grant requests, it looks for programs that reflect the church's Christian values and mission of working through "sharing, caring outreach and worship".  Specifically, the Board funds programs that contribute to a healthy community, including housing, food, education and youth development, social services or community building.  The Board looks for evidence of the organization's financial strength and considers the impact a grant will have on the success of the identified program. Board members follow up with the organizations to monitor the success of the funded programs.

Information about Grants
Grants are made for only one year to ensure that each year the Board has the opportunity to consider all grant requests afresh. While there is an interest in supporting as many programs and agencies as possible, during recent years the number of recipients has been reduced so we can provide funding levels that will have the greatest impact on the success of the programs.     

The Process
The opportunity to request a grant is provided to projects and agencies that currently receive funding and to organizations and projects that have discussed their needs with the Director of Outreach Ministries, Tony Mein, during the course of the year. Following consideration of requests against the criteria, BOOM sends out a formal request for grant applications in June to those organizations that have been confirmed. Grant requests are typically received in late August.  

A member of BOOM meets with each grant requestor to fully understand the request and the programs for which funding is requested. These site visits are completed during September and October. During November, BOOM members meet, present their reports on the details of the requests and make funding recommendations that are presented to the Board of Deacons for final decisions.

The Board will share the results of the funding decisions by early winter.