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Building a Bright Future Through Grants

Awarding grant money is a large part of our mission to enhance the quality of life throughout Marshall County. We seek to help organizations who serve our county through innovative and creative projects, or those whose programs are responsive to the changing needs of our community.

The Community Funds and the Ralph C. Vonnegut, Jr. Fund Grant Applications are now open through Monday, August 3, 2026. 



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Available Grants

Marshall County Community Foundation accepts proposals for grants made from two categories of funds:

Community Funds and the Ralph C. Vonnegut, Jr. Fund.

If you are a 501(c)(3) organization, we invite you to explore our available programs and apply for grants in line with your needs.

Community Funds

Typically, the Foundation makes grants two times per year from the Community Fund. Applications are typically due February 1 and August 1, and recipients are announced in April and October, respectively.

Preference will be given to Community Fund grant requests of $5,000 or more.

For project requests less than $5,000, please consider applications to United Way R4 Grant, or Marshall County REMC Operation Round Up.

Ralph C. Vonnegut, Jr. Fund

We accept grant proposals once a year for the Ralph C. Vonnegut, Jr. Fund. The purpose of this endowment fund is to provide funding for environmental, educational, or recreational projects directly related to Lake Maxinkuckee.

Proposals are due by August 1 for this fund.

Awarded Grants


Spring 2026 Community Fund Grants

Fall 2025 Community Fund Grants

2025 Vonnegut Fund Grants

Spring 2025 Community Fund Grants

Past Vonnegut Fund Grants

North Central CTE Cooperative (District 11)
$50,000 to purchase equipment to launch a Year 1 high school aviation maintenance and flight program, delivered in partnership with AlphaFlight and aligned with Ivy Tech curriculum, expanding access to hands-on training in aviation and skilled trades and strengthening local workforce pathways.


Triton Jr/Sr High School
$8,000 to upgrade and repair existing robotics equipment and acquire additional robot kits, storage systems, and tools to expand capacity for hands-on robot construction and programming activities.


Marian University Ancilla College
$24,820 to establish the Marian Innovation and Makerspace at Marian University’s Ancilla College, to give students and Marshall County residents access to emerging technologies, hands-on learning, and collaborative innovation to strengthen local talent pipelines and support rural economic resilience.


We Love Swimming, Inc.
$42,000 for capital improvements and equipment replacements for the Plymouth Aquatic Center.


Boys & Girls Club of Marshall County
$50,000 for expansion of teen programming through the Paths to Purpose, a teen leadership and life skills program.


Woodlawn Health
$25,000 for the purchase of a mobile unit, to be used to provide comprehensive health services to those in need in Marshall County.


Marshall County Council on Aging
$15,975 to purchase MySeniorCare management and reporting system that includes a scanner, touchscreen computer, key tags, web-based staff system and online registration to support additional programming.


Marshall County Head Start
$6,295.95 to purchase an Interactive Smart Board for innovative learning for use in a preschool classroom serving children in Marshall County.


Maxinkuckee Performing Arts TheaterFoundation
$20,000 to perform a planning study focused on a future build project.


Michiana Public Broadcasting Corporation- WNIT
$2,500 to purchase lighting equipment that will enhance the quality of local programs and documentaries, to deliver more visually compelling educational and cultural content across all platforms.


UMatter2
$5,000 to support the UMatter2’s Vets & Chicks program to support veterans through animal-assisted therapeutic benefits while supplying fresh high-quality protein for an emergency food initiative.


Town of Bremen
$25,000 for Phase 1 to restore and stabilize its historic 1892 Standpipe, a rare 101-foot Gothic Revival landmark.


Marshall County Blueberry Festival
$7,500 toward the purchase of a flexible-use trailer that can be utilized by the Festival or other nonprofits as a security station, cooling station, or for other community needs.


Lake Maxinkuckee Association
$2,500 match grant to purchase a hydraulic system replacement for the Shore Station boat.


Lake Maxinkuckee Environmental Fund
$32,400 to conduct scientific investigation by drilling research wells to study the aquifer beneath Lake Maxinkuckee providing data for sustainable water management.


Maxinkuckee Yacht Club
$13,500 to purchase a new SmokerCraft tri-toon, to ensure safe, effective race management and continued support of its youth, women’s, and community sailing programs on Lake Maxinkuckee.


Dustin’s Place
$50,000 for renovation and build out of 6,000 sq ft of new space to allow the expansion of compassionate, peer-to-peer grief support for children and families who are navigating the profound loss of loved ones.


Heartland Artist, Inc.
$150,000 to transform the historic Montgomery Ward building into an arts and economic hub, supporting artists, attracting tourism, and driving economic growth — strengthening Marshall County as a center for arts and culture in the region.


Bread of Life Community Food Pantry
$6,000 for computer upgrades and new computer with office software, and to remodel flooring in the distribution area.


Garden Court Inc.
$25,000 to establish a fully equipped computer lab within the GC Horizons apartments to give residents access to technology, digital literacy training, and online resources to enhance telehealth, education and employment opportunities.


Wild Rose Moon
$10,000 for equipment to launch and increase video production capacity for emerging Marshall County collaborations with The Rees, Heartland Arts and similar organizations across Marshall County and within South Bend-Elkhart region.


Carter’s Ride, Inc.
$3,000 for suicide prevention services including Lifeline Connections (Alternative to Suicide) Peer Support Group for individuals who experience suicidal thoughts, ideations, or attempts and for community prevention trainings including Question, Persuade, Refer (QPR) Training, Applied Suicide Intervention Skills Training (ASSIST) and Cardiopulmonary Resuscitation (CPR).


Lake Maxinkuckee Environmental Fund
Lake Maxinkuckee Environmental Fund, Inc. was awarded $15,000 for the Lake Buoy to Monitor Lake Conditions and Collect Water Quality Information in Real Time in 2024.


Lake Maxinkuckee Association
Lake Maxinkuckee Association was awarded $15,671.02 for Speed Awareness Initiative and Intelligence Based Policing in 2023.


Lake Maxinkuckee Environmental Fund
Lake Maxinkuckee Environmental Fund, Inc. was awarded $2,500 for painting of Dragonfly Building Mural in 2023.

Grant Application Process

We accept grant proposals online through Grant Interface. If you have not applied before, you will need to create a new account.

Please reach out to Trinity Robinson at trobinson@marshallcountycf.org or 574.935.5159 if you have any questions about our grant application process.



Submit a Proposal

Community Fund Grants

MCCF considers grant requests only from organizations with 501(c)(3) IRS status or organizations with 501(c) IRS status whose request is charitable in nature for the following:

  • Start-up costs for new programs or the expansion of needed programs
  • One-time projects or needs
  • Other projects or needs specifically identified by MCCF

Additionally, we do not consider grant requests for:

  • Individuals
  • Sectarian or religious purposes
  • Long-term funding
  • Operating budgets
  • Post-event or after-the-fact situations

MCCF considers grant proposals for this fund for projects that benefit environmental, educational, or recreational projects directly related to Lake Maxinkuckee.

Every proposal we receive is evaluated based on the following criteria:

  • Organization
  • Program/project goals and objectives
  • Personnel
  • Activities
  • Materials
  • Timeline
  • Evaluation plan    

Additionally, we judge proposals based on information about:

  • Clear evidence of project need and innovative approaches involved.
  • Practical solutions to community problems and quality-of-life improvements for Marshall County residents.
  • Collaboration with partners and broad community impact.
  • Expected number of residents that will be served and geographic area impacted.
  • Financial stability of the organization and the financial controls in place to ensure effective fund utilization.
  • Avoidance of duplicating existing services in the community.
  • Capacity to leverage additional funding (e.g., matching grants) and ability to sustain the project post-grant.

Preference is given to applicants who have not received a grant from Marshall County Community Foundation in the past six months.

MCCF considers grant requests only from organizations with 501(c)(3) IRS status or organizations with 501(c) IRS status whose request is charitable in nature for the following:

Additionally, we do not consider grant requests for:

MCCF considers grant proposals for this fund for projects that benefit environmental, educational, or recreational projects directly related to Lake Maxinkuckee.

Every proposal we receive is evaluated based on the following criteria:

Additionally, we judge proposals based on information about:

Preference is given to applicants who have not received a grant from Marshall County Community Foundation in the past six months.

Ready to Apply?

We accept grant proposals online through Grant Interface. If you have not applied before, you will need to make a new account.


Apply

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