Grant Application
Our Mission is to offer financial support to CREATIVE young adult outreaches and programs to the Churched, the Not-So-Churched, and the Unchurched.
Why is Friends so insistent on creativity?
The single largest segment of the church-going population that is less present than ever before is young adults. That statistic is not decreasing. It is increasing. One need only cast a glance around almost any Catholic Church during the weekend Masses. It will reveal fewer people present than 10 years ago and also reveal that a large number of those present are older people. Where are the young (adult) people?
Business as usual is achieving declining results.
Therefore, it is time to try new things. Friends wants to support that.
Overview
•Young Adults are defined by Friends as women and men in their twenties and thirties, married and single.
•Friends will not fund salaries or any existing programs, nor will it fund ministry to people who do not fall within the definition of young adults.
•Those ministering to young adults can apply for financial support for their creative ideas by following the guidelines developed by Friends.
•Grants can be renewed if the creative program exhibits successful results.
•Friends has established a Grant Committee that will review all proposals and make recommendations to the Board of Directors.
•The emphasis for seeking a grant from Friends rests with the word "creative". This is an opportunity for young adults and those who minister to them to try new things, incarnate some dreams, and reach beyond what already exists.
•Creativity does not guarantee success. It simply means trying new things. Friends wants to support those efforts.
The Churched, the Not-so-churched, and the Unchurched
We believe that as the number of church-going young adults continues to decline, greater efforts are needed to outreach and invite the middle group, the “Not-So- Churched”, into greater participation with our parishes, young adult activities, and other inter-generational ministries.
Friends of Young Adult Ministry is inviting people to put on their thinking caps and expand the comfort zone of young adult outreach and to dream big.
Very often young adults on either end of the religious spectrum are the recipients of some wonderful young adult ministry activities for themselves and for their like-minded peers. Yet all those people, as active and passionate as they are about their Faith and the mission of the church, pale in comparison to the vast number of young adults whose relationship to the same church is "not-so."
Friends of Young Adult Ministry would like to offer some limited financial assistance to changing the status quo.
Sharing the News, Both Good and Bad
Friends will require that a grant recipient submits a quarterly report, or in some cases, a one-time project report on the financed activity or project. An outline of questions and issues will be found on the Friends of Young Adult Ministry website. Upon receipt of each report, it will be posted on the website. This will allow others in Young Adult Ministry to learn from others' experience and, perhaps, devise plans of their own.
Reports to Friends will not reveal that all is successful. It is quite possible, since these are creative activities, they might not work, might have minimal lasting results, or might not turn out as well as expected. Learning from mistakes and failures can produce great successes in the future for everyone dedicated to young adult ministry.
Grant Application Form
The grant application form can be found on the "forms" page. Instructions can be found within the form itself. Please email completed forms to GrantRequest@foyam.org.
Deadline
Our grant program is an on-going program, therefore there are no deadlines. We evaluate grant application forms throughout the year.