A $10,000 Opportunity for Nonprofits

A company in Texas, Community TechKnowldge or CTK, has launched their 2011 Heart and Soul Grant Award Program which will award over $25,000 USD to registered nonprofits, charities and other voluntary organizations in the United States, Canada, United Kingdom and the Republic of Ireland. When I read about this earlier this morning, I thought that this was an amazing opportunity that needs to be shared, but the first thing I wondered was who are these wonderful people?

What is Community TechKnowledge?

While it is the CTK Foundation that awards the grant, this all starts with a company, CTK, that was founded in 1999 by Kathryn Engelhardt-Cronk, the former Vice President of Community Development at United Way.

CTK was the first software company of its kind, made to fulfill new technology needs unique to nonprofits—including comprehensive, centralized client and funder data collection and sophisticated inputs and outcomes reporting.

 The tagline of the company is "Technology with Heart," and this Heart and Soul Grant Award Program, seems to be directly in line with that.

The CTK's Foundation 2011 Heart and Sol Grant Award Program

I will lay out the details of the program below, but first, here is a clip from CTK outlining the program and its motivation:


One major benefit of participating in this project is the opportunity to revisit the mission statement of your nonprofit in a more creative way. To win, you have to channel your creativity to write an original four- to eight-line poem or stanza that reflects the work or mission of your nonprofit. I absolutely love the foundations recommendation to, "Ask your supporters to write a poem for you."

To be eligible for a grant from the CTK Foundation Fund, organizations must be registered 501(c)3 nonprofits, charities or voluntary organizations.

The winning nonprofits will receive one of the following awards:

• 1st place award is a song inspired by their submission(written and recorded by songwriter Bill Dillon -- who was recently exonerated after 27 years in prison thanks to Innocence Project of Florida -- and produced by Jim Tullio of Butcher Boy Studios), plus a cash grant of $10,000 (US) or it's value in foreign currency
• 2nd place award is a cash grant of $5,000 (US) or it's value in foreign currency
• The 2011 Blogger's Choice Award, where a randomly selected blogger participating in spreading the word among nonprofits about the H&S Grant Award Program will choose a nonprofit applicant to receive a $1,000 cash grant or it's value in foreign currency
• 2 steel-stringed guitars, signed by all members of Los Lonely Boys (which you can auction for fund-raising)
• Up to 20 technology grants, valued at $10,000, to nonprofits that indicate an interest

You must submit an application by midnight on March 28, 2011, and you'll be notified if you've won on April 10. Visit the online application to apply.

So GET STARTED nonprofits and GOOD LUCK!!
(Personally, I am really hoping IHRF takes advantage of this opportunity!)