The Wells County Foundation, INC.

The mission of The Wells County Foundation, Inc. is to participate in the enhancement of the quality of life within the Wells County community. Consideration will be given to grant requests in the following areas: arts and culture, civic affairs, community development, education, youth, environment, animal welfare, recreation, health and human services.

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In general, the Foundation does not award multi-year grants. With the exception of the scholarship funds administered by the Foundation, grants are not made to individuals. Awards are made with the understanding that the Foundation has no obligation or commitment to provide any additional support. Awards to make up operating deficits, post-event or after-the-fact situations will not be made.

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The Foundation operates without discrimination as to race, national origin, religion, gender, gender preference, age, or disability or that perceived as a disability in the consideration of grant requests. Likewise, grants will be awarded only to those organizations operating without the aforementioned discriminations.

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Requests for support of projects presented by religious groups will be considered if a general community need is being met and the project does not promote the teachings or doctrine of a particular church or religious organization. No grants will be made to any political organization or to support attempts to influence the legislation of any governing body other than through making available to the community at large the results of non-partisan analysis, study and/or research. Please see guidelines for school corporations for details relating to grants to public school corporations.  No grants are made for travel related expenses.

In reviewing grant proposals, the Foundation gives careful consideration to:

• The potential impact of the request and the number of people benefited;

• An innovative approach;

• The degree to which the applicant works with or complements the services of other community organizations;

• The extent of local volunteer involvement and local support for the project;

• The organization’s demonstrated fiscal responsibility and management qualification;

• The possibility of using the grant as seed money for matching funds from additional sources;

• The ability of the organization to obtain necessary additional funding to implement the project; and

• The ability of the organization to provide ongoing funding after the term of the grant has expired.

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Each grant request is reviewed by foundation staff for completeness. A visit with the applicant organization may take place as part of the review process. The Grants Committee, comprised of board members and community representatives, will review requests. The committee will then make recommendations to the Board of Directors who select recipients of grants. 

Final acceptance or rejection of any proposal is at the discretion of the Foundation’s Board of Directors. Although the guidelines may have been met, acceptance is not guaranteed. Available funding and the merits of the proposal will influence the final decision. All applicants are notified by mail of the decision of the board.