Proposal Guidelines

Our mission is to improve the health, wellness, and quality of life of the Portsmouth community through insightful, effective, and coordinated philanthropic grantmaking and collaborations.

Our vision is to be a catalyst for maximizing outcomes through community assessment, collaborative development, and focused grantmaking.

We accomplish our mission by:

• Providing technical assistance to non-profits
• Serving as an advocate on health issues of importance
• Convening the community to address health issues
• Monitoring and reviewing pertinent community health status indicators
• Supporting innovative and established programs that address community health needs
• Soliciting grant proposals to address unmet community health needs
• Monitoring and reviewing the impact our grants have on community health and wellness.

No proposals will be accepted without first meeting with the Foundation President & CEO to discuss your potential project. This meeting will assist you in knowing whether you should actually submit a proposal to the Foundation as well as providing you with information about similar projects, other potential funding sources, applicability to other foundations, and best practices.

Grant applicants must clearly define the expected results, outcome measurements, impact of the process/program, and the program evaluation methodology to be used.  The Foundation staff will follow up on and review these metrics.  Grant proposals for general operating expenses are strongly discouraged. 

Sustainability plans are always encouraged, but in today’s fiscal environment they frequently lack practicality and predictability.  Your plan should demonstrate a very clear direction to generate funding for your program in the following years that does not include Portsmouth General Hospital Foundation.

Portsmouth General Hospital Foundation limits its funding to agencies serving Portsmouth.

Organizations which have not received a 501(c)(3) letter of determination from the Internal Revenue Service should not apply and will not be considered.

Grants are usually awarded for one year.  Subsequent year funding, if available, is at a signicantly reduced rate and requires a proposal for that year.  Grants from the Foundation are not a continuous funding source for the program

Proposals are due JANUARY 1 for the March Board of Directors meeting and JULY 1 for the September Board of Directors meeting.  Submission deadlines are strictly applied.  We also request that proposals NOT be submitted any earlier than 1 week prior to the submission deadline.

Grant applications WILL NOT BE ACCEPTED FOR:

• Elimination of deficits
• Support of political activities and lobbying
• Basic science and medical research
• Capital campaigns, to include buildings, major equipment, vehicles, etc.
• Endowment campaigns
• Travel
• Individuals
• Scholarships
• Sponsorhips
• Special events such as marathons, boat races, fund drives, yearbooks, etc.
• General operating expenses of established programs.  The Foundation strongly discourages requests for any other general operating expenses
• Programs that are the responsibility of government agencies

If at any stage in the proposal or grant award process additional revenue is secured from other grants, the United Way, etc., then the Foundation must be notified immediately.

Posted April 3, 2022