Grants
2024 Quick Stats:
Project Proposals - 20
Organizations submitting proposals - 19
Total combined amounts requested - $67,665
Average project request - $3,383
Total funding membership approved - $45,660
Total donations added by members during or after meeting - $8,850
Final Total amount granted by Bill Long Foundation - $54,510
Average project received - $2,726
Specific data shown in spreadsheet below.
Application Process
The Bill Long Foundation (BLF) provides grants to projects and activities that meet basic human needs or enrich the cultural life of the Oberlin community and environment. We encourage applications from organizations not previously funded. Grants typically range from $500 to $10,000 (the 2023 grants averaged $2,648).
The application process is simple:
1. Complete the application form and attach supporting documents. Need help? Contact us!
2. Find a member of BLF who thinks what you’re doing is a good idea and would sponsor your request. This could be you! To become a member and sponsor yourself make a donation of $10 or more ($5 for students).
3. Please submit your completed request by email to blfoberlin@gmail.com. If you need an alternative method, you can use one of these:
● US mail: Bill Long Foundation, P.O. Box 0141, Oberlin, OH 44074
● Personal delivery to: Krista Long, Ben Franklin/MindFair Books, 13 West College Street, Oberlin
Grant applications must be submitted by Friday, February 2, 2024
4. Participate in our annual membership meeting Wednesday, April 3, 2024, to present your request and answer our members’ questions. The membership votes on grant requests at this meeting. It is mandatory that someone be present who is knowledgeable about your request. Groups who fail to do this rarely get funded. This meeting may be held online due to COVID restrictions.
5. Submit by Tuesday, October 1, 2024, a brief written mid-year report acknowledging receipt of funds and providing a summary, as specific as possible, of how funds were used and how effectively the goals of your project were met. Including photographs with your report is encouraged. Those photographs may be posted to the BLF website.
Questions? Contact
Brandon County (brandon.county@gmail.com)
Julia Robinson (robinsonjm0@gmail.com)
Mid-year report (PDF version)
Mid-year report (DOC version)
Mural Project in downtown Oberlin
Photographs of projects receiving funds from the Bill Long Foundation
(Photos provided by organizations receiving BLF grant funding)
From Lorain County Community Guide - November 10, 2022
Organizations that have received BLF Grants in the past include:
American Association of University Women
Barefoot Dialogue
Bill Long Foundation Tools & Training Program
Bonner Center for Service and Learning
Boys and Girls Club of Lorain County
City Fresh
Common Ground - Cindy Nord Center for Renewal
Community Action to Save Strays (CATSS)
Credo Chamber Music
DuBois Project of Oberlin
Family Promise of Lorain County
Firelands Association for the Visual Arts (FAVA)
Friends of Westwood Cemetery
GED Program
George Jones Farm
Get with the Program, Inc
Girls Electronic Arts Retreat (GEAR)
Girls in Motion
Habitat for Humanity
Hymn Society
Icho Daiko
John Frederick Oberlin Resident Council
La Leche League of Oberlin
Listening Post
Lorain County Imagination Library
Lorain County Rape Crisis Center
MAD* Factory
Neighborhood Alliance/Senior Services
Neos Dance Theatre
New Agrarian Center (George Jones Farm)
Ninde Scholars Program
Northern Ohio Youth Orchestra (NOYO)
Oberlin African American Genealogy Group
Oberlin Big Parade & Festival
Oberlin Center for the Arts
Oberlin Chalk Walk
Oberlin Choristers
Oberlin College Financial Literacy Peer Advisors
Oberlin College Office of Religious & Spiritual Life
Oberlin Community Land Trust
Oberlin Community Mural Project
Oberlin Community Music School
Oberlin Community Services (OCS)
Oberlin Community Supporting Immigrants
Oberlin Community Youth Scholarship Fund
Oberlin Heritage Center
Oberlin Early Childhood Center
OberlinKids Collaborative
Oberlin Public Library
Oberlin Schools - Eastwood/Prospect PTO
Oberlin Schools - Eastwood/Prospect STEM
Oberlin Schools - Eastwood Elementary School
Oberlin Schools - Farm Collective
Oberlin Schools - High School Interact Club Backpack Program
Oberlin Schools - High School Band
Oberlin Schools - High School Bike Club
Oberlin Schools - High School Drama Club
Oberlin Schools - High School Guidance Department
Oberlin Schools - High School Hi-Y
Oberlin Schools - High School HOBY
Oberlin Schools - High School Interact Club
Oberlin Schools - High School Library
Oberlin Schools - High School Media Club
Oberlin Schools - High School Middle Years IB Program
Oberlin Schools - High School National Honor Society
Oberlin Schools - High School Orchestra
Oberlin Schools - High School Ski Club
Oberlin Schools - International Baccalaureate
Oberlin Schools - Langston Middle School PTO
Oberlin Schools - Langston Middle School 8th Grade Washington DC Trip
Oberlin Schools - Langston Middle School Field Trip
Oberlin Schools - Langston Middle School Model UN
Oberlin Schools - Langston Middle School Room 200
Oberlin Schools - Open Room Opera
Oberlin Schools - Science Camp
Oberlin Schools - Special Needs Pre-School
Oberlin Skate Park
Oberlin Underground Railroad Center
Oberlin Unitarian Unversalist Fellowship
Oberlin Weekday Community Meals Program
Oberlin Winter Market
Oberlin Youth Soccer Association
Ohio Dance Theatre
Our City Gates: Alpha House Project
Providing Oberlin With Efficiency Responsibly (POWER)
Road to Hope/Margeau House
Ruby N. Jones Community Scholarship Fund
Senior Enrichment Services of Oberlin - Neighborhood Alliance
Slowik Music Institute (Credo Music)
Spanish In The Elementary Schools (SITES)
The Bridge
Western Reserve Land Conservancy
Wilson Bruce Evans Home Historical Society
Zion Community Development Corporation