The 2026 application period for Women’s Giving Circle grants is open through February 28. This year we will fund a record $290,000 in grants to organizations that empower Frederick County women experiencing challenging circumstances. In particular, priority is given to programs in the areas of Education, Health, Housing, and Transportation.

While we are preparing to transition to a stand-alone 501(c)(3) organization, the Community Foundation is hosting and supporting our 2026 Grants program. Applications will be submitted through the Community Foundation application portal as in previous years.

Specific guidelines for the 2026 Grant Cycle can be found in Section 8 of the Community Foundation's Grant Seeker's Guidebook.

In the interest of making more impactful grant awards, we have raised the minimum/maximum amounts of our grants as follows:

• Minimum Grant Request: $5,000 per proposal.

• Maximum Grant Request: $50,000 per proposal

• Number of proposals per organization: Up to four proposals with a sum total of no more than

  $50,000.

The makeup of our 2026 Grants Committee is nearly complete and members are getting ready to begin. We are deeply grateful for the commitment of this year's committee members led by Stephanie Fitch (Chair) and Emilie Routzahn (Vice-Chair). We welcome the addition of one or more additional WGC members to the committee. Please contact Stephanie at stepanie.fitch@frederickwgc.org if you are interested. Our Grants Committee members always find the experience to be both interesting and rewarding, as they strive to be good stewards of the funds donated by our members.

In early April, the committee will be faced with the difficult task of allocating funds and will prepare their final list of recommendations. The grant award recommendations will be distributed to the WGC membership for review in late April and applicants will be notified soon after. The Annual Grants Award celebration will be held on June 3, where we will formally recognize our 2026 grant recipients. This event is always an exciting and happy time for our members and the funded organizations.

If you know of Frederick area nonprofit organizations that meet the mission objectives of the Giving Circle and the 2026 Grant Guidelines, please encourage them to apply!

For more information about the Women's Giving Circle Grants program: see https://frederickwgc.org/grants.