$1.7 million in additional funding available for local nonprofits through the Basic Needs Giving Partnership

July 20, 2020 – In response to the growing health and economic needs due the pandemic, regional leaders of the Basic Needs Giving Partnership have made an additional $5 million immediately available to nonprofits through the community foundations in Green Bay, Fox Valley and Oshkosh. $1.7 million is available for local nonprofits through the Greater Green Bay Community Foundation and an additional $140,000 was allocated to the Emergency Response Fund.

The Greater Green Bay Community Foundation will distribute the funds through a process focused on removing barriers for nonprofits and streamlining both the application and distribution of funds. Similar to the Emergency Response Fund, applications will be accepted on an ongoing basis and grant awards will be flexible to allow nonprofits to respond to immediate needs in our community. More information about the application process will be communicated to nonprofits as it becomes available.

“The Basic Needs Giving Partnership has long invested in innovative and collaborative approaches to ending poverty in the region,” said Dennis Buehler, president and CEO of the Greater Green Bay Community Foundation. “This funding will extend that support to the immediate needs of organizations serving those most affected during this time of crisis and allow us to continue to be responsive to the needs of this community.”

Representatives from the Basic Needs Giving Partnership’s board of directors, leadership from all three community foundations, and lead funders agreed to release the additional funds from the endowment to meet the unprecedented need in Northeast Wisconsin. Funds are raised through the U.S. Venture Open with lead funders U.S. Venture, J. J. Keller Foundation, Oshkosh Corporation, ThedaCare and Thrivent Foundation.

The U. S. Venture Open, the nation’s largest one-day charitable event dedicated to eliminating the root causes of poverty, has been modified this year in light of the pandemic. A media-thon will educate and inform our entire community about how the funds raised help the most vulnerable members of our region.
While the event will look different this year, the goal of raising funds to end poverty in Northeast Wisconsin remains constant. More information available at www.USVentureOpen.com.

A note to our nonprofit partners about these funds

More about the regional commitment

Spring 2020 grant awards

Thanks to the generosity of donors who have participated and supported the U.S. Venture Open over the last 34 years, the Greater Green Bay Community Foundation was able to commit $1.58 million this spring to local nonprofits working to end poverty in our community. These dollars will fund 12 innovative collaborations among 34 local nonprofits over the next three years.

The U.S. Venture Fund for Basic Needs is part of the Basic Needs Giving Partnership, a regional effort to end poverty in Northeast Wisconsin. Funds are granted to local collaborative initiatives aiming to bridge the connection to those in poverty, with solutions and resources to advance the framework of our community.

Read about the grants awarded in spring 2020