Procedure

The William Howard Charitable Trust only makes grants for certain purposes. They are:

The treatment, rehabilitation, care or training of mentally or physically handicapped or disabled children in Winnebago County, Illinois; and for athletic or recreational facilities or opportunities for economically disadvantaged or underprivileged children in Winnebago County, Illinois.

Operating Grants

In making grants for operating purposes, each grant must represent at least 25% of the annual operating expenditure for a specific activity or program conducted by the organization. Alternatively, a grant that does not meet this 25% test may still be made if it would result in the Trust being one of the three largest sources of operating funds for the organization or program. In that case, the grant would have to represent at least 10% of the organization’s or program’s annual operating expenditures.

Philosophy

The Trust’s income may fluctuate significantly from year to year. Therefore, it is difficult for the Trustees to fund long-term programs unless the programs can develop alternative funding sources. As a result, the Trust will generally fund “start-up” programs or provide funds for a program on an interim basis while other funding sources are being developed, rather than fund programs on a permanent or on-going basis. This general approach, however, is not a hard-and-fast rule, and there are some programs that the Trust has funded in every year of its existence.

Schedule

Grant requests can be received from qualified organizations only. The Trustees meet annually and grant funding once a year. Grant requests are usually solicited by letters to the organizations in late March, with a deadline of late June for submittal. The Trustees meet annually, usually in August, to review all of the requests and provide grant funding in September.

If you have any questions or need additional information relating to the Trust, please click here or call (815) 963-7400.