Critical Needs Grants (up to $10,000)


Our Critical Needs Grants allow us to be flexible and responsive in urgent and challenging times, such as those we’re experiencing now. Critical Needs Grants* will be made for emergencies or pressing, unanticipated needs. Letters of Intent (LOIs) will be accepted and reviewed on a rolling basis. Critical needs grants will be made for up to a maximum of $10,000. *Requests should be “critical” in nature as defined below:
  • To provide important resources to help an organization meet its mission while managing an unbudgeted, unplanned, and timely emergency.
  • To meet the needs for a quick funding response where the alternative traditional timeline would result in loss of an important service.
  • Urgent needs that could not be anticipated which directly impact a nonprofit or a program of a nonprofit. This would include the unexpected loss of committed funding.
  • To support emergency building or property repairs where failure will interfere with a service or program delivery or safety.
  • Emergencies directly impacting a nonprofit such as fire, gas explosion, flood or other unpredictable occurrences that require capital expenditures.
  • Temporary increased services needed experienced by a nonprofit that is the direct result of an emergency such as a fire, tornado, flood, etc.
  • To provide resources to fill in a gap where there may be a loss of equipment or technical failure which, due to its loss or breakdown, will interrupt the delivery of basic necessities or critical programs delivery.

Ready to Apply?

Our grant application process is streamlined through our online grant management portal. The grant application process begins with submitting a Letter of Intent (LOI) through the online portal. To submit an LOI, you will need to first create an account in our online grant management portal. All applicants are required to create an account. [Note that your LOI/grant application can be saved as a draft, and when you log on again it’s easy to return to that draft, make edits, and submit the application when you’re ready to do so. Scranton Area Community Foundation’s Online Grant Management Portal: Apply for a Grant >