Lions Districts as well as Multiple Districts could indeed apply for an LCIF Standard grant, which is a matching grant option. The Lions-led service development addresses unmet needs or crises in local areas where there is a significant building or equipment shortage.
Standard grants are endorsed for major projects that support a significant number of individuals over time, largely underprivileged and vulnerable populations.
The grant amounts vary from $10,000 to $100,000. Lions make the first move to initiate the project and devote their efforts to its development, alignment, fundraising, and implementation. Such assistance significantly increases the reach of a project as well as elevates the Lions’ profile in society.
Standard grants are expected to assist developments that fall outside of the purview of conventional Lions fundraising activities. Local matching funding can be obtained from a variety of sources, including Lions Clubs, the District, Multiple Districts, and non-Lions organizations.
Contributions from Lions clubs as well as existing members around the world fund the overwhelming bulk of the grant. Financial support is also provided by foundations, corporate entities, government agencies, and non-Lions, as well as accrued interest on investments.
Charity Navigator recently awarded LCIF its sixth consecutive 4-star rating for its appropriate financial planning and dedication to legitimacy and openness.
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Eligibility Requirements for LCIF Grant
Standard grants can be used to fund a range of initiatives, such as educational facilities for the disabled, orphanages, healthcare facilities and health treatment centers, senior care centers, eye banks, food banks, palliative facilities, technical education centers for the disabled, as well as health check schemes, to mention a few.
Because the requirements of every community vary, there are lots of options for a Standard grant project. Every Standard grant project has to do the following:
- Meet a critical humanitarian need.
- Facilitates endeavors that are too massive for a District/Multiple Districts to handle on their own.
- Have a massive influence on families and communities and exists to serve a huge population.
- Creation and delivery of the service.
- Continues to raise additional funds from local Lions.
Projects or Activities That are Ineligible for LCIF Standard Grant
Projects or activities that are ineligible for LCIF Standard Grant funding include:
- Contingencies that would be better financially backed by the municipal authorities or other entities.
- Expenses for running existing programs and institutions, such as salaries.
- Grants made to pay back loans, set up cash reserves, or pay back recipients.
- Aesthetic enhancements, monuments, memorials, playgrounds, swimming pools, recreational areas, athletic areas, clubhouses, and municipal and multi-purpose facilities.
- Consumables, shipments, training costs, travel as well as accommodation.
- Scientific research projects are not eligible; nevertheless, requests for research devices as well as the building of a Lions-affiliated research center are.
- Projects that begin before receiving Board approval.
How to Apply for a Standard Grant
Getting Started
Prior to actually submitting an application, Lions must make the first move in designing the project for their society and communicating with any partner organizations. As a result, Lions can participate at the Club, District, or Multiple District levels.
Applicant Lions should discuss with LCIF staff before filing an application to ascertain the suitability of their project as well as the application closing date.
Once Lions have put together a proposal that satisfies all the eligibility requirements, they can send the application along with any demanded relevant evidence. Applications need to be submitted at least sixty days before the board meeting.
- District-level applications must be signed by the District Governor and approved by the District Cabinet.
- Multiple District level applications must be signed by the Council Chairperson and approved by the Multiple District Council.
Preliminary Review and Submission of Applications
When the grant application and supporting documentation are finished, they ought to be sent straight to the LCIF Humanitarian Programs Department. For their records, Lions must maintain a duplicate of the application as well as all communications with LCIF.
Once the application is received, LCIF will allocate a distinct LCIF tracking number that would remain distinctive to the grant proposal throughout the grant process. The initial review assesses the presented course of action, technical facets of the proposal, Lions’ active participation, as well as the general comprehensiveness of the application.
And after the initial review, LCIF personnel would provide comprehensive responses to the proposal, such as qualifications, accuracy level, as well as any queries or worries. The initial evaluation assists in developing the single most powerful application potential in readiness for the Board’s final review.
NOTE: Because extra details are commonly demanded during the initial evaluation process, requests should be forwarded ahead of the submission deadline. Requests that are inadequate or need additional time to be clarified, or that come well after the submission deadline, might be kept over for evaluation at a subsequent board meeting.
Board Evaluation and Post-Approval
Grant requests that satisfy the grant requirements and are decided to be qualified would be forwarded to the Board for review. If a grant is authorized, the grant administrator would be the District Governor/Council Chairperson, who will be fully accountable for distributing the cash.
The grant administrator, project chairman, as well as any partner organizations, will receive an acceptance letter and grant contract outlining the grant’s terms of agreement, along with the economic and reporting criteria.
The administrator of the grant is solely liable for presenting a complete paper on the project to LCIF no later than three months following its completion; Lions have a maximum period of two years to finish a Standard grant project. When the grant is authorized, the grant administrator is given an assessment report.
Before being sent to LCIF, the document should be scrutinized and endorsed by the District Cabinet/Multiple District Council. The inability to submit a completed report by the deadline may jeopardize potential standard grant application qualifications.