Request for Proposals
The Health Foundation for Western & Central New York is now accepting proposals for Imagine Nonviolence: Expand the Reach. The initiative is designed to support innovative and collaborative programs working to reduce the risk of firearm-related injury and death among pregnant people, children under age 5, and older adults in western and central New York.
Firearm injury happens in many forms, including self-harm, intimate partner violence, unintentional injury, and community violence. Pregnant people, young children, as well as older adults and their caregivers are often left out of the intervention strategies when it comes to firearm injury prevention.
Through Imagine Nonviolence: Expand the Reach, grants of up to $15,000 each will be awarded to organizations engaged in firearm violence prevention, firearm safety training, community education, and related initiatives.
To be eligible, organizations must be nonprofit, have 501(c)3 status, and operate within one or more of the 16 counties the Health Foundation serves. Proposals must be submitted online by Monday, July 22, 2024. Read the FAQ here.
“Gun-related violence is a public health crisis, and older adults, young children, and pregnant people are often left out of discussions to address that crisis. Our goal for Imagine Nonviolence: Expand the Reach is to accelerate innovative programs that increase the safety of those groups,” said Nora OBrien-Suric, PhD, President of the Health Foundation. “By building community awareness, providing resources, and enhancing firearm safety measures, we can create healthier, safer communities with our nonprofit partners in western and central New York.”
Eligibility and Funding
Imagine Nonviolence: Expand the Reach is intended to provide twelve months of funding to support small-scale stand-alone or pilot initiatives. Please see the timeline in this document for more details.
To apply for funding applicants must:
- operate within one or more of the 16 counties the Health Foundation serves;
- be a non-profit with 501(c)3 status or affiliated with one who can receive and manage grant funds on their behalf, and
- work with pregnant and birthing people, young children, or older adults and their caregivers, or partner with organizations that serve these populations.
Funds may not be used to support mergers and acquisitions, building or capital projects, drug development, or direct grants to individuals.
Statistics highlight the urgency behind Imagine Nonviolence: Expand the Reach:
- About one-third of American children live in a home with firearms, and of those households, 43% contain at least one unlocked firearm.
- Pregnant women ages 15 through 46 years are more than twice as likely as their non-pregnant counterparts to die from a firearm-related injury.
- 46% of U.S. adults over age 50 say they live in a household with a gun.
