Oil Open Fund for Basic Needs

Through a competitive granting process, the U.S. Oil Open Fund for Basic Needs – funded by the annual U.S. Oil Open golf event – assists non-profit organizations with a proven track record of success in maintaining solid, critical programs that address the root causes of poverty. The fund supports programs that can prevent people in episodic crisis from becoming people of chronic need.

As an endowed fund, 10% of the fund balance is granted annually. Grantmaking is facilitated through an Advisory Committee established at the Community Foundation for the Fox Valley Region, the Greater Green Bay Community Foundation and the Oshkosh Area Community Foundation. Committees are comprised of community leaders and experts in the priority areas. They meet throughout the year to review, approve and monitor requests and track progress toward desired outcomes.

Grantmaking priority is given to:

• Help at-risk children become healthy and ready to succeed in school.
• Help working families meet their basic needs and build financial assets.
• Empower, dignify and support lower income individuals affected by aging and dementia.
• Implement innovative and culturally appropriate models promoting the control and prevention of disease and chronic illness, especially diabetes, among the uninsured and underinsured population. 
  

Grantmaking focuses on:

• Organizations that demonstrate the potential to expand or deepen their impact or are already achieving measurable impact.
• Efforts that involve goal-orientated, flexible partnerships among the non-profit, public and private sectors.
• Initiatives that take a long-term view of what is required for people to move out of poverty.
• Grants are made for project and operating support, capacity building, policy analysis and advocacy.

To measure impact, we look beyond counts of activity or participant satisfaction for indicators that determine whether the community is truly better off. These outcomes include:

• Families meet their basic needs, build financial resources and become self-sufficient.
• Children are healthy, safe and ready to succeed in school.
• Individuals affected by aging and dementia with low or fixed incomes are supported by services that meet their needs and allow them to age with dignity.
• Uninsured and underinsured individuals sustain a higher quality of life by reducing acute and long-term care crisis.
  

The annual grantmaking budget of the U.S. Oil Open Fund for Basic Needs is doubled with a match from the J. J. Keller Foundation, Inc . This collaborative effort is called the Basic Needs Giving Partnership.  To learn more about applying for a grant, visit the Community Foundation for the Fox Valley Region , the Greater Green Bay Community Foundation or the Oshkosh Area Community Foundation website.