✨ 2026 PARISH PARTNER GRANTS PROGRAM ✨

Applications for the 2026–2027 Parish Partner Grant cycle are now open!

Congregations are uniquely positioned to see and respond to the needs of their neighbors. In communities across the Diocese of Chicago, people are hungry, families face violence and uncertainty — and in our parish halls, church kitchens, and community rooms, Episcopal congregations are responding to the needs around them.

Parish Partner Grants exist to resource that work. Now in its sixth year, the program awards grants ranging from $1,000 to $20,000 to parishes and missions whose outward-facing ministries serve the most vulnerable in their communities — supporting the hands-on outreach they are already doing, and helping them do more.

Use the button below to apply for the 2026-2027 Parish Partner Grant! Note: congregations applying for second-year renewal funding will receive separate renewal application instructions from Matt Berryman soon!

What We Fund

Parish Partner Grants support congregation-based outreach that addresses our community's most pressing needs. From food pantries and after-school programs to immigrant support and community health initiatives, we partner with parishes whose outreach is rooted in their local context and driven by their community relationships.

Funded projects align with Episcopal Charities' four areas of social concern:

• Violence Prevention: Working to protect communities from violence in all its forms.

• Equity & Equality: Ensuring all of God's children are seen, served, and treated with dignity.

• Creation Care: Nurturing and protecting the creation God has entrusted to our care.

• Hunger: Creating and sustaining initiatives to reduce and end hunger in our neighborhoods.

Are Parish Partner Grants Right for your Congregation?

This cycle is open to first-time applicants as well as congregations that received Parish Partner funding in a prior grant year and have since had at least one full year between their final award and now. Eligible applicants include:

• Any Episcopal parish or mission in the Diocese of Chicago

• Two or more Episcopal churches in partnership

• A Deanery or multi-parish coalition

• A nonprofit in meaningful partnership with an Episcopal parish

Grants are awarded annually, with parishes eligible for up to two consecutive years of funding before taking a one-year break. This cycle is designed to encourage growth, sustainability, and broad participation across the diocese. Awards range from $1,000 to $20,000, based on the strength of the application and the depth of need the project addresses in your community.

How to Apply

The 2026 application is now open. Completed applications must be submitted to Episcopal Charities by August 10, 2026, and the 2026–2027 cohort of Parish Partners will be announced on September 11, 2026.

Note: Congregations applying for second-year renewal funding will receive separate renewal application instructions from Matt Berryman soon!

We encourage any parish with an active outreach ministry — or a vision for one — to consider applying. For questions, contact Matt Berryman, Executive Director, at mberryman@episcopalcharities.org.

Episcopal Charities is the social outreach arm of the Diocese of Chicago. Together, we fund partner organizations and projects throughout the region and support the development of leaders.

NON-PROFIT PARTNERS

We provide 3-year unrestricted grants to 17 organizations across Northern Illinois

PARISH PARTNERS

One-year grants to Episcopal churches that wish to begin or enhance an outward-facing project for the most vulnerable in their communities

CATALYST PROJECT FUND

A new pool of resources that is dedicated to smaller, high-impact endeavors

INNER CAPACITY BUILDING PROGRAM

We provide opportunities for leaders in our partner organizations to develop their spiritual and emotional capacity as leaders for the benefit of the organizations they serve

Curious About What we do?

Since our founding in 1960, thousands of lives have been transformed through the work of Episcopal Charities across northern Illinois. As the social outreach arm of the Episcopal Diocese of Chicago, Episcopal Charities accomplishes its mission through the support of an outstanding network of partner agencies. In addition to annual operating grants, Episcopal Charities walks alongside our partners by providing regular training opportunities for organizational leaders through the capacity building program. Following the completion of a new strategic plan in June of 2020, Episcopal Charities will launch two new grant-making initiatives to accompany our ongoing support of current partner organizations. The new grant-making initiatives represent forward movement into areas of unknown territory and uncertain terrain where we join all those who risk hope in the midst of the deep challenges before us.

Strategic Plan

We are pleased to unveil our new strategic plan which is outlined at the link provided below. This plan provides funding for new projects and endeavors while faithfully stewarding the gifts with which we have been entrusted.