This Is a Great Chance to Tackle a Dream Project, Organize a Statewide Network Or Share

This is a great chance to tackle a dream project, organize a statewide network or share your expertise with other communities!

Second Stage grants are for experienced partners who have shown they are ready to take on bigger, sustainable projects that expand opportunities for physical activity and/or fresh food – local, regional or statewide.

• The grants will range from $5,000 to $15,000.
• They are funded by the WVU Health Sciences Center, the Claude Worthington Benedum Foundation, the Appalachian Regional Commission, and the WV Bureau for Public Health.
• Each grant application must contain a statement of economic development impact. (See Section 2.)
• The application process will be very competitive. You are required to consult with us at least once so we can help you (see below). Suggestion: Schedule the consult well before you turn in the application.
• For this grant, “community” means your local community, a multi-county or multi-town group, or the state of West Virginia. Collaborations among communities are encouraged.
• Second Stage awardees will be expected to have an effective plan for evaluating success. We will ask awardees to participate in a training to maximize the impact of your project and evaluation plan.

How are Second Stage grants different from minigrants?

Bigger scope: Examples of fundable projects include:

• a statewide, regional, multi-community or a project that benefits a large number of people.
• Communities helping communities: a mentoring arrangement in which your group helps other West Virginians get started or move forward (e.g. a community with a successful bicycling program mentors several communities that want to create programs). \
• A new stage of an existing, successful project that significantly expands the number of people it reaches.
• A pilot project that serves as a research project other communities can copy

Who is eligible to apply?

• You must have a team that includesat least five members who belong toat least fivecommunity-based organizations. These organizations can be from more than one community. Preference will be given to applications that include people who do not do this work for a living.
• At least three team members must have attended a Try This Conference.
• Your lead partner must have been part of the team of a successfully-completed Try This minigrant recipient or have been a presenter at the Try This conference.
• Your team must include a partner from an organization with 501(c)3 tax status. The money will be sent to that organization. In other words, a 501(c)3 must receive the funds.

Here are basic guidelines. Your project must:

• make it easier for people in your community to increase opportunities to be physically active or easily get fresh food.
• be a new project or clearly-new stage of an existing project. .
• have clear SMART objectives(sometimes called SMART goals) and spell out ways eachobjective can be measured and when each goal will be accomplished.(To brush up on SMART objectives:
• include a statement of economic development benefit. Research shows that healthy community work can make your community more attractive to economic development (A farmers market can generate revenue for local farmers, a walking trail can attract tourists and tourism, and a healthy child care center helps build a healthy future workforce).
• match each grant dollar requested withat least $2 dollars in donations, in-kind contributions, or volunteer time. (We want your community to feel invested in this project.) If you are asking for $10k, you need a $20k match. Match from several community sources is a positive thing.
• be sustainable. One-time events or even one-year events will not be funded. Show us how this project will grow over time or make it possible for other projects to build on it.
• cause people on the team – and others – to work together to achieve the goals. Proposals for equipment or infrastructure alone will not be funded. (Equipment can be part of the project, but the project is people working together to achieve the goals.

Before you submit, you must have at least one 30-minute consult with a Try This Director, Kathy Brunty at ; or Stephen Smith at ). Tip: Don’t wait till the last minute to schedule this. Our aim is to help you put together a proposal that meets guidelines, so you want to leave yourself time to revise if needed.

Here’s how to apply:

To be funded, your application must:

• include clear SMART objectives with at least one clear way of measuring each one.Include contact information and commitment letters from at least five partners, spelling out what contribution each will make to the project.
• include a “how-to” component. Tell us how you will make it easy for other communities to learn from what you have done: a workshop, a media presentation, “how-to” workbook, a combination or other means.
• include a description of your evaluation plan
• tell us how your project will promote economic development and/or healthy-community policy.
• give us the date of yourconsultation with one of the Try This directors

Before you send your application, make sure you attach the following:

____Your project information sheet, including goals, project description, your team, and project budget.

____The long-term planning sheet, which helps you put your project in a bigger context.

____The “Set a Good Example” agreement, in which you agree that refreshments you provide will be healthy and set a good example for your community. Bonus points for each partner that submits a contract.

____The Try This Checklist, which helps you inventory what your community has already done and identify the projects you feel are priority.

____ Letters of commitment from three partners. Each letter must tell what that partner will actually commit to do for the project, not simply state support.

____ Date of consult(s) with Try This director about your project.

Be sure to review the sheet we use to score your application at .

Any part of your application received after December 4 at MIDNIGHT, will not be considered. Mail to Kristen O’Sullivan, Try This West Virginia, 1324Va. St. East, Charleston 25301or e-mail to with “Second Stage Grant Application” in the subject line.

Try This West Virginia

SECOND STAGE GRANTS application

ApplicationDeadline: December 4, 2017

This is the actual application. Read through it before you fill it out.

See find out how we will score applications.

Section One: Your project information

Your county, community or region: ______

Project title: ______

Team lead and contact person. This person is responsible for keeping your project on track and letting the helper know what you need.

Name: ______

Phone ______e-mail ______

How much money are you asking for (in dollars): $______

Full project description. In a maximum of 2000 words, please answer the following questions clearly. 1. How does your project (1) reach significantly numbers of people, directly or indirectly, (2) involve more than one community, and/or (3) help you help other communities develop new projects? 2. How will you set up the project to achieve your goals? 3. How will your project continue to grow beyond one year?

List two to five measurable objectives for your project. These objectives must be SMART (Specific, Measurable, Achievable, Relevant, and Time-bound). Examples:By November 2018, we will build one high tunnel garden at 12 public schools in our county. By March 2018, we will create a three-county running network that will train/launch at least five new running clubs, with 10 new members. Etc.) For more info, see

Objective 1:

Objective 2:

Objective 3:

Objective 4:

Objective 5:

Way(s) each objective will be measured:

Objective 1:

Objective 2:

Objective 3:

Objective 4:

Objective 5:

Your project team:

List the people on your team, the organization he or she represents, and the contribution of each person/organization (e.g. “100 volunteer hours to build playground”, “$5000 in matching funds,” “creating our website for free”). If a team member attended the Try This conference, star their name. Double-star the name if a team member was a member of a successful minigrant team or if he or she presented at a Try This conference. If you have more team members, add them below the grid.

Organization / Team member (Name / e-mail) / Contribution

How do you plan to evaluate the success of your project? Describe your plan:

Try This will give Second Stage awardees a free consultation with an experienced evaluation professional who will help you make sureyour evaluation plan is effective and easy to administer. Will you take part in that consultation? ____ Yes ___ No

Your project budget:

Sketch out your project. Identify expenses (e.g.. trail-cutting supplies, race clock, meals). List the total cost. Ask: How much cash can we get elsewhere? What donations can we get in-kind? How much cash do we need? Fill in the blanks.

Expense(i.e. materials, supplies, printing and copying, marketing, meeting expenses, training, etc.) / Total Cost
(total of all three following columns) / 1. Cash you are getting from other sources / 2. Amount donated in-kind (e.g. value of web design, or construction materials) / 3. Cash you are requesting from Try This
Total for each column

Please identify the non-profit that will serve as the organization to receive funds:

Organization (the organization name on the check) ______

Primary contact person: ______Phone: ______

Signature: ______Date______

E-mail:______

Street address ______

Non-profit FEIN Tax ID# ______Website ______

Section 2: The big picture: The Try This community checklist.

Go to and download the Community Planning Checklist. It coordinates with the Try This Web site ( This is a list of affordable community projects the Centers for Disease Controlhave found help build healthy communities. Every project is not for every town. The checklist is a menu. Fill it out with members of your team. Talk about it as you do.This exercise will help you feel proud of what’s already been done and see how your project fits with other possible future projects.

Section 3: A longterm look at your project

• How might your project help your community achieve a longterm goal to build a healthier community?

• Every project has a deeper, broader goal. When you start a running/walking group, for instance, you move toward a broader goal of making it easier for people to be physically active in your community. When you start a healthy backpack program, you move toward a broader goal of diminishing child hunger.

Another example: Example: If you create a community garden, your larger goal may be making fresh food more easily available to people. Other steps toward the same goal might include: expand your farmers market, help create a Farm to School program, organize public gardening workshops, or pull together a group of people who want to increase healthy food in your community. We are looking for applications from people who see their project as a step toward longterm economic development or policy change.

What is the broader, long-term goal of your team’s minigrant project?

What projects will be next steps towardyour long-term goal after this project is over?

How will your project promote economic development in your community? Research shows that healthy-community opportunities make your community more attractive to economic development. A farmers market can generate revenue for local farmers. A walking trail can attract tourists and tourism A healthy child care center helps build a healthy future workforce. Please let us know how you hope your project will affect your community’s economic development in the short and long terms. If your project will generate revenue, say so.

Section 4: Set a good example contract.

Partner name ______

We ask you to set a good example as you carry out your Try This grants, by not serving unhealthy food and drink – and by providing physical activity for employees/children/community members.

The lead partner must submit a good-example contract. Extra points for each additional partner who submits a contract.

Healthy Food: Which goals can you commit to?

____ We will provide healthy alternatives to sugary drinks, processed packaged food, and fried foods at our events, celebrations, and meetings.

____ We will find tasty ways to offer healthy food and drink to our staff and guests. We commit to not purchasing sugary drinks, candy, potato chips, hot dogs, and other unhealthy foods to have on-hand at the workplace.

____ We commit to providing healthy foods through our vending machines and/or other special food projects. _____ We will promote and/or participate in our nearby farmer’s market which sells fresh fruits and vegetables.

____ We will participate in or provide educational seminars, workshops, or classes on nutrition.

Physical Activity: Which of these can your team commit to?

____ We will have physical activity breaks during meetings, every half hour or so. It can be as simple as letting people get up and stretch for a minute, to get their brains moving and improve focus and energy level.

____ We will post signs in elevators, stairwell entrances, and or exits at our workplace to promote stairwell usage, parking further away, lunch walks, etc.

____We will help organize at least one local event that promotes physical activity in our community.

____ We commit to organizing or supporting a free exercise program for our staff, community or partners (examples: a lunch-time walking club, a running club, a Zumba class, etc.).

See hundreds of ways to expand physical activity in your community.

List any other ways you would like to model healthy practices in your community.

Organization representative ______

E-mail ______Phone ______

______

Signature Date