The Community Foundation of Northern Illinois (CFNIL) will offer the Carroll H. Starr Endowment Challenge (CHS Challenge) for the tenth time to nonprofits in northern Illinois. This unique grant program is designed to build a nonprofit’s capacity and sustainability through the establishment of a permanent endowment. 

The CHS Challenge is open to 501(c)3 nonprofits operating in Boone, Ogle, Stephenson, and Winnebago Counties. Applicants select an amount they will raise during the Challenge cycle (August 2022 – December 2023), between $15,000 and $90,000. Upon selection to participate in the Challenge and successfully reaching the fundraising goal, CFNIL will grant $1 for every $3 raised by the nonprofit. The combined funds will establish an endowment at CFNIL, from which an annual distribution will support the nonprofit’s mission for generations to come. 

Organizations who wish to participate in the Challenge complete an online application that declares their fundraising goal, a plan for meeting the goal, and how endowment will support the ongoing needs of the organization. Applications are reviewed by a volunteer committee which makes recommendations for approval to CFNIL’s board of trustees. The CHS Challenge application opens May 16 and closes June 30, 2022. Applicants will be notified of their status August 1, 2022. Learn more and access the online application at https://cfnil.org/grants/carroll-h-starr-endowment-challenge 

CFNIL Staff will host an informational webinar about the Carroll H. Starr Endowment Challenge on Monday, May 23 at Noon. The webinar recording will be posted to CFNIL’s website following the session. To register for the webinar, complete the RSVP form.

First offered in 2001, the CHS Challenge has had 32 nonprofit participants and granted over $1M. The program is named after Carroll H. Starr, a prominent Rockford businessman and founder of the Rockford Community Trust, now known as the Community Foundation of Northern Illinois. He served the Trust with an unwavering belief in its future growth and the benefit it would provide to the community, providing substantial leadership during its formative first decade until his death in 1963.