PROGRAMS

Funding Guidelines & Review Process

Below are the funding guidelines and a description of the review process that Firelight Foundation has used to solicit and award proposals from organizations working with orphans and vulnerable children. Staff and Advisory Board Members have annually revised these guidelines and this process during the past four years to more clearly reflect the Foundation’s goals and to clarify our funding criteria. Please refer to our website for the most updated version of the guidelines and application process.

Funding Criteria
The mission of the Firelight Foundation is to support children in need. We believe every child, regardless of race, religion, gender, or country deserves the promise of a future. Our focus is children affected by AIDS in Sub-Saharan Africa. We give one-year grants of $500 to $10,000 to community-based initiatives that work directly and effectively to support the fundamental needs and rights of children (birth to 21 years) orphaned or affected by HIV/AIDS. We believe that grassroots initiatives arising in direct response to real needs within a local community are often the most effective programs. Firelight supports this vital work with initial one-year grants and subsequent one-year and multi-year regrants based on funding needs and opportunities for shared learning. Because we have limited funds, we favor organizations that raise resources from within their local communities.

The Firelight Foundation Looks for

• Programs that directly serve the needs of vulnerable children
• Grassroots responses to needs that raise resources within the community
• Programs that demonstrate strong leadership and community ownership
• Organizations with a history of effective community action
• Programs in which children take part in decision-making, advocacy, and leadership
• Innovative responses to the situations of children affected by HIV/AIDS

The Firelight Foundation believes that children develop best when raised within families and communities; therefore, we rarely fund orphanages. In exceptional cases there may be compelling reasons why institutional care is in the best interest of a child. Such programs must clearly indicate these reasons in their application. We are often asked for food aid, medical care, and housing. We understand the urgency of these needs, but we are not a relief agency or a health service provider and only fund these areas when they are combined with programs that meet community needs in a broader context. If such assistance is requested, we ask the applicant to explain how the planned activities will be addressed in a sustainable and integrated way.

Eligible Countries
Lesotho, Malawi, Rwanda, South Africa, Tanzania, Zambia, and Zimbabwe
The primary geographic focus of our grantmaking is Sub-Saharan Africa, the current epicenter of the HIV/AIDS pandemic. In order for us to focus our efforts in an effective and sustained manner, we have narrowed our grantmaking to certain countries, and only accept letters of inquiry from: Lesotho, Malawi, Rwanda, South Africa, Tanzania, Zambia, and Zimbabwe. We decline inquiries from other countries unless they have already received a Firelight grant or are asked for a proposal.

Areas of Interest
Areas of interest include the following programs supporting children affected by HIV/AIDS:

• Programs that enhance or create a supportive environment for children’s growth and development
• Primary and secondary education with an integrated approach to children’s needs
• Vocational education and skills development
• Income-generating activities for caregivers and independent orphans
• Programs that contribute to social and behavioral change
• Recreational activities/counseling/programs focusing on psychosocial support
• Sexual abuse prevention and treatment
• Programs that provide leadership opportunities for children
• Respite or residential care and/or medical treatment for HIV-infected children, including palliative and hospice care and home-based programs
• Guardianship planning and related legal aid advocacy
• Programs that reach marginalized populations, including street children, child-headed households, disabled children, or HIV-positive babies and children.

Areas Not Funded
Firelight does not fund individuals, organizations or programs designed to influence legislation or elect public officials, programs that limit participation based on race, religion, gender, or nationality, academic or medical research, or fundraising drives or endowments. We rarely fund U.S.-based organizations or branches of international non-governmental organizations.

The Decision Process
Firelight reviews proposals and awards grants every six months. In our first year, when we were relatively unknown, we primarily funded organizations recommended to us through our Advisory Board or trusted advisors. After the first year, Firelight began receiving a large number of proposals from a variety of contacts. During the three-year period from 2001 through 2003, we received an average of 300 funding requests per year and awarded an average of 55 grants per year, for a funding rate of 20%. We have found that our pool of applicants has changed over time, reflecting our shifting geographic focus and our increasing visibility in the field of community-based funding for children affected by AIDS.

Firelight has always had the goal of making our application process simple and accessible to grassroots organizations. During our first three years, we requested that organizations submit a full application of roughly 5-10 pages in length. In order to decrease the administrative burden on unsuccessful applicants and to limit the number of full proposals needing extensive review, we instituted a two-page letter of inquiry process in 2003.

The staff analyzes proposals according to our funding criteria and country strategy documents. They engage in a due diligence process that includes a thorough review of an applicant’s organizational management, past and proposed activities, and budgetary information. They prepare proposal summaries that include an overall assessment of the application based on references from our in-country assessors, referees, and donors familiar with the applicant group. Our Advisory Board reviews these summary recommendations and then makes a final recommendation for funding to the Board of Directors.

Grant Awards
Since the Firelight Foundation is a private foundation that makes overseas grants, we have detailed contract and reporting requirements for successful applicants. In order to receive grant funds, organizations must sign a grant contract, complete an affidavit of their charitable status, and provide financial information and a copy of their by-laws. All grantee-partners receiving funds from Firelight commit to regular financial and narrative reporting on the grant award.