2012 Colorado Fire Relief Fund Deadline Approaching on August 15

2012 Colorado Fire Relief Fund  Application Guidelines for Organizations

An Important Note about Application Deadlines on August 15

Because of the urgency associated with this funding process, the turn-around time for
submitting applications is short. Therefore, please note the following deadlines for submitting
an application for funding through the 2012 Colorado Fire Relief Fund:

• For applicants seeking funding for High Park fire recovery efforts:  Applications for projects related to this fire will be considered on a rolling basis, starting
  August 1. Applications will be accepted and processed as they are received.
• For applicants seeking funding for Waldo Canyon fire recovery efforts and other fires across Colorado: Applications for projects related to these fires are due by 5:00 pm on Wednesday, August 15, 2012.

More detailed information about the Colorado Fire Relief Fund and the application process is
included below.

About the 2012 Colorado Fire Relief Fund

The Colorado Fire Relief Fund (the Fund) has been established by Governor John Hickenlooper
to provide private funding to support meeting unmet intermediate needs for individuals,
families, community organizations, and volunteer fire departments affected by the devastating
wildfires occurring across Colorado during 2012. All of the funding to be awarded through the
Fund has been raised from private sources including generous individuals, businesses, and
foundations.

Governor Hickenlooper has appointed the chief executive officers from eight community
foundations across Colorado to serve as the Allocation Board for this fund. The Allocation
Board is responsible for setting funding priorities, developing an application process, ensuring
that grant awards made through the Fund meet the highest community needs, and overseeing
the final approval of all grant awards made under the Fund. Local Allocation Committees,
overseen by the Allocation Board, will review all grant applications for the fires affecting
Larimer County and the Pikes Peak region and will make funding recommendations to the
Allocation Board. For smaller fires affecting other communities across Colorado, the
Allocation Board will review and consider applications, seeking local input to help in making
decisions that are most in line with community needs.

The majority of the funding will be awarded to the communities affected by the High Park and
Waldo Canyon fires, with a smaller amount of funding available to communities affected by
other smaller fires occurring across Colorado during 2012. A portion of the Fund will also be
used to help volunteer fire departments across Colorado replenish their supplies and will be
awarded through a separate allocation process. The Denver Foundation, a community
foundation serving the seven-county metro Denver area, is administering the Fund.

Funding Priorities

The Colorado Fire Relief Fund Allocation Board will prioritize awarding grants that help meet
the intermediate unmet needs of individuals and families whose lives were seriously affected by
the wildfires, support rebuilding communities, and support volunteer fire departments in
compensating volunteer fire fighters for loss of income. Support for volunteer fire departments
for replenishing depleted supplies will take place through a separate allocation process under
this Fund and volunteer fire departments should not use this application process to apply for
support for such needs.

For this round of awards, grants will be distributed to 501(c)(3) organizations, local
governmental entities, and local volunteer fire departments. No grants will be made to
individuals or for-profit entities. For the purposes of these grant guidelines, intermediate needs
generally means projects that will be completed in their entirety in less than six months.
Programs and projects falling into the following three general categories will be given priority
for funding, with some specific examples of possible programs and projects described below:

Meeting Human Needs

Providing case management and direct services to help individuals and families directly
impacted by the fires meet basic human needs, including food, shelter, and safety.
Preference will be given to applicants proposing to provide services to low-income
individuals, individuals from other vulnerable populations, and those with uninsured
losses.

Providing education, case management, and direct services to help individuals and
families navigate the systems related to rebuilding their homes and re-establishing their
lives.

Providing mental health and counseling services to individuals, families, and children
directly impacted by the fires. Applicants applying for funding under this category
should demonstrate in their application how they will meet a need not covered by
FEMA’s Crisis Counseling Program if that program will be available in your community.

Providing grants to organizations that will oversee the process of providing direct
financial assistance to individuals and families who have incurred significant damage to or
loss of their primary place of residence and have critical needs for food, shelter, safety,
or clean-up caused by the fire. Preference will be given to applicants proposing to
provide services to low-income individuals, individuals from other vulnerable
populations, and those with uninsured losses.

Rebuilding Communities

Helping restore access to important community programs and services.

Support for local efforts to coordinate rebuilding and recovery from the fires.

Fire clean-up and debris removal, especially for vulnerable populations including the
elderly, disabled individuals, low-income individuals, and other underserved
communities.

Forest and watershed restoration efforts that can be completed in less than six months.

Supporting Volunteer Firefighters

Organizations providing direct financial assistance to reimburse volunteer fire fighters
for loss of income, up to $2,500 per individual, resulting from their efforts in fighting
fires covered under this fund. This applies only to those volunteer firefighters not
certified to be paid by the National Forest Service or those without temporary
unemployment insurance.

Programs and Projects that Will Not be Funded through the Fire Relief Fund

These grant guidelines have been designed to be flexible and broad because the most critical
needs for funding will vary from community to community. There are, however, some types of
programs and projects that will not be funded through the Fund, including the following:

While some of the funding to organizations awarded through this process may provide
financial assistance to individuals and families to meet needs critical around food, shelter,
safety, or clean-up, grants through this Fund will not be used to totally or substantially
compensate homeowners and renters for their losses.

Funding to help compensate organizations, businesses, or communities for losses in
revenue incurred as a result of a wildfire.

Funding to support previously completed activities, like responding to the wildfires and
providing immediate assistance to victims, firefighters, and evacuees.

Eligible Organizations 

501(c)(3) tax-exempt organizations in good standing with the IRS,
volunteer fire departments across Colorado, and local
governmental entities.

Award Amounts 

The minimum grant size through this fund will be $2,500. We
anticipate that most grants will fall between $2,500 and $50,000,
although no maximum request or award amount has been set.

Award Duration 

Because the purpose of these grant awards is to meet the
intermediate needs of the individuals, families, and communities
affected by devastating wildfires occurring during 2012, any grant
awarded through this fund should be used in its entirety within six
months of the grant award. Shorter project timelines are also
entirely acceptable.

Multiple Applications 

Applicants can submit more than one application for projects that
are substantially different in nature. A complete application
packet is required for each separate application.

Application Process 

For applicants seeking funding for High Park fire recovery
efforts: 

Applications for this fire will be considered on a rolling
basis, starting August 1. Applications will be accepted and
processed as they are received. Applicants should submit the
required cover sheet, responses to the narrative questions below,
and the required attachments to firefund@denverfoundation.org.

For applicants seeking funding for Waldo Canyon fire
recovery and other fires across Colorado: 

Applicants should submit the required cover sheet, responses to the narrative
questions below, and the required attachments to
firefund@denverfoundation.org by 5:00 pm on Wednesday,
August 15, 2012.

For ALL applicants:

Only electronic applications will be accepted. We strongly
encourage applicants to submit their applications in a single
PDF document. All submitted documents should be
formatted to be printed on letter-size paper (8.5” x 11”).
Applications that are substantially out of compliance with these
guidelines or late may be removed from consideration. All
applicants will receive a written email confirmation after the
application is received.

Reporting 

All Fund awardees will be required to submit a final report using
the Colorado Common Grant Report format and a complete
financial accounting of how the grant was used within 30 days of
completing the grant and no later than seven months after the
grant award date. The report due date will be specified in the
grant contract for all grant awardees.

Questions 

Questions about the Fund and the application process should be
directed to Sarah Marino-Fischler, Fire Relief Fund Project
Manager, at firefund@denverfoundation.org or 303-243-4783.

Decision-Making Criteria

The Local Allocation Committees and Allocation Board will make their funding decisions based
upon how well each application meets the following criteria:

Ability to meet unmet intermediate needs related to a wildfire occurring in Colorado
during 2012.

Organizational capacity to accomplish the proposed activities.

Alignment with the funding priorities identified in these guidelines.

Evidence of coordination between local organizations to help reduce duplication and
ensure greater effectiveness in program and project implementation.

Preference will be given to organizations that have an established presence in the
regions in which they will be providing services.

Timeline for Grant Awards

July 31:      Guidelines are released
August 15: Applications due for all fires except High Park, which are being considered on a rolling basis
September 14: First round of grant awards announced

Colorado 2012 Fire Relief Fund Grant Application

The complete grant guidelines and a fillable version of this Word document is available on The Denver Foundation’s website at http://www.denverfoundation.org/community/page/fire-relief-fund.

Deadlines:

For applicants seeking funding for High Park fire recovery efforts: Applications for
projects related to this fire will be considered on a rolling basis, starting August 1. Applications will be accepted and processed as they are received.

For applicants seeking funding for Waldo Canyon fire recovery efforts and other
fires across Colorado: Applications for projects related to these fires are due by 5:00 pm on
Wednesday, August 15, 2012.