Welcome to the New Spirit Endowment Fund!

In order to achieve an approach that is in sync with the current strategy of our congregation and balances a number of legitimate areas of need, our Endowment Board has adopted the following approach.

Because we serve a generous Lord who has blessed us beyond measure, we want to reflect God’s generosity and bring practical help and hope to the world that God loves. One of the important ways we do that at New Spirit is through our Endowment Fund. This fund has been created to be a source of financial assistance to organizations, ministries and Grand Canyon Synod seminarians that are busy doing God’s work in the world. Those of us who are part of the board that invests and administers these funds are excited to be part of this blessed work because we can see lives being changed and because we know that God loves a cheerful giver (2 Corinthians 9:7).

We are pleased to announce that the New Spirit Lutheran Church Endowment Board will resume accepting grant applications for the June 15, 2026 deadline, with awards being distributed mid-July 2026.

Organizations can seek funding between $1,000 and $5,000. Seminarians can apply for up to $500 in assistance.

Who we fund. The Endowment Fund makes grants only to tax-exempt organizations with 501(c)(3) classifications from the Internal Revenue Service. Organizations may apply for funding once per calendar year. It does not support for-profit organizations or candidates for political office. The Fund will not consider requests for endowments, general fundraising, or deficit financing.

We have created some key “focus areas” to fund.

• Focus Area #1. Human Needs (Tucson & Pima County)
• Focus Area #2. Human Needs (rest of AZ and beyond)
• Focus Area #3. Disciple-Making (local and beyond)

The grants that we award typically run between $1,000 and $5,000, but we are open to grant requests smaller or larger than that.

General guidelines for grant applications for organizations.

DOWNLOAD the New Spirit Endowment Grant Application Form HERE!

Each grant application must include the following elements:

• Focus Area you are applying for (see above)
• Description of your organization
• Mission Statement
• Need Statement
• Project Overview
• Action Plan and Timeline
• Project Outcomes
• Project Budget

If salary expenses are included in a grant request, please provide what percentage of the salary is dedicated to the program/project being funded.

Funding exceptions. Grant funds that will not be approved for funding:

• Any administrative costs
• New construction projects and costs

General guidelines for Grand Canyon Synod seminarians.

Semarians are invited to apply for funding by submitting a letter of request that details the seminary/candidacy related expense that reguested funds will go to cover. Examples of expenses that funds can be requested to cover include books, CPE application fees, computers, etc. Applicants should submit a letter from Rev. Jacqui Pagel or a representative from the Grand Canyon Synod candidacy committee, stating that the applicant is in good standing regarding the candidacy process.

Timeline for Submissions and Decisions.  We award grants semi-annually, at our January and July board meetings. Grant award checks are normally mailed within a few weeks of our decision.

• The deadline for submitting a grant proposal for our January board meeting is December 15.
• The deadline for submitting a grant proposal for our July board meeting is June 15.

Questions? We’re happy to talk to you about any questions you may have about applying for an Endowment Fund grant. Call the church office at 520-296-2461 or click here to leave an email message with our Executive Assistant, who will forward your email to the Endowment Board.