The Stonewall Community Foundation has announced the first recipients of its new Reclaiming Our Power grant program, a multi-year initiative aimed at strengthening grassroots LGBTQ+ organizations across the country.
With an initial investment of $825,000, the foundation will fund 15 organizations over three years, beginning with the first ten groups selected this August. Each will receive multi-year general operating grants designed to bolster efforts in two core areas: community resilience and power building.
Investing in LGBTQ+ Futures
Founded in 1990, Stonewall Community Foundation has distributed more than $28 million to LGBTQ-focused nonprofits in 132 cities nationwide. The foundation is one of the leading funders of housing and homelessness initiatives in queer communities, with nearly a third of its grants directed toward youth-centered programs.
The new initiative, supported by the Mark L. Brandt Legacy Fund, offers $20,000 per year for two years, with the option of a $15,000 extension in the third. It is among the foundation’s most ambitious funding cycles to date.
A Competitive Start
When the call for applications opened this spring, more than 180 organizations applied, requesting nearly $10 million in total support. That demand, according to Stonewall leaders, highlights both the need for and the creativity within grassroots LGBTQ+ spaces nationwide.
“Through this first cohort, we’re uplifting groups that embody the resilience and imagination of our movement,” said Elisa Crespo, executive director of Stonewall Community Foundation. “They’re advancing critical work, from healthcare access and legal aid to policy advocacy and safety initiatives.”
Program director Maryse Pearce emphasized the urgency of this work: “LGBTQ+ communities are under attack at levels we haven’t seen in decades. These grants are about investing in their power, their safety, and their future.”
Two Paths to Change
The Reclaiming Our Power program focuses on two funding tracks:
- Community Resilience: supporting direct services that help LGBTQ+ people survive, heal, and thrive.
- Power Building: advancing organizing, policy, and systems change to expand justice and equity.
Stonewall says the initiative builds on its long tradition of resourcing organizations that are often overlooked, particularly those led by people of color, trans communities, and others living at the intersection of systemic inequities.
2025 Grantee Partners
The inaugural cohort includes organizations working in fields as varied as education, legal advocacy, harm reduction, and community safety:
- Transformative Schools, New York, NY
- Out My Closet, New York, NY
- Mashup Nashville, Nashville, TN
- Chosen Family Law Center, New York, NY
- Sex Workers Project, Urban Justice Center, New York, NY
- Traction Project, Portland, OR
- Therapy Center of Philadelphia, Philadelphia, PA
- The Queer Trans Project, Jacksonville, FL
- Building Out Safer Spaces and Skill Sets, Tucson, AZ
- St. Louis Anti-Violence Project, St. Louis, MO
Five additional grantees will be selected in 2026, expanding the reach of the initiative. Stonewall also plans to work with other philanthropic partners to grow the program’s long-term impact.
