Rancho Santa Fe Garden Club to give $120,000 in grants; applications from nonprofits being accepted

The Rancho Santa Fe Garden Club invites nonprofits in San Diego County to apply for funding for projects that further the mission of the club by “developing charitable horticulture and conservation activities, sustainability and community engagement.”

The nearly century-old nonprofit club has allocated up to $120,000 to be awarded in 2023 and each applicant can request up to $10,000.

Past grant recipients have included the Darnall Charter School, Monarch School and San Pasqual Academy.

The club assisted the schools in establishing gardens for teaching students and producing food to be donated to community members in need. The Darnall School, for example, developed a bountiful garden and built a farm stand, which will provide produce grown by the school for its food insecure community.

Other recipients have included the nonprofit Agrarian Institute, a startup education farm and community forest in Bonsall, and Escondido-based nonprofit ECOLIFE Conservation, which supports community-based conservation to “protect wildlife, natural resources and the people who depend on them.”

“Our grant committee performs a rigorous review of each grant application, followed by site visits to those organizations whose project meets the grant criteria. We focus on applicants with a purpose to further the development of horticulture and charitable conservation activities. It’s such a good feeling to be able to help charitable organizations fund projects that positively impact so many individuals in our County,” said Natalie Kaczur, executive administrator at the Rancho Santa Fe Garden Club.

Grant applicants’ projects must serve a community need, be technically and economically feasible, ensure that all those actively involved in the project will benefit from the results and foster self-sufficiency.

“We are so excited to once again be able to support local schools, religious organizations of all denominations and other charitable groups with their community projects,” said Steven Winters, president of the Rancho Santa Fe Garden Club.

The deadline to submit applications is Dec. 9.

For an application, email Kaczur at [email protected], or for questions, call (858) 951-1885. The request for proposal letter and grant application form may also be downloaded from the garden club’s website at https://rsfgardenclub.org/club-grants-support-local-non-profits.