The 2026 Giving USA Reportdropped this week and the results were good: $617B in charitable giving last year, a new high in current dollars. We’re still unpacking the numbers but one thing is certain: despite a complex economy, the giving environment is strong. We’ll share more next month and provide a full analysis at the Philanthropic Landscape on August 20 so mark your calendar and plan to join us!
What Proposed Federal Grant Rule Changes Mean for Nonprofits
The Office of Management and Budget has proposed sweeping changes to federal grant rules that would tie funding decisions to administration priorities and allow agencies to terminate awards midstream.
While Nonprofits Eye Gen Z, Millennials Are Shaping Philanthropic Giving
Bloomerang, an intelligent giving platform trusted by more than 24,000 nonprofits, released The Bloomerang 2026 Giving Signals Report, an in-depth study of more than 1,000 U.S. donors and 400 nonprofit fundraising leaders that reveals a major generational shift underway in American philanthropy. Conducted with The Harris Poll, the report finds that Millennials — not the generation many nonprofits are focused on acquiring — have quietly become the most generous, most acquirable and most strategically active donor segment in the country.
Don't Go Public Too Soon: What the Capital Campaign Quiet Phase is Really For
The pressure to go public in a capital campaign is real - but going public doesn't create momentum. It reveals whether you've built it. The quiet phase is the most intensive, relationship-centered fundraising of the entire campaign, and rushing it costs more than time.
MFFH Advancing Health Equity in Black Maternal Care
This request for applications invites Black-led and Black-serving organizations that support the well-being of Black birthing people and mothers and their families to apply for funding. Organizations serving diverse populations are also welcome to apply if they can demonstrate a clear and meaningful connection to Black birthing people and mothers and their needs, experiences, and overall well-being.
Funds are intended to support organizations and coalitions in strengthening their work and long-term sustainability. This may include building strong organizational cultures, growing and supporting the Black birthing workforce (doulas, midwives, community health workers, etc.), and strengthening the capacity of individuals and organizations advancing birth equity.
Missouri Foundation for Health will award up to 10 grants across the state, with each organization eligible to receive up to $130,000 over two years. These awards are for general operating support, meaning funds can be used to strengthen and sustain the work organizations are already doing. Applicants are not required to create new programs or initiatives to be eligible for this funding.
Blues for Kids, the charitable trust of the St. Louis Blues, has a mission to positively impact programs and services that improve the health and wellness of youth in the St. Louis area.
Thanks to the commitment of Blues players, alumni, volunteers and fans, Blues for Kids has contributed more than $11 million to the St. Louis community.
Blues for Kids focuses on four areas of giving, which include cancer care and awareness, health and wellness, education and youth hockey development.
St. Louis County Port Authority Community Investment Fund Grant
The St. Louis County Port Authority (Port Authority) has announced it is accepting applications for its 2026 Community Investment Fund grant program, which provides funding for economic and community development projects led by nonprofit organizations. The applicants or projects must be located in St. Louis County and/or primarily serve St. Louis County residents or businesses. Applicants must also have a 501(c)(3) designation.
The Port Authority will consider economic and community development projects that fall within one or more of its funding priorities and may be programmatic or construction-related projects (e.g., land acquisition, renovation, new construction, and infrastructure).
Applications will be accepted by the Port Authority until Aug. 11. Virtual information sessions about the grants and application process will be held on June 29 and 30.
The maximum Community Investment Fund grant amount awarded to a project will be $300,000. Grants are expected to be awarded by early 2027.
Gateway Children's Charity (GCC) raises funds to make high-impact, tangible investments in nonprofit early childhood education programs that support children living in underserved metropolitan St. Louis communities.
SAVE THE DATE for The 2026 Philanthropic Landscape
The Rome Group's annual Philanthropic Landscape event will take place at COCA on Thursday, August 20th.
Registration details are forthcoming!
AFP St. Louis 2026 Annual Conference
The Rome Group is proud to sponsor this year's AFP Annual Conference. As philanthropy continues to evolve, today’s fundraisers must grow as leaders, learners, and strategic partners. The Evolving Fundraiser centers on professional development, leadership readiness, and lifelong excellence in the fundraising profession.
Morning keynote: Vu Le
Afternoon featured speaker: Russell James, J.D., Ph.D., CFP
A Future With Fewer Children in St. Louis and A Choice About The Common Good
Join Enterprise Bank & Trust and fellow nonprofit leaders for a morning of networking and a timely conversation on supporting welfare in the St. Louis community.
Hear from J.S. Onésimo Sándoval, Ph.D., Director of the MS Sociology Program at Saint Louis University, as he offers insights into the “common good” within St. Louis and how your work as a nonprofit leader promotes this shared goal. You’ll leave refreshed and inspired to continue giving back to your community. Coffee and light breakfast pastries will be served.
Heart of a Stranger: An Unlikely Rabbi's Story of Faith, Identity, and Belonging
by Angela Buchdahl
From the first Asian American to be ordained as a rabbi, a stirring account of one woman’s journey from feeling like an outsider to becoming one of the most admired religious leaders in the world.
Angela Buchdahl was born in Seoul, the daughter of a Korean Buddhist mother and Jewish American father. Profoundly spiritual from a young age, by sixteen she felt the first stirrings to become a rabbi. Despite the naysayers and periods of self-doubt—Would a mixed-race woman ever be seen as authentically Jewish or chosen to lead a congregation?—she stayed the course, which took her first to Yale, then to rabbinical school, and finally to the pulpit of one of the largest, most influential congregations in the world.
Congratulations to the following individuals who are beginning new roles or celebrating well-earned promotions in the St. Louis nonprofit community, including both new hires and those recently promoted.
Tiarna Doherty, Director of Conservation, St. Louis Art Museum
Helen Flaxbeard, Chief Development Officer, American Red Cross Missouri and Arkansas Region
Dayna Kriz, Operations Supervisor, Great Rivers Greenway
Richard Money, Executive Director, St. Elizabeth's Adult Daycare Center
Tony Rushing, Director of Urban Agriculture, Urban Harvest STL
Muriel Smith, Executive Director, Angels' Arms
Pamela Calero Wardell, Chief Philanthropy Officer, St. Louis Symphony Orchestra
Do you have news about a job opening, new hire, promotion, or other happenings? If so, send us your news and we’ll consider including it in our next issue of Insights.
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