2026 Jackson County Seniors Fund Community Grants — 2027 Services
The Jackson County Seniors Fund (JCSF) opened its inaugural competitive 2026 Community Grants round on October 20, 2026. It offers financial-assistance grants to established Jackson County, Missouri nonprofit programs helping residents age 60 or older remain independent and safe in their communities. This is a genuine grant RFP, not vendor procurement.
Applicant awards and program pool
Individual request: minimum $10,000; maximum is the lesser of $250,000 or 25% of the applicant’s applicable organizational or older-adult program budget. The board may consider exceptions, but no applicant is entitled to one. The fund anticipates distributing up to $6,000,000 across the entire competition; that overall pool is not an individual award amount. Awards support only the January 1–December 31, 2027 period; multiyear requests are ineligible.
Eligibility and geography
The applicant nonprofit organization or fiscally sponsored applicant program must be headquartered in Jackson County, Missouri; serving the county from an outside headquarters is not sufficient. Eligible organizations must be IRS 501(c)(3) nonprofits in good standing, or eligible programs with signed fiscal sponsorship through such a nonprofit. The proposed older-adult service must have operated for at least one year and serve Jackson County residents age 60 and older. Organizations may primarily serve older adults, have a significant established older-adult service, or operate a defined established older-adult program. One application is permitted per organization each cycle, although fiscal sponsors may sponsor multiple separately qualified programs.
Funding priorities and eligible expenses
The five priorities are food insecurity, caregiver support, social isolation, home modification and fall prevention, and transportation. The RFP permits reasonable costs directly tied to delivering or expanding eligible established services, including project staff salaries and benefits, contracted services, supplies, equipment, transportation, vehicles, and modest accessibility or safety improvements at existing program sites. Administrative/indirect costs may not exceed 15% of directly attributable project staff salaries and benefits.
Ineligible requests include new organizations or untested programs, institutional/residential care as the primary focus, standalone organizational capacity-building, major construction, new facilities, capital campaigns, gala or event sponsorship, grants to individuals, general operating costs unrelated to a defined project, multiyear requests, and costs incurred before award. No fixed matching-fund percentage is stated; if the project costs more than the requested award, describe planned sources for the balance. Those outside sources do not need to be committed when applying.
Deadline and application procedure
Apply by November 13, 2026, at 11:59 p.m. CST, through the official JCSF grants page and its Foundant Grant Lifecycle Manager (GLM) application portal. Email and paper applications are not accepted. Applicants must register in the online system, complete the program narrative and itemized request budget, describe how participants’ ages and Jackson County residency will be verified, and provide planned measurable outcomes and project expenses.
Prepare the applicant’s IRS determination letter (or sponsor determination letter and signed MOU), Form 990 if applicable, year-end and current financial statements, current organization and older-adult program budgets, and board list. A formal financial audit is not required for eligibility; submit one if available or provide an appropriate explanation. Applicants must supply the applicable uploads requested by the portal. Awards are expected to be announced before December 31, 2026; final project and outcome reporting is required after the 2027 grant year, with a possible midyear update.
Controlling official sources
Read the four-page official 2026 Community Grants Request for Proposals and the fund’s live application instructions and FAQs. Review updates before submitting. Verified October 25, 2026.