The Community Foundation of the Mahoning Valley is excited to announce the 2026 Food Access Emergency Grants.
Donor Name: Community Foundation of the Mahoning Valley
State: Ohio
Type of Grant: Grant
Deadline: All Time
Size of the Grant: Not Available
Grant Duration: Grant Duration Not Mentioned
Details:
The ongoing shutdown of the federal government has resulted in significant disruptions to critical services and programs such as the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP), which supports thousands of households throughout the Mahoning Valley. These disruptions have resulted in increased demand on local resources to fill in the gaps to ensure residents in the Mahoning Valley are able to meet their basic health and safety needs.
The Community Foundation’s limited emergency funding resources are focused on coordinated efforts that can quickly expand existing food access across the region — such as scaling up established programs or collaborations that reach multiple communities. Priority will be given to organizations with an existing relationship with the Community Foundation, either as a grantee or a community partner.
The Community Foundation will consider requests from individual food access efforts, including food pantries, if the following information can be provided:
- The food access effort (ex: food pantry, meal delivery, etc.) was operational before the request for emergency funding was made.
- The applicant can provide information regarding current resources available (ex: food in a pantry inventory, staff or volunteers available to expand the program, etc.) and how long these resources will last.
- The applicant can provide information about the impact the anticipated increase in services will have on their current level of service delivery and a general approach to responding to this increased demand on services.
CFMV offers emergency grant opportunities for eligible nonprofit organizations facing urgent funding needs. This program addresses both unforeseen events that significantly interrupt essential services AND (as of May 2025) challenges related to recent unprecedented changes in federal funding and.
- Emergency Grant requests will be prioritized based on alignment with the below key pathways:
- Social Safety Net: Support for health, safety, and basic needs
- Vulnerable Communities: Aid for communities adversely impacted by policies
- Advocacy: Nonpartisan advocacy for essential social services and other community-centered needs
- Community Resilience: Programs fostering social connection, enrichment and cultural programming.
Eligibility Criteria
- Eligible applicants include 501(c)(3) nonprofit organizations, churches, government agencies, and organizations working with qualified fiscal sponsors
- Priority is given to organizations with an existing relationship with CFMV as a grantee or community partner
- Organizations must have been providing food access programs before the reduction of SNAP benefits. New efforts created in response to the loss of funding will not be considered for this particular emergency grant opportunity.
For more information, visit CFMV.
