2025 HDR Foundation Grants

The Ali Forney Center provides services for unhoused youth in the U.S. This $9,950 grant will provide its Learning, Employment, Advancement & Placement (LEAP) classroom in Midtown Manhattan with learning kits, classroom and desk supplies, and reading material to support youth as they pursue their high school diplomas and GEDs.

Employee sponsor: Daniel Siragusa

The Arizona Heroes Memorial honors veterans, first responders, healthcare workers and other frontline heroes. This $10,000 grant will help replace perished plants and trees with diverse native vegetation, enhancing the 2.5-acre memorial site into a vibrant, educational and reflective space that fosters engagement with thousands of annual visitors, including students and educators.

Employee sponsors: Maria Altemus

This $9,896 grant for Buck Lodge Middle School will help support an educational initiative titled “TechRise: AI ChangeMakers.” The grant will cover the costs of iPads and accessories, Snap Circuits, batteries and other learning materials for the program, which is designed to introduce students to the fundamentals of artificial intelligence through hands-on learning and prototype development.

Employee sponsor: Ruthann Richards

The Charleston Parks Conservancy cut flower program provides therapeutic gardening experiences and donates bouquets to women facing challenges such as postpartum depression, domestic violence, poverty and health crises. This $9,673 grant will provide the materials and tools necessary to renovate and expand its cut flower production space at the Medway Community Garden on James Island, paving the way for the organization to increase annual bouquet production and serve more partners. 

Employee sponsors: Bekah Payne, Alex Houk 

City Fruit focuses on urban fruit tree stewardship and equitable food access. This $9,673 grant will provide the tools needed for the organization to relaunch its Master Fruit Tree Stewards Program, which will equip community members with skills in orchard planning, sapling care and mature tree maintenance. The program will enable the annual distribution of fresh fruit to over 30 food banks and low-barrier pop-up stands in food-insecure neighborhoods.

Employee sponsor: Trina Burke

Community Service Associates (CSA) Soup Kitchen helps reduce food insecurity and promote wellness through consistent access to balanced meals. This $9,970 grant will fund a reach-in freezer, refrigerator, and a deli meat slicer to improve the efficiency, reliability and safety of daily meal preparation for its 85 low- to moderate-income individuals.

Employee sponsor: Nikoleta Juncaj

Esperanza De Tejas delivers essential goods, including diapers, baby formula, hygiene kits, and refrigerated breast milk, to rural communities across South Texas and the greater Houston area. This $10,000 grant will fund a pre-owned vehicle that will serve as a cornerstone of its new Mobile Community Connection Center, helping expand the delivery of essential goods to more underserved communities by 20%.

Employee Sponsors: Alexa Fulbright, Eli Whitworth

Family Advocacy Center and Education Services (FACES) of Hope supports survivors of domestic violence, sexual assault, child and elder abuse, stalking and human trafficking. This $9,832 grant will fund technological supplies and equipment that support mobile client services and trauma-informed programming for 60 to 80 individuals and families per week.

Employee sponsor: Heather Nold

Family Gateway serves families with children experiencing homelessness and serves as an entry point for families seeking assistance and emergency shelter. This $10,000 grant will fund 50 welcome kits and 450 non-perishable snack bags for children entering the emergency shelter, bridging hunger gaps, providing nutrition, easing stress and anxiety and improving hygiene. The kits help create a sense of safety, dignity and personal space during an uncertain time.

Employee sponsor: Jay Alla

The Greater Twin Cities United Way is implementing its Home for Good 2025 initiative focused on community well-being. This $10,000 grant will fund 250 baking essentials packs and 203 cutlery packs for the initiative, which aims to help over 750 individuals and families transition from homelessness into stable housing by providing household essentials needed to create a safe and dignified home.

Employee sponsor: Jess O’Connor

Hubbard House is a full-service certified domestic violence center that has served more than 159,500 survivors over its 48-year history. This $10,000 grant award will be used to purchase materials for wellness, new mom, welcome/starter, and kitchen kits that include items such as hygiene products, baby supplies, and personal care items — essentials that help restore dignity, comfort and a sense of control in the first moments of safety.

Employee sponsors: Nya Howe, Lauren Pradella, Megan Robillard

Journey Forward Mentoring provides personalized guidance and mentoring, resources, and a community to students from low-income households and under-resourced communities, helping them navigate the educational system and develop skills needed for academic and professional success. To support its care package initiative for the 2025-2026 school year, this $10,000 grant will fund college and high school student care packages that ease students’ financial burden. The funds will support purchasing essential supplies, reinforcing that students belong, they are not alone, and there is a community that believes in them.

Employee Sponsor: George Cisneros

This $10,000 grant to Los Angeles County + University of Southern California Medical Center Foundation will help fund the renovation of the family and viewing rooms in the emergency department. The space is used by grieving families to receive news of a loved one’s passing or to say goodbye in a setting aimed to reduce trauma, promote emotional well-being and address disparities in end-of-life experiences. The funds will be used for new furniture, lighting, paint and drapery to transform the spaces into more comforting and dignified environments. 

Employee Sponsor: Brandon Guzman

Lifelong provides medically tailored meals to individuals living below the poverty line with serious and chronic illnesses. This $5,207 grant will fund the purchase of a commercial-grade food processor that allows the culinary team to efficiently and uniformly process large quantities of fresh ingredients that meet the specific dietary needs of individuals in the community.

Employee sponsor: Hannah Baumbach

Makr is a maker space working with under-resourced students in science, technology, engineering and math (STEM) education and career exploration. This $8,111 grant will help fund new workbenches and chairs to expand its STEM lab capacity, tripling the number of students reached. The space supports programming in robotics, 3D printing, electronics and computer-aided design. 

Employee sponsor: Devin Brewer

Martin Luther King, Jr. Service Project betters the lives of veterans and at-risk senior homeowners by providing home maintenance and repair services. This $10,000 grant will fund paint, lumber, fixtures, yard waste bags, wall and floor coverings, hardware, millwork, electrical parts and building materials for community service projects that help residents safely and comfortably remain in their homes.

Employee sponsor: Tristan Wilson

MilkWorks is a community breastfeeding center focused on supporting the perinatal health of over 3,000 mothers annually. This $8,900 grant will fund new furniture for a community room and postpartum toolkits for new mothers, catalyzing the organization’s plans to strengthen resources available to families and expanding its Mom’s Mental Health Matters project.

Employee sponsor: Amanda Weihs

The Society of Hispanic Professional Engineers (SHPE) Greater Phoenix Chapter raises awareness of STEM careers to younger generations, fosters relationships and provides development opportunities for professionals already working in STEM fields. This $1,097 grant will fund an excavator set, balloon cart, educational kits and workshop supplies to support its Dia de Ciencias STEM outreach events for K-12 students in underserved communities.

Employee sponsor: Irbis Martinez Torres

This $10,000 grant to Special Olympics South Dakota will help it launch its newest delegation, the Bulldogs. The funds will be used to purchase a storage shed and shelving, a sun canopy, uniforms, utility wagons, and sports equipment for the Bulldogs. The grant will help expand the athlete base and promote inclusion, physical activity and confidence-building for individuals with disabilities.

Employee sponsor: Becky Baker

Spudstate Cares provides an inclusive and safe space for individuals with developmental disabilities to participate in activities with peers and improve social skills, reducing feelings of isolation and anxiety while fostering a sense of belonging. This $5,869 grant will support the purchase of a high-quality sound system to improve audio distribution during events for individuals with developmental disabilities, paving the way for more participants, better engagement and expanded programming.

Employee sponsor: Kristy Newkirk

Sweetwater Organic Community Farm advocates and promotes healthy lifestyles through its education programs and apprenticeships, serving as a hub of community activity for volunteers and Sunday market visitors. This $10,000 grant will fund the purchase of materials to repair greenhouses, harvesting tools, greenhouse plastic/shade cloth and a greens spinner to help support the farm’s storm recovery efforts and expand its sustainable agriculture programs.

Employee sponsor: Jake Hemingway

This $9,470 grant to Together We Rise/Foster Love will support its STEM box initiative for youth in foster care. The STEM box program seeks to greatly improve academic statistics within the foster child community by providing hands-on experiences with STEM-based experiments and associated equipment and supplies, as well as a curated list of STEM careers for inspiration.

Employee sponsor: Bri Dier

Umi Feeds is dedicated to combating food insecurity and promoting preventative healthcare through healthy food access. This $9,700 grant will help expand its Whitehall Terrace Community Garden to grow more produce for those living in food deserts or experiencing homelessness. The funds will be used for a new container shed, sink, irrigation system parts, outdoor seating, plants, flowers, soil, compost, materials for fencing and an accessible ramp.

Employee sponsor: Kelley Dorsett

Urban Rivers, an organization focused on ecological restoration and community science along the Chicago River, will use this $9,781 grant to support initiatives focused on macroinvertebrate monitoring and underwater root ecosystem analysis. The funds will support the purchase of an underwater remotely operated vehicle, sampling equipment and aquatic plant seedlings.

Employee sponsor: Stephanie Schramm

Washington Pavilion delivers memorable experiences that educate, entertain and enrich the surrounding community, with an education department that focuses on providing accessible STEAM-based programming for children of all backgrounds. This $9,800 grant will fund advanced STEAM education kits to enhance the Homeschool Workshop Series to include content for modular robotics, environmental science, and mechanical and structural engineering concepts.

Employee sponsor: Elizabeth Coday

The 140 Aurora Air Cadets Squadron empowers youth ages 12 to 18 through leadership, citizenship and experiential learning. This CA$6,654 grant will support an initiative to increase participation in the squadron’s marching band program, providing cadets with new musical instruments and band equipment. The revitalized program will enhance creative skill development, increase participation in public events and expand opportunities for youth from diverse and underserved backgrounds across the York Region.
 

Employee sponsor: Shamila Somasundram | Richmond Hill, ON
 

East Toronto Family Community Centre supports youth and families in the Blake/Jones neighborhood through inclusive, community-driven programs. This CA$8,500 grant will support Rescue Bike, a free bicycle repair and donation initiative. Funding will provide essential tools, parts and safety gear, enabling volunteers to repair bikes, teach maintenance skills and distribute refurbished bicycles to low-income residents — promoting active transportation, physical health, and community connection.

Employee sponsor: Peter Duckworth-Pilkington | Toronto, ON
 

Made by Momma supports vulnerable families in crisis by providing nutritious, prepared meals and essential household items. This CA$9,350 grant will fund critical kitchen infrastructure upgrades, including two replacement cooktops, a washer and dryer set, and shelving for a walk-in freezer. These improvements will enhance food preparation and storage capacity, enabling the organization to meet growing community needs and support over 15,000 individuals annually.

Employee sponsor: Sheila De Torres | Calgary, AB

Pedal Foundation empowers marginalized individuals through access to sustainable transportation and mechanical skills training. This CA$10,000 grant will support the Pedals for the People program, which provides low-income individuals with free and subsidized bicycles, accessories and maintenance. Funding will help refurbish and distribute 200 bikes, enabling recipients to access work education and essential services while promoting environmental sustainability and community well-being.

Employee sponsor: Ryan Pendleton | Vancouver, BC
 

Aspire Afterschool Learning educates historically underserved third through eighth graders through hands-on afterschool programming. With construction of a new STEM Makerspace at Arlington Mill Community Center underway, this $57,312 grant will support the furnishing of the new learning space. Funding will be used for durable and versatile items such as mobile workstations, mobile tables, mobile storage cabinets and seating.

Employee sponsor: John Knickmeyer | Arlington, VA

Blanchet House provides a safe and supportive environment where men can heal from homelessness and addiction, rebuild their lives and gain skills that support long-term recovery. This $50,987 grant will fund a new metalworking shop on the Blanchet Farm, with mentorship from accomplished volunteers. With a need for more tradespeople in Yamhill County, the metalworking shop will connect residents to local apprenticeship and employment opportunities.

Employee sponsor: Sean Larkin | Portland, OR

Casey’s Clubhouse fosters inclusion and connection through baseball and beyond, providing opportunities for individuals with disabilities to thrive. This $25,750 grant will fund new equipment that’s needed to run an inclusive and adaptive camp experience for the next 10-plus years. Equipment will enhance the existing adaptive baseball field which promotes active lifestyles, social connection and community belonging for participants.

Employee sponsor: Garrett Reinsfelder | Pittsburgh, PA

Children’s Respite Care Center (CRCC) provides educational services to students who have complex medical, developmental and educational needs that cannot be met in traditional school settings. This $15,000 grant will fund the installation of interactive panels and audio enhancements in three Omaha classrooms. These enhancements address each student’s need for an individualized learning approach, helping CRCC advance educational equity for children with disabilities.

Employee sponsor: Betsy Stannard | Omaha, NE

Engineers Without Borders is empowering communities globally through sustainable infrastructure projects. This $120,000 grant will support six distinct projects across Guatemala that utilize American engineering student volunteers. The six projects include two water supply projects, two sanitation projects and two school structure projects, making a long-term impact on six Guatemalan communities and helping to advance EWB’s regional Purposeful Partnership Model infrastructure program in Guatemala.

Employee sponsor: Luke Thompson | Bellevue, WA

Family Promise Metrowest serves families with children who are experiencing homelessness or are at-risk of homelessness. This $5,395 grant will establish a technology lending library at Family Promise's shelter. Families in the shelter face significant barriers to accessing reliable technology, which hinders their ability to pursue education, employment and support their children’s learning.

Employee sponsor: Estey Masten | Boston, MA

Find Your Light offers after school enrichment classes, workshops and summer camps for at-risk, low-income children, teens and young adults. This $15,000 grant will fund the purchase of microphones, receiver boxes, headsets, speakers and a sound system for the nonprofit’s musical theatre and after-school educational programs. Find Your Light supports youth mental health using performing arts as a therapeutic tool.

Employee sponsor: Sirena Brownlee | Denver, CO

Garfield Community Farm delivers fresh produce to the Garfield neighborhood with its Mobile Market. This $17,500 grant will purchase a new truck, shelving and solar panels to restore and improve the produce deliveries. In 2024, the Mobile Market delivered over 1,500 lbs of produce to a community with high levels of food insecurity and no grocery stores. 

Employee sponsor: Nicolas Burdette | Pittsburgh, PA

Gotham Bat Conservancy offers educational programming to its network of citizen scientists and students, ranging from middle school to graduate school. This $7,544 grant will fund new ultrasonic recorders, calibration devices and related accessories to scale the educational program capabilities, raise public awareness about bats and their role in healthy ecosystems, and enhance scientific monitoring activities.

Employee sponsor: Julia Kramer | Nanuet, NY

Lead with Love combats the social injustices that youth face by fostering leadership within Southside Chicago’s priority communities. This $26,150 grant will fund the creation of a dedicated wellness studio to host free youth dancing, tumbling and fitness classes. The wellness studio will serve as a safe, healing environment where children exposed to violence and trauma can emotionally regulate and manage stress.

Employee sponsor: Stephanie Schramm | Rosemont, IL

The Outlook Enrichment Tandem Bike Club offers safe and empowering biking opportunities that accommodate riders with vision loss and other disabilities. This $19,990 grant will fund the purchase of seven tandem bikes, safety lights and helmets. The tandem bikes allow blind or low vision riders an opportunity to participate in a biking club by having a sighted volunteer in the front seat.

Employee sponsor: Abigail Heithoff | Omaha, NE

Parks Alliance of Louisville is working with the Urban Conservation Corps (UCC) to train community members on the cultivation and preparation of fresh food. This $48,230 grant will fund the expansion of its community garden through the addition of a training pavilion within Alberta O. Jones Park. UCC’s one-year program trains low-income young adults in essential workforce skills for Louisville’s green sector.

Employee sponsor: Ameerah Palacios | Louisville, KY

Raptor Conservation Alliance provides care and support for injured and orphaned raptors in the Omaha area. This $19,958 grant will replace five chest freezers with a walk-in freezer, supporting the raptor facility’s ability to supply high-quality frozen food. The nonprofit serves the entire state of Nebraska and Western Iowa by providing educational services to school groups, civic organizations and special gatherings.

Employee sponsor: Heather Witt | Omaha, NE

South Texas Youth Soccer maintains and provides over 180 acres of sporting fields, allowing thousands of children and adults to play soccer, flag football and other sports. This $6,589 grant will fund four automated external defibrillators (AEDs) for the safety of their athletes. After the purchase of the AEDs, South Texas Youth Soccer staff will complete CPR training.

Employee sponsor: Lori Lee | San Antonio, TX

STEP Denver serves men battling addiction and homelessness, helping them take back control of their lives through a safe and sober living environment. The $19,668 grant will fund the replacement of all 66 twin XL mattresses in the downtown facility. Last year, 96% of admittees did not have an address at the time of admission; STEP provides each man with new career opportunities, healthy living conditions, hygiene facilities and sobriety.

Employee sponsor: Cherie Dice | Denver, CO

Surge for Water is a global nonprofit that delivers comprehensive water solutions, creating lasting change through safe water, sanitation, hygiene and menstrual health. This $95,000 grant will make a lasting impact for over 8,000 people across nine schools and communities in Amolatar, Uganda. The remote Ugandan district is a self-described “forgotten land,” and the grant will provide new drinking water well drills, drinking water well rehabilitations, new school toilets and classroom water filters.

Employee sponsor: Scott Todd | Mobile, AL

Turn the Page KC and Wildwood Outdoor Education Center are partnering to bring Turn the Page’s Literacy Infusion curriculum program into the Wildwood camp experience. This $30,000 grant will create a child-centered library to house the current camp reading program, extending the program’s staff training, curriculum and reading incentives for campers. Wildwood serves over 800 students per year through day and overnight camps, and 70% of those students identify as part of a low-income family.

Employee sponsor: Roopa Matole | Kansas City, MO

Clean Up Australia educates people of all ages on target waste streams and environmental issues facing Australia’s environment. This AU$5,000 grant will provide 50 school cleanup kits, directly inspiring 500 students to play an active role in preserving ecosystems and protecting their surrounding community. As waste challenges in Australia continue to grow, educating students will help move the country towards a circular economy where everything is treated as a resource.

Employee sponsor: Cintia Mistro | Sydney, NSW

Days for Girls Australia works to eliminate the stigma around menstruation by providing women and girls health education programs and menstrual products. This AU$5,000 grant will fund 350 Days for Girls kits, which include washable and reusable menstrual health products. To date, Days for Girls has made life-changing impacts on more than 3 million women and girls around the world.

Employee sponsor: Ady Chen | Sydney, NSW

Open Doors Youth Service has supported the LGBTIQ+ Sistergirl and Brotherboy community for the past 25 years, remaining as Queensland’s only dedicated LGBTIQ+ youth service to the community. This AU$5,000 grant will help launch The Pride Art Therapy Program, a creative mental health support group for young people ages 12 to 24. This program offers a safe and inclusive space to process identity, explore emotions and build confidence through art-making and therapeutic reflection.

Employee sponsor: Helen Parminter | Brisbane, QLD

Orange Sky Australia supports people experiencing homelessness or hardship through access to free laundry and shower services along with personable, nonjudgemental conversations. This AU$5,000 grant will support remote laundry service in Wadeye, Northern Territory, by providing laundry detergent, water, electricity, and service and repairs to washing machines and vehicles. The grant will help Orange Sky continue to work towards eradicating scabies within this First Nations community.

Employee sponsor: Paula Carvalho | Sydney, NSW

PTSD Dogs Australia rescues, rehabilitates and trains displaced dogs to support retired personnel of the Australian Defence Force and Australia’s first responders. These individuals often grapple with the invisible wounds of post-traumatic stress disorder, this AU$4,000 grant will help cover essential expenses for the training of eight assistance dogs at no-cost to the Veterans and First Responders. Specifically, funding will cover vaccinations, training supplies, grooming and bedding to ensure each dog receives the care they need to thrive.

Employee sponsor: Laura Bill | Brisbane, QLD

An AU$2,000 grant will support Foodbank Victoria, a food and grocery relief organization that supplied over 3,220 school breakfast programs and sourced over 92 million meals last year.

An AU$2,000 grant will support Nexus Care, which offers food relief programs, emergency financial relief, workplace English classes and career coaching clinics to Australians in need.

An AU$2,000 grant will support OzHarvest, a leading food rescue organization on a mission to “Nourish our Country” by stopping good food from going to waste and delivering it to charities that help feed people in need.