How About A Surfing Scholarship?

This scholarship program started in 2007 with only five grants awarded and within one year has expanded to 20 scholarships. This year, 2009, the organization has increased their scholarship program by 100%, issuing 40 scholarships to Under 18 junior surfers from 22 countries. So far over 80 applications from 24 countries have been received!

Grants To Help Pay For Your Real Estate Career. If you need assistance paying your education finances then consider applying for a business education real estate grant.If you are thinking of becoming a real estate agent then you might want to look into applying for business education real estate grants. These grants can help pay for your real estate courses. There may also be scholarships available for those that want to pursue a career in real estate as well. These grant (and scholarship) programs may also pay for your living expenses as well as for your educational expenses. You may also be able to use this grant money to pay for your business expenses such as rent for your real estate office and the business equipment that you will need to run the office.

"Green" Grants

Billions of Dollars are now available as part of President Obama's Stimulus Package to help create energy-saving programs! States and even more local areas are eligible to apply for grant money to create energy-saving programs including energy efficiency and conservation.

However there is a deadline of June 25, 2009 to apply for this grant program!

Included in this grant program:

• At least $500 million for green jobs training.
  
  
• $9.75 billion to renovate schools.
  
  
• $5 billion to weatherize low-income homes.
  
  
• $300 million to replace old appliances with "Energy Star" products.

A Grant Program For Gardening Projects

Does your organization have a conservation or landscape-related project in the works? Well you may be eligible to apply for this locally available grant program! Money is available to beautify, conserve, educate, inspire, and contribute to people of all ages using horticulture and garden development.


If your organization or institution would like to apply for this grant program then you have to fill out their online application which is available at their website. The grant application itself can be very simple, even handwritten, with simple sketches or photographs - but it must be completed by the deadline, June 15, 2009! The application is available as a downloadable .pdf file. According to one of the organization's members "We receive many requests to fund projects each year. We appreciate your project submission to us and hope we will be able to work with you toward accomplishing your goals. Good luck!"


The deadline to apply for this grant program is

June 15, 2009!

Here are some of the past grant recipients:

• A student received a scholarship which was funded by the organization. The student decided to study landscape gardening and, after being told by an instructor that she was "an excellent student," she went on to become a landscape instructor herself and now works with the instructor. One of her responsibilities and the part she enjoys the most is to supervise other students landscaping/planting the yards of newly completed Habitat for Humanity homes, a project also made possible by a grant from this same organization!
  
  
• One Audubon Society group now has a ranger to take care of one of their projects thanks to a $6,000 grant that has been provided by this organization.
  
  
• The organization has provided grant money to help beautify landscapes in the city and nearby county.
  
  
• A local area church has received enough grant money for the planting of biblical plants in their garden.
  
  
• A Children's Museum received grant money to establish a Secret Garden visible over a brick wall which also included a water feature & plantings with benches to allow citizens & tourists to rest and enjoy the setting.
  
  
• Another garden received grant money for an outdoor butterfly garden to surround the new Butterfly House that will be constructed there. Plant materials will be specifically designed to attract native butterflies and this area will serve as an outdoor classroom for visitors and schoolchildren.
  
  
  
• Other special projects that have been supported include garden therapy, youth gardener projects, and horticultural programs.
  

And the list goes on. Add it all up and the club's generosity is known to have benefited thousands of nonprofit organizations, schools, churches, local government projects and individuals, to the tune of more than $1 million.

Grants are divided into five main categories:

• Beautification - the creation of new gardens and the restoration of existing gardens; adding trees, shrubs; flowers along with hardscapes that will allow people to enjoy the particular area.
  
  
• Conservation
  
  
• Educational - In addition to scholarship funds, the organization has funded a greenhouse at a local Community College in which students learn to grow plants. Multiple grant awards have gone to schools and organizations for the purpose of educating people about how to use plants for conservation, food, landscaping, attracting wildlife, etc.
  
  
• Inspirational and memorials - For example one hospice received grant monies to help with a three-phase project for gardens on the property that will be uplifting to patients as well as to the entire community who visit and contemplate life and death. The project was completed in 2008.
  
  
• Philanthropy

A Grant Funding Example! A Local Library! Of course as I have been saying all along, one of the reasons why grant programs have been started is to bring more awareness to a problem and to help better one's community. Here is an example: One local library with a population of over 100,000, which has had over 71,000 registered library card holders, has circulated 300,000 items and answered over 100,000 reference questions has received over $45,000 in grant money! The Library System provided 1,512 programs and activities, the most in the history of the system, with 33,576 attending the events. The Reading Well Outreach made 332 visits to day-care centers and camps entertaining 16,146 children and teachers. Besides providing the regular library services to the community, their Mobile Library started visiting nursing homes and assisted-living centers. The Library System’s staff provides adult storytelling and Nintendo Wii gaming for seniors. The Library System didn’t solely focus on branch renovations during 2008, but accomplished the goal of enhancing technology. The Library System purchased databases to meet public demand. The Library System subscribed to Mango Language, which teaches nine foreign languages; Marshall Cavendish, an excellent database for children’s non-fiction material; and Lexis-Nexis and JSTOR, databases for periodical subscriptions and research. Also Meebo, an instant chat with a reference librarian, was added to the library system's web site, along with a reference blog describing the latest news in the reference department. Instructional videos on databases and interlibrary usages also were added on the Web site and YouTube. The Library System also maintains MySpace and Facebook sites. The library's e-book collection has increased to 1,740 items and some of the titles can be downloaded to a MP3 player. The Library System has a collection of 302,035 books, 6,291 books-on-CD, 6,758 DVDs, 2,746 books-on-tape and subscribes to approximately 400 magazines. If a person can’t visit one of the library's branches to obtain their monthly newsletter/calendar, it can now be downloaded from one of the Library System’s web site. Grants allow the Library System to provide quality programming. For 2008, the system received $47,446 in grants. The money was awarded from various organizations and regional Art Councils.

Scholarship Program For Veterans

Nationwide colleges have received $100,00 from a program that provides scholarships and support for current and former military members to ease their transition into higher education. the university announced Friday. The grants will be used to support related college programs. So far over 250 colleges have applied for these grants, which are given anually to colleges that have developed significant programs to increase access to veterans and their families. The first scholarships are expected to be awarded in the fall.

Over the past year, one foundation has awarded more than $3.6 million in grants to organizations in support of programs that provide educational assistance to veterans.

Grant To Buy An Electric Car?

In London, motorists could receive up to 5,000 pounds ($7,500) if they buy an electric car! The plan comes as part of a 250-million-pound scheme to make motoring greener, and ministers hope it will help Britain meet its target of slashing carbon emissions by 80 percent by 2050. Transport Secretary Geoff Hoon said he wanted electric cars to become a much more common sight on Britain's streets. "What we've got to get people used to is the idea that electric cars will become quite normal, quite usual, that it won't be exceptional and, without being slightly unkind to existing electric vehicles, they won't be slightly odd," he told one local newspaper.

Under this grant program, drivers will receive between 2,000 and 5,000 pounds towards buying their first electric and plug-in hybrid cars. Electric cars cost an average of 12,000 pounds, but go up to over 80,000 pounds for high-performance models.

There are also talks about urging the government to start a grant program which would pay motorists to ditch old cars for new.

Update!

• There is a new initiative being introduced that will allow drivers to trade in their non-running vehicles and claim £1,000 towards more fuel-hungry vehicles if they wish! There is also a loophole in one of the government programs that will allow wealthy drivers to trade in their non-running wrecks and obtain £1,000 from the taxpayer towards a new sports car, 4x4 or luxury car.
  
  Owners of cars that have no MoT certificate and are sitting rusting in backyards are eligible for grants if a statutory off-road notification (SORN) has been made. This is a declaration that a car is not being kept on a public road and therefore does not need to have an MoT or be taxed. A SORN is free and can be made via this website.
  
  This means that taxpayers are likely to be paying for cars that would have been bought anyway, without the grants. Because many will be replacing vehicles already removed from the road, the environmental benefits of this program will be limited.

Manufacturers must match the £1,000 grant with a £1,000 discount. The manufacturers are encouraging drivers to buy bigger, more fuel-hungry cars. Ford is offering £4,500, including the grant, off a Mondeo and £5,000 off a Galaxy. However, it is offering only £2,000 off a Fiesta and telling drivers they must wait at least three months for delivery. Any driver can get a friend or relative with an old car to trade it in on their behalf for a new one and transfer ownership. The government official said that this would be permitted.

• If you have an old car on the driveway that will not pass its MoT, complete a statutory off road notification on the website. Dealers will happily collect it, scrap it and give you the discount. The car must have been registered in your name for at least a year
  
  
• If you don’t have an old car to scrap, find a friend who does. Get him or her to go along with you to the dealer and sign the paperwork. When the deal is done your friend can transfer ownership to you

Several dealers told a reporter, who posed as a buyer wanting to take part in the scheme, that they could arrange an MoT regardless of the condition of the vehicle. “It’s going to be scrapped anyway so the MoT won’t be a problem,” one said.

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For other grant-related programs outside of the United States, please be sure to visit my Dream Job Forum!

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There is an assistance program that is offered by utility and gas companies in many states. This organization, and the aid they will give provides energy assistance funds to families and individuals in need of help. In addition, the program will offer additional aid, such as help for paying medical bills, rent or housing costs, and more. Select your state to learn if this program is available in your area!

Did you know that there is an organization that helps families and individuals who can't secure loan funding or cash grants at traditional lending institutions. Funds provided can be used to pay for items such as unexpected bills, fix transportation issues and purchase prescription drugs!

Property Tax Deferral Program For Homeowners With Limited Income! If you are a homeowner with limited income, then Washington has a program that may help you pay your property taxes and/or special assessments! Under this deferral program, 50 percent of your property taxes and/or special assessments will be paid on your behalf! The program is not an exemption or a grant. Deferred taxes are taxes that have been postponed. When you no longer own and use the property as your personal residence, you must repay the deferred tax. The deferred amount, plus interest, becomes a lien in favor of the state until the total amount is repaid. Please remember that you can do something if you don't have enough money to pay your property taxes. Don't wait until the town has taken your house for back taxes. It might be too late! I Can't Pay the Taxes on my House: What Can I Do? In one state if you cannot pay your tax bill for the property you live on, there is something you can do. Your city or town can decide that you don't have to pay some or all of it! If you are considered low-income then you may be eligible to apply for this program. You will need to get the correct form to apply for this property tax funding program. (it is available as a .pdf download). On the form, you will be asked specific information like how much income you make, your debts and expenses and you will also be asked questions about your property. If you are unemployed you will have to state the reason why you are unemployed. If you use all of your income to pay for basic living expenses (like rent or house payment, lights, heat, and food), then you should be able to qualify for this program. The town must let you apply for up to 3 years of back tax bills. If you owe more than 3 years, ask the Town if they will forgive all of the taxes that you owe. Be prepared to give them your income and budgets for each year. After you have applied for this program, your town has 30 days to decide what to do. During that time, they may hold an informal hearing. It must be kept private. At the hearing, they may ask you more questions about what you can pay. After the 30 days, they must tell you if you must still pay the taxes. They must give you their decision in writing. If you are turned down you have 60 days to try to change the decision (appeal). To appeal, you must send a letter to a higher authority, asking for a new decision. It can be a simple letter. Ask someone to help you if you need help. Your written decision from the town should tell you where to send the letter. Next, you will be told when and where and go to an appeal hearing. At the hearing, be prepared to talk about your income and budget. The people who hear your appeal have 60 days total (from the date of your letter) to make a new decision. If you are still denied then you can appeal the second decision to the local Superior Court. You must do this within 30 days after you got the second decision. If you do not receive this second written decision within 60 days, then your appeal is considered denied. In this case, your appeal deadline is 90 days from the date of your hearing. Here are some other ways that you may to get help with your house taxes. You may also be able to get more tax relief if you are: blind a wartime veteran and at least 62 years old or the widow or minor child of a wartime veteran You should also visit the state website for more information about this specific property tax program.

What Kind Of For-Profit Businesses

Get Government Grants?

Here is an excerpt from a for-profit business:

"Our business is already seeing early effects of the recovery money. How? Our customers are getting grants.

All of the "grant pots" are overflowing with money at this point, and many times when people get grant awards for small scale plants, they call us to design and build them. Our design-build group has gone from a single employee in 2008 to a staff of six in 2009. And the backlog of work is growing.
"

It seems that the government's official grant website has become so busy that grant writers are having a hard time accessing the website themselves! (Except for me of course! - LOL! - I have never had a problem accessing the government's official web site). The reason is because so many individuals are looking to the site to find more information about how they can get grant money for themselves!

According to one for-profit business that has received a government grant in the past:

"And I suppose I should be grateful that the stimulus is coming to town. Today we are building a second laboratory to accommodate all of the contracts that are coming our way and we have grants to thank for its expansion. I never went into this thinking "I could get a grant for this." And I had never heard of "stimulus money" when I was doing my business plan in 2005. It turns out that you cannot be in this business without having a toe in government policy. And you can't play a proper role in policy if you don't participate in grants, and research and the like."

Does Your Home Have Flood Damage?

Then here is some information that you should know.

If you own a house in an area where federal assistance has been approved you may want to contact FEMA to see if you can qualify for grants to help repair the damage in your home.

You will need to provide specific information such as addresses, insurance policies, bank account numbers, phone numbers and Social Security numbers. Have this information ready when you contact FEMA. You can visit their website and register online or you can call their toll-free 1-800 number as well. Their phone lines are open from 6am - to midnight. If you apply by phone, an intake officer will interview you. That will take about 20 minutes.

After registering, FEMA inspectors should come to your property within about a week. You don’t have to wait to start repairs, but document any work done and make sure it’s properly permitted. Take photos and keep receipts.

Keep in mind that while FEMA can grant as much as $30,300 for repair work, the average covered is less – $6,000 to $7,000. Grants will just pay for what’s needed to make a building safe and livable. Also, if insurance covers it, FEMA won’t. Money for repairs should arrive a week or so after inspection.

There may be other grant programs that one may also be eligible for including grant money to replace personal property, clothing, vehicles and medical needs.

Grant Programs For Minorities! Here is an excerpt from another online site: There are a multitude of grants for minorities to start a business or a non-profit organization. These grants for minorities are funded by the federal government as the government realizes that it had can be hard to get ahead in life, especially if you are a minority. Minority groups are not often given the chances required to make the most of their talents and skills, until now, when hundreds of thousands of dollars are available in grants for minorities. Do you have a great business idea but are unable to come with the capitol required to build the business? Perhaps you are part of a minority group that can make a difference in the community. There are grants available to start a business and even a non-for-profit organization to better the community. Taking the time to craft the grant letter and the business plan that is associated with the grant application can make all the difference in the approval. The grant committee is seeking business ideas and non-for-profit organizations that can make a substantial income for the grant applicant and allowing the individual to create an organization that can increase the viability of a community. There is one major benefit to grants for minorities. There are multiple grants for minorities available and very few minority groups that apply for the grants. Therefore, the chances of being approved for the grant that is being applied for is significantly improved with a minority grant.

Did you know that some community colleges offer a discount or free college tuition for seniors?

A for-profit business has been awarded a $5 million grant from one state’s funding program which helps the state with economic recruitment and expansion by providing financial assistance through local governments to attract business projects that will stimulate economic activity and create new jobs. Through the use of this Fund, more than 30,000 jobs and $4.5 billion in investment have been created since 2001!

$30,000 Contest Award! Are You An Innovator?

This contest is open to anyone with bold ideas and tremendous talent! Whether you’re new to mobile or an experienced coder, you could win up great prizes along with new opportunities to grow your business. It can also include applications for education, health care and more. Also sought are applications that guide individuals to make the right ethical choice and lead a sustainable lifestyle.

The contest challenges mobile and web application developers worldwide to submit entries in three categories:

Internet innovation – Calling on web developers to transform consumer-focused ideas into real applications on devices using technologies that include XHTML, CSS, Java Script, AJAX, widgets and other standards-based web technologies.

* Flash – Challenging creative developers and designers to build compelling applications that expand the capabilities and user benefits of Flash Lite on devices.

* Emerging Markets and Mobile Necessities – Urging developers to create innovative applications across mobile technology platforms – ranging from SMS through Series 40 and S60 device platforms. All applications will be considered, including those developed using Java, Python, or open source.

Emerging Markets – This includes applications designed to meet the needs and improve the daily lives of millions of people living in rural and semi-urban areas worldwide. It can include applications for education, health care and more.

Social responsibility – Applications that guide individuals to make the right ethical choice and lead a sustainable lifestyle.


The deadline to apply is

June 30, 2009!

Prizes include

• cash
  
  
• the opportunity to demo your winning application at a specified event this Fall
  
  
• "Spotlight" placement featuring your winning application at a newly announced store where consumers will find the best mobile applications and content for their devices.

Each contest category has been refined to provide you with additional guidance about the types of applications that the judges will be expecting to see.

All entries must be submitted by midnight (Eastern Standard Time) on 30 June 2009, so get started right away!

Here’s what you do to get started:

• Decide which category best fits your skills and interests, and then get the needed tools, documentation, and other support from our forum. It’s free to join, and when you become a member of the forum you can make the most of it's extensive development, testing, signing, go to market, and community resources.
  
  
• Create your application or widget -- or optimize your website -- for a specif mobile device.
  
  
• Submit your best work to the contest before the deadline at midnight (Eastern Standard Time) on 30 June 2009.

Full details about this competition can be found in the official rules.

The total cash and prizes for the 2009 contest are worth more than $250,000!

The top three submissions in each category will receive cash and prizes that include:

• Grand Prize winner: $30,000 USD in cash; "Spotlight" placement featuring the winning application for 4 weeks on the top page of a newly announced store, where consumers will find the best mobile applications and content for their devices; and paid travel to demo the winning application at a specified event in the Fall 2009.
  
  
• 2nd Place: $15,000 USD in cash; "Spotlight" placement featuring the winning application for 3 weeks on a relevant category page in a newly announced store, where consumers will find the best mobile applications and content for their devices.
  
  
• 3rd Place: $10,000 USD in cash; "Spotlight" placement featuring the winning application for 2 weeks on a relevant category page in a newly announced store, where consumers will find the best mobile applications and content for their devices.

The finalists of the contest will be announced on 17 August 2009.

State-Wide Equine Grant Program equine - of or relating to the horse By law, the funding for this particular grant program must go to support "equine research, education and promotion". Any group, individual, company or institution may apply for funding. Preference will be given to projects benefiting the largest number of people/horses. Grants to institutions and individuals will be related to equine research, education and industry enhancements and promotion.” Over $70,000 has been already awarded from funding from this grant program. The awards went to projects in nine communities and were presented at the state's Horse Fair. A detailed research application is available (as well as a shorter project application) via the website or you can contact the program directly by phone. Grant recipients include: Over $8,000 was received for equipment to help with volunteers for trail construction, reconstruction and maintenance at a national forest and nearby private property trails. "Hardening of the trails to withstand traffic without trail tread failure, muddiness or erosion is an increasingly important consideration,” according to one of the grant recipients. Equipment being funded includes packsaddles with gravel bags for use in wilderness areas, and a hydraulic gravel-hauling wagon for use in non-wilderness areas. A therapeutic horseback riding center received $8,000 toward its barn and paddock restoration project. One of the fairgrounds was given $7,800 to improve arena fencing and footing, re-establishing safety at the site for the many groups that use the public facility. During the severe flooding in the area during the summer of 2008, the grounds were used as a staging area for sand-bagging and other flood-fighting activities. Fencing around the area is used metal pipe, donated 20 years ago, and now rusted to ruin. Like many other projects supported, volunteers will remove old and install new fencing at the grounds. First steps for a new Riding Center are being funded with a $14,000 grant. The project is part of a 10-year master plan by the Advisory Committee, which requested help in creating a 7-acre turn out pasture to serve boarders and show participants, along with refurbishing access roads and ultimately a new indoor and outdoor arena and boarding facilities for 52 horses at the facility. The area has more than five miles of wooded and natural prairie trails. Another grant recipient received $7,200 to enhance and expand its 12-year-old ongoing training program for first response personnel who may serve at equestrian accident scenes. The objective is to develop basic familiarity in how to safely handle horses under crises conditions. One University staff member received $3,000 for the promotion of Natural Horsemanship Training Methods. “Natural Horsemanship is the term coined to describe a method of two-way communication between horse and human that is cooperative in nature. It differs from the more traditional, coercive-type horse training methods in that it offers options to the horse and encourages the horse to choose the desirable option rather than forcing the horse into a single, dictated action. A saddle club received $9,000 for their club’s arena and grounds project. Included in the grant is funding for road repair and a public address system and upgrades to arena and driveways at the site, which hosts 10 to 15 fun, pleasure and speed shows annually, as well as being used by many clubs. The PA system is a valuable aid in safely controlling equestrian and spectator traffic, according to Kennedy. Investigators from a university of Veterinary Medicine received $11,300 to study the effects of hyaluronic acid and triamcinolone alone and in combination on synovitis of equine stifle (which treatment option is best for painful, often debilitating osteoarthritis in a horse’s knee joint). In horses, osteoarthritis is more common and has greater economic impact than acute traumatic injuries or respiratory disease. It is a major source of debilitating pain, economic loss and decreased athleticism in the performance horse noting that 70% of the state's horses are used for recreation or showing.