What I Do........................................

I am a teacher with 14 year experience, I have triple degress- 3-5 years of age, regular education K-5 grade, and special education Multiple disabilities K-12, and I have my masters in Ele Guidance. I would like to open an "educare" center in my county. Can you help me find grants for doing this? Do you have a book you are selling or do you actually help secure the grants and how much do you charge- thank you g~

What I do quite simply is find the grant programs that clients are eligible for. I send them all the information about the grant programs and then they can decide whether or not they want to apply for the funding on their own or whether they want someone to help them whether it be me or someone else. You can find more information on both my Grant Basics 101 page and my contact information pages.

One thing that you will have to understand about the grant process is that it is a process. You have to submit your application and it has to be reviewed before any grant award decision is made. Applying for a grant does not automatically guarantee that you will get the grant.

Students - Are You Looking For Money To Attend College?

Well you may not have to! There is a growing trend of colleges and universities that are elimination student loan packages and replacing them with grant packages - grants meaning money that you do not have to pay back!

There is even one well known university where if your parents make under $50,000 a year, you don't have to pay anything to attend!

The list of colleges and universities that are following this trend is growing. I have a list of these colleges and universities that I give to my clients upon request.

How Is This For Results! - Need Some Heating Help This Winter?

Did you know that there are grant programs out there to help you with your heating bills? Not only that, there are also grant programs out there to help you if you need any repairs to your heating system!

How do I know this? I know this because a recent client of mine had their home inspected for a heating-related audit. Guess what they are going to get from the results of the inspection?

• repairs to their heating system to get it working again
  

• new thermostat installed!
  

• a NEW hot water heater! (plus installation at no cost!)
  

• a NEW refridgerator (because their old one is more than 10 years old and the motor is faulty)
  

• new smoke detectors - with the batteries already included!
  

• various related additions like weatherstripping and caulk work

If you are worried about being able to make it through the winter then you should definitely check your state's website to see if they have any similar grant programs available in your area.

I had a chance to talk to one of the contractors who is doing the work and he told me that they have already done this kind and similiar kinds of work and repairs to over a hundred qualified applicants!

From My Email Bag...................................

Dear Rose,

I read on your blog that there are entrepreneurial grants available for for-profit businesses such as a recording studio/company. I am in the process of starting a recording company.

Can you give me the website or sites where I would go to gather information or apply to these grants.

Also, you stated that there are two programs which offer grants to help people fulfill their dream. Can you give me the websites or contact information for these grant programs.

I would greatly appreciate this info.

Your blog is a very helpful resource in the complicated and intimidating web of information to find a grant for start up expenses. I thank you immensly.

L~

I get this kind of email all the time. Unfortunately I have to remind the people who send me this kind of email that since they are not a client of mine that they will have to find this kind of grant information themselves.

If you take a good look at my contact and payment information page you will see at the very top of the page that if you send me any email asking for grant information and you are not a client then your information will be returned back to you - unanswered. You will also see that there are a list of questions that have to be answered before I can even begin my research into finding any grant programs that you may be eligible to apply for.

The person that sent me this email above only stated that they wanted to start a recording studio. I have no idea if they are a minority (there are some grant programs out there that are specifically for those who are minorities that want to start their own business). I also don't have any idea as to what kind of recording studio they want have as a business. This is very important information that has to be included when you are looking for grant programs that you may be eligible to apply for. The email doesn't even say where this recording studio will be located? There are grant programs out there for those that want to start their own business that are specific to specific areas only and of course I have no idea whether or not this person is eligible to apply for them because I don't know the location of where their recording studio is going to be. Another important piece of information that has to be had is how much in grant money are they looking to get? What will they need that grant money for? Those organizations and other entities that award grants like to know what their money is going towards. There are a few grant programs out there that allow you to spend your grant money any way you want but I don't even know if this person would qualify for these kind of grant programs because I just don't have enough information about what they are seeking a grant (or a number of grants) for.

Yes, you are very right when you say that finding information about grant programs that one may be eligible for is very complicated and that is why I do it for clients only!

Once you start looking for this kind of grant program information yourself you will see that it is hard and complicated work and hopefully it will give you a new respect for those of us that do it for a living!

A Reminder

When submitting your payment and information for grant research please be advised that there is a provision for you to add any additional information that you feel may be necessary. You must also answer the following questions that appear on my Payment Information Page.

Who are you seeking a grant for? Individual, Non-Profit, For-Profit or Other? (If other, please specify):




For what purpose are you seeking a grant? To start a business? Seeking a grant in a/my field of interest?



What area (city and state) will this grant be for?




Are you specifically seeking government grants or any grant that may pertain to you? Are you looking for other forms of funding including Investors?


What grants have you already applied for and if applicable what were the reason(s) that you were denied the grant award?



Please provide an email address:



Do you know how to unzip files?




Your contact information:




Your Payment Information:



The sooner that you provide all the information, the sooner the grant research will begin. While it will take a minimum of 30 days to provide the information to you, the sooner that you provide all the information the sooner the 30 day period will end.

Need Some Help Paying Your Heating Bill?

I just got finished faxing a copy of a client's heating bill to a local organization that helps people with paying their heating bills. They can't provide much but they do provide what they have in the way of finacial assistance to those that are having trouble paying their heating bill.

I have dealt with this organization before on the behalf of other clients who have had trouble paying their heating bill and need a little financial assistance to help them out. The woman on the phone was very nice and she told me that she was expecting some financial funds to help provide others with financial help to help pay their heating bills (which will be most helpful now because the weather is starting to get colder!).

The first time that I dealt with this organization all I needed to do was send in a copy of the heating bill. That was a few years ago. Now the procedure for getting financial assistance to help pay a person's heating bill seems to be the same.

This is a small organization and a local one. I suspect that one of the reasons why they do not advertise is because if a lot of people knew about the financial assistance that they provide they would get an over-whelming number of calls from people needing help to pay their heating bills. They do not even have a website.

So while this is a local organization, you should check within your own area to see if you can find a similar organization that helps by providing financial assistance to those that need help to pay their heating bills.

"Where Do I Apply For A Daycare Grant?"

Hello im a young women living in california. I'm in the process of geting licensed. i ant to apply for a grant of 100,000-200,000$ to open a child daycare in a house. where do i go to apply for these grants? where do i find them

However I find that you are asking for quite a lot of money to start a daycare in your home. I hope that you have a very good reason for asking for that kind of money.

Number 2 - the only way to find these grant programs is look for them. However since you are not a client you will have to find this information yourself. If you take a look at my grant pages you will see that I mention 2 grant programs for those that want to start their own business. One is for $20,000 and the other is for $100,000! If these programs sound of interest to you then you should definitely look them up to see if you qualify to apply for them.

Do the work yourself instead of asking someone else to do the work for you. There are grant programs are out there and I should know because I do this for a living! The fact that you haven't found them yet doesn't mean that they aren't out there - it just means that you haven't found them yet.

yes i searched your website but it seems like i get the run around when i got to grant sites. im trying to avoid fees to get grant information. would you be able to help me? do u help out those to get grants and charge a fee later i want to know and i want to apply for a grant but i just need helP! please thankX

Here is an excerpt from my Payment Information Page:

How to Hire a Freelance Grantwriter

Count on having to pay a freelancer before you get any grants. Very few professionals will accept a percentage or commission or deferred payment. If you don't have the cash needed, collect enough from your board, staff and volunteers to pay for an hour or two with a freelancer. He or she can clarify some initial steps you could take on your own and suggest some potential grantors for you to research and cultivate. Don't ask a freelance grantwriter to volunteer their services. Seasoned grantseekers get asked constantly to work for free. If they do volunteer, it's usually for organizations or individuals they already have a relationship with. The fact that you're a non-profit carries no weight – that's all they work with!"

You also have to remember that it is not only the government that has grant programs.

You have to be a client before I will attempt to find you any grant programs that you are eligible for. If you are not a client then you will have to do the work and find the information yourself or you will have to find someone else to do it for you. As you can see from my daycare and grant info pages there are many grant programs out there for those that want to start their own business - but they have to know how to do it right!

Grants To Help Produce A Gospel CD?

A potential client's email:

I want to pay by creidt card to have you help me get a grant. Do you reseach grants? I was some what confused on the email and please help me understand!!! Will you help me seach for grants for people using it for personal use for a great cause?

---

My Response

First of all its not your grant until you get it.

Here is an excerpt from my Payment Information page:

How to Hire a Freelance Grantwriter

Count on having to pay a freelancer before you get any grants. Very few professionals will accept a percentage or commission or deferred payment. If you don't have the cash needed, collect enough from your board, staff and volunteers to pay for an hour or two with a freelancer. He or she can clarify some initial steps you could take on your own and suggest some potential grantors for you to research and cultivate. Don't ask a freelance grantwriter to volunteer their services. Seasoned grantseekers get asked constantly to work for free. If they do volunteer, it's usually for organizations or individuals they already have a relationship with. The fact that you're a non-profit carries no weight – that's all they work with!

So I suggest that if you want someone to get you the grant first then you find someone else to help you get it.

Let's take a look at your request specifically:

You want grant money to produce your CD - right? Since you will be doing a lot of the production work yourself have you considered the possibility of yourself being a production company? There is a $20,000 grant program for minorities that want to start their own business so if you start a production company that is the same thing as starting your own business. I mention this particular grant program because one of the past grant winners started her own film company with the grant money.

If your recordings provide a special educational message for others there are other grant programs that you can apply for.

Individual states have grant programs for artists, there are grant programs to help finance producing an artist's CD.............

A nationally known gospel artist has receive FIVE Grants for his gospel works....Here is an excerpt:

"Chanticleer is the recipient of major grants from various foundations, organizations and The National Endowment for the Arts."

Finding this information is what I do for clients. You get ALL of the grant information that I find delivered as an attached file via email. Once you get the information about the grant programs that you are eligible for you can then decide whether or not you want to apply for them yourself or whether or not you want to hire a grantwriter - whether its me or someone else - to write the grant for you. Either way its you the client that has all the information about the grant programs that you're eligible to apply for.

"Get Me The Grant First, Then I'll Pay You"

Of course it is inevitable that I would get an email like this. Here is an excerpt from my Payment Information Page

How to Hire a Freelance Grantwriter

Count on having to pay a freelancer before you get any grants. Very few professionals will accept a percentage or commission or deferred payment. If you don't have the cash needed, collect enough from your board, staff and volunteers to pay for an hour or two with a freelancer. He or she can clarify some initial steps you could take on your own and suggest some potential grantors for you to research and cultivate. Don't ask a freelance grantwriter to volunteer their services. Seasoned grantseekers get asked constantly to work for free. If they do volunteer, it's usually for organizations or individuals they already have a relationship with. The fact that you're a non-profit carries no weight – that's all they work with!

As I have said many, many times before - A grant is not guarenteed! You have to apply for the grant. Your application will be reviewed along with all the other grant applications that have been submitted. Theoretically speaking the grant application that best fits the needs of the program offering the grant will be the application that gets the grant.

If any grantwriter guarentees that you will get the grant you should be suspicious right there! You have to understand the process involved in getting a grant. Not every grant program is the same. They all have their different requirements for submission. Some are complicated, some are not and some are in-between. That is why I give all of my clients the grant information first! That way they can decide whether or not they want to apply for the grant program themself or whether or not they want to hire a grantwriter - be it me or someone else - to write the grant for them.

So if you are looking for me to guarentee that you will get the grant then you are going to have to look for someone else.

I work with the rules - not against them!

"Grant Request"

I got an email from someone asing for a grant request so that they could record their music. This person sent me an email saying how much grant money they were requesting, what they wanted to use the money for and a detailed personal bio of themselves.

Thing number one - this person either neglected to read (and understand) my grants page. This page specifically states that I provide grant research and grantwriting. While they did provide some of the answers to the questions that I ask of all of my clients, they did not answer them all. Here is a quote from my grants page:

"If you want me to find you any grant program(s) and you are not a client, any information that you send to me will be returned to you."

While there are a number of grant programs that this person might be eligible to apply for not hiring me is not going to get them the information about the grant programs that they may be eligible to apply for. They have not done any of the work that is necessary to find this this kind of grant information or they would have found it by now.

"How Do I Become A Client?"

This is another question that I have been asked and the answer appears below:

I am very interested in becoming a client of yours. Please let me know the process I need to follow................................

Here is an excerpt from my grants page:

What kind of services do you provide?

Can you find a grant program for me for free?

What do you charge to help find grants? / Do you accept Paypal payments?

Do you also help apply for the grants?

Each research project is done on a customized basis according to the type of grant that you and/or your organization is looking for regardless of whether you or your organization is a for-profit or non-profit. Included services will be the finding and locating of the available grant programs that can be applied to your project, research of the grant-making organizations and an analysis of them to identify likely funding sources for your specific project and/or organization. The research will include searches from an existing database(s) of all federal, state and local grant programs as well as grant programs offered by non-governmental entities (such as foundations and businesses) that also offer grant programs as well. Research/services may also include non-electronical fact-finding via telephone or written correspondences.

The basic fee is $875.00
* basic fee will increase on July 1, 2007!


(please refer to the payment information page at:

http://members.aol.com/Roseb441702/payinfo.htm

but larger projects may require additional fees based on the scope of the project.

If you want me to find you any grant program(s) and you are not a client, any information that you send to me will be returned to you. I actually never thought to accept Paypal payments until you mentioned it and I have made a provision for PayPal payments. You can find this on my payment information page. If I can not find a grant program for your project, organization or business after the 30 day period, I will refund the cost of the research!


Once you have the information on the grant programs available to you, you can then decide whether or not you will want to apply for them on your own or you can hire me or another grantwriter to prepare the application(s).

Quote - About Clients

"In my experience (granted, mostly in a different type of consulting),
the clients who are most difficult from the beginning, expect an
unrealistically low price, etc. are the ones most likely to stiff me."

I saw this quote and I just HAD to add it here! I can't tell you how many times I have gotten an email or phone call from someone that wanted me to find them a grant program. They mention nothing about paying me, they don't even answer the questions that appear here. I'm just supposed to know - sight unseen - about which grant program they can get.

This also tells me a lot about the person in question because I have said time and time before that you don't automatically get a grant. You have to apply for the grant.

Have I ever got "stiffed" by a client? Yes - once - and that is why it is NEVER going to happen again!

I Got Another Call From A Woman That Wants To Start A Daycare In Her Home

Firstly, for all of you that are thinking about starting a daycare in your home please take a look at my Daycare Basics 101 page. It has a list of questions that you should ask yourself when you're thinking about opening a daycare business in your home. The same questions will also apply if you're thinking of opening a daycare business outside your home.

Number 2 - This page also has a contact link to my email address where you can email me to ask any further questions. What I don't understand is why this woman would call me instead of sending me an email. Other than the clients that I already have, most of the other calls that I get basically all ask the same question and that is "What kind of grants are available to me so that I can start my own daycare business in my home?" This kind of question is not easily answered and that's why I created the Daycare Basics 101 website. Each and every one of my clients has to answer a specific number of questions before I will even attempt to find any grant programs that they may be eligible for. If you take a look at my daycare website you will see that I list at least three grant programs that can be applied for if you are thinking of starting your own daycare in your home. All of those grant programs listed have certain eligibility requirements which means that not everyone can apply. And those are not the only grant programs that are out there for people that want to start their own daycare business whether it be inside or outside the home.

The website also says that you should have a business plan. This is going to be necessary because any organization that is going to award you grant money is going to want to know that you are serious about what you are doing!

So it is not as simple as just asking me about what grant programs are available to start your daycare when I don't even know the specifics of the kind of daycare it is that you want to start. Grant programs just do not work that way!