Giving While Living Grants
GIVING WHILE LIVING GRANTS
“Surprise” Grants for Environmental Nonprofits
Giving While Living grantees are nominated and selected by our donors - meaning there is no application process and the winning organizations do not even know they have been nominated! GWL grants are funded entirely by donations from Woodard & Curran, Inc. employees, who share our passion for supporting organizations working to protect our water and environment.
In December2024, the Foundation announced the awarding of ten $10,000 Giving While Living Grants - a total of $100,000. Congratulations to the current Giving While Living grantees!
2025 GWL Grants: Winners and Nominators
Biddeford Community Gardens (Emma Bouthillette)
Brunswick-Topsham Land Trust (Meghan Little + Karen Prieto)
Change is Simple (Barry Sheff)
Gallatin River Task Force (Paddy Stoy)
Loon Echo Land Trust (Lauren Swett)
Raritan Headwaters Association (David Moody)
Sebago Clean (Barry Sheff)
Sun River Watershed Group (Emily Evans)
The Basin Oyster Project (Emily Evans)
XCEL Conservation Corps (Frank Cavaleri)
More about our Giving While Living Grants
The Foundation’s commitment to giving away as much money as possible while still maintaining a healthy endowment informs our "giving-while-living" philosophy. Since 2018, when we issued our first Giving While Living grants, this program has supported nearly 60 environmental nonprofit organizations across the country. Funds for these grants come entirely through the generosity of Woodard & Curran, Inc. and its employees, who share our dedication to supporting work that protects our water and environment. Thank you!
GIVING WHILE LIVING GRANT recipient stories
Check out the ways our grants support organizations working to protect our water and environment. Please note: over the years the amount of GWL grants has increased - as of 2021, we are issuing $10,000 Giving While Living grants. GWL grantees are nominated and selected by our donors (meaning there is currently no application process).
Techbridge Girls / CA
2020: $1,600 Regional Grant
2020: $500 Micro Grant
2019: $2,300 Regional Grant
STEM programs empower girls to achieve excellence
Maine Coast Heritage Trust / ME
2020: $2,500 Regional Grant
2019: $2,500 Regional Grant
conserving and stewarding the ecological health of Maine's coastal lands and communities
SoundWaters / CT
2020: $1,800 Regional Grant
during COVID-19, mobilized to develop a new science distance-learning library that was delivered to teachers and students online.
Hudsonia / NY
2019: $2,100 Regional Grant
protecting species, habitats, and ecosystems and educating the public about stewardship of wetlands and natural resources
Friends of Ballona Wetlands / CA
2020: $2,500 Regional Grant
supported the Friends’ mission to champion the restoration and protection of the Ballona Wetlands, involving and educating the public as advocates and stewards.
Mill City Grows / MA
2020: $2,200 Regional Grant
2019: $2,500 Regional Grant
$500 Micro Grants: 2013-2016
2012: $2,500 Project Grant
fosters food justice by improving health, economic independence and environmental sustainability
Chattahoochee Riverkeeper / GA
2018: $1,800 Regional Grant
funded 75 West Georgia students attending the Riverkeeper’s West Point Lake Floating Classroom
Great Rivers Greenway / MO
2020: $1,200 Regional Grant
2019: $2,300 Regional Grant
making the St. Louis region a more vibrant place to live, work and play by developing a network of greenways
The Greene School / RI
2020: $2,200 Regional Grant
purchased materials for creation of socially distanced, outdoor “classrooms” with attached desk space for nature-based learning.
Engineers Without Borders UCLA / CA
2018: $1,300 Regional Grant
off-grid running water system brings clean water to homes on a Navajo reservation
Friends of Casco Bay / ME
2018: $1,900 Regional Grant
2018: $500 Micro Grant
with our support, the Friends launched two new volunteer initiatives: Color by Numbers and Water Reporters
Georgia Native Plant Society / Stone Mountain Propagation Project / GA
2019: $2,100 Regional Grant
partially funded design and construction of a large greenhouse with electricity, water, growing tables, a misting bench for rooting cuttings, and climate control options
Inland Seas Education Institute / MI
2020: $500 Micro Grant
helped fund critical repairs to the schooner Inland Seas, which educates thousands of young people on the Great Lakes
Power Corps Camden / NJ
2019: $1,800 Regional Grant
recruiting and training young people to revitalize public lands in Camden’s under-served neighborhoods
Sacramento Area Creeks Council / CA
2019: $500 Micro Grant
2018: $1,500 Regional Grant
grants funded Creek Week which educates the public about the value of urban creeks to the region’s citizens and wildlife
Westchester Children’s Museum / NY
2018: $500 Micro Grant
supported the Museum’s Science Sunday children’s program: hands-on learning for children focused on basic STEM principles