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Owensboro Looking North
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Grant Guidelines

The Marilyn and William Young Foundation is a private foundation established in 1998 in Owensboro, Ky.

Our mission is to serve as a capacity-building resource: opening minds, supporting the development of new skills, and linking efforts to ensure economic opportunity, well being, and prosperity for our citizens.

Our strategic plan beginning in 2024 will allocate our grant resources to the following focus areas:

Leadership Development

We desire to elevate a new generation of skilled public and private sector leaders able to embrace and navigate change, energize and align diverse stakeholders, and make bold decisions serving the area’s long term interests.

Accessible Arts Experiences

We support community-level strategies to improve the long-term viability of arts and cultural experiences important to the quality of local life and vitality of the area’s tourism economy.

Family Support Systems

We fund innovative ways to help low-income, undereducated populations take advantage of educational opportunities which will elevate their prospects for livable wages, long-term self-sufficiency, and family stability.

Community Grants

A limited pool of resources are available for one-time, immediate needs of organizations which benefit the community they serve.

In general, the Foundation does not make grants to endowments, annual fund appeals, religious organizations, event sponsorships and individuals nor do we fund programs and projects that do not affect the citizens of Owensboro/Daviess County or for operating costs.

Please note, the Foundation does not support organizations that discriminate due to race, color, religion, national origin, political affiliation, age, sex, sexual orientation, gender identity, disability, or any legally protected classification.

All applicants must be a recognized by the Internal Revenue Service as a 501(c)(3) charitable organization.