Overview
The Rapid City Food Services Grant will strengthen or expand food services for Rapid City residents living in under-resourced areas.
The grant process responds to needs identified in the Food Security Needs Assessment of Rapid City conducted by Augustana Research Institute, including a gap in charitable food access after 5 p.m. or on the weekends. Priority will be given to applications serving the identified areas of greatest need (pages 36-37) .
Applicants can apply for up to $25,000 to pay for activities that fall under the Eligible Projects categories (below).
Eligibility Requirements
- Applicants must be a 501(c)(3) public charity, school, church, religious organization, or government entity.
- Requested support must be for food services available on a regular basis to residents of Rapid City, South Dakota.
Eligible Projects
Applicants can apply for up to $25,000 to support activities in one or both of the following categories:
1.) Equipment and infrastructure that establishes, expands, or strengthens services.
- Examples include refrigerators or freezers, signage/promotion, vehicles for client or food transport, storage capacity improvements, or construction costs to strengthen or expand food services.
Funding & reporting structure: Grants for equipment will be awarded through a one-time award. Grantees will be required to attend an in-person meeting or phone conversation within 30 days following the completion of the grant year.
2.) Staff or volunteer support to strengthen service availability on evenings or weekends over a three-year period.
Applications must include a plan to expand services to include at least one evening or weekend time slot per week over a three-year period.
- For example, an annual staff stipend or support for volunteer coordination allows a food pantry to expand their hours to include a 3-hour shift on Saturdays.
- For example, staff or volunteer support that increases access to supermarkets or food pantries in the evenings or on weekends.
Funding & Reporting Structure: Grants in this category will be awarded over a period of three years, renewed annually. The grantee will be responsible for tracking the success of the expansion. Each year, BHACF will check in with the grantee to understand outcomes of the expansion.
Sustainability: Requests for staff or volunteer support must address the long-term sustainability of the expansion. If the service is successful, BHACF will consult with the grantee to determine a plan to sustain the expansion.
Ineligible Projects
- Grants will not be awarded to support religious activity, political activity, fundraisers or benefits, debt retirement or organizations working to primarily influence legislation.
- Supported organizations and activities may not discriminate against any individual or group based on race, gender, gender expression, age, disability, religion, ethnic or national origin, or otherwise legally protected groups.
- Funding can’t be used for reimbursement of any expenses incurred prior to the grant notification date.
- Capital campaigns.
Grantmaking Process and Timeline
Grant applications will open on May 1, 2026 and close on June 15, 2026. The grant decisions will be communicated to all applicants. A grants committee will review all applications using the following criteria:
- Does the organization and its related efforts meet the eligibility criteria described above?
- Does the organization and its related efforts serve an area of high need in Rapid City?
- Does the organization maximize community resources through cooperation, collaboration, and shared learning?
- Will the proposed activities be developed to improve the long-term sustainability of the services?
Selected organizations will be asked to sign a grant agreement within a week of being notified of their grant award.
How to apply
If this is your organization’s first application, you will need to create an account in our grant application portal. When you apply, you’ll login to the portal with your email and password.
Contact Carrie Robley at carrie@bhacf.org if you have any questions about your organization’s account.