Wrapping up my fourth week of the Columbus Foundation fellowship, I discovered a new source of enjoyment, grant research and writing. Hope Hollow’s mission is straightforward and impactful, so writing about all Hope Hollow has accomplished is almost effortless.

Prior to my Columbus Foundation fellowship, I had little to no exposure to grants. My lack of knowledge on grant writing led me to believe that grants were relatively uniform. However, I now understand and enjoy the fact that each grant and funder is distinct and requires special attention.

For instance, one of the grants that Hope Hollow applied for this past week was from a foundation in a specific Ohio county. In order to complete this application, I collected data from Hope Hollow’s database about how Hope Hollow has assisted cancer patients from this particular county. In my opinion, collecting and utilizing this data was the most enjoyable part of this particular application process. Hope Hollow would not be the organization that it is without the cancer patients it serves, so it was incredible to have the opportunity to personalize this application and include specifics about the cancer patients Hope Hollow served from this county. 

Arguably the hardest part of the grant writing process has been conciseness. Hope Hollow has impacted thousands of lives throughout the United States, so expressing the significance of Hope Hollow’s work in 250 characters is difficult. Additionally, I have been fortunate enough to hear dozens of testimonials about cancer patients and loved ones that Hope Hollow has served. Choosing which testimonials to utilize in our grant applications is challenging because each story is beautiful and worthy of attention. 

Grant writing has served as an outlet for me to share the incredible work that Hope Hollow has done and will continue to do for the cancer community. It is powerful to think that the grants I have completed, alongside Kevin and Jane, could potentially enable Hope Hollow to continue providing basic necessities to cancer patients, and their loved ones, so that they can pursue potentially life-saving medical treatment.