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The Colorado Trust

Annual Giving
$31.6M
Grant Range
From $5K

The Colorado Trust

Quick Stats

  • Annual Giving: $31.6 million (2023)
  • Total Assets: $531 million (2023)
  • Success Rate: Not publicly disclosed
  • Decision Time: Varies by program; competitive RFP cycles
  • Grant Range: $5,000 - Varies (program-dependent)
  • Geographic Focus: Colorado statewide

Contact Details

Address: 1600 N Sherman St, Denver, CO 80203-1604

Phone: 303-837-1200

Website: https://www.coloradotrust.org

Grants Portal Support: FluxxQuestions@coloradotrust.org

Grants Program Director: Robert Foley, 303-837-1200

Overview

The Colorado Trust is a private grantmaking foundation established in 1985 with proceeds from the sale of PSL Healthcare Corporation. With approximately $531 million in assets and $31.6 million in annual charitable expenditures (2023), the Trust has awarded over $668 million in charitable support across Colorado since its inception. The foundation is dedicated to ending inequalities that affect racial, ethnic, low-income, and other vulnerable populations, believing everyone should have fair and equal opportunities to achieve good health. Under its 2024-26 Strategic Plan, the Trust has focused its grantmaking primarily on food, housing, and mental and behavioral health, advancing health equity through field-building approaches to advocacy, public policy, and direct service delivery.

Funding Priorities

Grant Programs

Community Resilience Initiatives (2024-26): Three-year investments across seven competitive grant initiatives supporting 83 grantees. These initiatives address food, housing, and mental and behavioral health, with funding increasing from year 1 (six months of planning) to years 2 and 3 (12 months of program implementation each).

  • Expanding Access to Behavioral Health: Funding 15 entities to reduce gaps in service availability, enhance service delivery models, and build community-based networks
  • Sustaining Housing Solutions: Funding 19 entities to provide wraparound services and support that increases access to housing and opportunities to stay housed
  • Food Security Initiatives: Supporting organizations working on food access and nutrition

Rural Philanthropy Days: General operating grants of $5,000-$6,000 per organization. Since 2009, the Trust has provided $993,000 to rural Colorado nonprofit organizations through this program, which connects funders with nonprofits serving rural Colorado.

Program-Related Investments (PRIs): Since 2015, the Trust has used PRIs as a tool to advance its mission and deepen impact across Colorado, with a limited amount set aside annually.

Event Sponsorships: Limited funding available annually to sponsor fundraising and special events for Colorado nonprofits.

Priority Areas

The Colorado Trust's 2024-26 Strategic Plan focuses on three interconnected areas with outsized impact on health and well-being:

Food: Addressing food insecurity, which has increased across Colorado due to the COVID-19 pandemic, sustained inflation, and grocery industry consolidation. Access to nutritious food remains significantly worse among non-white Coloradans and rural residents.

Housing: Supporting solutions that increase housing access and stability, recognizing housing as a fundamental health determinant.

Mental and Behavioral Health: Responding to Colorado's last-place ranking for adult mental health (Mental Health America, 2022), addressing high prevalence of mental illness, limited care access, unaffordability, and unfavorable provider-to-patient ratios.

The Trust supports organizations working across the full spectrum of approaches, from direct service delivery to policy advocacy.

What They Don't Fund

  • Political campaigns or voter registration drives
  • Operating deficits or retirement of debt

Restriction: Indirect costs cannot exceed 10% of the grant amount.

Governance and Leadership

Executive Leadership

Don Mares, President & CEO: Appointed in 2022 after serving eight years as a Colorado Trust trustee and briefly as interim president in late 2021. Mares leads the foundation's strategic direction toward health equity through policy advocacy and community-centered grantmaking.

Board of Trustees

The Board comprises nine members with four officers:

Officers (2024):

  • Betty Velasquez, Chair (2024 board chair)
  • Tim Schultz, Chair-elect
  • Wendy Dominguez, Treasurer
  • Brenda J. Allen, PhD, Secretary

Additional Trustees:

  • Ty Coleman (Mayor of Alamosa, appointed January 2024)
  • Christine Márquez-Hudson
  • Donald Nease, MD (appointed January 2024, replacing Warren Johnson, MD who concluded service in 2023)
  • Brandy Reitter
  • Rev. Louise Westfall (2023 board chair)

Leadership Philosophy: "When the executive director or chief executive officer is explicit about cultural competency as a guiding organizational value, supportive of the changes taking place and willing to play an active role in making those changes happen, others are likely to follow his or her lead."

Application Process & Timeline

How to Apply

The Colorado Trust issues periodic Requests for Proposals (RFP) or Requests for Applications (RFA) on a competitive basis. When funding opportunities become available, detailed RFPs/RFAs with instructions and deadlines are posted to the homepage at www.coloradotrust.org.

Application Steps:

  1. Register in the Grants Portal: All potential applicants must register and create a portal profile before the deadline. Organizations can register at any time to be positioned for future opportunities.

  2. Sign Up for Notifications: Subscribe to email alerts for future funding opportunities through the website.

  3. Complete Online Application: Applications can be saved and returned to as drafts under the "Requests" tab. All required fields must be completed before submission.

  4. Submit Documentation: Submit completed application and required documentation through the grants portal by the deadline.

  5. Confirmation: Applicants receive automated confirmation email upon successful submission.

Technical Support: The Trust maintains a team of grants management specialists available at FluxxQuestions@coloradotrust.org or 303-837-1200.

Eligibility

Eligible entities include:

  • Nonprofit organizations exempt under Section 501(c)(3) of the Internal Revenue Code and classified as "not a private foundation" under Section 509(a)
  • Independent sponsored projects with nonprofit 501(c)(3) fiscal sponsors
  • Government and public agencies
  • Tribal nations
  • Churches and educational institutions

Priority Scoring: Additional points awarded to organizations with annual operating budgets below $350,000 or those in operation for less than three years.

Matching Funds: Not required for Community Resilience Initiatives.

Decision Timeline

Timelines vary by program and are specified in each RFP/RFA. For example, Community Resilience Initiatives notified applicants by the end of June 2024.

Notification: Feedback provided to both successful and unsuccessful applicants via electronic communications. Individual meetings are not held to discuss application decisions and scoring.

Success Rates

Specific success rates are not publicly disclosed. The foundation currently supports 83 grantees through its seven Community Resilience Initiatives.

Reapplication Policy

Information about reapplication waiting periods or policies for unsuccessful applicants is not publicly documented. Contact the Grants Program Director for guidance.

Application Success Factors

The Colorado Trust has documented specific values and approaches that inform their grantmaking:

Health Equity Commitment: The foundation defines health equity as achieved "when every person living in Colorado has the opportunity to attain their full health potential, and no one is disadvantaged from achieving this potential because of any socially determined circumstances." Applications should demonstrate clear alignment with this definition.

Community Voice: "In order for Coloradans in every community to thrive, people who have been left out must have a voice in the decisions that influence their well-being." Successful applications prioritize engagement with historically and systemically disadvantaged communities.

Advocacy Focus: "The Colorado Trust believes advocacy for policy change is a cornerstone to achieving health equity." Applications may strengthen their case by addressing both direct service delivery and policy advocacy approaches.

Uniform Grant Structure: The Trust uses uniform grant amounts across programs to prevent the appearance of bias toward any specific focus area, with all program and service delivery grants budgeted for the same ceiling amounts within each initiative.

Organizational Capacity: The foundation values supporting smaller and newer organizations, offering additional scoring points for those with operating budgets below $350,000 or less than three years in operation.

Geographic Equity: Through programs like Rural Philanthropy Days, the Trust demonstrates commitment to rural Colorado communities, recognizing that access to resources and services remains significantly worse in rural areas.

Recent Grantee Examples (Rural Philanthropy Days 2024):

  • A Way Out, Inc. (Western Slope): Free substance-use and addiction counseling, transitional housing, case management
  • Center Viking Youth Club (San Luis Valley): Youth development programs

Key Takeaways for Grant Writers

  • Align with the three strategic priorities: Applications must clearly address food, housing, or mental and behavioral health to align with the 2024-26 Strategic Plan
  • Demonstrate health equity focus: Show how your work addresses inequalities affecting racial, ethnic, low-income, or other vulnerable populations in Colorado
  • Center community voice: Emphasize how communities most affected by the issues participate in decision-making and program design
  • Watch for RFP announcements: Funding is competitive with specific deadlines; register in the grants portal and subscribe to email notifications to stay informed
  • Keep indirect costs at or below 10%: This is a hard requirement that can disqualify otherwise strong applications
  • Consider the advocacy connection: Even if providing direct services, consider how your work connects to or supports policy change for systemic health equity
  • Smaller organizations have advantages: Organizations with budgets under $350,000 or operating less than three years receive additional scoring consideration
  • Prepare comprehensive applications: The Trust provides feedback to unsuccessful applicants, suggesting thorough review and scoring processes

References

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