Diverse group of nursesDo you know of a nonprofit, charitable organization with a great idea for providing massage therapy in your community to a population in need? If so, you could be a recipient of a Community Service Grant from the Massage Therapy Foundation.

About Community Service Grants

The Massage Therapy Foundation’s leaders believe that massage therapy should be made available to communities or groups who may have little or no access to such services. The foundation defines massage as “the application of manual techniques, and adjunctive therapies, with the intention of affecting the health and well-being of the client.”
 
To promote access to these services in all communities, the Massage Therapy Foundation provides an opportunity for charitable nonprofit organizations to apply for community service grants of up to $5,000.
 
This community service grant program is designed to establish working partnerships between the massage therapy profession and community-based organizations.

Cute little girl in a hospitalGrant Objective

These prestigious awards are granted to provide therapeutic massage and bodywork to communities or groups who may have limited access to such services. The intention of these grants is to empower marginalized community members with an opportunity to achieve their health potential.
 
Awards may also be granted to provide therapeutic massage and bodywork in a more mainstream context where it may not be available yet. These awards are designed to promote working partnerships between the therapeutic massage and bodywork professions and community-based organizations.
 
Previous grantees included massage programs for burn survivors, medically-fragile children, veterans and immigrant torture survivors.

Illustration depicting a computer screen capture with a community service grant concept.

Eligibility

Eligible organizations are those that are tax-exempt under schedule 501(c)(3) organizations or affiliates of organizations that have existed for at least one year in the respective state or province in the U.S., or are nonprofit charitable organizations in other countries that provide massage therapy or a service program to the community with a designated qualified staff member to oversee the program.
 
Proposed projects must be one year in duration and cannot duplicate services already provided by the community service grant applicant organization. Projects should also demonstrate sustainability after the grant award period has ended.
 
Additionally, practitioners must provide proof of professional liability insurance coverage. Applicants must ensure compliance with state or local regulation of therapeutic massage and bodywork practice.
 
Please note, community service grants are not awarded to individuals. Complete guidelines can be found here.
 
Is your idea for your community service project the next award? The time is now. The deadline to apply is April 3.
 
Editor’s note: Learn about the Massage Therapy Foundation’s Research Grant Program in “Apply For a Massage Research Grant & Advance Your Profession.”

Jolie Haun headshotAbout the Author

Jolie Haun Ph.D., Ed.S., L.M.T., has been a licensed massage therapist since 1995. She has been a volunteer with the Massage Therapy Foundation since 2008 and is a former chair of the Massage Therapy Foundation Writing Group. She has conducted and published massage therapy outcomes, research with pediatric oncology and hematology patients; and evaluated the use of innovative techniques for measuring the energetic effects of massage therapy in community-based populations.