Building a legacy through philanthropy and stewardship to strengthen our community.
Fairfield County Foundation combines donor-advised funds, scholarships, unrestricted support, and endowment-building in a county-centered portfolio that reaches beyond one type of grantee. In its recent grant list, a $600,000 award to the Fairfield County Agricultural Society stands out, alongside a $516,446 commitment to Lancaster Festival for an endowment fund and a $495,535 grant to Gametime for parks and recreation. Those larger awards sit next to operating support, memorial funds, and community-impact grants, showing a foundation that funds both immediate program needs and long-term institutional strength. The grant record also reflects a broad community role. Lancaster-based organizations appear often, including Fairhope Hospice Palliative Care, Decorative Arts Center of Ohio, and The Tree Church, but the foundation also makes scholarship awards through multiple programs and supports youth-led grantmaking. Its mix of community development, arts and culture, health, education, food security, and recreation funding suggests a grantmaker working across the civic life of Fairfield County rather than concentrating on a single niche. The foundation also funds individuals through scholarships.
Arts and culture appear as a recurring theme. Fairfield County Foundation gave $279,000 to Lancaster Festival for arts and culture, then added $50,000 to Decorative Arts Center of Ohio for arts and culture in 2025. It also supported Lancaster Festival with a $516,446 endowment fund grant in 2024, linking program support with long-term capacity. Health and human services are another visible lane. The foundation granted $225,000 to Fairhope Hospice Palliative Care for human services and $50,000 to Meals on Wheels Fairfield County for human services. It also awarded $118,000 to Fairfield Community Health Center for health. Community infrastructure shows up in grants such as $495,535 to Gametime for parks and recreation and $50,000 to the City of Lancaster for unrestricted support. Youth development appears through a $66,000 grant to Geneva Hills Group Inc for youth development.
Typical awards cluster in the mid-five-figure range: the p25 is $10,000, the median is $18,645, and the p75 is $38,851. The recent list also includes a few very large grants, which lifts the overall scale well above the median. Grantmaking is repeated and institutional rather than purely one-off: Lancaster Festival, Decorative Arts Center of Ohio, and Fairfield County Foundation itself appear more than once across years. The foundation operates as a mixed community foundation, funds individuals through scholarships, and uses donor-advised, unrestricted, endowment, and project-specific support. Several active scholarship programs also accept applications, including a universal online portal for many awards.
$3M
$76.4M
$7.7M
$5.8M
Most grants fall between $10K and $39K, with a median of $19K.
25th Percentile
$10K
Median
$19K
75th Percentile
$39K
AMY EYMAN
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Giving is heavily concentrated in Ohio, with 91% of grants to recipients in the foundation’s HQ state. Lancaster is the clearest hub in the recent grant list, with awards to Lancaster Festival, Fairhope Hospice Palliative Care, Decorative Arts Center of Ohio, The Tree Church, and Meals on Wheels Fairfield County. Other Ohio recipients include Harrison, Buckeye Lake, Columbus, and Baltimore, while a smaller share reaches outside the state, such as Colorado Springs, Colorado, and Temple, Texas.
The foundation supports arts and culture, children and youth, health and wellness, community development, education and scholarships, and food security. Recent grants also show parks and recreation, human services, and faith-related recipients, indicating a broad community portfolio within Fairfield County.
Typical grant sizes are $10,000 at the 25th percentile, $18,645 at the median, and $38,851 at the 75th percentile. The recent record also includes large endowment, unrestricted, and project-specific awards, plus scholarship funding and donor-advised distributions.
Yes. Fairfield County Foundation funds individuals through scholarship programs. It administers over 130 scholarship funds, and more than 100 scholarships are accessible through a single online universal application, with some separate paper applications for individual awards.
Its giving is strongly local and centered in Ohio. 91% of grants go to recipients in Ohio, and Lancaster appears repeatedly in the recent grant list, including awards to Lancaster Festival, Decorative Arts Center of Ohio, Fairhope Hospice Palliative Care, and the City of Lancaster.
Yes. Lancaster Festival appears in multiple years with awards for both an endowment fund and arts and culture. Decorative Arts Center of Ohio also appears more than once, and Fairfield County Foundation itself received community impact fund grants in 2023 and 2025.
2025
Source: IRS Form 990-PF, fiscal year 2025.
Current and upcoming funding from Fairfield County Foundation that your nonprofit may be able to apply for.
Who can apply: Organizations seeking public, charitable support to benefit Fairfield County, especially Lancaster; proposals are reviewed twice a year.
Deadline: Proposals are reviewed two times a year with deadlines of April 1 and October 1.
Who can apply: Qualified charitable organizations operating in Fairfield County, demonstrating direct support to residents with unmet basic needs due to COVID-19. Applicants must complete application and Anti-Terrorism Compliance form.
Deadline: Applications reviewed and distributions made on a rolling basis; Grant Oversight Committee met bi-monthly during initial response.
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Most recent grants reported to the IRS.
| Recipient | Location | Amount | Year | Purpose |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| FAIRFIELD COUNTY AGRICULTURAL SOCIE | LANCASTER, OH | $600,000 | 2025 | COMMUNITY PROGRESS |
| GAMETIME | HARRISON, OH | $495,535 | 2025 | PARKS/RECREATION |
| LANCASTER FESTIVAL | LANCASTER, OH | $279,000 | 2025 | ARTS/CULTURE |
| FAIRHOPE HOSPICE PALLIATIVE CARE | LANCASTER, OH | $225,000 | 2025 | HUMAN SERVICES |
| THE TREE CHURCH | LANCASTER, OH | $119,000 | 2025 | RELIGION |
| NEW HORIZONS FOUNDATION INC | COLORADO SPRINGS, CO | $101,000 | 2025 | RELIGION |
| FAIRFIELD COUNTY FOUNDATION | LANCASTER, OH | $63,800 | 2025 | COMMUNITY IMPACT FUN |
| DECORATIVE ARTS CENTER OF OHIO | LANCASTER, OH | $50,000 | 2025 | ARTS/CULTURE |
| ALUMNI ASSOC AMANDA CLEARCREEK HS | AMANDA, OH | $41,475 | 2025 | ANNUAL SCHOLARSHIPS |
| FAIRFIELD AREA HUMANE SOCIETY | LANCASTER, OH | $40,110 | 2025 | ANIMAL-RELATED |
| BALTIMORE AREA MUSEUM CORP | BALTIMORE, OH | $37,400 | 2025 | FIELD OF INTEREST |
| MAYWOOD MISSION | LANCASTER, OH | $35,960 | 2025 | HUMAN SERVICES |
| CRISIS RELIEF AND RECOVERY | TYRONE, PA | $35,000 | 2025 | HUMAN SERVICES |
| HARCUM HOUSE | LANCASTER, OH | $33,054 | 2025 | HUMAN SERVICES |
| YMCA OF LANCASTER & FAIRFIELD COUNT | LANCASTER, OH | $33,000 | 2025 | HEALTH/YOUTH DEV |
| GENEVA HILLS GROUP INC | LANCASTER, OH | $32,000 | 2025 | YOUTH DEVELOPMENT |
| HEIDI-HO CORP | ROSEVILLE, MI | $30,613 | 2025 | FUNDRAISING EXPENSE |
| BIG BROTHERS BIG SISTERS OF FAIRFIE | LANCASTER, OH | $30,000 | 2025 | AGENCY WITHDRAW |
| FAIRFIELD UNION LOCAL SCHOOL DISTRI | LANCASTER, OH | $30,000 | 2025 | EDUCATIONAL |
| BOTTOMS UP DIAPER DRIVE | LANCASTER, OH | $30,000 | 2025 | DONOR ADVISED DONATI |
| OLIVEDALE SENIOR CENTER | LANCASTER, OH | $30,000 | 2025 | RESURFACE PARKING LO |
| AMERICAN RED CROSS OF SC OHIO | LANCASTER, OH | $30,000 | 2025 | UNRESTRICTED |
| FAIRFIELD HERITAGE ASSOCIATION | LANCASTER, OH | $30,000 | 2025 | ENDOWMENT FUND |
| VICTORY CENTER-VICTORY HILL CHURCH | CARROLL, OH | $27,000 | 2025 | HUMAN SERVICES |
| FAIRFIELD COUNTY HEALTH DEPARTMENT | LANCASTER, OH | $25,586 | 2025 | HEALTH |
| PROARTEOHIO | WORTHINGTON, OH | $25,560 | 2025 | ARTS/CULTURE |
| 91 PLACE INC | INDIANAPOLIS, IN | $25,000 | 2025 | RELIGIOUS |
| MEALS ON WHEELS FAIRFIELD COUNTY | LANCASTER, OH | $25,000 | 2025 | HUMAN SERVICES |
| LIBERTY UNION MIDDLE SCHOOL | BALTIMORE, OH | $22,000 | 2025 | FRED VAN BUREN SCHOL |
| HABITAT FOR HIMANITY OF SE OHIO | LANCASTER, OH | $21,000 | 2025 | COMMUNITY PROGRESS |
| WILLIAM V FISHER CATHOLIC HIGH SCHO | LANCASTER, OH | $20,000 | 2025 | EDUCATIONAL |
| FAIRFIELD WOODWORKS | LANCASTER, OH | $18,000 | 2025 | — |
| DESTINATION DOWNTOWN LANCASTER | LANCASTER, OH | $17,203 | 2025 | COMMUNITY PROGRESS |
| WAGNALLS MEMORIAL PRESERVATION FUND | LIGHOPOLIS, OH | $16,000 | 2025 | ARTS, CULTURE |
| SALVATION ARMY | LANCASTER, OH | $15,535 | 2025 | HUMAN SERVICES |
| COOPERMILL BRONZEWORKS LTD | ZANESVILLE, OH | $15,000 | 2025 | ARTS, CULTURE |
| PINK RIBBON GOOD | DAYTON, OH | $15,000 | 2025 | HEALTH |
| THE WASSERSTROM COMPANY | COLUMBUS, OH | $14,600 | 2025 | HUMAN SERVICES |
| FAIRFIELD COMMUNITY HEALTH CENTER | LANCASTER, OH | $14,000 | 2025 | HEALTH |
| VILLAGE OF BALITMORE | BALTIMORE, OH | $13,000 | 2025 | COMMUNITY PROGRESS |
| CONCRETE ORKIDZ FOUNDATION | COLUMBUS, OH | $12,100 | 2025 | AFTERSCHOOL PGM SUPP |
| THE BASILICA OF SAINT MARY OF THE A | LANCASTER, OH | $12,000 | 2025 | RELIGION |
| PICKERINGTON FOOD PANTRY | PICKERINGTON, OH | $12,000 | 2025 | HUMAN SERVICES |
| MAPLE STREET UNITED METHODIST CHURC | LANCASTER, OH | $11,284 | 2025 | RELIGION |
| LANCASTER-FAIRFIELD COMMUNITY ACTIO | LANCASTER, OH | $11,000 | 2025 | UNRESTRICTED |
| NATIONWIDE CHILDREN'S HOSP FOUNDATI | COLUMBUS, OH | $10,500 | 2025 | HEALTH |
| THE OSUCCC-JAMES | COLUMBUS, OH | $10,500 | 2025 | HEALTH |
| NARDONE FAMILY TRUST | WHEELING, WV | $10,000 | 2025 | EDUCATIONAL |
| ALL ACCESSIBLE SPORTS COMPLEX & PK | LANCASTER, OH | $10,000 | 2025 | FIELD OF INTEREST |
| ALS ASSOCIATION | ARLINGTON, VA | $10,000 | 2025 | FIELD OF INTEREST |
FAIRFIELD COUNTY AGRICULTURAL SOCIE
$600,000COMMUNITY PROGRESS
GAMETIME
$495,535PARKS/RECREATION
LANCASTER FESTIVAL
$279,000ARTS/CULTURE
FAIRHOPE HOSPICE PALLIATIVE CARE
$225,000HUMAN SERVICES
THE TREE CHURCH
$119,000RELIGION
ALUMNI ASSOC AMANDA CLEARCREEK HS
$41,475ANNUAL SCHOLARSHIPS
FAIRFIELD AREA HUMANE SOCIETY
$40,110ANIMAL-RELATED
BALTIMORE AREA MUSEUM CORP
$37,400FIELD OF INTEREST
CRISIS RELIEF AND RECOVERY
$35,000HUMAN SERVICES
HARCUM HOUSE
$33,054HUMAN SERVICES
YMCA OF LANCASTER & FAIRFIELD COUNT
$33,000HEALTH/YOUTH DEV
GENEVA HILLS GROUP INC
$32,000YOUTH DEVELOPMENT
HEIDI-HO CORP
$30,613FUNDRAISING EXPENSE
BIG BROTHERS BIG SISTERS OF FAIRFIE
$30,000AGENCY WITHDRAW
FAIRFIELD UNION LOCAL SCHOOL DISTRI
$30,000EDUCATIONAL
BOTTOMS UP DIAPER DRIVE
$30,000DONOR ADVISED DONATI
OLIVEDALE SENIOR CENTER
$30,000RESURFACE PARKING LO
FAIRFIELD HERITAGE ASSOCIATION
$30,000ENDOWMENT FUND
VICTORY CENTER-VICTORY HILL CHURCH
$27,000HUMAN SERVICES
FAIRFIELD COUNTY HEALTH DEPARTMENT
$25,586HEALTH
PROARTEOHIO
$25,560ARTS/CULTURE
MEALS ON WHEELS FAIRFIELD COUNTY
$25,000HUMAN SERVICES
LIBERTY UNION MIDDLE SCHOOL
$22,000FRED VAN BUREN SCHOL
WILLIAM V FISHER CATHOLIC HIGH SCHO
$20,000EDUCATIONAL
FAIRFIELD WOODWORKS
$18,000DESTINATION DOWNTOWN LANCASTER
$17,203COMMUNITY PROGRESS
WAGNALLS MEMORIAL PRESERVATION FUND
$16,000ARTS, CULTURE
SALVATION ARMY
$15,535HUMAN SERVICES
COOPERMILL BRONZEWORKS LTD
$15,000ARTS, CULTURE
THE WASSERSTROM COMPANY
$14,600HUMAN SERVICES
FAIRFIELD COMMUNITY HEALTH CENTER
$14,000HEALTH
VILLAGE OF BALITMORE
$13,000COMMUNITY PROGRESS
CONCRETE ORKIDZ FOUNDATION
$12,100AFTERSCHOOL PGM SUPP
THE BASILICA OF SAINT MARY OF THE A
$12,000RELIGION
PICKERINGTON FOOD PANTRY
$12,000HUMAN SERVICES
MAPLE STREET UNITED METHODIST CHURC
$11,284RELIGION
LANCASTER-FAIRFIELD COMMUNITY ACTIO
$11,000UNRESTRICTED
NATIONWIDE CHILDREN'S HOSP FOUNDATI
$10,500HEALTH
NARDONE FAMILY TRUST
$10,000EDUCATIONAL
ALL ACCESSIBLE SPORTS COMPLEX & PK
$10,000FIELD OF INTEREST