MAKE ’EM AN APPLICATION THEY CAN’T REFUSE

GRANT APPS THAT WON’T TAKE “NO” FOR AN ANSWER

By Paul M. Ross Jr.

Spring is coming and that can mean only one thing—no, not tax time—grant application time. Now is the season to ready those important grant applications to help bring extra tax dollars back to your department. Assistance to Firefighters grant outlays totaled $360 million in calendar year 2002 and numerous small to mid-size departments nationwide reaped hefty rewards. The grants helped bring all types of equipment to departments across the country—everything from bunker gear to desperately needed fire apparatus.

An estimated 3,700 American departments have received aid so far in this program alone. And National Fire & Rescue wants you to get your fair share of this federal money. So we visited with a variety of folks with public-safety grant experience to help prepare an action checklist that will help you build the perfect beast— an application that leaves grant reviewers breathless, tripping over themselves to mark your department’s application package with a big, bold “Affirmative.”

STEP 1: FORM A COMMITTEE

We hear you groaning. But while your initial reaction may be “No, not another committee,” you should recognize that having a couple of your folks dedicated to tracking down new grants and guiding the application process will truly help your department. Even if it’s only a committee of two, it’s important to assign interested first responders to serve as grant watchers. Give the committee a mandate to track down available grants and determine how best to apply for them.

Recruit talent from within to act as your grant watchers—they should be motivated, familiar with your agency, and ready to lead the charge. The committee should gather grant ideas and information to be delivered to your board of directors with the goal of getting approval to proceed. Members should be prepared to delegate work and recruit others for assistance.

STEP 2: IDENTIFY (THEN PRIORITIZE) NEEDS

A thorough, ongoing needs assessment is crucial for any progressive fire department. Your agency likely has a large wish list, which should be updated regularly. Match your needs assessment to the type of equipment emphasized in the grant for which you are applying. For example, don’t write about how you need a new fire station if the federal grant you’re gunning for funds only firetrucks and fire equipment.

Scott Barthelmass, a nine-year firefighter with experience securing grants for the Eureka Fire Protection District (outside St. Louis, Mo.) offers insight learned from his efforts. “We do not simply look at seeking grants as a one-step process—the grant application. We view the process of obtaining outside funding as a multistep task beginning with identifying the needs and wants of our agency, and reviewing budgetary figures and restraints,” says Barthelmass.

Take the time to talk to all the divisions in your department—walk around the apparatus and look inside your truck compartments. Check the bunker-gear room—many departments have gear that’s 20 years old (or older) or may have none at all. Is the personal protective equipment (PPE) adequate for your department’s needs? Is your SCBA gear compliant and in safe operating condition? Add to your wish list, then sit down and decide what’s most important and what equipment the specific grant can fund.

STEP 3: GATHER YOUR STATS—JUSTIFY THE NEED

Overland (Mo.) Police Chief James Herron digs into the numbers when his agency prepares a grant application—gathering research by checking responses, district size, population served, hazards, rail traffic and other figures. “Do the research to fully explain the need for the items that the grant will fund. Really get into the statistics of your district to quantify the need,” says Herron. “Your stats have to be saying to the reviewer, ‘Here’s our situation.’ We hit the stats real hard on a recent grant and it paid off.”

Barthelmass recommends the following: “First try to develop a rough draft that highlights the history of the district, its accomplishments, its commitments, the needs, what the district is willing to commit to the project. We do not expect any entity to totally fund a project—and in addition, our conversations and experience have led us to find that you have to demonstrate your agency’s commitment to a project by allocating monies, personnel and equipment to make the project succeed. We outline goals and objectives for the project, and include a timetable for completion and any other relevant statistics to clearly show the need.”

Jeff McReynolds, chief of the Canton Fire Department (in northern Missouri), asked a number of questions to help prepare information that would convey the Canton FD’s needs to reviewers. “I already had decided to again apply for SCBAs,” he says, “and spent quite a bit of time making lists answering the following questions:

• How would this purchase help our department?

• How would this purchase help our community and district?

• Who else would benefit from this purchase?

• What problems will this purchase solve?

• What impact does the federal government have on our fire district?

“I then tried to incorporate many of the items on the lists into my grant application,” recalls McReynolds. “I tried to briefly explain our department’s current situation, where we would realistically like to be, and how the equipment in our application would help get us there.

“We also quantified our need by including a timeline for getting there with the grant assistance and without it, as well as emphasizing that we would continue to try to reach our goal with or without this financial assistance.”

He adds, “I think it’s also important to talk about compliance and safety in discussing needs in the grant narrative. In our department’s case, none of our firefighters’ air packs are currently NFPA-compliant, and with these [grant] funds, 100 percent of our entry firefighters would have compliant equipment. And always request enough funds to bring that item or area into compliance—don’t do half a job.

“You should talk about how this equipment will enhance your abilities. Paint as real of a picture as you can, tell them enough about your department so they can visualize your situation— but don’t go overboard. Remember that your application is being reviewed by your peers. Talk to them in your narrative and express why these funds will benefit the firefighting community.”

Bottom Line: McReynolds’ and Canton firefighters’ efforts brought $24,750 in federal Assistance to Firefighters funding for upgrading the department’s entire SCBA inventory.

STEP 4: ATTEND A GRANT-WRITING WORKSHOP

Whether or not you think you need assistance, anyone in the firefighting business can benefit from attending a grant-writing workshop. The National Volunteer Fire Council (NVFC) sponsored a number of these sessions in 2002 and has several planned for this year. NVFC chairman Philip C. Stittleburg and his staff believe in assisting the process. “Funding for volunteer fire departments is always a concern. The NVFC, with support from the U.S. Fire Administration, has recognized the need for grant-writing instruction by offering courses throughout the country,” Stittleburg says.

At the very least, you will be able to hear and discuss issues and perspectives you may have missed otherwise. Overall, you should be able to come away from the experience with tips on proper presentation, writing concisely and what hot buttons to focus on in order to achieve the best acceptance potential for your grant application.

Henry Gunsauls (assistant chief of the LaGrange Community Fire Association of LaGrange, Mo.) has 23 years of experience with fire departments in the East and Midwest. Prior to his department preparing its federal FIRE Act grant application, Gunsauls and his team listened to some grant professionals. “We attended a couple of open lectures on writing these types of grants. The lectures were given throughout Missouri and helped us determine what type of equipment to apply for in our grant and what the people reviewing the grant were looking for.”

Bottom Line: Gunsauls’ efforts paid off in his department’s obtaining $17,000 in Assistance to Firefighters grant funding for the purchase of extrication tools for handling the frequent vehicle accidents on a stretch of four-lane highway that the LaGrange Community Fire Association covers.

STEP 5: WRITE IN-HOUSE OR WITH COMMUNITY HELP?

Most departments have a pool of writing talents waiting to be tapped, hidden among the ranks. Capable writing skills may be lying undiscovered within a new member of the department, or perhaps within a veteran firefighter. Wherever the talent exists, seek it out and improve your application’s potential with this in-house help.

“It’s important to identify talented people within your agency,” says Chief Herron. “We are fortunate to have a number of people in our department who have been able to help write our grants.”

The developers of the FIRE Act/Assistance to Firefighters grant application have taken time to put the document in an easy-to-read, easy-to-complete format. Generally, any fire department member should be able to complete the application by sitting down at a computer, following directions and entering the information gathered.

If you still feel intimidated by the prospect of writing an application, ask for help. Visit with your local banker, businesspeople, educators and others who have a vested interest in quality fire and emergency services in your town. Your narrative section can likely be greatly enhanced with such assistance.

“It’s important to network with others; many people are willing to help,” says Barthelmass. “Know what resources are available and do not hesitate to ask those in your community [business and civic leaders, college professors, etc.], people outside the fire service, who might have more skills or attributes to help you attain your goal.”

You will likely be surprised by how willing these people are to help you write, proofread and bring outside perspectives to your grant quest. And rather than charging you, the reward of meaningful community involvement is satisfaction enough for many local leaders. They feel they are investing their time in something tangible—bringing funding for improved emergency services to the community.

Grant consultants can also assist departments looking for guidance in improving applications. If you choose this route, however, know the consultant you are hiring. For starters, get a reference from a fire department that this consultant has assisted previously. Word of mouth from people you trust—and who have received grant approvals thanks to the help of a grant consultant—is a good way to go about choosing outside help. And get the grant consultant’s fee structure in writing—it should be a contingency arrangement, so the consultant is paid only if the grant he or she prepares is awarded to your department and you receive the desired funding. Active and retired firefighters and chief officers nationwide have assisted departments in preparing FIRE Act/Assistance to Firefighters grant applications over the past two years, some with more success than others.

STEP 6: DESCRIBE BENEFITS (AND SELL, SELL, SELL!)

A common piece of advice given by grant writers we visited with involves the need to explain how potential grant monies can benefit both your fire department and the community at large. LaGrange Fire Department’s Henry Gunsauls advises, “Think big. How will the grant help your neighboring departments and communities? How will it help other areas of the community besides the fire department?”

“Reviewing entities seem to really like seeing an agency involved in partnerships,” adds Chief Herron. “So it’s important to stress your mutual-aid work with adjacent agencies at local, state and federal levels.”

And remember that your application is one of tens of thousands that reviewers will read, so make every effort to present your needs clearly and to “sell” to your customer, the reviewer. “The narrative part of the grant is where you do all your explaining,” adds Gunsauls. “Remember, you have to sell your grant project to them.”

Chief Tony Umbertino of suburban St. Louis, Mo.’s Charlack Police Department has written several grants and pursued grant donations over the past seven years. His approach has paid off as his efforts garnered his agency $750,000 in assistance for a variety of needs.

“It’s important to make sure that this grant is a problem-solver, whether it is for something you are currently dealing with or for something in the future,” says Umbertino. “It should have obvious overtones of public safety, emergency personnel safety, and last, saving or making money. Unfortunately, these times call for saving or making money as a priority. And be sure to clearly state what circumstances you face without the grant approval,” he says.

STEP 7: PROOF, REVISE, CONDENSE

Do not make the mistake of waiting until the last minute to finish and submit your application—you are applying for funding, so make your application read as clearly and concisely as possible, and make sure you give your application a solid proofreading effort well in advance of submission.

“Be conscious of misspelled words, punctuation, grammar and other things,” says Umbertino. “Thoroughly mark up your rough draft, review it and do your corrections prior to submitting the final version.”

Again, ask for assistance from others in your department and the community with additional proofing. An outside look at your writing can help condense and present your application in its best possible form.

STEP 8: SUBMIT YOUR APPLICATION (CAREFULLY...)

This may sound silly, but you cannot receive grant money if your application never makes it to where it’s supposed to go. We follow redundant safety practices in firefighting and public-safety work, and such should be the case in submitting an important document such as a grant application—a document that could have a significant impact on the future of your agency.

So make sure you or your grant committee does the following:

• Determines the deadlines for the grant applications to be submitted. Check this information closely, because some deadlines may state, “Must be received by...” or “Must be postmarked by....” Make sure you know which of these requirements your submission falls under.

• Has Internet access, if your grant must be submitted by e-mail. Don’t wait until the last minute to obtain or update your computer capabilities. Many federal grants now require electronic submission and require a department to have Internet access. If that means your fire department has to utilize a member’s home computer, so be it—but make sure you have computer access. (If I was able to have Internet access in the remote mountains of central Idaho this past summer, then any department can manage an electronic submission.)

• Follows up with grant reviewers to verify receipt of your application.

STEP 9: DON’T GIVE UP— LEARN FROM OTHERS

As many of you already know all too well, turndowns have seemed as prevalent as approvals over the past two years. Seemingly flawless grant applications submitted by departments with dire financial and equipment conditions inexplicably did not win approval. However, successful recipients say to hang in there if you get turned down.

“Be patient—we are fortunate that this grant fund is increasing each year. Take the time to improve your application each year,” says Chief McReynolds.

Reflecting on lessons learned after his department won grant approval the second year it tried for funding, Gunsauls offers this advice to make your efforts pay off: “First thing I would do is attend one of these [grant-writing] lectures and find out what areas the grant people are suggesting you stay away from. Then I would come up with several ideas for grants.

“I also suggest going to the federal registry and looking up some of the previous grants that were written and approved. Use these grants as a guide in writing your application. Seeking help from people who have written such grants could also be a benefit,” adds Gunsauls.

Several Internet resources exist for improving your application writing and helping you learn more about current grant programs. The National Volunteer Fire Council has some excellent information (including a schedule of grant-writing seminars) on its Web site, located at www.nvfc.org. Or you can turn to the Assistance to Firefighters Grant Program portion of FEMA’s U.S. Fire Administration Web site at www.usfa.fema.gov for more detailed information on the status and type of grant programs available at the federal level. The International Association of Fire Chiefs Web site (www.iafc.org) is another great resource for grant information and continual grant-recipient updates. Guidance and information can also be found online at www.firehouse.com through various grant-related news stories.

While this list of steps is meant as a broad guideline, your department may have other steps to add to our list, and we would like to hear about them. At the very least, you should have a plan and follow it—don’t waste your time (and your staff’s) by preparing a weak grant application. Follow the outlined steps to give your grant its best shot at approval. You might just surprise yourself when that new truck, rescue tool or bunker gear shows up on your station’s doorstep. NF&R

NF&R correspondent Paul M. Ross Jr. is a commercial and editorial writer and firefighter/EMT/helicopter rappeller with 11 years of experience in both urban fire-rescue and western U.S. wildland firefighting. He resides in the “Gateway to the West,” St. Louis, Mo., where he is a firefighter/ EMT for the Eureka Fire Protection District. E-mail him at prossjr@yahoo.com.