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Children’s Fresh Air Society Fund

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Applications closed for 2026.

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Grant applications closed for 2026.

Program Overview

The mission of the Children’s Fresh Air Society Fund (CFSAF) is to provide disadvantaged and disabled Metropolitan Baltimore children (includes Baltimore City, Anne Arundel, Carroll, Baltimore, Harford and Howard counties) the benefits of a summer camp experience. For more than three decades, the CFASF has opened the door for thousands of underserved children and teens to experience the joy, freedom, and growth that come with summer camp. Learn more about the history of the Children’s Fresh Air Society Fund.

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Program Guidelines

Organizations (or their fiscal agents) serving the Baltimore area that qualify as public charities under section 501(c)(3) of the Internal Revenue Code. Charitable organizations that operate a day or residential camp program are eligible to apply for a grant.

  • Typical grant award: $5,000

Grant applications are closed for 2026.

Grant applications are closed for 2026. Please bookmark this page and check back for updates.

Organizations are strongly encouraged to review the eligibility criteria and prepare all necessary documentation in advance.

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2026 Grant Recipients

In 2026, over $160,000 in grants from the Children’s Fresh Air Society Fund was awarded to 14 nonprofit organizations to help subsidize summer camp for 258 children across the region.

Fresh Air in the Newsroom

Questions?

For questions about grants from the Children’s Fresh Air Society Fund, please contact Maya Smith, Program Administrator.

Email Maya

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Building Stronger Neighborhoods Regionwide

We have a nearly 30-year history of offering grants to resident-led groups and community projects in Baltimore City and Baltimore County. These grants give residents the resources they need to accomplish a small project, get more people involved, and encourage the next generation of neighborhood leaders. We also fund programs that support the development of leaders of all ages who are working to improve their neighborhoods and schools. Our support is intended to help identify, activate, inform and network leaders. And finally, we believe when schools and neighborhoods team up to improve their school and community, meaningful and lasting change can be made. We are interested in funding proposals in which the students and adults in schools collaborate intentionally with community residents, neighborhood associations, and other individuals, groups, and institutions in the area surrounding a school.  

School Leadership

We believe that attracting and retaining effective and diverse school leaders is a key lever for change in Baltimore’s educational landscape, and so we fund school leadership development efforts at the district and individual school level. We are interested in funding proposals that focus on principal coaching, mentoring, peer networking, wellness/self-care, as well as pipelines that identify and develop new leaders. We will also continue to support efforts that build a culture of appreciation and encouragement for school leaders.

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Melissa McC. Warlow
Director, Baker Fund Grants Program
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Place-based Grantmaking in Selected School Communities

We have allocated funds for two geographical areas that bookend a crucial corridor on the Westside of Baltimore City: Howard Park /Forest Park area (served by Calvin Rodwell Elementary Middle School and Liberty Elementary), and Reservoir Hill/Penn North area (served by Dorothy I Height Elementary). In these three schools and their surrounding neighborhoods, we will support projects and activities designed to make the communities safe, clean, green and vibrant; and improve the quality of the schools. Some projects may be neighborhood-focused, some school-focused and others collaborative projects between the schools and their respective communities.

Early Learning & Judy Centers

High quality early childhood education has a lifelong effect on students. Through our Early Learning grant program, we are interested in system-wide early childhood education proposals that will help Baltimore City and County’s youngest learners, and their families, get the start they need. Nonprofit organizations that offer programs and/or services to Judy Centers are encouraged to contact the centers directly to explore partnership opportunities.

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John A. Gilpin

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Director of Planned Gifts
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Communications Officer
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Cathy Brill

Executive Director
Leonard and Helen R. Stulman Charitable Foundation

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