LITTLE ROCK, Ark. (August 7, 2026)—The Grant Administration Committee of the Methodist Foundation for Arkansas (MFA) Board of Directors awarded a total of 12 grants across its monthly meetings of the second quarter, bringing the committee’s granted funds to $325,514 for the year to date.
“The Foundation is grateful to be able to use its profits to assist ministries and nonprofits all over the state,” said MFA President and CEO the Rev. J. Wayne Clark. “Investments rooted in decades of careful management provide crucial support so that needs can be met today. Thanks to careful stewardship of these funds over the long haul, MFA can make grants that work for the good of Arkansas congregations, the people they serve, and the communities that surround them.”
Grantees and the amounts awarded to them during the second calendar quarter are:
- Methodist Family Health – Arkansas CARES: $15,000 to support women and children receiving treatment through the Arkansas Center for Addiction Recovery, Education, and Services (Arkansas CARES) program.
- Highlands Global Methodist Church: $3,800 to provide Spanish-language Bibles and literacy resources to children in Rio Bravo, Mexico, while also creating opportunities for relationship-building through Vacation Bible School and mission engagement by increasing access to both reading materials and Scripture.
- Arkansas Conference of the United Methodist Church (UMC): $8,000 to support a grant writer.
- Gravette UMC: $2,832.06 for upgrading quality of live streaming the church’s worship services, including purchasing updated audio and video equipment.
- Murfreesboro UMC: $3,882 for the church’s existing feeding ministry.
- Methodist Family Health: $15,000 to purchase Christmas gifts for 300 children in the MFH system.
- Methodist Family Health – Heroes: $15,000 to support transportation assistance, bereavement support, grief camp, and programmatic needs throughout MFH’s continuum of services.
- First UMC of Sheridan: $5,000 to support the church’s summer feeding program for children in their community.
- Arkansas Conference UMC – Congregational Development: $32,000 to provide registration, hotel, and travel costs for clergy and laity to attend the 2026 School for Congregational Development.
- Arkansas Conference UMC – Mission u: $10,000 to support a transformative educational program of the Arkansas Annual Conference that encompasses both Bible-based curricula and events. All participants can engage with all components of Mission u to deepen faith in community, gain experience interpreting Scripture and work toward healing for themselves, their communities, and all creation.
- First UMC of Clinton: $20,000 for the Agape Community Resource Center, which provides diapers and wipes through a monthly Diaper Distribution program, and the Milk & Honey program that provides $40 vouchers for formula and baby food at no cost to recipients.
- Child Development Center at First UMC of Little Rock: $10,000 to support the Gertrude Remmel Butler Child Development Center’s Summer Nutrition Ministry, ensuring that children in the community have access to nutritious meals, meaningful relationships, and a safe, faith-centered environment during the summer months.
Additional Grants Beyond Committee Action
In addition to the grants summarized above, the Foundation has made other disbursements beyond the committee’s purview, including support for programs that began receiving approved funding before the current fiscal year, and smaller disbursements that do not require committee action according to the MFA Board of Directors bylaws.
Like the Grant Administration Committee disbursements, these gifts span MFA’s six grant priority areas: 1) Food Security, Homelessness, and Poverty; 2) Clergy and Laity Education; 3) Community Health; 4) Evangelism and Discipleship; 5) Diversity; and 6) Environmental Awareness and Energy Education. Examples of such disbursements include scholarship funding covering 50% of tuition for students attending Camp Tanako and Ozark Mission Project in the summer of 2026; sponsorship of a learning and renewal experience that took a group of United Methodist clergy from Arkansas to Taizé, France; and Seminary Scholarships for seven candidates for ordained ministry, which the committee approved based on recommendations from the Scholarship Committee.
MFA welcomes grant proposals from United Methodist and Pan-Methodist churches and organizations, as well as non-church-related community nonprofits that pursue goals aligning with one or more of the priorities listed at methodistfoundationAR.org/grants. Churches and organizations planning to request funds from MFA should also visit this link to establish a login for the Foundation’s Grant Portal. Addressing food insecurity in Arkansas remains a top priority of the Foundation’s grant program.
About the Methodist Foundation for Arkansas
With a mission to establish and manage charitable funds to strengthen and expand Methodist ministries across Arkansas, the Methodist Foundation for Arkansas manages over $280 million in endowment funds and other charitable assets that benefit local churches and other United Methodist ministries. Founded in 1963, the Foundation has grown into one of the largest United Methodist foundations in the country, managing more than 800 funds that support Methodist ministries. To learn more, visit methodistfoundationAR.org.
