The National Fund for Sacred Places, a program of Partners for Sacred Places in collaboration with the National Trust for Historic Preservation, is pleased to announce its 2024 grantees. Twenty-four historically significant faith communities have been admitted into the program, which provides capital grants of up to $500,000 and hands-on technical assistance to congregations undertaking substantial preservation projects.

The National Fund for Sacred Places is a one-of-a-kind program that offers support to congregations preserving historic and architecturally significant houses of worship. Since its inception, the National Fund has awarded or pledged over $26 million to 138 community-serving congregations representing 26 faith traditions across 42 states, the District of Columbia, and Puerto Rico. A recent gift of an additional $24 million in funding from Lilly Endowment Inc. will allow the National Fund to more than double its impact over the next 5 years.

“We are proud to welcome 24 faith communities into the National Fund this year, representing diverse regions, traditions, and heritages,” said Bob Jaeger, President of Partners for Sacred Places. “Their buildings will continue to serve as community centers, art spaces, and safe havens. We’re honored to help them continue this critical work.”

“Sacred places hold power to inspire awe, joy and a sense of connection, belonging and purpose,” said Carol Quillen, President and CEO of the National Trust for Historic Preservation. “The grants and technical support provided by the National Fund will ensure that these spaces serve as meaningful centers within their communities for generations.”

“This year we received nearly five hundred applications, up thirty-one percent from last year,” said Rachel Hildebrandt, Director of the National Fund for Sacred Places. “The growth we're seeing mostly is the result of word of mouth and underscores the reality that historic sacred places need external support to balance caring for their buildings and serving their communities.”

The National Fund 2024 grantees are:

• Billings First Congregational Church – Billings, MT
• Campbell Chapel A.M.E. Church – Bluffton, SC
• Central United Methodist Church – Detroit, MI
• Christ on Capitol Hill – St. Paul, MN
• Congregation Mishkan Israel – Hamden, CT
• Denver Community Church – Denver, CO
• First Congregational Church, UCC – Columbus, OH
• First Lutheran Church of Ketchikan, AK
• First Presbyterian Church– Fargo, ND
• First Presbyterian Church of Taos, NM
• Historic St. George’s United Methodist Church – Philadelphia, PA
• KAM Isaiah Israel– Chicago, IL
• Kinderhook Reformed Church – Kinderhook, NY
• New Life at Calvary Church – Cleveland, OH
• Santuario Nacional San Martín de Porres – Bayamón, PR
• St. James in the City Episcopal Church – Los Angeles, CA
• St. Paul’s Episcopal Church – Marquette, MI
• St. Stanislaus Kostka Parish – Michigan City, IN
• Tabernacle Baptist Church – Augusta, GA
• The Church of the Holy City – Wilmington, DE
• The Falls Church Episcopal – Falls Church, VA
• Warren Temple United Methodist Church – LaGrange, GA
• West Central Abbey – Spokane, WA
• Zion Baptist Church of Philadelphia, PA

For more information on the National Fund for Sacred Places, including eligibility, program details, and the value of sacred places in communities nationwide, please visit www.fundforsacredplaces.org. The National Fund for Sacred Places is made possible thanks to the generosity of Lilly Endowment Inc.

About Partners for Sacred Places

Partners for Sacred Places is the only nonsectarian, nonprofit organization dedicated to the sound stewardship and active community use of older sacred places across America. Partners provides a variety of fundraising, building stewardship, space-sharing, and community engagement services through grant-funded programs and consulting so that sacred places can live into the vital roles they play as community assets in their neighborhoods and our wider society. www.sacredplaces.org

About Lilly Endowment Inc.

Lilly Endowment Inc. is a private foundation created in 1937 by J.K. Lilly Sr. and his sons Eli and J.K. Jr. through gifts of stock in their pharmaceutical business, Eli Lilly and Company. While those gifts remain the financial bedrock of the Endowment, it is a separate entity from the company, with a distinct governing board, staff and location. In keeping with the founders’ wishes, the Endowment supports the causes of community development, education and religion and maintains a special commitment to its hometown, Indianapolis, and home state, Indiana. A principal aim of the Endowment’s religion grantmaking is to deepen and enrich the lives of Christians in the United States, primarily by seeking out and supporting efforts that enhance the vitality of congregations and strengthen the pastoral and lay leadership of Christian communities. The Endowment also seeks to improve public understanding of diverse religious traditions by supporting fair and accurate portrayals of the role religion plays in the United States and across the globe. www.lillyendowment.org