Letter from the President
Dear Friends,
As many of you know, back in March, the McGregor Fund board voted to increase our grants budget to roughly double. You’ll read below how this allowed us to immediately pick up the pace and volume of our grantmaking and respond to the emergent needs of grant partners whose federal funding was frozen or cut, helping them to buy time and bridge gaps.
In fact, our first emergency grants were approved three weeks after the board’s decision, with payments sent out days after that. I share this not to brag, but to show that we are seriously committed to being responsive to the needs of our partners, given all that they are facing. And we are holding ourselves accountable to them — to you — during these times when our support is needed more than ever.
Our country, and our community, are heading into a period when the need for community care will be extreme. For those of you who are in positions to support folks on the frontlines — do it. Give money. Give time. Share resources. Give grace. This includes all of us connected with philanthropy, who can and should step up and do more than the usual.
And as each of us hopefully enjoys some time off this summer, let’s remember that often those who need rest the most find it hardest to come by. What more can we do to encourage and support rest? As we often remind ourselves: rest is justice.
In Solidarity,
Kate
Recent Grants Awarded
The McGregor Fund is delighted to announce $8.8 million in grants awarded to 33 area nonprofit organizations in the first half of 2025. To date, the Fund has also committed $1.3 million in emergency grants to eight organizations impacted by federal budget cuts and those serving individuals at risk of losing housing, access to basic needs, or safety. The Fund is working to fill significant current and anticipated operating budget shortfalls caused by greatly delayed and/or dramatically reduced federal funding.
A note to our readers:
To promote the safety and security of our grant partners, we are taking a different approach to sharing news this grantmaking cycle. While we are honored to share highlights of their work, we are refraining from publicly listing our partners’ names or additional details about the grants themselves. We are in deep gratitude to the movement leaders who contributed to our heightened organizational awareness around safety and security, and for the grace of our community as we all adjust to a quickly shifting landscape.
Basic Needs & Housing
Basic Needs & Housing grants, totaling $4.9 million, for food, shelter, and other necessities essential for day-to-day living, were approved for 17 grant partners.
Basic Needs-Housing Grants (10)
The McGregor Fund follows a housing-first approach, and this round of funding helps to sustain partners who offer permanent and supportive housing opportunities, as well as critical interventions to youth, individuals and families in crisis, including LGBTQ+ neighbors, asylum seekers and refugees. The Fund is grateful to continue in relationships with ten partners who previously received grants, and to continue learning through their respective expertise in trauma-informed and harm reduction-based care, justice-related programming methods, and whole-person approaches.
Basic Needs-Food Grants (3)
Three Basic Needs-Food grants expand the Fund’s support of the ecosystem by funding efforts that build capacity and improve efficiency for food rescue and distribution partners. The Fund’s commitment in this area includes partners advocating for community-driven solutions to food insecurity, from food upcycling and food preparation with dignity, to support for food justice, food sovereignty and climate justice through urban agriculture and related education and empowerment.
Four Additional Basic Needs Grants (4)
Four Recovery & Restoration grants, for $1.1 million to three long-term grant partners, for pathways to safety and healing from interpersonal and societal violence, abuse and inequity were approved.
Recovery & Restoration
Four Recovery & Restoration grants, for $1.1 million to three long-term grant partners, for pathways to safety and healing from interpersonal and societal violence, abuse and inequity were approved.
Grants in this cycle provide crucial support for these organizations’ emergency support services for adult and child survivors of domestic violence — from crisis hotlines, emergency shelters and safety plan development to medical exams, victim advocacy, counseling for long-term survivors, and connections to housing, childcare and employment. These grants also aim to fill significant current and anticipated operating budget shortfalls due to impacts in federal funding.
Skill Building & Employment
Five Skill Building & Employment grants, totaling $1.1 million, were made to promote economic mobility opportunities that focus on personal development, fulfillment, choice and connection.
Skill Building & Employment Grants (Adults – 2)
Grants were made to one existing partner and one new partner. Through different approaches, both organizations are trusted to facilitate opportunities for adults experiencing significant barriers to education and employment, such as skill development, professional coaching and mentoring, and expanded income opportunities. Single parents, veterans, returning citizens, individuals living with mental illness or a disability, and other marginalized groups will be served through these grants.
Skill Building & Employment Grants (Youth – 3)
For young people, the Fund also continued funding relationships with existing partners and added a new partner. Each organization in this constellation offers unique and effective interventions for young people that center their experiences and prioritize long-term relationship development. Funding was made to support improvements to the youth ecosystem, add art and cultural enrichment, sustain living wage employment, and advance offerings developed in partnership with the young people these organizations serve.
Foundation Directed
Seven Foundation Directed grants totaling $1.8 million were made, including funds for capacity building, community journalism, civic engagement, and legacy grantmaking.
Foundation Directed Grants for Capacity Building (2)
To strengthen the capacity of the nonprofit sector, the Fund is expanding support for trusted partners advancing the missions of nonprofit organizations serving low-income individuals and communities. The Fund continues to learn from these partners and from their work in community. Both offer comprehensive services, including legal and technical assistance, leadership development, cybersecurity support, and financial and operational coaching. This expanded funding is crucial at this time, as requests from these organizations’ non-profit partners, some of whom are also McGregor Fund grant partners, are expanding exponentially due to federal actions.
Foundation Directed Grants for Community Journalism (2)
The Fund also supports community-centered, high-quality, non-partisan, non-profit journalism — an essential tool to strengthen civil society infrastructure and civic engagement. Two partners have built hyper-local newsrooms and collaboratives marked by commitments to rigorous fact-checking, deep community engagement, and transparency.
Foundation Directed Grants for Civic Infrastructure (2)
The Fund also supports civic causes critical to the economic and social interests of Detroit and its residents. A grant was made for strategic communications awareness support around the expected impact of Medicaid cuts on health care providers, community health centers, hospitals, and local economies. Another grant supported a community-led, Detroit-wide project to build power for residents by compiling a list of vetted, qualified candidates for municipal roles, each of whom is committed to advancing the public interest, engaging marginalized communities, and wielding structural power in service to all residents.
Recent Changes to the McGregor Fund Team
This spring, the Fund was pleased to welcome two new team members, Senior Accountant Taylor Fisher and Director of Grant Development Jonathan Pulley.
With several years of experience in nonprofit finance and operations, Taylor has supported organizations of all sizes through system-building, process streamlining, and strategic growth. Taylor will support a full spectrum of accounting and finance-related functions, helping ensure the effective management of resources oriented toward the Fund’s grant partners and its justice-focused work throughout Detroit.
Already a respected voice in philanthropy, Jonathan is known as a champion of authentic community engagement and collaborative nonprofit ecosystems that reflect the communities they serve. Jonathan’s new role was created in step with the McGregor Fund board’s recent decision to double the Fund’s payout rate. He will support the resulting increase in grant development activities, in keeping with the Fund’s longstanding commitment to creating trust-based partnerships.
From President Kate Levin Markel:
“We are thrilled to welcome our new team members. Taylor’s experiences and ways of working make her a wonderful addition to our work, and Jonathan will strengthen our capacity to build deep, respectful relationships with our community partners. Both Taylor and Jonathan will help us meet this moment with the urgency it demands.”
The Fund is also delighted to announce the promotion of long-time team members Heidi Alcock and Vanessa Samuelson to the positions of Vice President of Strategy & Grants Portfolio and Vice President of Learning & Insight, respectively.
From Kate:
“Heidi and Vanessa have both done so much to advance the McGregor Fund’s support for our neighbors working to promote justice and overcome systemic inequity. Their new titles reflect not only their tenure, expertise and strategic vision, but also the relationships they’ve built with our partners and community, and the ways in which they embody the Fund’s values.”
