The Solomon Cramer Fund was established to provide scholarships for youth to attend United Methodist camp experiences. Annual Conferences, camp ministry sites, and/or programs are invited to apply. 

The deadline for grant application submission is March 18, 2022. Award recipients will be notified by April 1st. All approved grant projects must be completed by October 31, 2022. 

In order to maximize the impact of scholarships for youth to attend Conference-related camps, the funds will be distributed to Conferences or ministry organizations to use for scholarships rather than directly to individuals. The recommended priorities of the scholarship grants will be for camp experiences that focus on one or more of the following dimensions:

1. Minister with youth living in poverty

2. Intentionally develop young people for spiritual leadership and/or leadership within camp/retreat ministry

3. Camp experiences that collaborate with local churches and agencies in processes of faith formation

4. Opportunities for increasing racial/ethnic diversity within ministry participation and leadership

Special consideration will be given to United Methodist Camp and Retreat Ministries or groups collaborating with their local UM camp/retreat ministries to launch new programs and opportunities related to the priorities above. Grants may also be given to existing programs that are adding new components that engage youth in ways directly related to the priorities of the fund.

The funds received by a Conference or camp/retreat ministry must be used solely as scholarships for youth to attend the specific camp experiences outlined in their application for the scholarship grant.

Each applicant for a grant must submit the official application form and send an evaluation within 30 days of the completion of the project for which the funds are granted. A completed evaluation is required in order to remain eligible for future grants.

Grant recipients will be sent a “Good Faith Agreement” outlining the terms of the grant. A signed “Good Faith Agreement” must be returned before the grant award can be distributed.

Proposals will be evaluated on their direct application to the priorities of the fund. Grant requests that are approved may or may not receive full funding depending upon the amount of funds available in a given year and the number of requests received. It is not intended that a grant from this fund will cover 100% of the cost, but assist with other funding sources to enable attendance.

Important considerations as you prepare your application:

1. Grants are usually in the $500-$3,500 range so that the greatest number of applicants can be assisted.

2. Use these funds to challenge local donors. Applications that consider a Solomon Cramer Award to be a “challenge” or “matching funds” are looked upon favorably. In other words, it is preferred that the grant not be an initiative’s sole source of funding.

3. When possible, the grant committee seeks to use the Solomon Cramer Grants to leverage the ministry goals of UMCRM in developing leaders especially among currently underserved and underrepresented ethnic populations. The Association would like to follow up with newly-identified leaders in camp/retreat ministry. Successful applicants minimally agree to forward names and contact information of identified leaders so they may be added to UMCRM’s S’more Mail and made aware of regional and national training and educational opportunities and scholarships. 

Contact UMCRM Development Chair Jeff Parsons with questions: jeff.parsons@umcrm.org  989-883-2501