Interfaith Grants

NOTE: The Bush-Clinton Katrina Fund’s (BCKF) Interfaith grant cycle is now closed. A total of $25 million has been disbursed to 1151 houses of worship in Alabama, Mississippi and Louisiana for their rebuilding and recovery. A complete list of those grant recipients is shown below.

In December 2005, Presidents George H. W. Bush and William J. Clinton allocated $20 million from the Bush-Clinton Katrina Fund (BCKF) for local and regional faith-based organizations located in the affected areas prior to Hurricane Katrina in Alabama, Louisiana, and Mississippi. The Fund sought applications from religious organizations to assist in rebuilding houses of worship and to cover costs for temporary relocation. 

The Interfaith Advisory Committee appointed by Presidents Bush and Clinton laid the foundation for applicants to seek BCKF funding.  That process was so successful that over 1100 houses of worship applied for funding by the closing date of July 31, 2006.  The applicants include a wide range of faith groups including African Methodist Episcopal, Baptists, Buddhist, Catholic, Church of God in Christ, Episcopal, Jewish, Lutheran, Muslim, Pentecostal, Presbyterian, and United Methodist.  Fifty-four per cent of the houses of worship are based in Louisiana; Mississippi applicants represent approximately 30% of the total and Alabama applicants represent approximately 14% of the total. 

BCKF Co-Chairs, the Honorable Alexis M. Herman and the Honorable Donald L. Evans, recognized that this extraordinary response called for an extraordinary reaction on the part of the Fund and hence the two former Presidents agreed to increase the allocation for Interfaith grants to $25 million.   Based on the guidance of the BCKF Co-Chairs and the advice of members of the clergy throughout the process,  The Fund has determined that in order to fund the largest number of houses of worship, there are two levels of funding -- $35,000 and $20,000 or less. 

In determining which houses of worship are to be funded at $35,000 or $20,000 or less, the major factors considered were:  (1) the poverty level of the area in which the house of worship is located; (2) the gap between the total repair costs and the insurance received as well as funding from other sources, such as donations; and (3) the extent to which $35,000 brings the house of worship’s restoration costs close to completion.  A few houses of worship could be funded at less than $20,000 based on the applicant’s request for a smaller award amount, or documentation that shows that insurance payments and/or donations cover substantially all of the repair costs or unique considerations.

Click Here to Download a list of All Our Recipients