Growing What Matters: Reflections on Our 2026 Grantmaking Year
Healthy ecosystems remind us that growth begins long before it becomes visible. In forests, growth happens beneath the surface long before a canopy emerges. Root systems deepen. Soil regenerates. Beneath the forest floor, interconnected root systems share nutrients in ways we cannot always see. Our communities grow much the same way. The most transformative work rarely announces itself with sudden breakthroughs. More often, it unfolds through relationships strengthened over time, leaders who continue showing up, and organizations that steadily cultivate the conditions for people and the natural world to flourish.
That quiet work is what we have had the privilege of witnessing across Middle Tennessee this year.
This year, we are honored to partner with 62 organizations whose work advances our shared vision of a future where people and planet flourish together in regenerative systems free from oppression and threat. Our 2026 Request for Proposals was the most competitive in the Maddox Fund’s history, reflecting both the extraordinary leadership across Middle Tennessee and the growing gap between community need and available philanthropic resources. Every grant represents more than financial support; it is an expression of trust, relationship, and our belief that those closest to the work are best positioned to shape the future of their communities.
As we have listened to our partners over the past two years, one theme has surfaced repeatedly: unrestricted funding matters, but it is not enough on its own. Organizations also need trusted spaces to reflect, opportunities to learn alongside peers, and investments in the leadership and operational capacity that allow them to thrive over the long term.
That belief inspired the creation of Root Partners, a new three-year initiative that pairs unrestricted funding with organizational development, leadership support, and peer learning.
We are excited to welcome these incredible organizations to our inaugural Root Partners cohort:
Over the next three years, these organizations will help us explore a question that feels increasingly important: How do we grow not only stronger organizations, but stronger ecosystems? We look forward to learning alongside them and sharing what we discover with the broader nonprofit community.
Growth also requires humility. As a foundation, we remain committed to strengthening our own practices, continuing to embrace trust-based philanthropy, deepening equity in our governance and grantmaking, and approaching this work with curiosity, transparency, and accountability. We know that the future we seek cannot be funded into existence alone. It must be cultivated through relationships that allow all of us to learn and grow together.
To every organization that has partnered with us, whether for many years or for the first time this cycle, thank you. Your work continues to remind us that lasting growth is measured not simply by scale, but by stronger relationships, deeper roots, and communities that are increasingly able to care for one another and the places they call home.
We are grateful to be growing alongside you.
2026 Request for Proposal Grants
Grant amounts reflect a two-year payment schedule with the first half being paid in 2026 and the second half being paid in 2027.
| Applying Organization | Grant Amount | Program Area | Interest Areas |
| Cosecha Community Development | $50,000 | Environment | Access |
| Friends of Mill Ridge Park | $50,000 | Environment | Access |
| Tennessee Aquatic Project And Development Group Inc | $30,000 | Environment | Access |
| Water Walkers | $50,000 | Environment | Access |
| Justice Industries | $60,000 | Environment | Climate Solutions |
| The Nashville Food Project Inc | $30,000 | Environment | Climate Solutions |
| Tennessee Local Food | $20,000 | Environment | Climate Solutions |
| Cumberland River Compact | $60,000 | Environment | Climate Solutions |
| Urban Green Lab | $30,000 | Environment | Climate Solutions |
| Chinkapin Craftstead | $60,000 | Environment | Protecting the Natural Environment |
| Nashville Tree Conservation Corps | $40,000 | Environment | Protecting the Natural Environment |
| Austin Peay State University Foundation | $50,000 | Environment | Protecting the Natural Environment |
| Turnip Green Creative Reuse | $30,000 | Environment | Protecting the Natural Environment |
| Swan Conservation Trust | $20,000 | Environment | Protecting the Natural Environment |
| Community Shares | $70,000 | Environment | Environmental Advocacy |
| Nashville Banner | $60,000 | Environment | Environmental Advocacy |
| Tennessee State University Foundation | $60,000 | Environment | Environmental Advocacy |
| Tennessee Environmental Council | $60,000 | Environment | Environmental Advocacy |
| Planned Parenthood of Tennessee and North Mississippi | $40,000 | Youth | Youth Voice |
| American Muslim Advisory Council | $36,000 | Youth | Youth Voice |
| Southern Movement Committee | $100,000 | Youth | Youth Voice |
| Corner To Corner | $50,000 | Youth | Youth Voice |
| Equity Alliance | $50,000 | Youth | Youth Voice |
| Tennessee Immigrant And Refugee Rights Coalition | $50,000 | Youth | Youth Voice |
| Nashville Civic Design Center | $30,000 | Youth | Youth Voice |
| Elmahaba Center | $20,000 | Youth | Equitable Education Opportunities |
| Pathways Kitchen | $50,000 | Youth | Equitable Education Opportunities |
| Man Up Teacher Fellowship | $50,000 | Youth | Equitable Education Opportunities |
| Bethlehem Centers Of Nashville | $35,000 | Youth | Equitable Education Opportunities |
| Salama Urban Ministries | $80,000 | Youth | Equitable Education Opportunities |
| Why We Can’t Wait | $40,000 | Youth | Equitable Education Opportunities |
| Legacy Mission Village | $40,000 | Youth | Equitable Education Opportunities |
| 100 Black Men of Middle Tennessee | $30,000 | Youth | Equitable Education Opportunities |
| Tennessee Educators Of Color Alliance | $70,000 | Youth | Equitable Education Opportunities |
| BeWell in School | $40,000 | Youth | Equitable Education Opportunities |
| YWCA Nashville & Middle Tennessee | $40,000 | Youth | Equitable Education Opportunities |
| Nashville Teacher Residency | $100,000 | Youth | Equitable Education Opportunities |
| Moves and Grooves | $20,000 | Youth | Equitable Education Opportunities |
| Nations Ministry Center | $35,000 | Youth | Equitable Education Opportunities |
| Southern Word Inc | $50,000 | Youth | Equitable Education Opportunities |
| Conexion Americas | $50,000 | Youth | Equitable Education Opportunities |
| Equal Chance For Education | $30,000 | Youth | Equitable Education Opportunities |
| Nashville International Center for Empowerment | $60,000 | Youth | Equitable Education Opportunities |
| Music City Construction Careers Inc | $50,000 | Youth | Equitable Education Opportunities |
| Black Lemonade | $50,000 | Youth | Equitable Education Opportunities |
| D-Y-M-O-N In The Rough – Dynamic Minorities Of Nashville | $40,000 | Youth | Equitable Education Opportunities |
| Girls Write Nashville | $30,000 | Youth | Belonging |
| Raphah Institute | $50,000 | Youth | Belonging |
| Monroe Harding | $30,000 | Youth | Belonging |
| FLY Girl Institute | $60,000 | Youth | Belonging |
| Murfreesboro Muslim Youth | $30,000 | Youth | Belonging |
| CASA Nashville | $20,000 | Youth | Belonging |
| Nashville Peacemakers | $35,000 | Youth | Belonging |
| MashUp | $60,000 | Youth | Belonging |
| Tennessee Justice for Our Neighbors | $40,000 | Youth | Belonging |
| Launch Pad | $100,000 | Youth | Belonging |
| Wilco Iris | $40,000 | Youth | Belonging |
| Black Mental Health Village | $80,000 | Youth | Belonging |
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