Blandin Foundation Goes Big on Small Communities

Grants to Minnesota’s smallest towns highlight needs, dreams and innovation in rural areas.

Key Points:

• Blandin announced funding to 72 grantees in rural MN communities with populations under 5,000 in Blandin’s local giving area and throughout the state.
• Rural communities in MN receive only eight percent of philanthropic funding despite hosting 23 percent of the state’s population.
• The grants range in size from $5,000 to $125,000 and support a wide range of local needs for civic improvement projects, community centers and revitalization, reaching dozens of new communities and organizations around the state.
• The grants are part of the Blandin Foundation’s new strategic plan, which focuses on moving rural places forward by prioritizing small communities, rural placemaking and building community wealth.

Grand Rapids, Minn. – December 9, 2024

Today, the Blandin Foundation announced a new round of Small Community and Rural Placemaking (SC/RPM) grants aimed at empowering Minnesota’s smallest communities. The $4 million in grants to 72 grantees are designed to support community-driven solutions and foster resilience in communities where resources are often limited.

In 2022, Blandin opened a round of pandemic-era grants emphasizing Minnesota’s smallest communities, drawing an overwhelming response from applicants and offering a glimpse into the needs and dreams of small-town Minnesota. Informed by this response and armed with new research into dramatic disparities in rural philanthropy, the Foundation created the SC/RPM grants in 2024 to bring about positive, noticeable changes in Minnesota’s tiniest communities.

Rural areas in Minnesota receive only eight percent of philanthropic funding, despite hosting 23 percent of the population, leaving fewer local resources for vital rural projects.

By increasing the visibility of culture and arts, nurturing local pride and revitalization, and effectively engaging residents on the unique issues affecting towns with populations under 5,000, funding to support these community-identified priorities can spark lasting and meaningful impact.

“We learned that with a modest amount of money and a little support, small towns do incredible things,” said Tuleah Palmer, CEO and President of the Blandin Foundation. “That means respecting the unique development of rural place and identity, and meeting communities where they are at, rather than imposing someone else’s ideas and structures on them.”

From ducks and doors to tech hubs and repurposed jails.

Funded projects in the SC/RPM portfolio provide insight into the needs and dreams of small town Minnesota. Examples include:

• Restoring Blackduck’s signature duck statue
• Installing an interior door on a community building to create the first-ever city office in Richville
• Creating a digital literacy tech hub in Deer River
• Constructing a trail head in Cass Lake
• Repairing the roof of the Calumet community building
• Updating the Marble community center and including a food pantry
• Repurposing the jail in Carlton as a community center for the town and Fond du Lac Reservation
• Planting an intergenerational garden in Grove City

“Minnesota’s smallest towns are expected to do more with less,” said Leslie Lee, City Treasurer of Richville, Minnesota. Lee successfully applied for a $10,000 grant to install an interior door and create a small city office for her tiny community of 78 people. “This was the first grant we have ever applied for, so we really appreciate how accessible and easy Blandin made it. This grant has built our confidence to explore other community projects.”

The recent grant rounds to small communities have expanded the pool of Blandin Foundation grantees to more than 100 new communities or organizations.

Listen, learn, respond.

The SC/RPM grants represent a new and vital component of Blandin Foundation’s strategic plan. The initiative aligns with the Foundation’s broader mission of moving rural places forward, empowering local decision-making and reinforcing the social infrastructure that sustains rural pride and identity.

“Rural Minnesota is often portrayed as a monolith, yet each town has its own unique culture and challenges,” noted Linda Gibeau, Blandin’s Small Communities Grants Program Officer. “Our approach respects this diversity, allowing grantees to champion their community’s specific needs while creating shared pride and belonging. We do this through a process we call ‘listen, learn and respond.’”

“More than just financial support, these grants are a catalyst for small communities to fight the narrative of ‘rural decline’ by reimagining their future, elevating underrepresented voices, and creating spaces that foster pride, unity and long-term resilience,” said Kyle Erickson, Blandin Foundation Director of Rural Grantmaking. “By funding projects that bring visible change and enhance community engagement, we are investing in the heart of rural Minnesota’s cultural and civic identity.”

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