Kalispel Charitable Fund

Since 2000, the Kalispel Tribe has donated approximately $1 million annually to our local community. The Kalispel Tribe believes in being a strong community partner and strives to achieve that through its commitment to supporting its neighbors.

The Charitable Fund was established to support the work of the numerous non-profit organizations of Spokane and Pend Oreille counties. The organizations the Tribe supports are pursuing the same goals as the Kalispel Tribe, as we all work to better the lives of our future generations.

THE TRIBE FOCUSES ITS CHARITABLE GIVING IN THE FOLLOWING AREAS:

Education
Health Care
Arts & Culture
Social Services
Environment Conservation

Application Guidelines: How to Apply

Auction or Raffle Item Only:

Application must be submitted at least 90 days prior to your event for consideration. Note: If you are requesting an auction or raffle item in addition to other funding, please include it in your annual comprehensive request (see guidelines below).

Program Support and/or Event Support:

There are two funding cycles each year, one in April and one in October.
Applications are due by midnight on October 1st or April 1st.
Only one comprehensive application for funding may be submitted in a 12-month period (Oct 1^st – Sept 30th) per organization.
If you are requesting funding for an event that will occur in October or April, you must apply for the funding cycle prior to the month your event is being held (e.g., If your event is October 15th, apply in the April funding cycle to ensure review of your application prior to the date of your event.).
IMPORTANT: Submission form is not compatible with Google Chrome. Please use an alternative web browser to submit.
Requests must be submitted using our online application form below with no exceptions.
Requests must be from a non-profit organization registered with the State of Washington.
Proof of being a non-profit organization registered with the State of Washington (UBI number) must be attached to the application.
Requests from a third party are not accepted.
Request for funding teams and individuals are excluded.
If additional space is needed on your application, please attach that information under “additional attachments” at the bottom of the application.
For any questions please contact Leslie Bytnar at lbytnar@ktea.com or (509) 481-6168

Apply Now

Partner Testimonials

Since 2000, the Kalispel Tribe has partnered with over 300 local non-profits in Spokane and Pend Oreille Counties, and has charitable partners in a variety of areas, including social services, healthcare, education, arts & culture and the environment. Some of those organizations share their thoughts about the Tribe’s positive impact below.

Spokane HOPE

The Tribe supported our whole continuum of Early Intervention and Early Learning services for children aged birth-5. You also sponsored Hoedown for HOPE, our major annual fundraiser.

Our Early Intervention (EI) program serves children birth-3 who are deaf and hard of hearing and their families. Our EI Teachers of the Deaf support children and their families through home visits that model maximum communication strategies, using either sign language or LSL.

EI helps parents navigate the hearing loss journey and teaches parents how to use their child’s hearing technology so babies have access to sound during the critical period of brain development.

Real Life Ministries Newport

The Kalispel Tribe has supported two programs created by Real Life Newport.  The first is called Community Week. In Community Week, we purchase backpacks and school supplies and give them to children in need in Cusick, Newport, and Priest River.  We have averaged giving out around 220 backpacks each year this program has been operating.  We have given out over 250 backpacks each year since COVID began. 

The Kalispel Tribe has also supported Happy Feet.  Happy Feet gives shoes and socks to children in need. Happy Feet is also available to the community in crisis situations. Real Life Newport has given out over 400 shoes and 2,400 pairs of socks in four years of operation.  This program sets up shoe distribution events in the spring in the Cusick, Newport, and Priest River communities.

Jared Horton – Pastor

Meals on Wheels Spokane

Meals on Wheels Spokane is very fortunate to be privately funded because our mission speaks to individuals and organizations.  The generous support we receive from the Kalispel Tribe allows us to honor our senior clients by providing proper nutrition to those who cannot meet that need on their own.  Our service allows seniors to remain in their home and reduce premature out of home placement.   

Gail Golden – Fundraising Specialist

Teen & Kid Closet

For years, Northern Quest and the Kalispel Tribe have supported the mission of Teen & Kid Closet, allowing us to clothe thousands of children in need in our community.

You have supported fundraisers, from auctions to the family fun run, Socktoberdash, to our first Bourbon & Bacon Bash and you all show up at our events, and allow us to take part in your non-profit showcase, which gives us good exposure to people who may not know what we do and how we help the children and families of our surrounding communities.

Your continued support helps keep our doors open and helps us go beyond just doing the bare minimum. When we run out of items for our shoppers, the extra money we glean from your contribution allows us to purchase needed items.

—Robyn Nance

Providence Inland Northwest Foundation

The Kalispel Tribe was the lead donor for our 2012 campaign to modernize and expand the cardiac intensive care unit at Providence Sacred Heart Medical Center. Sacred Heart serves a regional tertiary hospital, providing care for thousands of patients from eastern Washington, northern Idaho and Montana. Our cardiac intensive care unit provides services to the sickest and most vulnerable cardiac patients. The generous gift from the Kalispel Tribe allowed us to not only modernize and expand, but to include in the project a beautiful outdoor courtyard for patients, family members and Caregivers to be able to step outside the hospital environment for rest and rejuvenation. We have some heart transplant patients who are hospitalized for up to three months, so having a space for them to be able to experience nature has an immeasurable impact. Incredible, sacred space would not have been possible with out the extraordinary support we received from the Kalispel Tribe.

—Colleen Fox – Chief Philanthropy Officer

Operation Spokane Heroes

Kalispel Tribes annual contribution has been the backbone of Operation Spokane Heroes. This contribution has made a way for OSH to purchase gift cards and support military families in hardship during the holidays over the past years.  And has broadened our influence by serving veterans in much needed ways. Operation Spokane Heroes has an organized approach for distribution of donations:  Veterans and military apply for funding online, many of the service men and women have a case manager or they have advocates to assist in the application process.

—Sandy Kates – Chair

Charitable Partners

Arts & Culture

Education

Environmental Conservation

Healthcare

Others