Cadman Foundation
Bringing together couples and orphans to create families

The Fundraising and Grant Process

An international adoption is expensive, but we can help you raise the necessary funds through the community of people you know. Family, friends, co-workers, neighbors, and others are all potentially willing to help you adopt. By enabling their financial contributions to be tax deductible, the Cadman Foundation provides your community of family and friends an incentive to financially support your adoption. To begin:

1. Complete and submit the fundraising/grant application.
2. Cadman Foundation staff reviews your application to determine if you qualify for the fundraising/grant program. While these are not the only criteria for selecting candidates, preference is given to:
   • Married couples.
   • Couples that are adopting a special needs child.
   • Couples who have attended a debt management course (e.g., Crown Financial Ministries, Willow Creek's Good Sense, etc.).
   • Couples who have attended a parenting course (e.g., Growing Kids God's Way, etc.).
   • We also consider your income level and the cost of living in your area.
3. If you are selected for the program, someone from Cadman Foundation will contact you. You will be requested to submit a Fundraising/Grant Agreement as will the agencies you are working with. Upon submission, Cadman Foundation will establish a grant for your adoption.
4. You then develop a mailing list of at least 50 potential donors.
5. You provide a rough draft fundraising letter to Cadman Foundation for review and editing. Let us know number of letters you intend to send and the contact information for each person/family/business/organization you intend to contact.
6. Cadman Foundation will edit and return the letter along with address labels and brochures about our adoption fundraising/grant program for your mailing list.
7. You mail a letter and brochure to each person on your mailing list.
8. To receive a tax deduction, donors make their checks payable to "Cadman Foundation" and mail them to us. Cadman Foundation sends receipts to donors. Donors will be instructed to NOT include your names anywhere on the check. Internal Revenue Service regulations do not allow for a tax-deductible donation to have any name other than the tax-exempt organization written on it.
       As with all 501(c)(3) non-profit organizations, a donor may not retain control over how a nonprofit organization ultimately uses the donated funds. The donor may make a request that their funds be used in a particular manner, but, per IRS guidelines, Cadman Foundation retains the discretion and control over the use of all donations. Although this might cause some concern for families and donors, it is our intention to honor the wishes of donors as much as possible.
9. Our grant funding committee evaluates each family's file, considering the needs of the child, the cost of the adoption, the financial situation of the family, and the funds raised.
10. If a grant is approved, Cadman Foundation determines a grant amount for the family and notifies them.
11. As donations arrive, Cadman Foundation will notify you, letting you know who has donated and the amounts. We encourage you to send thank you notes to the donors.
12. As you receive bills from your adoption agency, home study agency, etc., forward them to Cadman Foundation. After verifying the expense, we will send that agency a check. Cadman Foundation will not pay bills for amounts greater than the grant you have been awarded.
13. You send a follow-up letter to your donors shortly after your child joins your family, along with a family picture, so each donor can share in the joy with you.

It's that easy! By involving your friends and family in welcoming an orphan into your home you will develop a prayer team and support system that will continue throughout your child's life.

You might also want to read the "Fundraising Frequently Asked Questions" (FAQ) page. Click here to read the fundraising FAQ.

Download this grant application and return it to the address indicated on the application. To download:

1. Right-click on the grant application icon at the right.
   A pop-up menu will appear.
2. Select "Save Target As..." (Internet Explorer) or "Save Link As..." (Firefox) from the pop-up menu.
   The "Save As..." dialog will appear.
3. Select a location to save the application. Ensure that you are saving a word procesing file (*.doc) not an image file (*.jpg).
4. Use your word processor to open the grant application. The grant is in Microsoft Word 2003 format, so your word processor must be capable of opening that format.