First-of-its-kind program distributes $705,000 to 25 recipients, sets aside $75,000 for Rapid Response Grants, and creates a $500,000 zero-interest loan fund
Kindred Abundance puts money into the organizations themselves, into the connections linking them, and into the administrative infrastructure that no group ought to have to develop on its own”— Jamye WootenBALTIMORE, MD, UNITED STATES, August 11, 2026 /EINPresswire.com/ — CLLCTIVLY has revealed the first recipients of the Kindred Abundance Fund, a location-focused effort aimed at reinforcing neighborhood-based groups across Greater Baltimore. The 2026 package comprises $705,000 dispersed through grants and microgrants, a $75,000 Rapid Response Grant fund launching in October, and a $500,000 zero-interest loan pool, pushing the total initiative funding to $1.28 million.
Created alongside Elbow Fund, Kindred Abundance supplies adaptable, trust-driven investments in groups, partnerships, joint services, and administrative assistance. It also channels resources into the wider social framework communities require to flourish. Dr. Itihari Toure, known affectionately as Mama Itihari, came up with the phrase “Kindred Abundance” during a discussion with CLLCTIVLY founder and CEO Jamye Wooten regarding the Power of One model.
The awardees were announced during CLLCTIVGive, CLLCTIVLY’s yearly giving event, which raised $1,363,382.07 through 5,092 contributions from 4,160 supporters on Aug. 7. Combined, CLLCTIVGive and Kindred Abundance form a year-round approach for shifting resources, bolstering groups, and constructing the foundation that enables communities to succeed.
“Baltimore’s community-rooted organizations are not short on vision, leadership, or answers. What is lacking is the funding and shared backbone that lets an ecosystem expand,” said Jamye Wooten, founder and CEO of CLLCTIVLY. “Kindred Abundance puts money into the organizations themselves, into the connections linking them, and into the administrative infrastructure that no group ought to have to develop on its own.”
Interest Exceeds Initial Funding Pool
CLLCTIVLY fielded 98 submissions for the two main grant categories: 68 Infrastructure Grant requests and 30 Ecosystem Grant requests. Collectively, applicants sought $2.802 million, over four times the $695,000 accessible in those categories. Fifteen groups obtained Infrastructure prizes and eight collaborations received Ecosystem prizes, leaving considerable unmet need in this first round.
The submissions represented the diversity of Greater Baltimore’s social economy, featuring groups active in youth development, food networks, arts and culture, housing and homeownership, community wellness, leadership growth, neighborhood infrastructure, and economic fairness.
The requirement goes beyond grant money. Among 131 organizations that finished CLLCTIVLY’s 2026 capacity survey, nearly seven out of ten pointed to fundraising and development as a necessity. Groups also noted ongoing gaps in communications, governance, evaluation, operations, financial management, and technology. The Kindred Abundance submissions reinforced the demand for coordinated referrals, shared technology and data, physical spaces, communications, logistics, and compensated collaboration.
A Spectrum of Capital and Capability
Infrastructure Grants: Fifteen awards of $25,000 each, totaling $375,000, aimed at reinforcing staffing, systems, governance, operations, fundraising, and other core organizational functions.
Ecosystem Grants: Eight awards of $40,000 each, totaling $320,000, intended to back partnerships, shared services, collective education, and resource pooling.
Microgrants: Two awards of $5,000 each, totaling $10,000, for focused assistance.
Rapid Response Grants: A $75,000 pool opening in October 2026 to address urgent opportunities, unforeseen hurdles, bridge financing, and other time-sensitive matters. Individual awards are expected to fall between $5,000 and $15,000.
Zero-Interest Loan Fund: $500,000 in reusable capital established through CLLCTIVLY’s first $250,000 contribution and a dollar-for-dollar match from Common Future. The pilot is now accessible to current participants and graduates of CLLCTIVLY’s Drs. Elmer and Joanne Martin Social Innovation and Leadership Fellowship.
2026 Infrastructure Grant Recipients
The Infrastructure group represents community-focused work in food access, youth development, neighborhood support, cultural heritage, caregiving, journalism, wellness, and organizational growth. The awards will help recipients solidify the operational groundwork beneath their programs and community impact.
Black Veg Society
The Binti Circle
Baltimore Rites of Passage Initiative (BROPI)
Neighborhood Companions
Baltimore Unity Hall
Hosanna Community House
She’s WELL Networked
Hendricks HOPE Foundation
Backyard Basecamp
I Believe In Me Girls
The William J. Watkins Sr. Educational Institute
The Sanctuary Collective
St. Francis Neighborhood Center
Baltimore Beat
The Clifton House
2026 Ecosystem Grant Recipients
The Ecosystem awards put resources into groups operating across institutional borders to connect know-how, services, space, and resources around shared community priorities.
The SOS Fund, heading the Heirs Property and Alternative Dispute Resolution Project with Maryland Volunteer Lawyers Service, Pro Bono Resource Center of Maryland, and the Gibson Banks Center for Race and the Law.
Holistic Wellness and Health, teaming up with Collective Ase and Impact Hub Baltimore to offer shared business, technology, space, and wellness support.
The Black Church Food Security Network, pushing Operation Higher Ground with local churches to convert underused land into community food-growing sites.
Parity Baltimore, organizing the Building Wealth Together Homebuyer Journey with the Maryland Department of Housing and Community Development and Healthy Neighborhoods.
R.I.S.E. Arts Center of Baltimore, creating a creative career ecosystem with the University of Maryland Community Engagement Center, M&T Bank, Maryland Corps, and Sankofa Behavioral Health.
AileyCamp Baltimore, joining forces with the Eubie Blake Cultural Center to establish a steady, culturally affirming home for youth arts programming.
Muse 360, working with the African Diaspora Alliance to develop Liberation Seeds, a set of African-centered learning resources.
Walter P. Carter Institute for Leadership and Service, collaborating with the Aaron Maybin Foundation on the Baltimore Community Leadership Collaborative.
2026 Microgrant Recipients
The Living Well Center for Social and Economic Vibrancy
Next Generation Language Access
Building Shared Infrastructure
Kindred Abundance is grounded in the idea that funding individual programs alone is insufficient. Community-rooted organizations have been tasked with addressing rising needs while independently constructing many of the same systems, including fundraising, communications, finance, data, evaluation, governance, and operations. Coordinated shared services can provide groups with access to specialized support without requiring each one to build a full back office by itself.
“Shared infrastructure is how isolated acts of care and investment start to accumulate into something lasting,” Wooten said. “Our aim is not only to finance strong organizations. It is to help create a more interconnected, coordinated, and well-resourced ecosystem throughout Greater Baltimore.”
About CLLCTIVLY
CLLCTIVLY is a location-based social change organization constructing a Black-led regenerative ecosystem across Greater Baltimore through storytelling, learning, resource mobilization, and connection. Since 2019, CLLCTIVLY has raised more than $7 million and assisted over 400 organizations. Find out more at cllctivly.org.
Jamye Wooten
CLLCTIVLY
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