Don’t Miss THIS Deadline

Need some cash to make your agency’s best safety and risk management ideas become real? Then take good notes on this article and submit your agency’s 2024 Risk Management Grant and Recognition application by Sept. 6!

Maybe it was a random comment at a staff meeting, a patron complaint you overheard or a “blue sky” moment you had while working. Whatever it was, it sparked an idea of how to help your agency address a safety or risk issue. Don’t let it slip away!

“This year, we’ve changed the minimum grant amount from $500 to $250,” says Lindsey Robertson, PDRMA Risk Management Consultant. “That means we can offer more grants for more winning ideas — if we get them by the Sept. 6 deadline.”  

Grants are a great way for your agency to fund all or part of a new idea or product that helps staff and patrons stay safe and property secure. “It can be as simple as a sign in the right place or better lighting. It doesn’t have to be a complex solution or new equipment — although PDRMA members do submit such grant requests,” Robertson explains.

2024 $2000 Grant Winners

Buffalo Grove Park District E.A.G.L.E. Garbage Can Lift

Park District of Oak Park Conti Blade Changing Assistant

West Chicago Park District Relocation and Reunification Program

Applying takes only an hour or two, and with the change in cash-grant size, more great ideas than ever before have the chance to win a grant. Just download our Risk Management Grant and Recognition Program Submission Form (1610), complete it and submit it to RMGrant@PDRMA.org.

PDRMA's Risk Management Grant and Recognition Program helps members fund, implement and/or recognize innovative and cost-effective safety projects or programs. [For background on the program, see Risk Management Grant and Recognition Program (768).] Each year, the Risk Management Committee reviews the grant proposals and may choose to award multiple grants in increments of $250 with a minimum award of $250 and a maximum of $2,500.

Currently, the Risk Management Committee has up to $15,000 annually to award through the grant program, and each member agency can submit a maximum of two applications per year for consideration.

Need some inspiration? Take a moment to review the stories about current winners [Risk Management Grant and Recognition Program Current Winners (971)] or past winners [Risk Management Grant and Recognition Program — Past Winners (1556)].

“You’ll find some winning grants are pretty simple but go a long way in making an agency safer,” notes Robertson. “Think of it: An hour or two to complete the application and have the possibility to net between $250 and $2,500. There’s no better return on investment than that!”