Previous Grants Email Questions

Zoot Philanthropy

Zoot Enterprises, Inc. is a high-tech company in Bozeman, Montana that provides services to the financial industry. Zoot also recognizes the importance of community support and has developed a program to provide grants to non-profit organizations in our area. The work we support in our philanthropy efforts includes a wide range of groups with focused emphasis on Technology, Entrepreneurship, Direct Assistance,
and Community Character.

The Grant Committee's objectives are:

• Improving the quality of life in Bozeman and other Montana communities.
• Reflecting the creative and entrepreneurial style of Zoot.
• Reinforcing Zoot's marketing efforts by enhancing name recognition, providing exposure to potential clients and employees, and encouraging youth to pursue careers in technology.
• Dividing resources among programs that support education, the arts, direct assistance, and community character.
• Supporting our employees' efforts in the community.

Zoot's Grant Committee is comprised of 7-10 Zoot employees from different departments. This committee meets quarterly, and grants are awarded shortly thereafter. (To find out when the next meeting is to be held, please use the contact information below.) Zoot expects to award 10-20 grants each year. Most awards are between $100 and $1,000 and will not normally exceed $2,000.

Note: To ensure that we have adequate time to review all submissions and still meet your needs, submit your letter of inquiry three to six months in advance of your deadline. Since we review quarterly, proposals may be submitted at any time. When submitting a letter of inquiry for continuing support, organizations must include information updating their activities since the last grant was awarded.

Overview of organizations Zoot has supported in the past

Grant Limitations

• Organizations must be non-profit and classified 501(c)(3) tax-exempt by the Internal Revenue Service. Individuals and private foundations are not eligible to receive funds.
• Zoot does not pay for the administrative costs of submitting a grant request.
• Most grants are for one year, but multi-year grant requests will be considered.
• Normally, only one grant is made to an organization in a given fiscal year.
• Grants may not be used for seed money.
• An organization's base of community support should be as broad as possible. Zoot should not be the only funding source for an organization.
• Zoot does not contribute to social, labor, political, veterans, fraternal, or religious organizations.
• We do not provide funding for buildings, land acquisition, endowments, or start-up endeavors.
• We do not fund films, books, magazines, or other specifically media-related projects.
• Zoot funds cannot be used solely to support an organization's staff or administrative payroll.
• Zoot does not support lobbying efforts or political action committees.

Guidelines for Submissions
The first step in receiving funding from the Zoot grant committee is submitting a letter of inquiry. If approved, you will then be asked to submit an application and follow the formal application process.

The letter of inquiry should not include any additional supporting information such as videotapes/compact discs, financial reports, annual reports, or books. Zoot will notify you if your proposal has been approved for review from the committee. At that time, the committee chair will request that an official application be submitted.

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Letter of Inquiry
To initiate the process, send a letter of inquiry to determine whether the committee's current interests and funds permit consideration of the request.  The document should not exceed 2 pages, single-spaced, and should include:

• Description of the organization conducting the project.

• Specific dollar amount requested.

• Purpose of the project for which funds are being requested.

• Problem(s) your project will address.

• Overall project budget.

• Time period for which funds are requested.

• Qualifications of key project personnel.

• Contact information (name, title, address, phone, fax, and e-mail).  

Please mail letter of inquiry to:
    Zoot Enterprises
    Attn: Grant Committee
    555 Zoot Enterprises Lane
    Bozeman, MT 59718

Submissions may also be faxed to (406) 587-8414. Please verify the readability. Or, you may e-mail them to darcy.barry@zootweb.com as a Word (.doc), text (.txt), rich text format (.rtf), PDF, or HTML file.

Questions may be directed to Darcy Barry, Grant Committee Chair, at the above email address or (406) 556-8930.

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