Published January 29, 2026
By Pauline Fong, Chief Program & Impact Officer (CPIO)
In June, I shared that the Trust was seeing unprecedented demand for funding and making process changes in response. Seven months later, I want to give you an update on grant demand, how we’re continuing to adapt, and what this means for nonprofits considering applying for a grant.
The Current Landscape #
In our most recent three-month submission period, the Murdock Trust received more than 650 Letters of Inquiry (LOI), which is a 3.5x increase and the highest we have seen in the Trust’s 50-year history. To put this in perspective: a busy day for new LOIs used to mean 10-15 submissions. In December, we received up to 90 submissions daily, for multiple days in a row.
This surge tells us something important: there is extraordinary work happening across our region. When we review these LOIs, we consistently see compelling proposals from organizations deeply committed to their communities. While the Trust has regularly exceeded federal payout requirements in recent years and will continue to do so, the volume of quality, compelling proposals continues to outpace even our expanded capacity. We know that this dynamic is not unique to the Trust, and that it is affecting philanthropy across the sector.
How We're Responding #
The Trust remains committed to our north star: a vision of human flourishing for the common good and a mission focused on building nonprofit capacity across the Pacific Northwest, in alignment with our benefactor's donor intent. As we navigate this landscape, we are committed to transparency and continuous improvement. Here are a few important updates:
Adjusted submission windows. In 2025, we introduced submission windows with clear response timelines to provide more clarity and predictability for applicants. Given the increased demand in our last cycle, we are adapting these windows to ensure our team has adequate time to support applicants in the processing of submitting inquiries leading up to the deadline, and for thoughtful review of each request after submission. All updated deadlines are available on our Strategic Grant Application webpage.
Upcoming webinars on funding priorities. We will be hosting webinars in early March to discuss our Strategic Project funding priorities and grantmaking process within our focus areas and sectors. These sessions are an opportunity to gain clarity about the Trust’s priorities and the LOI submission process, address FAQs, and ask your own questions. Information will be sent to our general email list (subscribe here), shared on social media, and posted to our website in the coming weeks.
Distribution of capacity-building resources beyond grantmaking. We will prioritize sharing and supporting the creation and distribution of resources and tools that support strategic thinking and capacity-building across the nonprofit sector (e.g. tools for strategic planning and restructuring, risk management, etc.). See a roundup of helpful resources in this blog post, and subscribe to our email list to continue receiving resources we identify throughout 2026.
Looking Ahead #
A final word of gratitude: we know this is a challenging time for many organizations, and we're deeply grateful for the important work you're doing in communities across our region. While the Trust cannot fund every quality proposal we would like to support, we remain committed to building nonprofit capacity throughout the Pacific Northwest.
In the coming weeks, we'll be sharing more updates about specific ways we're adapting our grantmaking and exploring ways to strengthen our strategic reach in response to feedback from nonprofit leaders. We hope these adjustments will help us work together more effectively in this evolving landscape, addressing community needs with innovative solutions that yield lasting impact for the sake of the common good.
Thank you for your patience and understanding as we continue learning and adapting alongside you.
In partnership with you,
Pauline Fong
Chief Program & Impact Officer