Aspirations Grant
The Aspirations Grant, imagined in 2013 and first awarded in 2016, was designed to bring the dreams of women to fruition. This grant is available to women in the South Texas and Texas Hill Country regions who are not LDEI members, who already have a culinary innovation record, have been in business for at least a year, and need assistance to move to the next level.
2018 Aspirations Grant Recipient - Sarah Clavieres of Talking Tree Farms in Converse, Texas.
2016 Aspirations Grant Recipient - Lori Kreiger of Taste Elevated in Castroville, Texas.
2016 Aspirations Grant Recipient - Julie Braune of Braune Farms in Geronimo, Texas
2017 Aspirations Grant Recipient - Kathryn Graham of Zanzenberg Farms in Center Point, Texas
Interested women need to apply for the grant and present a viable business plan as well as a plan for community give-back, in addition to other stipulations.
Past winners of the Aspirations Grant have purchased cooking kettles for producing broths and sauces, walk-in coolers to increase cold storage, and label printers or other equipment to help bottle and label their products. After Hurricane Harvey in 2017, the grant helped women in the Port Aransas–Rockport area purchase necessary equipment, from signage to an espresso machine, so they could quickly re-open their restaurants.
The deadline is June 30th of each year. Please check below for instructions and how to submit an application.
Grant Eligibility & Purpose
The purpose of the Aspirations Grant Program is to award a grant (usually between $2,500 and $10,000) each year to empower and further business enhancement or culinary innovation to a woman (LDEI members or former members are not eligible) or 501(c)3 organization in the San Antonio, Texas Hill Country, or South Texas community.
Please note that all information submitted in connection with this application and reporting will remain confidential. All Aspirations Grant Committee members have signed Non-Disclosure Agreements.
Grant Eligibility – Grant applicants must meet the following criteria and include appropriate materials with the application. We do NOT consider incomplete applications.
• Must be a woman or 501(c)3 organization specializing in the areas of food, beverage, agriculture, hospitality, or arts of the table who resides in the San Antonio, Texas Hill Country, or South Texas areas. (LDEI members or former members are not eligible.)
• Must be a citizen of the United States of America.
• Must demonstrate how the grant will be used for culinary development or innovation in her respective field. The grant cannot be used to cover labor costs, rent, taxes or fees, or to pay food vendors, or website development. The grant is normally used to help purchase equipment such as cooking kettles, walk-in coolers, commercial mixers, etc. If the equipment costs more than the grant, then the applicant must be able to pay for the portion of the equipment not covered by the grant. The grant is paid directly to the seller, not to the grant recipient.
• Must demonstrate community giveback and/or support the initiative will have on the community. Please provide detail.
• Must provide three (3) written reference letters as to why the individual should receive an Aspirations Grant and detail the reference’s relationship with the individual. Please provide on letterhead. If the letter is email, we must be able to see the sender’s email address and time sent.
• Must be operating a business or project in relationship to the culinary innovation for at least one year.
· Must represent fiduciary responsibility and transparency in the form of cash flow statement, income statement, balance sheet, and last IRS tax return. Must be current with IRS and Texas State Comptroller.
If selected as a finalist, must be interviewed by the Aspirations Grant Committee.
If selected as Aspirations Grant recipient:
• Must follow the reporting and accountability guidelines, including submitting two performance reports – one six months into the project, and the final at the end of the project, detailing how the grant was used to enhance business or project and the community benefit.
• Must attend the Aspirations Grant Award ceremony on date appointed by LDEI-SA Chapter.
• Must agree to participate in LDEI-SA Chapter public relations initiatives to promote the Aspirations Grant Program, if asked.
• Must agree to presence on the LDEI-SA as well as the LDEI websites and mutual promotion of the Aspirations Grant Program if asked.
• Must agree to allow use of video or photographs of recipient and/or her business at LDEI events, websites, Facebook, and all other types of media or public relations efforts.
Deadline For Submission
The application must be sent to the LDEI-SA official post office box and postmarked by June 30, OR the information can be sent to our email address, and must be received by June 30, 11:59 p.m. You may also submit your application & other requested materials via the below form.
Mailing Address: Aspirations Grant, Les Dames d’Escoffier, PO BOX 15302, San Antonio, TX 78212
Email Address: AspirationsGrant@ldeisa.org, use Aspirations Grant in the subject line, and enclose scanned application and other requested materials as attachments.
Questions – Email: AspirationsGrant@ldeisa.org
Decision will be made by August 31 and each applicant will be notified – acceptance or regrets -- soon after that date.
NOTE: Please double-check that you have included all requested information. We do not consider incomplete applications.
You may either download and submit the application manually to our P.O. Box, submit it to aspirationsgrant@ldeisa.org, or utilize the below form for submission.