Three Minnesota Foundations Launch ‘Our Home State’ Initiative with $20 Million Commitment
The initiative, focused on expanding housing stability and catalyzing local housing solutions, includes Ecolab as an early funder.
The Saint Paul & Minnesota Foundation, in partnership with F. R. Bigelow Foundation and Mardag Foundation, today announced Our Home State, a five-year, $20 million philanthropic initiative focused on expanding access to safe, stable and affordable housing across Minnesota.
This coordinated effort will contribute to ongoing initiatives that address the growing housing stability challenges in Minnesota by investing in community-led solutions, supporting shelters, preventing evictions and advancing policy innovation that promotes production.
“Housing is foundational to thriving communities,” said Saint Paul & Minnesota Foundation President & CEO Chanda Smith Baker. “This fund represents our shared commitment to ensuring that everyone, no matter their income or ZIP code, has access to safe, stable and affordable housing. When people have a place to call home, they have the stability to pursue opportunity, care for their families and contribute to the strength of our region.”
Our Home State leverages the Foundation’s advocacy, narrative change and convening strengths alongside a pooled fund for grantmaking, which is open to additional contributions from individual donors and businesses.
More information on the Our Home State grant program will be available in summer 2026.
Investing in Safe, Stable Homes
“Our Home State deepens our partnerships with communities that have long been working toward housing stability,” said F. R. Bigelow Foundation Board Chair Erik Takeshita. “We’re aligning resources and power behind community leadership to help ensure every Minnesotan has the dignity of a safe, stable home.”
The Foundation also announced a major early investment from Ecolab, which has committed $3 million to the initiative in support of emergency services in Ramsey County, including shelter capacity challenges, job training and workforce programs. Ecolab’s support brings the fund total to $23 million.
Additional early investments in the Our Home State Fund will focus on eviction prevention, shelter capacity, affordable housing development and narrative change to influence housing policy and public perception.
“Solving Minnesota’s housing stability challenges takes all of us,” said Mardag Foundation President Kelsey LaValle. “We’re building on the determination and creativity we see in neighborhoods across Minnesota to create local, lasting housing solutions.”
Our Home State reflects the Saint Paul & Minnesota Foundation’s broader commitment to equity and community-led problem-solving. As demand for shelter services rises and housing costs outpace income growth, this initiative provides philanthropic support grounded in shared values and local expertise.
Businesses interested in contributing to the fund can contact Senior Vice President of Community Impact Alfonso Wenker for more information.
“When people have a place to call home, they have the stability to pursue opportunity, care for their families and contribute to the strength of our region.”
Chanda Smith Baker
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