About Us

Building rural prosperity.

Grow Benzie is a non-profit rural prosperity incubator based in Benzie County, Michigan. We work to cultivate a thriving, resilient community by building connections, fostering collaboration, and equipping this region’s individuals, initiatives, and small businesses with the resources they need to succeed.

A woman presenting and speaking into a microphone in front of a screen with a slide, in a room filled with seated adults at tables, some clapping and smiling.
Group of adults posing at an event, with three women kneeling in the front holding a framed certificate for Community Growth 2023 from Grow Benzie.
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Empowering grassroots efforts through backbone support.

Grow Benzie provides all kinds of support and services to local nonprofits and initiatives, including grant writing, bookkeeping, fiscal sponsorship, volunteer recruiting, coaching & advisory, and communications. By providing this organizational support, we take pressure off of the folks on the ground, allowing them to make the most of their resources

Learn more on our Partners page

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The roadmap to prosperity.

We envision a Benzie County in which everyone has access to the tools and opportunities they need to prosper. This means: community, childcare, internet, food, job training, career growth, education, a thriving economy, and so much more.

The path to rural prosperity is not a simple one, but over the past several years we have conducted research to identify relevant issues and gaps, and developed a comprehensive strategic plan for the future.

Here’s how we get there:

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Creating space and opportunity for local businesses.

In our incubator spaces, from offices and meeting rooms to our kitchen, young businesses and initiatives can find space to grow. We provide a low-risk, affordable entry to the market that allows entrepreneurs to take things to the next level — and gain access to our local networks.

Explore our facilities

Facilitating community collaboration.

Complex problems take complex solutions — and complex solutions require far-reaching collaboration. Grow Benzie has built a network of partners and collaborators, allowing for county level solutions. This level of cooperation also allows organizations to share resources and information, amplifying the work of all involved.

View our partner network

Young girl sitting on the floor, surrounded by colorful interlocking construction sticks, forming a large circular structure. An adult woman is engaging with the girl inside the structure, both smiling. Another person is partially visible on the left
Someone serving vegetable soup from a large tray into plastic cups, with several filled cups on a table.
A woman in denim overalls standing outdoors, smiling, and speaking to a group of people sitting on benches and standing in front of her. She appears to be giving a presentation or leading a discussion in a garden setting.
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Support Grow Benzie today.

By donating to Grow Benzie, you are supporting a growing network of change-makers. You are fueling community development across the region, and lifting up the grassroots efforts and entrepreneurs in our beautiful county.

Most importantly, you are shaping Benzie County’s future — building a place that is connected and empowered, in which everyone has opportunities to learn, create, grow, and prosper.

Our History

In 2008, a group of dedicated Benzie County residents came together with a shared vision: to create a welcoming community greenspace that could foster local connection, access to healthy food, and hands-on learning. They purchased the abandoned Chippewa Farms nursery in Benzonia, and through the elbow grease of volunteers and the commitment of part-time contractors, began the hard work of revitalizing the property into what would become Grow Benzie.

 

Originally focused on gardens, food access, and community programming, Grow Benzie quickly realized that many small nonprofits and grassroots initiatives lacked the capacity to manage the “back-end” of their missions. In response, Grow Benzie evolved into a rural prosperity incubator—offering fiscal sponsorship, grant support, volunteer coordination, and shared space to help local changemakers prosper together.

A farmer's market with vendors under the Grow Benzie event center porch, selling produce and goods, with people shopping and talking outside on a dirt lot, greenery and trees in the background.