$2,500 and $5,000 awards for folks connecting San Antonio!
Some people weave us together. They are the folks most people know and trust, those we count on to get neighbors together when we need to tackle a shared problem or get something done. They show up for others and connect us. They are weavers.
You probably are one of them or know a weaver. Let’s recognize and help them get $2,500 or $5,000 and other resources to continue doing their important work.
What is weaving?
Weaving is the practice of building meaningful relationships that set the conditions for social trust to grow in communities.
It begins with a simple commitment: to see one another as equal in dignity, even when experiences and viewpoints differ.
Weaving invites people to:
- Discover what they have in common
- Learn how their differences can make the community stronger
- Work side by side toward common good.
Weaving can be formal or informal, and it is characterized by four qualities:
- Local: It brings together people who share the same neighborhood, town, or region
- Mutual: It celebrates everyone’s contributions and creates opportunities for everyone to both give and receive
- Welcoming: It invites people to join as they are
- Continuous: It builds relationships that deepen over time through ongoing engagement
What are the Weaver Awards?
The Weaver Awards honor individuals, organizations, artists, educators, students, and community leaders who strengthen the social fabric through connection, collaboration, compassion, and collective care. Inspired by the idea of weaving relationships across differences, the awards recognize those who build bridges between people, cultures, generations, and institutions to foster belonging, healing, creativity, and shared purpose. The awards elevate the often-unseen work of community-building and celebrate relationship-centered leadership that helps communities thrive together.
Why are we launching the Weaver Awards in Alamo Colleges District?
San Antonio represents one of the most culturally layered, community-centered, and relationally rooted cities in the country. The city’s history has been shaped by generations of people who have built networks of care across cultures, neighborhoods, faith communities, artistic traditions, educational institutions, and grassroots movements. San Antonio carries a deep tradition of collectivism, storytelling, mutual aid, and intergenerational connection that makes it a powerful place to recognize and elevate the work of weavers. At the same time, the city faces important questions around growth, equity, displacement, belonging, and community wellbeing. The Weaver Awards are intended to honor those who help hold the city together during moments of change — the bridge-builders, healers, artists, educators, organizers, and leaders who cultivate trust, connection, and shared purpose across differences. Launching the awards in San Antonio is both a recognition of the city’s unique cultural spirit and an investment in the kind of relationship-centered leadership needed for its future.
What will you get if you become a Weaver Awardee?
Weaver Awardees will receive public recognition for their impact as community builders and bridge-builders who strengthen connection, belonging, and collective wellbeing. Awardees will be celebrated through a citywide storytelling and recognition platform that highlights their work, amplifies their voice, and connects them with a broader network of changemakers, artists, educators, organizations, and civic leaders across San Antonio. Beyond the award itself, recipients become part of a growing community of weavers committed to collaboration, compassion, and collective impact. The Alamo Colleges District will also host quarterly convenings with weavers to build connection, capacity, and collective impact. All weavers will receive access to materials and a toolkit to help create or extend their impact.
Who selects the Weaver Awardees?
The Weaver Awardees are selected through a collaborative community review process led by the Advisory Council of the San Antonio Peace Center. The Advisory Council carefully reviews nominations and applications to identify individuals and organizations whose work reflects a strong commitment to connection, bridge-building, compassion, collaboration, and community wellbeing across San Antonio. After this review process, the Advisory Council forwards its recommendations to the Alamo Colleges District for final review. The process is designed to honor a diverse range of community weavers whose efforts strengthen relationships, foster belonging, and contribute to a more connected and compassionate San Antonio.
Who is eligible?
For someone to be considered for an Award they need to:
- Be 18 or older
- Live and serve in San Antonio, Texas
- Have a project that helps connect neighbors and fosters relationships between them
- The project is open to anyone in the community
- The project addresses a shared need in the community
- If the project is part of an organization, the organization must have an annual budget below $250,000
- Have a community recommendation from a community member who lives in the area you serve.
What makes a good candidate for a Weaver Award?
A strong candidate for a Weaver Award is someone who actively brings people together across differences to strengthen community, foster belonging, and create positive collective impact. Weaver Award candidates may be artists, educators, students, organizers, nonprofit leaders, public servants, cultural workers, or everyday community members whose work helps build trust, connection, healing, collaboration, and shared purpose in San Antonio. Good candidates often lead with compassion, relationship-building, and service, creating spaces where people feel seen, valued, and connected. The awards especially recognize individuals and organizations whose efforts may not always receive public attention, but whose contributions meaningfully strengthen the social fabric of the community.
How can I use the funds?
Weaver Award funds are intended to support and strengthen the continued work of community weaving, collaboration, creativity, healing, and civic engagement in San Antonio. Awardees may use the funds in ways that align with their mission, projects, or community impact efforts, including supporting programs, creative initiatives, community gatherings, educational activities, outreach, supplies, professional development, or other efforts that foster connection, belonging, and collective wellbeing. The funding is intended to support inclusive, community-centered efforts that bring people together across backgrounds and experiences in ways that strengthen trust, dialogue, and shared humanity.
Please see the FAQ section for a sample budget.
About Alamo Colleges District
The Alamo Colleges District is one of the nation’s largest community college systems, focused on student success, community transformation, and regional partnerships.
The Arts, Culture, and Community Impact (ACCI) team within the Alamo Colleges District advances arts, culture, storytelling, and community engagement through partnerships, programming, and initiatives that foster belonging, creativity, and collective impact.
The San Antonio Peace Center is housed within ACCI and works to promote peacebuilding, compassion, dialogue, healing, and connection across San Antonio through community-centered programs and partnerships.
About Weave: The Social Fabric Project
Weave: The Social Fabric Project is an initiative of the Aspen Institute dedicated to strengthening trust, connection, and belonging in communities across the United States. Weave supports everyday weavers—neighbors who show up for others, bridge divides, and build community. Through storytelling, online learning, community-building programs, and the Weaver Awards, Weave works to repair America’s social fabric from the ground up and lift up the people who are already leading this work in their neighborhoods. Learn more at weavers.org.
FAQ
What are the distinctions between the $2,500 and $5,000 funding options?
Community Impact: $5,000
- Supports established programs that already demonstrate measurable benefits, focusing on expanding or sustaining proven work within the community.
Community Innovation: $2,500
- Supports new, untested, or early-stage ideas that aim to create meaningful community impact, focusing on experimentation, creativity, and innovative approaches that explore new ways to serve and strengthen the community.
Can you provide examples of weaving?
Please visit this link for examples of weaving!
Can you provide an example of a budget outline?
Visit this website for a sample budget outline:
https://docs.google.com/document/d/1CgxfNCzDEDe8it7sjeaMcB8_qGM8W4pPZCz-a9V-UGo/edit?tab=t.0