Fencing costs money: monthly dues, a USA Fencing membership, equipment eventually, and travel if you decide to compete. We are a 501(c)(3) nonprofit, and a large part of our mission is providing access to the sport for everyone in the area, regardless of their current financial situation.
This page covers both halves of that: the help we provide directly, and outside grants a fencer or family can apply for on their own.
Our Scholarship and Sliding Scale
If the cost of fencing would stop you or your child from taking part, tell us. We offer reduced-cost and free participation through our scholarship and sliding scale program, funded by donations and by the club itself.
How to ask: email FencingClubAsheville@gmail.com, or speak to a coach before or after practice. Either way the conversation is confidential.
A few things worth saying plainly, because they are the reasons people hesitate:
- You don’t have to document a hardship. Tell us what you can manage and we will work from there.
- Asking changes nothing about how you are treated here. Coaches teach the fencer in front of them. Who is paying what is not something the floor knows or cares about.
- It isn’t only for children. Adult members can ask too.
- It isn’t only for dues. Equipment is usually the larger barrier, and we can often help there as well.
- Circumstances change. If something happens mid-season — a job loss, a medical bill — come back to us rather than quietly dropping out. That is the situation this fund is for.
Help With Equipment
The club provides everything you need for class — mask, jacket, glove and weapon — for both the Intro and Beginner classes. You do not need to buy anything to start fencing with us.
When you are ready for your own kit, two things help. Fencers who have been in our Beginner class for three months can take 50% off their next three months of membership by letting us help with the purchase. We also place group orders, which split shipping across members and earn a discount off sticker prices — open to any member. Our Equipment Guide explains what to buy, what it costs, and why a non-electric practice set can be a sensible first step when a full electric kit is out of reach.
Grants You Can Apply For Yourself
These are run by outside organizations, not by us. We don’t decide who receives them. But we are glad to help you fill in a form, and several of them need the club to confirm your enrollment or to receive the payment directly — so tell a coach if you are applying.
Programs change their terms, amounts and deadlines. Always check the official page before applying.
USA Fencing GRACE Program
What it covers: competition fees at USA Fencing national events — the tournament fee, the administrative fee and the event fees.
Who it’s for: USA Fencing members and their families facing an unforeseen financial bind — a sudden loss of income, an injury, an illness, a family crisis. It is built around hardship rather than an income threshold, so a family who would not qualify for a means-tested grant may still qualify here. For Junior Olympics and Summer Nationals you also need to have qualified for the event.
How to apply: through an application form linked from USA Fencing’s Social Impact and Outreach programs page, submitted before the regular-fee registration deadline for the tournament. Over fifty waivers were issued in a recent season, so it is worth applying.
All Kids Play
What it covers: registration fees, equipment and other associated costs. Recreational sports are funded up to $350 per sport per session, and a family can apply up to four times a year per child, capped at $3,500 per child per year.
Who it’s for: families with K–12 children, assessed against the median income for your household size in North Carolina. A full grant generally requires household income below 60% of that median; a partial grant covering half the cost extends further up the scale. They will consider extenuating circumstances.
Worth knowing: the money is paid to the club directly rather than to you, and awards are first-come, first-served while funds last. Apply at least 30 days before you need to register. All Kids Play youth sports grants.
Every Kid Sports Pass
What it covers: up to $150 toward registration fees, issued as a virtual card used to pay the club.
Who it’s for: children aged 4 to 18 who are enrolled in Medicaid, SNAP or WIC, with at least one of those active at the time you apply.
Two catches worth reading twice. It funds recreational programs, not select or elite travel teams — our Intro and Beginner classes fit comfortably, our Competitive track likely does not. And it will not reimburse you after the fact, so apply before you pay rather than paying and seeking the money back.
Applications open in windows rather than running continuously, and they close when the funding for that window is gone. Check the Every Kid Sports Pass page for the next opening date and set a reminder — popular windows fill quickly.
Dwight Global Scholarships for USA Fencing Members
This one is school tuition rather than fencing costs, but it is substantial and specific to our sport, so it belongs here. Dwight Global Online School offers two full-tuition scholarships to USA Fencing members, covering tuition through graduation. Open to current members in good standing entering grade 6 or above, who apply to the school and meet its admission standards. Selection weighs academics, character, financial need and fencing commitment. Priority deadline is in late February. Details from USA Fencing.
Not Sure Where to Start?
Start with us. Email FencingClubAsheville@gmail.com or talk to a coach, and we will work out what applies to your situation — including which of the grants above are worth your time, since some will not fit and there is no sense filling in forms for those.
For help beyond fencing, NC 211 is a free and confidential referral service run by United Way of North Carolina. Dial 211 or visit nc211.org to be connected with local assistance programs.
We would far rather have the awkward conversation than lose a fencer over money.