Search Through Grants for Charities in South Carolina in the U.S.

Local Impact Grants

The Duke Energy Foundation is focused on strengthening and uplifting communities throughout South Carolina with grant funding. We accept grant applications for $20,000 and less throughout the year on a rolling basis for the focus areas describe below.

Vibrant Economies

• Workforce development training for jobs vital to the energy economy, with a focus on underrepresented populations
• Community revitalization and local economic development efforts
• Economic recovery for customers and communities facing unprecedented challenges
• Energy and engineering education for K-12 students and teachers

Climate Resiliency

• Environmental projects supporting land conservation; clean water; and biodiversity of plant and animal species
• Environmental resiliency projects that prepare communities for and mitigate against the effects of climate change
• Natural disaster preparedness and response
• Projects strengthening thriving natural environments, including access to green space, in historically underserved communities.

Opportunity and Inclusion

• Programs supporting a just transition for communities moving toward cleaner energy infrastructure
• Initiatives supporting upward mobility for families and individuals in the communities we serve
• Programs reducing structural barriers and promoting access to opportunity for underserved communities

About Us

Headquartered in the historic city of Frankenmuth, Michigan, Frankenmuth Insurance has been providing high quality insurance products and unparalleled service since 1868. We’re represented by more than 700 independent insurance agencies in 15 states— selling personal, commercial, and life insurance, neighbor to neighbor.

When you place your trust in us, we work to build a lasting relationship by exceeding your expectations with honest, open, and upfront service — every single time. It’s why 89% of our policyholders would recommend us to others, based on their claims experience. What are your dreams for the future? What worries keep you up at night? We want to know. And it all starts with a frank conversation.

Frankenmuth Insurance Foundation Charitable Grant

In the spirit of neighbor helping neighbor, the Frankenmuth Insurance Charitable Foundation was founded in 2016 to support qualified charities. The foundation supports tax-exempt, not-for-profit organizations and governmental units focused on community betterment and basic human needs.

The foundation focuses on supporting the following types of causes:

• Building better communities
• Basic human needs, such as affordable housing and food
• Disease research, preventive solutions, and general health and wellness programs
• Music, theater, and the arts

Some examples of not-for-profit organizations we’ve supported include:

• Meals on Wheels
• Food kitchens and food banks
• Domestic violence shelters
• Boys and Girls Clubs
• The Red Cross
• The United Way
• Toys for Tots and more

Global Impact Cash Grants

Identifying and incubating innovative early-stage solutions. We identify, incubate, and develop innovative early-stage solutions with the highest potential for impact. Global Impact Cash Grants go to nonprofit organizations (NPOs) and nongovernmental organizations (NGOs) that address a significant social problem. We're looking for programs that fit within our investment sectors, focus on the underserved, and use technology to improve the reach and efficiency of services.

We accept applications year-round from eligible organizations. A brief Letter of Inquiry (LOI) is used to determine whether your organization will be invited to complete a full application. Please expand and carefully review each of the three sections below to learn more

Our priority social impact sectors

We focus on investing in innovative, tech-enabled solutions to the challenges and opportunities that matter most to communities in need, prioritizing four social impact sectors:

Cisco Crisis Response

Mobilizing to provide essentials to communities in need and those in crisis, including food, housing, secure connectivity, and disaster relief

By leveraging Cisco’s people, technology, financial resources, and strategic partnerships, we help strengthen community resilience and drive long-term recovery from crises.

Education

Supporting students, teachers, and schools by increasing engagement, building skills, promoting subject mastery, and expanding their capacity to thrive

Cisco is committed to inclusive access to digital skills training and supporting those who use technology to educate. Through programs like Cisco Networking Academy and social investments in education, we create new opportunities for individuals to thrive.

Economic Empowerment

Transforming communities through skill development, long-term career opportunities, entrepreneurship, and access to financial products and services

Strategic grants that unlock economic prosperity and growth for individuals and communities.

Climate Regeneration

Building an inclusive, regenerative, and resilient climate future through education, regenerative agriculture, conservation, protection, and clean energy solutions

Our efforts began in 2021, when the Cisco Foundation committed US$100 million over 10 years to fund nonprofit grants and impact investing in climate solutions. 

Leon Levine Foundation

Established in 1980, The Leon Levine Foundation supports programs and organizations that improve the human condition through investments in education, healthcare, human services and Jewish values. Based in Charlotte, N.C., the Foundation invests in nonprofits across North Carolina and South Carolina with strong leadership, a track record of success, and a plan for financial sustainability. Through its investments, the Foundation intends to create pathways to self-sufficiency, champion strategies for permanent change, and facilitate opportunities for growth.

Makulinski Family Foundation Grant

The Makulinski Family Foundation is committed to creating long lasting investments in the community and bases grant funding on the success of each charity.

Since its creation, the Makulinski Family Foundation has worked to create persistent change in local communities domestically and internationally. To maximize the impact of donations and grants, MFF will match investments in either time or treasure. Matches range from a 10 to 1 to a 1 to 2 depending on the perceived affluence of the beneficiaries.

The Makulinski Family Foundation is proud of our work in Ohio, Michigan, South Carolina, and abroad. The foundation is happy to take all proposals under consideration.

Michael & Susan Dell Foundation Grants

The Michael & Susan Dell Foundation only accepts unsolicited proposals for specific areas within the education, family economic stability and childhood health sectors in select countries where we work, namely the United States, India and South Africa.

As a guideline, the foundation does not fund more than 25% of a project’s budget or more than 10% of an organization’s total annual operating expenses.

The Michael & Susan Dell Foundation has always recognized the power of providing grants to partner organizations that we knew were already working hard to improve the lives of urban children living in poverty. By aligning with organizations that are already making a difference, we continue to make an immediate impact on the lives of thousands of children.

Foundation priorities:

We fund social enterprises that directly serve or impact children or youth from urban low-income communities in the areas of education, health, and family economic stability (including livelihoods and financial inclusion). These social enterprises may be structured as for-profit or nonprofit entities.

Partnerships

We collaborate with a range of organizations focused on creating opportunities for children and families living in urban poverty, with a deep emphasis on measuring impact. Our funding advances projects already making an impact in education, health, and family economic stability. Through these enduring and long-standing partnerships, we create lasting change together.

Philanthropy is our commitment to communities in which we operate and broader society. We focus our resources on a limited number of key projects that can deliver valuable benefits from our contributions and those of our partners. We give priority to innovative, high-quality projects that meet the following criteria:

• promote sustainable development
• offer an opportunity for Roche to use its expertise and logistics capabilities
• involve Roche actively at an early stage with local authorities and established partners
• engage Roche employees in cultural (focus on contemporary arts), educational and social activities
• managed by an accredited charity

Our four focus areas

Humanitarian and Social

We direct the majority of our philanthropic donations to humanitarian and social development projects.

Science and education

We are dedicated to programmes that promote scientific interest and provide educational opportunities for young people around the world.

Community and Environment

We are committed to building stronger communities and responding to natural disasters sustainably.

Arts and Culture

We support groundbreaking contemporary art, cultural projects and activities that explore the parallels between innovation in art and in science. 

Grants Overview

The Philip L. Van Every Foundation supports the vision and legacy of Mr. Van Every by making meaningful gifts to qualified 501(c)(3) organizations in North and South Carolina which strengthen our communities, demonstrate fiscal responsibility, exhibit strength in leadership and have a proven track record of success.

Human and Community Service, Education, Healthcare and Rehabilitation and Arts, Culture and History are the Foundation’s primary areas of focus. A very limited portion of our funding supports organizations that fall outside these perimeters.

Areas of Focus

Education

As Americans, we find ourselves living in an increasingly competitive global economy. Students are entering a highly competitive job market. The unemployed and underemployed are seeking new career opportunities that require enhanced skills.

The Philip L. Van Every Foundation is addressing these issues by supporting colleges, universities and nonprofit organizations that provide quality affordable education and job re-training programs for individuals seeking degrees or certificates. We believe that education is critical to the future success of our children, families, communities, state, and nation.

Healthcare/Rehabilitation

The Philip L. Van Every Foundation is committed to improving the health and quality of life for individuals residing in North and South Carolina.

We respond to our commitment by investing in programs and services that focus on medical innovation, research, education, rehabilitative care, prevention, wellness and substance abuse.

Human & Community Service

The Philip L. Van Every Foundation is committed to improving lives and strengthening communities in North and South Carolina.

We support organizations that address the underlying causes of a myriad of social issues, meet the critical needs of people in their service area and focus on creating financially stable and healthy families.

Arts, Culture, History

Arts, culture and history promote creativity, innovation, exploration and diversity while improving the quality of life for residents of our communities. Dynamic performances and museums as well as other cultural and historic venues engage and inspire audiences, building bridges throughout our region. Arts education plays a pivotal role in enriching the lives of children and provides them with a well-rounded education and the creativity they will need to lead in a global economy.

The Philip L. Van Every Foundation recognizes the important role that arts, cultural and historic organizations play in our communities and supports select organizations that provide quality experiences for residents of North and South Carolina.

Max and Victoria Dreyfus Foundation Grant

The Foundation will consider requests to support museums, cultural and performing arts programs; schools and hospitals; educational, skills-training and other programs for youth, seniors, and persons with disabilities; environmental and wildlife protection activities; and other community-based organizations and programs.

Grants for the Common Good

The Bunnelle Foundation offers Grants for the Common Good in two cycles every year, Spring & Fall. This is a competitive program for organizations working in Georgetown County, South Carolina.

Requests may be made for up to $15,000. Funding is available for general operating or special project support. 

• General Operating support is funding directed to an organization’s operations rather than to particular projects.
• Special Projects launch new programs, or help secure support from other funders.

Fall Cycle- Focus areas

Addressing the Root Causes of Poverty

• circumstances or inequities such as low literacy, teen pregnancy, inadequate parenting, or catastrophic life events;

Meeting Basic Human Needs

• subsistence needs such as food, clean water and sanitation, shelter, health care, safety, and clothing;

Promoting Economic Vitality

• promoting stable families, workforce development, and community wealth-building;

Preserving the Environment

• the protection, preservation, management or restoration of natural resources.

Grants for the Common Good

The Bunnelle Foundation offers Grants for the Common Good in two cycles every year, Spring & Fall. This is a competitive program for organizations working in Georgetown County, South Carolina.

Requests may be made for up to $15,000. Funding is available for general operating or special project support.

• General Operating support is funding directed to an organization’s operations rather than to particular projects.
• Special Projects launch new programs, or help secure support from other funders.

Spring Cycle

Focus area: Encouraging Positive Youth Development: access to opportunities, programs, and resources that help youth reach their full potential.

Who We Are

Established in 1974, Coastal Community Foundation works to create vibrant communities along South Carolina’s coast by identifying the challenges facing the region and bringing together resources to address them. Coastal Community Foundation is the largest community foundation in South Carolina, managing more than 700 funds established by individuals, families and organizations and awarding tens of millions of dollars in grants and scholarships each year.

Lowcountry Unity Fund

The Lowcountry Unity Fund was created in response to the 2015 attack on Emanuel A.M.E. Church where nine black worshippers were murdered by a white supremacist. The Fund promotes long-term solutions that address systemic issues contributing to racism and economic inequality. Programs in Charleston, Berkeley and Dorchester counties that focus on addressing these issues will be considered for mini-grants up to $5,000. Mini-grants are intended to support new or existing programs that utilize collaboration and partnership. Eligible programs will demonstrate how partnerships are being developed or strengthened to address structural racism and economic inequality.

South Carolina Arts Commission

Vision

We envision a South Carolina where the arts are valued and all people benefit from a variety of creative experiences.

Mission

The mission of the South Carolina Arts Commission is to promote equitable access to the arts and support the cultivation of creativity in South Carolina.

Art of Community: Rural SC Grants

Purpose

This grant supports arts-based projects throughout rural South Carolina that use the arts to address issues and challenges in rural communities. The project must serve the rural community in which the applicant is located.

Grant-funded activities should:

• expand community access to the arts in rural areas and
• include a public engagement component and
• engage a project steering committee to lead the project.
  • A project steering committee is the group of people who will be collaborating on and leading this project.
  • This group should have a strong understanding of the project and the applicant organization.
  • The project steering committee is responsible for, but not limited to, providing advice and direction, setting the project timeline and budget, monitoring the quality of the project, evaluating, and monitoring success of the project, and defining project outcomes.

Projects

Projects must support one or more of the following artistic disciplines:

• Dance (choreography or performance)
• Music (composition or performance)
• Opera/musical theatre (production or performance)
• Theatre (performance or playwriting)
• Visual arts (painting, drawing, mixed media, sculpture, or printmaking)
• Crafts (ceramics, fiber, glass, leather, metal, paper, plastic, or wood)
• Photography
• Design arts (architecture, fashion, graphic, industrial, or interior)
• Media arts (film, animation, including production or screenwriting)
• Literature (poetry or prose)
• Spoken word/slam poetry
• Time-based arts (installation, sound, video art, animation, film, computer generated art, or performance art)
• Public art (ephemeral or permanent)

All projects must:

• include a public engagement component AND
• provide opportunities for
  • participants to develop their own artistic skills and/or produce their own artistic work; OR
  • artistic development for artists through activities such as residencies or workshops; OR
  • using the arts in new contexts.

Purpose

The purpose of the Arts Project Support (APS) Grant from the South Carolina Arts Commission (SCAC) is to support an artist’s or organization’s quality arts project or program or their commitment to improving themselves and/or their work artistically. Among other things, the APS grant can be used to build and/or increase technical, online, or virtual capacity; for community arts development; and for career advancement and/or professional development for artists and arts administration staff.

At Delta Dental of South Carolina our passion and our purpose is to improve oral health for all ages. We fulfill this mission in part through our oral health grant program.

The objectives of the Delta Dental of South Carolina Grant Program are to:

• Reduce oral disease through education, prevention and treatment.
• Ensure access to affordable, timely and high-quality dental health care.
• Enhance the awareness of good oral health with a focus on children, the indigent, and other underserved populations.
• Make a measurable difference in the oral health of South Carolinians, with an emphasis on underserved populations.
• Ensure that South Carolina is among the states with the highest indicators of oral health.

Grants are generally awarded for:

• Project/Program/Restricted
• Capacity Building
• Equipment
• Minimum Grant Amount: Over $5,000 (requests for $5,000 or less should be submitted through the community donations application)
• Maximum Grant Amount: $100,000

All approved grants will be for a single year of support. Organizations should only submit one (1) grant request per organization per year. Additional requests will not be considered for funding. Grant funding is only guaranteed for the one-year grant term and does not necessarily indicate continuing support in subsequent years.

Objectives

The objectives of the Delta Dental of Missouri Grant Program are to:

• Reduce oral disease through education, prevention and treatment.
• Ensure access to affordable, timely and high-quality dental health care.
• Enhance the awareness of good oral health with a focus on children, the indigent, and other underserved populations.
• Make a measurable difference in the oral health of Missourians, with an emphasis on underserved populations.
• Ensure that Missouri is among the states with the highest indicators of oral health.

Grants are generally awarded for: 

• Project/Program/Restricted 
• General Operating/Unrestricted
• Capacity Building
• Equipment

Minimum Grant Amount: Over $5,000 (requests for $5,000 or less should be submitted through the community donations application)

Maximum Grant Amount: $100,000

All approved grants will be for a single year of support. Organizations should only submit one (1) grant request per organization per year. Additional requests will not be considered for funding. Grant funding is only guaranteed for the one-year grant term and does not necessarily indicate continuing support in subsequent years. 

Panthers Charities Grants

Carolina Panthers Charities was established in 1994 through Foundation for the Carolinas. Our mission is to assess the needs of communities within North and South Carolina and to provide financial resources to assist in creating programs that make measurable and sustainable change for youth and families in our region.

Carolina Panthers Charities Funding is available to non-profit agencies whose missions address the educational, athletic and human services needs of communities throughout North and South Carolina. Resources are also made available to arts, science and civic organizations in the Carolinas. 

Background

With a head for business and a heart for Greenville County, Mr. Fred W. Symmes spent his life building the textile industry and bettering the town he loved.

Born in Greenville, the only son with five sisters, he attended Furman University but was unable to finish due to his contracting scarlet fever. Mr. Symmes remained a bachelor, devoted to insuring the welfare of his sisters and family.Woven together were his career pursuits and civic commitments. Between 1910 and 1950, Mr. Symmes organized and managed Nuckasee Manufacturing Co., later a subsidiary of United Merchants and Manufacturers and Piedmont Plush Mills, maker of high quality material for theater curtains and seats. Through the years he held various posts in other textile companies. His prominence in the field was matched by his community mindedness and led to positions of civic leadership such as chairman of the library board and a member of the Public Works Commission.In 1954, three years before he died, Mr. Symmes created a plan for his sizable estate to continue benefiting Greenville County for years to come. At the suggestion of his good friends, R.E. Houston, Jr., F. Dean Rainey, W.W. McEachern and W. Gordon McCabe, he created the F.W. Symmes Foundation.Mr. Symmes stipulated that the Foundation be operated exclusively for charitable purposes and asked that a family member remain on the three-member Board of Trustees. The Trustees were to administer these gifts at their discretion, always taking into account the financial status of the Foundation and the needs of the particular charity involved. Of Fred W. Symmes, a friend to all of Greenville, it can truly be said: “Where your treasure is, there will be your heart also.”

Mission & Giving

The mission of the F.W. Symmes Foundation is to make a positive impact on the lives of Greenville County residents by making gifts to religious, charitable, scientific, literary and educational organizations, and to organizations which work for the prevention of cruelty to children or animals.

Program areas

• Arts, culture, and humanities
• Education
• Environment, animals
• Health
• Human services
• Public/society benefit
• Religion

Term Arts Education Project Grants

This grant supports quality arts education programs for preschool (3k- 4k) and/or K-12 students during the school term (including beyond the school day), through both traditional providers (arts organizations) and other organizations (e.g., social service, health, community, education) that utilize the arts to meet the educational, developmental, and social needs of preschool (3k-4k) and/or K-12 students. This grant supports projects occurring during the school term 2025-2026. For the purposes of this grant, a term is defined as an academic year.

Activities should:

• Expand student access to arts education opportunities; and
• Complement, augment, or advance standards-based arts instruction or arts integration aligned with school curriculum; and
• Be focused on or include significant components of quality instruction and/or experiences in the visual arts, performing arts, media arts, design arts, folk and traditional arts, and/or creative writing; and
• Address South Carolina’s 2017 College and Career Ready Standards for Visual and Performing Arts Proficiency.
• If applying for or including preschool programming, address South Carolina’s Profile of the Ready Kindergartener.

Examples of eligible in-school and after-school activities include, but are not limited to:

• Workshops
• Artist residencies
• Performances
• Exhibitions
• Acquisition of critical equipment or supplies
• Program planning
• Professional learning for educators, instructors, artists and/or administrators
• Camps (non-summer camps)

Funding

• Up to $15,000 
• Matching Requirement: 1:2 (grantee:SCAC)
• This funding category is highly competitive.

Henry and Sylvia Yaschik Foundation

The Henry and Sylvia Yaschik Foundation is a non-profit charitable foundation based in Charleston, South Carolina. The Foundation, created as a bequest in the estates of Henry and Sylvia Yaschik, is committed to sustaining both the secular and the Jewish values that the Yaschiks embraced and supported in their lifetimes. Long-time residents of Charleston, South Carolina, Sylvia and Henry were enormously grateful for the opportunities afforded to them, and they wanted to make sure that their legacy of charity and philanthropy continued even after their deaths.

The Henry and Sylvia Yaschik Foundation awards grants to qualified charities that serve the greater Charleston, South Carolina area.

Grants Made by the Foundation

The foundation makes grants only to qualified charitable organizations. 

The foundation will make its grants in the following forms as appropriate for the project proposal and the project time line. Be specific about the form of grant you are requesting

• One-time grants, which are single-year grants for a specific purpose.
• Multiyear grants, which are commitments for funding to be paid in increments over a period no longer than three years .
• Start-up program grants
• Challenge or matching grants.

South Carolina Arts Commission

Vision

We envision a South Carolina where the arts are valued and all people benefit from a variety of creative experiences.

Mission

The mission of the South Carolina Arts Commission is to promote equitable access to the arts and support the cultivation of creativity in South Carolina.

Festivals Program Grant

Purpose

To provide support for a broad range of arts activities at festivals that take place in—and have an impact on—S.C. communities, increasing opportunities for public engagement and participation in arts and culture.

Calling to Serve

Since its inception in 2016, the Robinson Foundation has sought to demonstrate God’s love through sharing the gifts we have received. We understand the often unspoken hardships and struggles that people in and outside of our community face everyday. As such, our contributions are focused on relieving these hardships for the betterment of our world.

As a family-operated foundation, we pray that our small efforts will not only create immediate change in the lives of our neighbors, but will help set those lives on a course for success in the future. We are thankful for each and every day we have on this earth to use what God has granted us to make a difference.

Areas of Interest

• Animal Welfare
• Children & Families
• Disaster Relief
• Education
• Medical Assistance
• Nature & Wildlife Conservation
• Poverty Relief
• Religious & Spiritual Endeavors
• Veterans' Issues

Grant Considerations

We take many different aspects of applications into account when making grant issuing decisions, however these are some of the high-level questions we ask ourselves during the process:

• How does the organization serve their key audience goals?
• Is the organization fiscally responsible?
• Will a grant have a tangible, meaningful impact?
• Will we see direct results from this grant?
• Does the organization have other financial contributors?

Who We Are

Established in 1974, Coastal Community Foundation works to create vibrant communities along South Carolina’s coast by identifying the challenges facing the region and bringing together resources to address them. Coastal Community Foundation is the largest community foundation in South Carolina, managing more than 700 funds established by individuals, families and organizations and awarding tens of millions of dollars in grants and scholarships each year.

The Boeing Interfaith Fund

The Boeing Interfaith Fund, created by Boeing South Carolina in 2024, is dedicated to supporting faith-based outreach ministries in Charleston, Dorchester, and Berkeley Counties. With a deep commitment to enhancing the well-being of the local community, Boeing recognizes the invaluable role that faith-based organizations play in providing vital services, including afterschool education, financial education, health access, grocery support, and more. 

About Us

Founded in 1974, Coastal Community Foundation works with people and organizations who want to make a lasting difference through philanthropy. We are rooted in the community from 40+ years of experience in the Lowcountry. Our proactive approach to donor services, fund flexibility and opportunities to engage with the community make us the partner of choice for hundreds of donors in coastal South Carolina.

Southern Lowcountry Grants

Competitive grant programs are for organizations serving Beaufort, Colleton, Hampton and Jasper counties. Unless otherwise specified, organizations are allowed and encouraged to apply for general operating support.

The Beaufort Fund

CCF’s largest grantmaking program in the Southern Lowcountry has three categories intended to suit the needs of small, large and first-time applicants.

Since it was established in 1998, The Beaufort Fund Grant Program has distributed more than $11 million in the Southern Lowcountry region across Beaufort, Colleton, Hampton and Jasper counties. Applications are accepted in three categories, a structure intended to suit the needs of small, large and first-time applicants. This approach allows the selection committee to evaluate organizations that are similar in fiscal scope, life cycle and programmatic impact within each category.

Grant Categories

Requests for each of the following categories may be for programmatic or general operating support:

Genesis Grant

This grant supports strategic growth and/or expansion to increase the impact of a program that has already been proven successful. This grant may also support a project that addresses a community need in a new or creative way. Applicants may request up to $10,000 of support from this category.

Operational Grant

This grant is only available to organizations that have applied to The Beaufort Fund previously. Nonprofits may request up to $25,000 of support from this category.

First-Time Grant

This grant is only available to nonprofits that have not applied to the Beaufort Fund previously or have not received funding in the last five years. Nonprofits may request up to $15,000 of support from this category.

W. W. Burgiss Charities Grant

About the Foundation

William W. Burgiss (originally spelled Burgess; he changed his last name as a young man, perhaps to differentiate himself from the rest of his family) was born on a farm northwest of what became the village of Greer on August 12, 1863. By the time he was sixteen, he was working as a clerk in a local tin shop, but he was soon engaged in “commercial enterprises,” including buying and selling real estate in both Greer and Greenville.

In the early 1890s, Mr. Burgiss became interested in cotton mills. In 1894, he was one of a group of young men who chartered Victor Mill and, when it opened in 1895, he was named president. In 1900, he invested in and became president of Franklin Mill. Also, he was among the first peach growers in the Greer area.

Local leaders “lured” him to Greenville about 1905. By 1913, he had constructed the three-story Burgiss Building at the corner of North Richardson and West Coffee Streets, where he located his real estate office, on the site currently occupied by Bank of America. His real estate transactions, however, were not limited to Greenville. Even after he moved from Greer to Greenville, he continued to own substantial amounts of land both in the town of Greer and around the countryside. After 1911, he began to invest heavily in Florida real estate, especially in land in Jacksonville and West Palm Beach. Much of his increasing wealth derived from those profitable investments. By the 1920s, W. W. Burgiss was an exceptionally wealthy man. Like many of Greenville’s progressive business leaders during the prosperous early years of the decade, he turned his attention to charity and community service.

On May 2, 1925, the Greenville News announced that W. W. Burgiss had established the county’s first charitable foundation with approximately $1 million in assets, including stocks, bonds, and land in both Greer and Florida. Burgiss’s emphasis, as he made clear in his will, was to support the causes of religion, charities and education, with special attention to the assistance of the sick, helpless and needy and to the education of the underprivileged.

The first major project of Burgiss Charities was covering the cost of land and construction ($300,000) of Shriners’ Hospital for Crippled Children, which opened on Rutherford Road in 1927 and was the first integrated charitable orthopedic hospital in the South. The foundation also immediately committed $10,000 to help build a mountain camp for the YWCA, which led to the establishment of Camp Burgiss Glen.

In 1937, Mr. Burgiss moved to West Palm Beach, Florida and remained there until his death on February 8, 1945. The majority of his estate was left to Burgiss Charities.

Mission

To aid and promote the causes of religion, charities, and education in Greenville County, South Carolina with special attention to the assistance of the sick, helpless, needy, and to the education of the underprivileged.

Program areas 

• Education
• Health
• Human services
• Public/society benefit
• Religion

Types of support

• The foundation prefers to focus its grantmaking on capital needs or one-time special projects, rather than ongoing programs or operating expenses.

Program Limitations

• Priority will be given to programs that endorse education, promote religion, and provide assistance to the poor, sick, helpless, and needy.

States Served

• South Carolina

Geographic Limitations

• Greenville County, South Carolina

Funding

• Average grant size: $12,000
• Average number of grants per year: 12
• Average total giving per year: $150,000

About Berkeley Hall

Where Everything Comes Together

Located along the still waters of the Okatie River in the heart of South Carolina’s Lowcountry, Berkeley Hall offers the perfect blend of private club sophistication and Southern hospitality. While the landscape is plentiful, the homes and homesites are in limited supply. In fact, Berkeley Hall is the lowest density private course in the Southeast with an average of 5.3 homesites per hole. With two world-class Tom Fazio golf courses and a stunning Jeffersonian-style Clubhouse, the club experience is balanced out through a range of indoor and outdoor activities designed for the entire family. It all comes together, perfectly, in one community.

Member-owned and operated since January 2005, Berkeley Hall is professionally managed and maintains a multi million-dollar capital reserve.

Serving the Lowcountry Community

The Berkeley Hall community recognizes that we are part of an even bigger community, and are proud to do our part to serve it.

Thanks to the generosity of the Berkeley Hall community, the Charitable Foundation has raised more than $3.4 million for Bluffton area charities since its inception in 2008. We are honored to help these worthy organizations make important strides in improving the lives of our most vulnerable neighbors. 

Berkeley Hall Charitable Foundation’s vision is to “Make a difference by addressing the basic human needs of the greater Bluffton Community, especially those who are most vulnerable.”

Mission

The mission of Southern Partners Fund (SPF) is to serve rural Southeastern communities and organizations seeking social, economic and environmental justice by providing them with financial resources, technical assistance, training and access to systems of information and power. There are two central ideas embraced in the democratic philanthropy of Southern Partners Fund: compassion and community. Compassion implies an understanding or concern for community members lacking local political power to impact the decisions that affect their lives. Community relates to the things that bring us and hold us together.

Purpose

The Purpose of SPF Grantmaking is to:

• Develop and nurture grassroots community-based leaders and organizers.
• Build the capacity of rural, grassroots community organizing groups and leaders.
• Strengthen rural communities and people.
• Develop equitable peer relationships, which support real transformation toward a just society.

Hubert E. Sapp Regular Grants Cycle

Hubert Ellis Sapp, a transformative visionary and grassroots organizer, was instrumental in turning the concept of Southern Partners Fund, a democratically led foundation directed by grassroots leaders, into a reality. To honor his legacy in the wake of his passing in February of 2021, we are honored to add his name to our Regular Grant Cycle, which from here on, will be referred to as the Hubert E. Sapp Regular Grant Cycle. 

• Applicants may request general support or project support.
• Applicants must have operating budgets of $350,000 or less to receive general support.
• Organizations with operating budgets over $350,000 can apply for project support only.

Members of SPF’s grants committee will contact organizations being considered to schedule a site visit, required for new applicants, or phone interview. SPF’s grants committee, made up of SPF members, makes grants decisions during a September grants panel meeting, which are then ratified by the Board. Groups will be notified of grants decisions after October 1st, 2024.

If an organization has received five consecutive years of regular grant cycle funding, it must take a year off before making a new RGC grant request.