The Alderson Family Foundation concentrates its philanthropy in South Arkansas with a strong emphasis on local arts and cultural infrastructure alongside targeted health and higher-education support. Their giving favors sizable, place-based investments—capital or general operating support for regional arts organizations, funding for medical/psychiatric research and campaigns, and an endowed academic chair—indicating a mix of civic pride (downtown/arts district development) and strategic institutional philanthropy.
The Alderson Family Foundation’s recent giving is anchored by a $500,000 commitment to the Sarh Foundation’s Hearts Close to Home Campaign, a signal of how heavily it leans into local health initiatives alongside civic and cultural projects. The foundation gives most often in Arkansas and keeps nearly all of its grantmaking close to El Dorado, with support flowing to organizations that shape the city’s arts life, public spaces, and community institutions. Arts and culture appear repeatedly in the record: South Arkansas Arts Center received multiple general-fund grants across 2024 and 2025, and El Dorado Festivals & Events Inc. received support for the Murphy Arts District. Health and education also sit in the mix, from a grant to the UAMS Foundation Fund for the Psychiatric Research Institute to an endowed chair at The University of the South. The pattern suggests a funder that uses sizable grants to sustain regional institutions, fund named initiatives, and reinforce local infrastructure rather than spreading gifts widely across many places.
A major strand of the Alderson Family Foundation’s giving supports South Arkansas arts infrastructure. South Arkansas Arts Center received $150,000 in 2025 and $150,000 in 2024, both for general fund support, while South Arkansas Symphony Orchestra received $100,000 in 2024 for general fund support and $30,000 in 2023 for its Western Concert. The foundation also backed community programming tied to place-making, giving $100,000 to El Dorado Festivals & Events Inc. for the Murphy Arts District and $10,000 each in 2023, 2024, and 2025 to Main Street El Dorado for the MusicFest sponsorship. Beyond the arts, it funded institutional learning and preservation: South Arkansas College Foundation received $20,000 for the SouthArk Library Endowed Fund, and Arkansas Community Foundation received $1,000 for the ADG Community Journalism Project.
Typical grants cluster in the middle range: the 25th percentile is $25,000, the median is $50,000, and the 75th percentile is $100,000. The foundation’s record shows repeated support to the same organizations across multiple years, including South Arkansas Arts Center, First Methodist Church, Main Street El Dorado, and South Arkansas Symphony Orchestra. Grants appear to be made by the family foundation itself rather than through individual giving or program-related investments. The recent list also shows a mix of general-fund support, campaign gifts, endowment support, and sponsorships, indicating flexible use of grant instruments.
$1.2M
$1M
$20K
$897K
Most grants fall between $25K and $100K, with a median of $50K.
25th Percentile
$25K
Median
$50K
75th Percentile
$100K
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Concentrated, large-dollar gifts to a small set of local beneficiaries; mixes repeat multi-year or multi-grant support (e.g., South Arkansas Arts Center) with single major gifts to health and higher-education institutions.
Notable grantees: SARH Foundation, South Arkansas Arts Center, South Arkansas Symphony Orchestra, The University of the South, UAMS Foundation Fund
Grantmaking is highly concentrated in Arkansas: 95% of grants go to recipients in the HQ state, and every recent grant listed is in the United States. El Dorado is the clearest center of activity, with support going to South Arkansas Arts Center, Main Street El Dorado, First Methodist Church, First Baptist Church, and South Arkansas Symphony Orchestra. Outside El Dorado, recurring Arkansas recipients include Little Rock-based UAMS Foundation Fund, Arkansas Children's Foundation, and Arkansas Community Foundation, plus one grant to The University of the South in Sewanee, Tennessee.
The foundation’s recent grants center on South Arkansas arts and cultural infrastructure, community health, and education-related support. Examples include funding for South Arkansas Arts Center, the Murphy Arts District, the UAMS Psychiatric Research Institute, an endowed chair at The University of the South, and a library endowed fund at South Arkansas College Foundation.
The grant-size distribution is $25,000 at the 25th percentile, $50,000 at the median, and $100,000 at the 75th percentile. Recent awards include larger campaign gifts such as $500,000 to the Sarh Foundation and several $100,000 grants.
Yes. Several recipients appear in multiple years, including South Arkansas Arts Center in 2024 and 2025, First Methodist Church in 2024 and 2025, Main Street El Dorado in 2023, 2024, and 2025, and South Arkansas Symphony Orchestra in 2023 and 2024.
Its giving is overwhelmingly concentrated in Arkansas, which accounts for 95% of grants to recipient locations. El Dorado is the main recipient city, with repeated grants to arts, church, and community organizations there.
2025
Source: IRS Form 990-PF, fiscal year 2025.
Most recent grants reported to the IRS.
| Recipient | Location | Amount | Year | Purpose |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| SARH FOUNDATION | EL DORADO, AR | $500,000 | 2025 | HEARTS CLOSE TO HOME CAMPAIGN |
| SOUTH ARKANSAS ARTS CENTER | EL DORADO, AR | $150,000 | 2025 | GENERAL FUND |
| THE UNIVERSITY OF THE SOUTH | SEWANEE, TN | $100,000 | 2025 | ALDERSON-TILLINGHAST ENDOWED CHAIR |
| UAMS FOUNDATION FUND | LITTLE ROCK, AR | $100,000 | 2025 | PSYCHIATRIC RESEARCH INSTITUTE |
| EL DORADO FESTIVALS & EVENTS INC | EL DORADO, AR | $100,000 | 2025 | MURPHY ARTS DISTRICT |
| SOUTH ARKANSAS ARTS CENTER | EL DORADO, AR | $100,000 | 2025 | GENERAL FUND |
| ARKANSAS CHILDREN'S FOUNDATION | LITTLE ROCK, AR | $50,000 | 2025 | GENERAL FUND |
| FIRST METHODIST CHURCH | EL DORADO, AR | $50,000 | 2025 | GENERAL FUND |
| FIRST BAPTIST CHURCH | EL DORADO, AR | $25,000 | 2025 | GENERAL FUND |
| FIRST METHODIST CHURCH | EL DORADO, AR | $25,000 | 2025 | GENERAL FUND |
| SOUTH ARKANSAS COLLEGE FOUNDATION | EL DORADO, AR | $20,000 | 2025 | SOUTHARK LIBRARY ENDOWED FUND |
| MAIN STREET EL DORADO | EL DORADO, AR | $10,000 | 2025 | MUSICFEST SPONSORSHIP |
| ARKANSAS COMMUNITY FOUNDATION | LITTLE ROCK, AR | $1,000 | 2025 | ADG COMMUNITY JOURNALISM PROJECT |
| SOUTH ARKANSAS ARTS CENTER | EL DORADO, AR | $150,000 | 2024 | GENERAL FUND |
| SOUTH ARKANSAS SYMPHONY ORCHESTRA | EL DORADO, AR | $100,000 | 2024 | GENERAL FUND |
| SOUTH ARKANSAS ARTS CENTER | EL DORADO, AR | $100,000 | 2024 | GENERAL FUND |
| FIRST METHODIST CHURCH | EL DORADO, AR | $50,000 | 2024 | GENERAL FUND |
| FIRST BAPTIST CHURCH | EL DORADO, AR | $25,000 | 2024 | GENERAL FUND |
| MAIN STREET EL DORADO | EL DORADO, AR | $10,000 | 2024 | MUSICFEST SPONSORSHIP |
| SOUTH ARKANSAS SYMPHONY ORCHESTRA | EL DORADO, AR | $30,000 | 2023 | WESTERN CONCERT |
| MAIN STREET EL DORADO | EL DORADO, AR | $10,000 | 2023 | MUSICFEST SPONSORSHIP |
SARH FOUNDATION
$500,000HEARTS CLOSE TO HOME CAMPAIGN
SOUTH ARKANSAS ARTS CENTER
$150,000GENERAL FUND
THE UNIVERSITY OF THE SOUTH
$100,000ALDERSON-TILLINGHAST ENDOWED CHAIR
UAMS FOUNDATION FUND
$100,000PSYCHIATRIC RESEARCH INSTITUTE
EL DORADO FESTIVALS & EVENTS INC
$100,000MURPHY ARTS DISTRICT
SOUTH ARKANSAS ARTS CENTER
$100,000GENERAL FUND
ARKANSAS CHILDREN'S FOUNDATION
$50,000GENERAL FUND
FIRST METHODIST CHURCH
$50,000GENERAL FUND
FIRST BAPTIST CHURCH
$25,000GENERAL FUND
FIRST METHODIST CHURCH
$25,000GENERAL FUND
SOUTH ARKANSAS COLLEGE FOUNDATION
$20,000SOUTHARK LIBRARY ENDOWED FUND
MAIN STREET EL DORADO
$10,000MUSICFEST SPONSORSHIP
ARKANSAS COMMUNITY FOUNDATION
$1,000ADG COMMUNITY JOURNALISM PROJECT
SOUTH ARKANSAS ARTS CENTER
$150,000GENERAL FUND
SOUTH ARKANSAS SYMPHONY ORCHESTRA
$100,000GENERAL FUND
SOUTH ARKANSAS ARTS CENTER
$100,000GENERAL FUND
FIRST METHODIST CHURCH
$50,000GENERAL FUND
FIRST BAPTIST CHURCH
$25,000GENERAL FUND
MAIN STREET EL DORADO
$10,000MUSICFEST SPONSORSHIP
SOUTH ARKANSAS SYMPHONY ORCHESTRA
$30,000WESTERN CONCERT
MAIN STREET EL DORADO
$10,000MUSICFEST SPONSORSHIP