Graves Foundation
ActivePhilanthropy & VoluntarismFunds Individuals
About Graves Foundation
The Graves Foundation concentrates giving on international Christian medical relief and local education access through scholarships, with supplemental support for youth programming and faith-based community services. Their grants frequently honor the Graves family legacy (memorial gifts and named scholarships) and include both large institutional gifts and repeated awards to scholarship funds and recurring humanitarian partners. The foundation appears mission-driven by Christian charitable work and by expanding post-secondary opportunities for students from particular communities.
Focus Areas
International Christian medical ship missions (e.g., Mercy Ships/Ships of Mercy)Named scholarships for students from Southeast Illinois/Harrisburg and similar communitiesCommunity-based youth development (Boys & Girls Clubs — Central Texas)Faith-based food and outreach ministries (local Christian food ministries)Memorial & matching gift initiatives tied to the Graves family legacy
Who They Fund
postsecondary students / scholarship recipientsfood-insecure individuals and households
About Graves Foundation
A defining thread in Graves Foundation Inc’s giving is support for international Christian medical relief, led by repeated gifts to Mercy Ships and Ships of Mercy. Those grants include a $65,000 general donation to Mercy Ships, a $62,500 matching challenge gift to Ships of Mercy in memory of Gordon Graves, and a $58,000 leadership gift to Mercy Ships. Alongside that work, the foundation has sustained scholarship funding for students, especially through Southeast Illinois College Foundation and related scholarship funds in Harrisburg, Illinois. The pattern suggests a funder that combines large, mission-centered gifts with named scholarship support tied to the Graves family legacy. Its recent awards also show attention to youth development and faith-based services, including support for Boys and Girls Clubs of Central Texas and Christian outreach ministries. Several grants are explicitly directed to use where needed, while others are memorial or matching gifts, which points to a flexible approach within a clearly Christian charitable frame. The foundation also funds individuals, reinforcing the scholarship-oriented side of its work.
What Graves Foundation Funds
Education access is a major strand of the foundation’s grantmaking. In 2023, it gave $40,000 to Southeast Illinois College Foundation for the Graves-Absher Scholarship in memory of Gordon Graves, and it also awarded $32,000 to Southeast Illinois College Scholarship for scholarships. A separate scholarship line runs through Opportunity Plan in Canyon, which received $10,000 for the Legacy of Love Coach Printiss Gidney Scholarship and another $10,000 for the Legacy of Love Dannie Graves Scholarship. Youth development appears in awards to Boys and Girls Clubs of Central Texas, including $22,500 for the Gordon Graevs Green Vest Scholarship and $20,000 for scholarships. Faith-based community support shows up in grants to Christian Outreach Food Ministries and Crowell Methodist Church.
How Graves Foundation Gives
Typical grants cluster at modest-to-mid levels, with a p25 of $5,000, a median of $10,000, and a p75 of $20,000. That distribution sits alongside a few larger gifts, which suggests a mix of anchor grants and smaller program or scholarship awards. The recent record shows repeated support for the same organizations across multiple years, including Mercy Ships, The Center-pregnancy Resource Center in Vernon, Be a Vanessa Scholarship - Tyra Ochoa Scholarship Fund, and Josh Hulme Memorial Scholarship. The foundation is a private grantmaker that also funds individuals, and several awards are framed as memorial, matching, or use-where-needed gifts.
Financial Snapshot
Annual Giving
$140K
Total Assets
$3M
Total Revenue
$209K
Total Expenses
$178K
Typical Grant Size
Most grants fall between $5K and $20K, with a median of $10K.
25th Percentile
$5K
Median
$10K
75th Percentile
$20K
Geographic Reach
Regional4 states funded
Funding intensity
LowHigh
Headquarters
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