Heart of Missouri United Way brings the community together to address changing needs and defeat barriers to basic needs, health, education, and financial stability by forging strategic partnerships, inspiring volunteers and donors, and investing resources for measurable community impact.
Heart of Missouri United Way Inc uses local grantmaking to support the needs that show up across Columbia and surrounding Mid-Missouri communities. Recent awards show a consistent pattern of backing partner agencies that work in education, basic needs, health, housing stability, and financial mobility, while also funding capacity-building efforts for nonprofits themselves. The largest recent grants in the list went to Love Columbia for coaching and path-forward support, to United Community Builders for education and training, and to the Voluntary Action Center for basic needs programming. The foundation also supports refugee and immigrant family stability through City of Refuge and housing legal services through Mid-Missouri Legal Services. Another visible thread is early childhood and school-age support, with grants to Harrisburg Early Learning Center, Mary Lee Johnston Early Learning, and Boys & Girls Club of Columbia. Across the record, the foundation funds organizations serving children and youth, low-income families, refugees and immigrant families, and people with developmental disabilities. Its approach combines direct program support with targeted project funding, community engagement, and nonprofit capacity building.
Education is one of the clearest areas of support. Heart of Missouri United Way Inc gave $158,270 to United Community Builders for education and training, and $105,000 to Harrisburg Early Learning Center for early childhood services. School-age learning also appears in grants to Boys & Girls Club of Columbia for the Great Futures program and to Columbia Center for Urban Agriculture for education-related garden programming. Basic needs and health are another recurring priority. The foundation awarded $135,000 to Voluntary Action Center for basic needs, and it supported Columbia Center for Urban Agriculture with $86,920 for education and gardens tied to health and service. Housing stability and legal help also receive funding: Mid-Missouri Legal Services got $100,000 for housing law. The grant list also includes refugee stability support through City of Refuge.
Typical awards cluster around a mid-sized local grant range, with a p25 of $30,761, a median of $75,000, and a p75 of $100,002. The recent grants list shows repeated support to the same organizations across multiple years, including Love Columbia, Voluntary Action Center, Harrisburg Early Learning Center, City of Refuge, Wilkes Blvd Umc, and Mid-Missouri Legal Services. That pattern suggests ongoing relationship-based funding rather than isolated one-off awards. The foundation operates as a community grantmaker with local, project-based, and capacity-building programs, including some that are open to unsolicited requests and others that are invitation-based or cohort-based.
$5.6M
$3.9M
$3.1M
$3M
Most grants fall between $31K and $100K, with a median of $75K.
25th Percentile
$31K
Median
$75K
75th Percentile
$100K
About 100% of grants go to recipients in MO.
ANDREW GRABAU
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Grant dollars are concentrated entirely in Missouri, with 100% of recipients in the headquarters state and the top giving state also MO. Columbia appears most often in the recent grant list, alongside Harrisburg and a broader Mid-Missouri footprint that includes Boone County, Cooper County, and Howard County. Named recipient locations include Columbia, MO; Harrisburg, MO; and Mid-Missouri programs serving local nonprofit partners. The geographic pattern is local rather than multi-state, with no non-U.S. recipient countries in the record.
The foundation funds local nonprofits and community partners working in health, education, financial stability, basic needs, housing stability, refugee and immigrant family stability, nonprofit capacity building, volunteerism, and equity-related advocacy. Its beneficiary list includes children and youth, low-income families and individuals, refugees and immigrant families, victims and survivors of violence, and people with developmental disabilities.
The grant-size distribution centers on mid-sized awards: p25 is $30,761, median grant size is $75,000, and p75 is $100,002. Recent grants also show larger awards above $100,000 going to local agencies and capacity-building partners.
Yes. Several organizations appear in multiple years of the recent grants list, including Love Columbia, Voluntary Action Center, Harrisburg Early Learning Center, City of Refuge, Wilkes Blvd Umc, and Mid-Missouri Legal Services. That indicates ongoing relationships across grant cycles.
Yes. Active programs marked as accepting unsolicited requests include ASPIRES — Free Quarterly Nonprofit Classes, Read Across Columbia sponsorship packages, Give 5 (Volunteer Cohort), Community Impact Investment Grants, Health and Basic Needs Impact Investment, and Sponsorship Opportunities. Other programs, including the Community Impact 3-year cycle and ASPIRES cohort-based funding, are not open to unsolicited requests.
The grant record is local and Missouri-based, with 100% of recipient grants in MO. Columbia appears most often, and the structured program geography also includes Boone County, Cooper County, Howard County, Harrisburg, and Mid-Missouri nonprofits.
2025
Source: IRS Form 990-PF, fiscal year 2025.
Most recent grants reported to the IRS.
| Recipient | Location | Amount | Year | Purpose |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| LOVE COLUMBIA | COLUMBIA, MO | $198,681 | 2025 | COACHING / PATH FORW |
| VOLUNTARY ACTION CENTER | COLUMBIA, MO | $135,000 | 2025 | BASIC NEEDS |
| CITY OF REFUGE | COLUMBIA, MO | $117,459 | 2025 | REFUGE STABILITY |
| WILKES BLVD UMC | COLUMBIA, MO | $116,125 | 2025 | TURNING POINT |
| HARRISBURG EARLY LEARNING CENTER | HARRISBURG, MO | $105,000 | 2025 | EARLY CHILDHOOD |
| UNITED COMMUNITY BUILDERS | COLUMBIA, MO | $102,270 | 2025 | UCB ACADEMY |
| MID-MISSOURI LEGAL SERVICES | COLUMBIA, MO | $100,000 | 2025 | HOUSING LAW |
| COLUMBIA CENTER FOR URBAN AGRICUL | COLUMBIA, MO | $86,920 | 2025 | EDUCATION / GARDENS |
| BOYS & GIRLS CLUB OF COLUMBIA AREA | COLUMBIA, MO | $79,000 | 2025 | GREAT FUTURES PROG. |
| GRADE A PLUS INC | COLUMBIA, MO | $70,000 | 2025 | ACADEMIC SUPPORT |
| FIRST CHANCE FOR CHILDREN | COLUMBIA, MO | $70,000 | 2025 | LIBRARIES / CRIBS |
| CENTRAL MISSOURI COMMUNITY ACTION | COLUMBIA, MO | $68,014 | 2025 | BRIDGE PROGRAM |
| CHA LOW INCOME SERVICES | COLUMBIA, MO | $60,000 | 2025 | MOVING AHEAD |
| SERVICES FOR THE INDEPENDENT LIVING | COLUMBIA, MO | $59,928 | 2025 | JOURNEY TO INDEPENDE |
| HEART OF MISSOURI CASA | COLUMBIA, MO | $43,103 | 2025 | CHILD ADVOCACY |
| TRUE NORTH OF COLUMBIA | COLUMBIA, MO | $39,988 | 2025 | VICTIM SERVICES |
| BIG BROTHERS BIG SISTERS-CENTRAL MO | COLUMBIA, MO | $29,750 | 2025 | MENTORING PROGRAM |
| COMMUNITY PLAYGROUND OF COLUMBIA | COLUMBIA, MO | $29,000 | 2025 | FUN CITY YOUTH ACADE |
| ROCK THE COMMUNITY | COLUMBIA, MO | $27,948 | 2025 | ROCK THE WORKFORCE |
| COMPASS HEALTH NETWORK | CLINTON, MO | $25,000 | 2025 | DENTAL PROGRAM |
| JABBERWOCKY STUDIOS | COLUMBIA, MO | $20,000 | 2025 | STEAM / ART BUS |
| UNITED CEREBRAL PALSY HEARTLAND | COLUMBIA, MO | $20,000 | 2025 | AUTISM SERVICES |
| LUTHERAN FAMILY & CHILDREN SERVICES | COLUMBIA, MO | $19,297 | 2025 | MENTAL HEALTH |
| KINGDOM KONNECTIONS | COLUMBIA, MO | $15,000 | 2025 | EDUCATION PROGRAM |
| PEACE | COLUMBIA, MO | $15,000 | 2025 | MENDING FENCES |
| KVC BEHAVORIAL HEALTH | COLUMBIA, MO | $13,150 | 2025 | IMPACT US |
| LOVE COLUMBIA | COLUMBIA, MO | $193,681 | 2024 | CASE MGMT, COACHING |
| UNITED COMMUNITY BUILDERS | COLUMBIA, MO | $158,270 | 2024 | EDUCATION & TRAINING |
| VOLUNTARY ACTION CENTER | COLUMBIA, MO | $135,000 | 2024 | BASIC NEEDS PROGRAM |
| HARRISBURG EARLY LEARNING CENTER | HARRISBURG, MO | $120,000 | 2024 | EARLY CHILDHOOD PROG |
| WILKES BLVD UMC | COLUMBIA, MO | $116,125 | 2024 | TURNING POINT PROG |
| MLJ COMMUNITY LEARNING CENTER | COLUMBIA, MO | $109,560 | 2024 | EARLY CHILDHOOD EDUC |
| MID-MISSOURI LEGAL SERVICES | COLUMBIA, MO | $100,000 | 2024 | HOUSING LAW PROJECT |
| CENTRAL MO COMMUNITY ACTION | COLUMBIA, MO | $94,514 | 2024 | EDUCATE/FIN OPP CTR |
| CITY OF REFUGE | COLUMBIA, MO | $92,459 | 2024 | REFUGEE STABILITY |
| COLUMBIA CENTER FOR URBAN AGRICUL | COLUMBIA, MO | $86,919 | 2024 | GARDEN/EDUC/HLTH SVC |
| BOYS & GIRLS CLUB-COLUMBIA | COLUMBIA, MO | $85,768 | 2024 | GREAT FUTURES PROG. |
| GRADE A PLUS INC | COLUMBIA, MO | $80,417 | 2024 | ACADEMIC SUPPORT |
| FIRST CHANCE FOR CHILDREN | COLUMBIA, MO | $79,336 | 2024 | LIBRARIES/CRIBS PROG |
| SERVICES FOR INDEPENDENT LIVING | COLUMBIA, MO | $59,929 | 2024 | FINANCE/HLTH PROGS |
| CHA LOW INCOME SERVICES INC | COLUMBIA, MO | $56,797 | 2024 | MOVING AHEAD PROGRAM |
| BIG BROTHERS BIG SISTERS-CENTRAL MO | COLUMBIA, MO | $41,517 | 2024 | MENTORING PROGRAM |
| TRUE NORTH OF COLUMBIA | COLUMBIA, MO | $39,987 | 2024 | VICTIM SERVICES |
| HEART OF MISSOURI CASA | COLUMBIA, MO | $39,959 | 2024 | CASA CHILD ADVOCACY |
| JABBERWOCKY STUDIOS | COLUMBIA, MO | $31,522 | 2024 | YOUTH STEAM, ART EXP |
| ROCK THE COMMUNITY | COLUMBIA, MO | $27,948 | 2024 | ROCK THE WORKFORCE |
| COMPASS HEALTH INC | CLINTON, MO | $25,000 | 2024 | DENTAL SERVICES |
| UNITED CEREBRAL PALSY HEARTLAND | COLUMBIA, MO | $20,000 | 2024 | AUTISM SERVICES |
| FUN CITY YOUTH ACADEMY | COLUMBIA, MO | $20,000 | 2024 | YOUTH MENTAL HLTH |
| LUTHERAN FAMILY & CHILDRENS SVCS | COLUMBIA, MO | $19,297 | 2024 | MENTAL HLTH SVCS |
LOVE COLUMBIA
$198,681COACHING / PATH FORW
VOLUNTARY ACTION CENTER
$135,000BASIC NEEDS
CITY OF REFUGE
$117,459REFUGE STABILITY
WILKES BLVD UMC
$116,125TURNING POINT
HARRISBURG EARLY LEARNING CENTER
$105,000EARLY CHILDHOOD
UNITED COMMUNITY BUILDERS
$102,270UCB ACADEMY
MID-MISSOURI LEGAL SERVICES
HOUSING LAW
COLUMBIA CENTER FOR URBAN AGRICUL
$86,920EDUCATION / GARDENS
BOYS & GIRLS CLUB OF COLUMBIA AREA
$79,000GREAT FUTURES PROG.
GRADE A PLUS INC
$70,000ACADEMIC SUPPORT
FIRST CHANCE FOR CHILDREN
$70,000LIBRARIES / CRIBS
CENTRAL MISSOURI COMMUNITY ACTION
$68,014BRIDGE PROGRAM
CHA LOW INCOME SERVICES
$60,000MOVING AHEAD
SERVICES FOR THE INDEPENDENT LIVING
$59,928JOURNEY TO INDEPENDE
HEART OF MISSOURI CASA
$43,103CHILD ADVOCACY
TRUE NORTH OF COLUMBIA
$39,988VICTIM SERVICES
BIG BROTHERS BIG SISTERS-CENTRAL MO
$29,750MENTORING PROGRAM
COMMUNITY PLAYGROUND OF COLUMBIA
$29,000FUN CITY YOUTH ACADE
ROCK THE COMMUNITY
$27,948ROCK THE WORKFORCE
COMPASS HEALTH NETWORK
$25,000DENTAL PROGRAM
JABBERWOCKY STUDIOS
$20,000STEAM / ART BUS
UNITED CEREBRAL PALSY HEARTLAND
$20,000AUTISM SERVICES
LUTHERAN FAMILY & CHILDREN SERVICES
$19,297MENTAL HEALTH
KINGDOM KONNECTIONS
$15,000EDUCATION PROGRAM
PEACE
$15,000MENDING FENCES
KVC BEHAVORIAL HEALTH
$13,150IMPACT US
LOVE COLUMBIA
$193,681CASE MGMT, COACHING
UNITED COMMUNITY BUILDERS
$158,270EDUCATION & TRAINING
VOLUNTARY ACTION CENTER
$135,000BASIC NEEDS PROGRAM
HARRISBURG EARLY LEARNING CENTER
$120,000EARLY CHILDHOOD PROG
WILKES BLVD UMC
$116,125TURNING POINT PROG
MLJ COMMUNITY LEARNING CENTER
$109,560EARLY CHILDHOOD EDUC
MID-MISSOURI LEGAL SERVICES
$100,000HOUSING LAW PROJECT
CENTRAL MO COMMUNITY ACTION
$94,514EDUCATE/FIN OPP CTR
CITY OF REFUGE
$92,459REFUGEE STABILITY
COLUMBIA CENTER FOR URBAN AGRICUL
$86,919GARDEN/EDUC/HLTH SVC
BOYS & GIRLS CLUB-COLUMBIA
$85,768GREAT FUTURES PROG.
GRADE A PLUS INC
$80,417ACADEMIC SUPPORT
FIRST CHANCE FOR CHILDREN
$79,336LIBRARIES/CRIBS PROG
SERVICES FOR INDEPENDENT LIVING
$59,929FINANCE/HLTH PROGS
CHA LOW INCOME SERVICES INC
$56,797MOVING AHEAD PROGRAM
BIG BROTHERS BIG SISTERS-CENTRAL MO
$41,517MENTORING PROGRAM
TRUE NORTH OF COLUMBIA
$39,987VICTIM SERVICES
HEART OF MISSOURI CASA
$39,959CASA CHILD ADVOCACY
JABBERWOCKY STUDIOS
$31,522YOUTH STEAM, ART EXP
ROCK THE COMMUNITY
$27,948ROCK THE WORKFORCE
COMPASS HEALTH INC
$25,000DENTAL SERVICES
UNITED CEREBRAL PALSY HEARTLAND
$20,000AUTISM SERVICES
FUN CITY YOUTH ACADEMY
$20,000YOUTH MENTAL HLTH
LUTHERAN FAMILY & CHILDRENS SVCS
$19,297MENTAL HLTH SVCS