Jefferson Foundation

About Jefferson Foundation

Jefferson Foundation’s giving shows a clear pattern of large, repeated support for health access and food security in Jefferson County and the St. Louis region. The foundation has made multiple grants to Chestnut Health Systems for Project Access, including $550,000 in 2023 and $345,488 in 2025, alongside major support for the St. Louis Area Foodbank’s Food on the Move work and capital projects for food pantries. That combination points to a funder that backs both service delivery and the physical infrastructure behind it. Its recent grants also include substantial awards for local behavioral health services, mobile health care, emergency food distribution, and related community health capacity. Jefferson County Health Department, Saint Louis Counseling, Upward Smiles Inc, and Mercy Health Foundation Jefferson all appear in the recent grant list, indicating a portfolio centered on practical access points rather than broad statewide or national giving. The foundation funds individuals, but the grant record provided here is concentrated in organizational grants to established providers. With $23,525,785 in annual grants and total assets of $196,634,221, Jefferson Foundation operates at a scale that supports repeated, high-dollar awards within a local service area.

What Jefferson Foundation Funds

A major theme is behavioral health access. Jefferson Foundation awarded Chestnut Health Systems $550,000 in 2023 and $345,488 in 2025 for Project Access, and it gave Saint Louis Counseling $200,000 in 2023, $200,000 in 2024, and $200,000 in 2025 for outpatient mental health services. That repeated pattern shows steady support for community-based care. Food security is another core area. The foundation gave $550,000 to St. Louis Area Foodbank for Food on the Move and a capital project for food pantries, $157,500 to Operation Food Search for emergency food distribution through 12 Jefferson County food pantries, and $225,000 to Peace Pantry for driving passion to feed Jefferson County. It also supports health delivery infrastructure. Jefferson County Health Department received $425,000 for replacement of an aging mobile health services vehicle and addressing health equity, while Upward Smiles Inc received $250,000 for wheeling in mobile dentistry and $150,000 for program support.

How Jefferson Foundation Gives