The Michael Family Foundation concentrates its giving locally in North Carolina, prioritizing operating support for cultural institutions, higher education, and local congregations. Most dollars go to a small set of repeat grantees — notably a children’s museum and a regional college — with occasional support for religious congregations and an animal welfare organization.
Michael Family Foundation Inc gives mostly operating support to a small circle of North Carolina institutions, with one children’s museum and one regional college standing out in the recent record. In 2023, the foundation made a $254,985 operating grant to Kaleideum in Winston Salem, its largest recent award, and followed that same year with two operating grants to Catawba College in Salisbury, including $100,000 and $97,374. Those three grants alone show a pattern of concentrated support for local cultural programming and higher education. The same pattern continues through repeated annual support for Macedonia United Methodist Church in Southmont and for Lake Norman Humane in Mooresville. Recent grants also extend to community-serving organizations such as Trellis Supportive Care, United Way of Forsyth County, Feed NC, Make A Wish, and Hospice & Palliative Care of Iredell County. The foundation’s giving reads as steady and local, with most awards structured as operations support rather than restricted project funding.
Children’s museum and informal STEM programming is one clear lane in the foundation’s portfolio: Kaleideum in Winston Salem received $254,985 for operations in 2023. Higher education is another recurring focus, with Catawba College in Salisbury receiving $100,000 and $97,374, both for operations in 2023. Religious and congregational support also appears in the record, including $25,000 operating grants to Macedonia United Methodist Church in Southmont in 2023, 2024, and 2025. Community health and humane services round out the mix: Lake Norman Humane in Mooresville received $25,000 for operations in 2024, while Trellis Supportive Care, Hospice & Palliative Care of Iredell County, and Feed NC each appear as operating grantees in multiple years.
Typical grants are tightly clustered around a $10,000 median, with a lower quartile of $10,000 and an upper quartile of $25,000. The recent record also includes a few larger operating grants, which indicates a concentrated approach rather than broad distribution. Several recipients appear across multiple years, including Macedonia United Methodist Church, Trellis Supportive Care, Feed NC, Hospice & Palliative Care of Iredell County, United Way of Forsyth County, and St Jude Children’s Research Hospital. The foundation does not fund individuals and does not make program-related investments. The grant descriptions shown are overwhelmingly for operations.
$375K
$5.3M
$464K
$435K
Most grants fall between $10K and $25K, with a median of $10K.
25th Percentile
$10K
Median
$10K
75th Percentile
$25K
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Concentrated, few large grants with repeat funding to core local institutions; primarily unrestricted/operating support rather than project‑restricted gifts.
Notable grantees: Kaleideum, Catawba College, Macedonia United Methodist Church, Lake Norman Humane
Grantmaking is overwhelmingly North Carolina-centered: 92% of grants go to recipients in the foundation’s HQ state, and NC is also the top state by grant count. The clearest city-level cluster is Winston Salem, with grants to Kaleideum, Trellis Supportive Care, United Way of Forsyth County, and Forsyth Tech Foundation. Salisbury appears through Catawba College, while Mooresville appears through Lake Norman Humane, Feed NC, and Hospice & Palliative Care of Iredell County. Outside the US, none of the recent grants are listed.
The recent grants show a narrow focus on operating support for local North Carolina institutions, especially a children’s museum, a regional college, congregations, and community-serving nonprofits. Named recipients include Kaleideum, Catawba College, Macedonia United Methodist Church, Lake Norman Humane, and United Way of Forsyth County.
Yes. Several recipients appear in more than one year, including Macedonia United Methodist Church in 2023, 2024, and 2025; Trellis Supportive Care in 2023, 2024, and 2025; Feed NC in 2023, 2024, and 2025; and Hospice & Palliative Care of Iredell County in 2023, 2024, and 2025.
The grant-size profile is centered on smaller operating awards: the p25 is $10,000, the median is $10,000, and the p75 is $25,000. That pattern matches the recent grants list, where many awards cluster at $10,000 and $25,000.
North Carolina is the top state by grant count, and 92% of grants go to recipients in NC. Recent city-level activity clusters in Winston Salem, Salisbury, and Mooresville.
The recent grants list is entirely domestic: 25 grants, or 100.0%, go to US recipients. The listed grantees are all in the United States.
2026
Source: IRS Form 990-PF, fiscal year 2026.
Most recent grants reported to the IRS.
| Recipient | Location | Amount | Year | Purpose |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| CATAWBA COLLEGE | SALISBURY, NC | $300,000 | 2026 | SUPPORT OF VEHICLES, FIELD HOUSE, PIANO FUND, ROBERTSON COMMUNITY CENTER |
| MACEDONIA UNITED METHODIST CHURCH | SOUTHMONT, NC | $20,000 | 2026 | GENERAL SUPPORT |
| MAKE A WISH | CHARLOTTE, NC | $10,000 | 2026 | GENERAL SUPPORT |
| FEEDNC | MOORESVILLE, NC | $10,000 | 2026 | GENERAL SUPPORT |
| TRELLIS SUPORTIVE CARE | WINSTONSALEM, NC | $10,000 | 2026 | GENERAL SUPPORT |
| KALEIDEUM OF W-S | WINSTONSALEM, NC | $10,000 | 2026 | GENERAL SUPPORT |
| UNITED WAY OF FORSYTH COUNTY | WINSTONSALEM, NC | $10,000 | 2026 | GENERAL SUPPORT |
| HOSPICE IREDELL COUNTY | STATESVILLE, NC | $5,000 | 2026 | GENERAL SUPPORT |
| Macedonia United Methodist Church | Southmon, NC | $25,000 | 2025 | Operations |
| Trellis Supportive Care | Winston Salem, NC | $10,000 | 2025 | Operations |
| Make A Wish | Greensboro, NC | $10,000 | 2025 | Operations |
| Feed NC | Mooresville, NC | $10,000 | 2025 | Operations |
| United Way of Forsyth County | Winston Salem, NC | $10,000 | 2025 | Operations |
| Hospice & Palliative Care of Iredell County | Mooresville, NC | $5,000 | 2025 | Operations |
| Forsyth Tech Foundation | Winston Salem, NC | $5,000 | 2025 | Operations |
| Lake Norman Humane | Mooresville, NC | $25,000 | 2024 | Operations |
| Macedonia UMC | Southmon, NC | $25,000 | 2024 | Operations |
| Trellis Supportive Care | Winston Salem, NC | $10,000 | 2024 | Operations |
| United Way of Forsyth County | Winston Salem, NC | $10,000 | 2024 | Operations |
| Feed NC | Mooresville, NC | $10,000 | 2024 | Operations |
| Hospice & Palliative Care of Iredell County | Mooresville, NC | $10,000 | 2024 | Operations |
| St Jude Children's Research Hospital | Memphis, TN | $10,000 | 2024 | Operations |
| KALEIDEUM | WINSTON SALEM, NC | $254,985 | 2023 | OPERATIONS |
| CATAWBA COLEGE | SALISBURY, NC | $100,000 | 2023 | OPERATIONS |
| CATAWBA COLEGE | SALISBURY, NC | $97,374 | 2023 | OPERATIONS |
| MACEDONIA UMC | SOUTHMONT, NC | $25,000 | 2023 | OPERATIONS |
| HOSPICE & PALLIATIVE CARE OF IREDELL COUNTY | MOORESVILLE, NC | $10,000 | 2023 | OPERATIONS |
| ST JUDE CHILDREN'S RESEARCH HOSPITAL | MEMPHIS, TN | $10,000 | 2023 | OPERATIONS |
| MAKE-A-WISH | CHARLOTTE, NC | $10,000 | 2023 | OPERATIONS |
| TRELLIS SUPPORTIVE CARE | WINSTON SALEM, NC | $10,000 | 2023 | OPERATIONS |
| FEED NC | MOORESVILLE, NC | $10,000 | 2023 | OPERATIONS |
| UNITED WAY OF FORSYTH COUNTY | WINSTON SALEM, NC | $10,000 | 2023 | OPERATIONS |
| UPPER ROOM FOOD MINISTRY | SOUTHMONT, NC | $2,500 | 2023 | OPERATIONS |
SUPPORT OF VEHICLES, FIELD HOUSE, PIANO FUND, ROBERTSON COMMUNITY CENTER
MACEDONIA UNITED METHODIST CHURCH
$20,000GENERAL SUPPORT
MAKE A WISH
$10,000GENERAL SUPPORT
TRELLIS SUPORTIVE CARE
$10,000GENERAL SUPPORT
KALEIDEUM OF W-S
$10,000GENERAL SUPPORT
HOSPICE IREDELL COUNTY
$5,000GENERAL SUPPORT
Macedonia United Methodist Church
$25,000Operations
Make A Wish
$10,000Operations
Feed NC
$10,000Operations
Hospice & Palliative Care of Iredell County
$5,000Operations
Forsyth Tech Foundation
$5,000Operations
Lake Norman Humane
$25,000Operations
Macedonia UMC
$25,000Operations
Hospice & Palliative Care of Iredell County
$10,000Operations
MACEDONIA UMC
$25,000OPERATIONS
HOSPICE & PALLIATIVE CARE OF IREDELL COUNTY
$10,000OPERATIONS
MAKE-A-WISH
$10,000OPERATIONS
FEED NC
$10,000OPERATIONS
UPPER ROOM FOOD MINISTRY
$2,500OPERATIONS