Scharbauer Foundation

About Scharbauer Foundation

A $11.75 million capital campaign grant to the Permian Basin Behavioral Health Center stands out in Scharbauer Foundation Inc’s recent giving and points to a clear pattern: the foundation funds large, place-based projects that add capacity in Midland and the surrounding Permian Basin. That approach shows up across health care, behavioral health, education, youth recreation, and food access, with grants often tied to construction, renovation, equipment, or other expansion needs. The foundation’s support for Midland Memorial Foundation, including a $7 million capital campaign grant for health facilities expansion and renovation, reinforces that infrastructure is central to its grantmaking. So does its funding for Midland College Foundation Inc, where one grant supported a pre-K academy and center for teaching excellence and another backed college and career connections. Across these awards, Scharbauer Foundation Inc favors organizations that serve broad community needs and build permanent assets rather than short-term, niche programming. Its recent grants also reach into the civic fabric of Midland and Odessa through schools, theaters, food distribution, and community health providers. The pattern is consistent: sizable grants, local institutions, and projects that expand physical space, workforce capacity, or access to essential services.

What Scharbauer Foundation Funds

Behavioral health appears repeatedly in the foundation’s recent awards. The University of Texas of the Permian Basin received $1,190,282 for a graduate scholarship program to increase the number of licensed behavioral health professionals in Midland, Odessa, and surrounding counties, and Permiacare received $255,000 to renovate a building for a new mental health crisis respite facility. Education is another major theme. Midland College Foundation Inc received $7 million for the Pre-K Academy and Center for Teaching Excellence, while Harmony Public Schools received $4 million for a Midland capital campaign. The foundation also gave $750,000 to The Holdsworth Center for MISD and ECISD campus leadership work. In human services and food access, West Texas Food Bank received $2 million for an Odessa facility expansion, and Mission Agape received $200,000 for a capital campaign for a food distribution center. These gifts show a preference for organizations building the facilities and systems behind service delivery.

How Scharbauer Foundation Gives