The Mary Elizabeth Avinger Charitable Foundation concentrates its giving on Orangeburg/Calhoun County, SC-area institutions supporting vulnerable populations, basic health services, faith-based ministries, and local civic vitality. Grants frequently go to local schools (including special education), children's and elderly services, community medical clinics and hospitals, affordable housing, and Methodist/church organizations. The foundation tends to provide modest-to-mid sized awards and often renews support for the same locally rooted organizations rather than dispersing widely across geographies.
Mary Elizabeth Avinger Charitable Foundation’s largest recent grants show a clear pattern of supporting institutions that serve children, students with special needs, and local care networks in South Carolina. In 2025, it gave $20,000 to Epworth Children's Home in Columbia and $20,000 to Sc School for the Deaf & Blind in Spartanburg, alongside additional support for Orangeburg-area health, housing, and community organizations. The foundation also appears to renew its support for the same local institutions over time, with repeated grants to organizations such as Edisto Habitat for Humanity, Orangeburg Council on Aging, and Orangeburg Historical Society across 2023 and 2025. Its giving connects residential care, education, basic health services, and faith-linked community work within a tightly local footprint. Awards range from small operating gifts to mid-sized commitments, suggesting a grantmaker that mixes broad community support with a few larger anchor grants. The recent record points to a foundation that concentrates on Orangeburg and nearby South Carolina communities, especially organizations serving vulnerable populations and civic life.
A major theme in the foundation’s giving is care for children and youth. It awarded $20,000 to Epworth Children's Home in 2025 and $17,000 in 2023, showing sustained support for residential services for children. Education is another visible area: the foundation gave $20,000 to Sc School for the Deaf & Blind in 2025 and $15,000 in 2023, plus $8,000 to Orangeburg Preparatory School in 2025. Health access appears in grants to Orangeburg Calhoun Free Clinic and Orangeburg Calhoun Free Medical, both based in Orangeburg. Faith-based and Methodist-linked work also receives support, including gifts to St Andrews Methodist Church and Cooperative Church Ministries Of.
Typical grants are modest to mid-sized, with a p25 of $1,500, a median of $4,000, and a p75 of $10,000. The recent record shows repeated support to the same organizations across multiple years, including 2023 and 2025 awards to several local recipients, which points to recurring rather than one-off funding relationships. The foundation appears to be a private family foundation and does not fund individuals or make program-related investments. The grant record provided does not show an open application process; instead, the pattern suggests trustee-directed local grantmaking.
$106K
$1.2M
$173K
$131K
Most grants fall between $2K and $10K, with a median of $4K.
25th Percentile
$2K
Median
$4K
75th Percentile
$10K
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Concentrated, community-focused giving: about 30 grants totaling $206k with a mix of several mid-sized awards (top grants $20k–$37k) and many smaller recurring gifts. The foundation shows repetition of grantees and multi-year support to core local nonprofits rather than one-off national grants.
Notable grantees: Epworth Children's Home, South Carolina School for the Deaf & Blind, Edisto Habitat for Humanity, Orangeburg Calhoun Free Clinic / Regional Medical Center, St. Andrews Methodist Church
The foundation gives entirely within South Carolina, with 100% of grants to recipients in the state. Orangeburg is the main center of activity, including grants to Orangeburg Calhoun Free Clinic, Orangeburg Council on Aging, Orangeburg Preparatory School, and the Orangeburg Historical Society. Columbia also appears as a recipient city through Epworth Children's Home, Fellowship of Christian Athletes, and the Sc United Methodist Foundation. Other South Carolina recipients include Spartanburg and Rock Hill.
Its recent grants point to children’s residential care, services for people who are deaf or blind, local healthcare, faith-based ministries, affordable housing, elderly services, and neighborhood revitalization. Named recipients include Epworth Children's Home, Sc School for the Deaf & Blind, Orangeburg Calhoun Free Clinic, Edisto Habitat for Humanity, and Orangeburg Council on Aging.
The grant-size distribution is modest to mid-sized: p25 is $1,500, median grant size is $4,000, and p75 is $10,000. Recent awards also include larger grants of $20,000 to Epworth Children's Home and Sc School for the Deaf & Blind.
No. The recipient-country distribution shows 30 grants in the US, and 100% of grants go to recipients in South Carolina. Recent recipient cities include Orangeburg, Columbia, Spartanburg, and Rock Hill.
Yes. The recent grant list shows repeat awards across 2023 and 2025 to several groups, including Edisto Habitat for Humanity, Orangeburg Council on Aging, Orangeburg Historical Society, St Andrews Methodist Church, and Cooperative Church Ministries Of.
Recent grantees include Epworth Children's Home, Sc School for the Deaf & Blind, Orangeburg Calhoun Free Clinic, Orangeburg Preparatory School, and Orangeburg Council on Aging. The list also includes Downtown Orangeburg Revitalization, The Regional Medical Center, and Winthrop University Foundation.
2025
Source: IRS Form 990-PF, fiscal year 2025.
Most recent grants reported to the IRS.
| Recipient | Location | Amount | Year | Purpose |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| SC SCHOOL FOR THE DEAF & BLIND | SPARTANBURG, SC | $20,000 | 2025 | CHARITABLE |
| EPWORTH CHILDREN'S HOME | COLUMBIA, SC | $20,000 | 2025 | CHARITABLE |
| ORANGEBURG CALHOUN FREE MEDICAL | ORANGEBURG, SC | $15,000 | 2025 | CHARITABLE |
| EDISTO HABITAT FOR HUMANITY | ORANGEBURG, SC | $10,000 | 2025 | CHARITABLE |
| ORANGEBURG COUNCIL ON AGING | ORANGEBURG, SC | $10,000 | 2025 | CHARITABLE |
| ORANGEBURG PREPARATORY SCHOOL | ORANGEBURG, SC | $8,000 | 2025 | CHARITABLE |
| ST ANDREWS METHODIST CHURCH | ORANGEBURG, SC | $5,000 | 2025 | CHARITABLE |
| FELLOWSHIP OF CHRISTIAN ATHLETES | COLUMBIA, SC | $5,000 | 2025 | CHARITABLE |
| COOPERATIVE CHURCH MINISTRIES OF | ORANGEBURG, SC | $4,000 | 2025 | CHARITABLE |
| ORANGEBURG HISTORICAL SOCIETY | ORANGEBURG, SC | $3,000 | 2025 | CHARITABLE |
| DOWNTOWN ORANGEBURG REVITALIZATION | ORANGEBURG, SC | $2,000 | 2025 | CHARITABLE |
| WINTHROP UNIVERSITY FOUNDATION | ROCK HILL, SC | $1,000 | 2025 | CHARITABLE |
| SALVATION ARMY | ORANGEBURG, SC | $1,000 | 2025 | CHARITABLE |
| THE REGIONAL MEDICAL CENTER | ORANGEBURG, SC | $1,000 | 2025 | CHARITABLE |
| SC UNITED METHODIST FOUNDATION | COLUMBIA, SC | $1,000 | 2025 | CHARITABLE |
| EPWORTH CHILDREN'S HOME | COLUMBIA, SC | $17,000 | 2023 | CHARITABLE |
| ORANGEBURG CALHOUN FREE CLINIC | ORANGEBURG, SC | $15,000 | 2023 | CHARITABLE |
| SC SCHOOL FOR THE DEAF & BLIND | SPARTANBURG, SC | $15,000 | 2023 | CHARITABLE |
| ST ANDREWS METHODIST CHURCH | ORANGEBURG, SC | $10,000 | 2023 | CHARITABLE |
| EDISTO HABITAT FOR HUMANITY | ORANGEBURG, SC | $10,000 | 2023 | CHARITABLE |
| ORANGEBURG COUNCIL ON AGING | ORANGEBURG, SC | $8,000 | 2023 | CHARITABLE |
| ORANGEBURG PREPARATORY SCHOOLS | ORANGEBURG, SC | $8,000 | 2023 | CHARITABLE |
| COOPERATIVE CHURCH MINISTRIES | ORANGEBURG, SC | $4,000 | 2023 | CHARITABLE |
| FELLOWSHIP OF CHRISTIAN ATHLETES | COLUMBIA, SC | $4,000 | 2023 | CHARITABLE |
| ORANGEBURG HISTORICAL SOCIETY | ORANGEBURG, SC | $3,000 | 2023 | CHARITABLE |
| DOWNTOWN ORANGEBURG REVITALIZATION | ORANGEBURG, SC | $2,000 | 2023 | CHARITABLE |
| WINTHROP UNIVERSITY FOUNDATION | ROCK HILL, SC | $1,000 | 2023 | CHARITABLE |
| THE REGIONAL MEDICAL CENTER | ORANGEBURG, SC | $1,000 | 2023 | CHARITABLE |
| SALVATION ARMY | ORANGEBURG, SC | $1,000 | 2023 | CHARITABLE |
| SC UNITED METHODIST FOUNDATION | COLUMBIA, SC | $1,000 | 2023 | CHARITABLE |
ORANGEBURG CALHOUN FREE MEDICAL
$15,000CHARITABLE
EDISTO HABITAT FOR HUMANITY
$10,000CHARITABLE
ORANGEBURG COUNCIL ON AGING
$10,000CHARITABLE
ORANGEBURG PREPARATORY SCHOOL
$8,000CHARITABLE
ST ANDREWS METHODIST CHURCH
$5,000CHARITABLE
FELLOWSHIP OF CHRISTIAN ATHLETES
$5,000CHARITABLE
COOPERATIVE CHURCH MINISTRIES OF
$4,000CHARITABLE
ORANGEBURG HISTORICAL SOCIETY
$3,000CHARITABLE
DOWNTOWN ORANGEBURG REVITALIZATION
$2,000CHARITABLE
SALVATION ARMY
$1,000CHARITABLE
THE REGIONAL MEDICAL CENTER
$1,000CHARITABLE
SC UNITED METHODIST FOUNDATION
$1,000CHARITABLE
ORANGEBURG CALHOUN FREE CLINIC
$15,000CHARITABLE
ST ANDREWS METHODIST CHURCH
$10,000CHARITABLE
EDISTO HABITAT FOR HUMANITY
$10,000CHARITABLE
ORANGEBURG COUNCIL ON AGING
$8,000CHARITABLE
ORANGEBURG PREPARATORY SCHOOLS
$8,000CHARITABLE
COOPERATIVE CHURCH MINISTRIES
$4,000CHARITABLE
ORANGEBURG HISTORICAL SOCIETY
$3,000CHARITABLE
DOWNTOWN ORANGEBURG REVITALIZATION
$2,000CHARITABLE
THE REGIONAL MEDICAL CENTER
$1,000CHARITABLE
SALVATION ARMY
$1,000CHARITABLE
SC UNITED METHODIST FOUNDATION
$1,000CHARITABLE