Lyndhurst Foundation
/OVERVIEW: This funder prioritizes Chattanooga, Tennessee, and funding areas include education, conservation, arts, culture, economy, urban design and development, neighborhood revitalization, and physical health.
FUNDING AREAS: education, conservation, arts & culture, economy, urban development
IP TAKE: Grant seekers who are not pre-selected cannot apply for a grant here, but this is one of the top funders to know in Chattanooga. Locally-focused grantmaking lately exceeds $4 million per year.
PROFILE: The Lyndhurst Foundation supports the Greater Chattanooga region of Tennessee. It “identifies and invests in initiatives, institutions, people and programs that contribute to the long-term livability and resilience of the greater Chattanooga region.” The Foundation was established by Thomas Cartter Lupton, an early pioneer in the Coca-Cola bottling business. The foundation was first called the Memorial Welfare Foundation in 1938, but it was renamed to Lyndhurst after Lupton’s death in 1977. Lyndhurst refers to the family’s home in Chattanooga.
Lupton’s son took over the family philanthropy in 1977, and efforts were shifted to downtown revitalization in the 1980s. Priorities shifted again in the early 1990s and yet again in 2012. Today, Lyndhurst is a parent foundation governed by 10 local trustees and has five smaller spin-off family foundations.
Funding priorities include education, conservation, arts, culture, economy, urban design and development, neighborhood revitalization, and physical health. This funder supports creating jobs, enhancing leisure time, preparing children for the workplace, efficient transportation, fuel for vehicles and infrastructure, and protecting natural resources. A list of past Lyndhurst grantees can be viewed here.
The Lyndhurst Foundation prioritizes funding for metropolitan Chattanooga and the surrounding three-state region in the Cumberland Plateau, Blue Ridge Valley, and Blue Ridge. Surrounding counties that receive funding are DeKalb, Jackson, Marion, Sequatchie, Bledsoe, Rhea, Hamilton, Walker, Catoosa, Dade, Whitfield, Bradley, Meigs, McMinn, Polk, and Murray.
At the end of a recent year, the foundation claimed over $137 million in assets, which was slightly more than the years immediately prior. That year, over $4.9 million in grants was distributed and over $18,000 was given for direct charitable activities. Current financial information can be viewed here.
Unfortunately for grant seekers, the foundation will not consider unsolicited proposals. Instead, it invites potential grantees to submit proposals to describe their programs, desired funding amount, results to be achieved, and how outcomes will be evaluated. Lyndhurst board meetings usually take place in February, May, August, and November. Grant seekers’ proposals need to be submitted at least six weeks in advance of these meetings, and those due dates typically fall on or around December 31, March 31, June 30, and September 30.
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