BUILDING RESILIENCY
NONPROFIT ENDOWMENT REPORT
Nonprofit Endowments
For more than 50 years, OCCF’s Nonprofit Endowment Program has partnered with individuals, families and organizations to provide reliable, ongoing support for nonprofits, making it easy for others to give and nonprofits to grow their support.
camera Herman Meinders cover photo courtesy of Oklahoma Hall of Fame Archives
FY25 IMPACT
$14.8M
Endowment Distribution
FY25 GROWTH
+5 + 15 New Designated Funds New Endowment Funds
Building Reliable, Sustainable Support
YOUR IMPACT
OCCF’s Nonprofit Endowment Program provides nonprofits with reliable support so they can focus on meeting needs and elevating our community. With the support of generous donors, this program has become one of the largest of its kind in the country, building a foundation that allows nonprofits to make an even greater impact.
INVESTMENT & LONGEVITY
OCCF’s sound investment and distribution policy provides sustained growth for funds so the organization’s mission will be supported for generations to come.
Show Up, Stay Involved, Care Deeply
With the ink barely dry on the sale of Herman Meinders’ company American Floral Services in 1994, Herman turned to his friend and business manager Mo Grotjohn and said, “Let’s go find someone to give $2 million to.”
Always a generous person, the sale of the company and subsequent establishment of The Meinders Foundation gave Herman the opportunity to revel in the joy of giving. And give he did! Together with his beloved wife, LaDonna, Herman invested in people and places they cared about.
It’s the Oklahoma City University business school that bears Herman’s name –the Meinders School of Business - that best represents his dedication. If they had a need, he was there to give, whether it was fully funding a new building or
establishing a scholarship. Once Herman was a friend, he was more than a donor. He showed up, stayed involved and cared deeply, worrying less about how much something cost and more about if it was right for the community and the future.
As Herman and LaDonna’s impact grew, so did the opportunities before them. Their fingerprints can be seen throughout our city, state, country and even the world, but perhaps the most meaningful opportunity came in the twilight of Herman’s life when he combined his love of giving with the ability to solve real problems and support one of the causes closest to his heart.
⌃ Herman & LaDonna Meinders, donors
‹ Oklahoma Parkinson’s Alliance monthly support group meeting
“MR.
MEINDERS CHANGED OUR CORNER OF THE WORLD FOR GOOD.”
BRUCE MCINTYRE OKLAHOMA PARKINSON’S ALLIANCE CEO
After being diagnosed with Parkinson’s Disease in 2014, Herman began investing in the innovative research, treatment and support through the Oklahoma Parkinson’s Alliance, Mercy Hospital and a host of other organizations. He understood that
he had the means to get whatever treatment he needed, but not everyone was so lucky, so he gave to ensure thousands of Oklahomans have access to advanced treatment for the disease.
“Mr. Meinders was one of the greatest philanthropists Oklahoma City has ever seen,” Oklahoma Parkinson’s Alliance CEO Bruce McIntyre said. “Once diagnosed with Parkinson’s, he became our summer matching campaign anchor donor, serving as a catalyst for others to support Parkinson’s services in Oklahoma. When he passed away, he left a $750,000 gift to our endowment, which more than doubles the fund and will continue to grow. Simply put, Mr. Meinders changed our corner of the world for good.”
Herman died in early 2025, but through The Meinders Foundation, his legacy for doing good lives on. Over the past year, the foundation has given nearly $75 million to 30 organizations, including more than $27 million to 11 nonprofit endowment funds at the Oklahoma City Community Foundation. These permanent funds at OCCF will generate steady, ongoing revenue for the organizations not just today, but for generations to come. It’s more than generosity – it’s a legacy of a life well-lived.
“I think the more I give, the more I receive,” Herman said in a 2021 interview with Oklahoma City University. “I just hope that will carry forward, complete the circle. Receive help, later on give help, be good citizens. If everyone gave back some, it would be pretty good, wouldn’t it?”
“IF EVERYONE GAVE BACK SOME, IT WOULD BE PRETTY GOOD, WOULDN’T IT?”
HERMAN MEINDERS
DONOR
Your Partner in Sustainability
ENDOWMENT TRAINING SERIES
BUILDING TRANSFORMATIONAL SUPPORT
At OCCF, we see a sustainable financial future for nonprofits. Our expert team has developed tools and resources to help grow endowments to build transformational support today and in the future.
FY25 MATCHING PROGRAM IMPACT
$5.6M
• Explore all OCCF matches and search for employer matches.
• Be the match and inspire others to give.
• Make your gift go further! Make your gift go further through a match! The Kirkpatrick Family Fund has helped nonprofits through endowment matching grants since 1979. In recent years, additional generous donors have started to do the same.
$1.43M
Grow a Fund
By supporting an existing nonprofit endowment fund or creating a new one, you provide reliable, ongoing support to the nonprofits you care about, making it easy for others to give and nonprofits to grow their support.
GIVE TO AN EXISTING FUND
• Give through your Donor-Advised Fund or with a credit card at nonprofits.occf.org.
• Mail cash or checks to: Oklahoma City Community Foundation 1000 N. Broadway Ave. Oklahoma City, OK 73102
• Call us at 405-235-5603 to discuss the best way to donate non-cash assets.
START A NEW OR DESIGNATED FUND
• Start a new endowment fund with a gift of $40,000.
• For nonprofits with an existing fund, establish a designated fund with a gift of $20,000.
WHAT IS A DESIGNATED FUND?
An account within an endowment that has a specific purpose or is named to honor someone (or both!) is called a Designated Fund. It’s a way to ensure that a particular program is always supported by a portion of endowment distributions or that a loved one or other individual is honored every year.
20-YEAR GROWTH COMPARISON
There is no wrong way to support your favorite nonprofit(s), but how you give can have a lasting impact.
An investment in an endowment can provide long-term sustainable support for a nonprofit.
$30K
$20K
$10K IT’S ALL IN HOW YOU GIVE: $10K, THREE WAYS
$ 20.2K
TOTAL IMPACT
GROWTH $ 31.5K
$ 10K
TOTAL IMPACT
TOTAL IMPACT
$ 6.4K IN REVENUE TO NONPROFIT
$ 13.4K IN REVENUE TO NONPROFIT $500/yr ENDOWED $10K one-time ENDOWED $500/yr
Growth comparison based on OCCF past performance. Administrative fees are estimated, actual performance and fees will vary.
Good People, Good Vibes,
As athletes, coaches, friends and families fill the gyms in Deer Creek, the Abbey Renner Memorial Tournament’s motto is alive and well. Good people, good vibes, good basketball - it’s more than a motto, it’s a reflection of who Abbey Renner was at her core.
“It takes an openness in a person to live in whom you are meant to be, and Abbey had that,” Abbey’s mom, Dana Renner, said. “She was a grounding source who allowed others to have the spotlight. But she was driven in her own way, quietly setting goals for herself and moving toward them in a high-performing way.”
More than anything in the world, Abbey wanted to make an impact. She threw herself into all she did, excelling in the classroom, playing on the Deer Creek and Oklahoma City University Women’s Basketball teams, and volunteering in the community. Nothing brought her more joy than sharing what she learned to help others, because she believed that when you know better, you do better.
A shining moment for Abbey came during her second year in
medical school at OSU’s College of Osteopathic Medicine when she was selected as an Albert Schweitzer Fellow. This fellowship gave her the opportunity to create diabetes management and education classes for Spanish-speaking members of the community, using what she’d learned in school to reach an underserved population. It was Abbey’s dream to see her efforts make a real impact, but sadly, just a few months into the project, she died unexpectedly.
Abbey accomplished a lot in her short life, but in the days, weeks, months and years that have followed, it’s not the accomplishments that people remember. It’s her spirit. It’s the smile of encouragement or the thumbs up she’d give to let you know she was rooting for you.
That spirit is what inspired a group of Abbey’s friends to bring a seedling of an idea to the Deer Creek school board shortly after Abbey passed away. They wanted to establish a basketball tournament to support a scholarship in Abbey’s name. Working
Good Basketball!
with the Renner family and the Deer Creek Schools Foundation, they created the Abbey Renner Memorial Scholarship, and in the spring of 2023, the tournament launched. By the second year of the tournament, they awarded a scholarship to a Deer Creek female student-athlete, and last year, they took another huge step forward by establishing an endowment for the scholarship at the Oklahoma City Community Foundation.
⌃ Abbey Renner, Deer Creek High School; Abbey on college campus
‹ Abbey, OCU Basketball; Memorial Tournament trophies
“It was really important to everyone involved that this scholarship have some permanency in case interest in the tournament dwindles,” former Deer Creek Schools Foundation board member Barry Cunningham said. “The support and guidance OCCF has provided through this process has been invaluable. They’ve really been a great partner.”
As the tournament continues to grow, the foundation and Abbey’s friends and family look forward to growing the number and amount of scholarships they award so they can make a difference just as Abbey did.
The Oklahoma City Community Foundation makes it easy for anyone to boldly support our community. Featuring nearly 400 nonprofit partners, our Nonprofit Directory makes it easy for you to research organizations and join together with others to give and help nonprofits serve our neighbors. nonprofits.occf.org
RELIABLE SUPPORT DURING ADVERSITY
July 1, 2024 – June 30, 2025
We recognize the strength and resilience of nonprofits navigating significant challenges. When demand for services is on the rise and funding is increasingly difficult to secure, the reliable, ongoing support that an endowment offers is a lifeline for nonprofits in our community.
$14.8M IN FY25
SUPPORTING:
New Funds
BENEFITTING OUR NONPROFIT PARTNERS
IN FY25
New funds established between July 1, 2024, and June 30, 2025.
CHRISTMAS CONNECTION
BARBARA FAGIN
ENDOWMENT FUND
Christmas Connection provides vital resources that bring relief, restore confidence and renew a sense of belonging for families rebuilding after a crisis, working to make ends meet or hoping to create a joyful holiday for their children.
CHRISTIAN HERITAGE ACADEMY
Located in Del City, Christian Heritage Academy is a coeducational, private Christian school for students in preschool through 12th grade. This year, they established a number of designated funds supporting a wide range of topics.
• 6th Grade American Christian Government Tour
• David Holmes Mission Trip Legacy
• Ralph Bullard American Christian Heritage Tour
CAPITOL HILL HIGH SCHOOL ALUMNI ASSOCIATION
The fund was established in memory of Capitol Hill High School teacher Marguerite Danford to support an annual scholarship for “at-need” students and students studying languages or language arts.
• Marguerite Danford Scholarship Endowment Fund
DEER CREEK COMMUNITY ENRICHMENT FOUNDATION
The foundation supports academic enrichment opportunities for students of Deer Creek School District in Edmond, Oklahoma. This year, they established a scholarship fund in memory of former Deer Creek student Abbey Renner.
• Abbey Renner Memorial Scholarship Fund
FIELDS & FUTURES
Fields & Futures helps kids realize their purpose and potential by building and maintaining athletic fields in the Oklahoma City Public Schools district. This year, they established a designated fund to support programmatic activities.
• Program Fund
NATURE
CONSERVANCY
The Nature Conservancy strives to protect lands and waters through scientific research, fundraising and partnerships to address conservation challenges. This year, the Kirkpatrick Foundation helped them establish a fund to benefit the Joseph H. Williams Tallgrass Prairie Preserve.
• Joseph H. Wiliams Tallgrass Prairie Preserve Fund
LIBRARY
ENDOWMENT TRUST
The trust was established to provide community educational programs, broaden access to information and enhance the quality of life through the Metropolitan Library System. This year, they established a designated fund to support childhood literacy development.
• Childhood Literacy Endowment Fund
OKLAHOMA
CITY UNIVERSITY
This year, a generous donor helped Oklahoma City University establish a designated fund to provide recognition to deserving faculty in the OCU School of Music and School of Theatre.
• Mark Parker Endowed Faculty Excellence Award Fund
OKLAHOMA MEDICAL RESEARCH FOUNDATION REDLANDS COMMUNITY COLLEGE
The foundation is a biomedical research institute focusing on understanding and developing more effective treatments for human disease. This year, they were the recipient of a designated fund to support Lupus research.
• Lupus Foundation of Oklahoma Fund
This year, the two-year public higher education institution in El Reno, Oklahoma, established two new funds to support scholarships.
• Chickasaw National Scholars Fund
• Dorthea Douglas Paulk Endowed Scholarship Fund
REMERGE
ENDOWMENT FUND
ReMerge provides evidence-based treatment and individualized, wrap-around services for mothers of minor children who are facing non-violent felony charges in Oklahoma County. This fund was established by a gift from the Kirkpatrick Foundation.
STIR GENERAL ENDOWMENT FUND
STIR works to protect and preserve the Illinois River, its tributaries, its aquifers and Lake Tenkiller. This fund was established by a gift from the Kirkpatrick Foundation.
UNIVERSITY OF CENTRAL OKLAHOMA
This year, a generous donor helped the university establish a designated fund to support scholarships for UCO nursing students who are full-time Oklahoma residents.
• Tyler & Megan Janjua Nursing Scholarship
UNIVERSITY OF OKLAHOMA COLLEGE OF MEDICINE
This year, a generous donor helped the OU College of Medicine establish a designated fund to support scholarships for students who show a curiosity in the humanities.
• Michael D. Anderson Be Curious Scholarship Endowment Fund
WILDCARE FOUNDATION ENDOWMENT FUND
WildCare provides people a place to bring native wildlife struggling to survive with the goal of releasing healthy individuals back to nature.
WESTVIEW BOYS’ HOME
Established with a match from the Paul Milburn Gift Fund, this fund supports Westview Launch, which provides a space and resources for young people 18 to 24 years of age who have aged out of foster care.
• Launch Endowment Fund
WK JACKSON LEADERSHIP
ACADEMY – ALTINE LYNETTE
JACKSON MEMORIAL FUND
This fund was established to defray student costs of attendance or participation in activities at WK Jackson Leadership Academy in Oklahoma City.
⌃ Left: Christian Heritage Academy
Top: WK Jackson Leadership Academy; Right: University of Central Oklahoma
“ WE WANT KIDS TO BECOME PART OF OKLAHOMA’S SOCCER LEGACY AND FEEL NO ONE SHOULD BE LEFT BEHIND.”
CHRISTY GORDON DONOR
Expanding Opportunity So Anyone Can Play
For years, rain or shine, Christy and Brian Gordon spent their weekends on the sidelines of the soccer field, cheering on their sons’ teams and witnessing firsthand the impact Oklahoma Energy Football Club (OEFC) had on their boys. It taught them discipline, teamwork and confidence, not to mention the friendships that were forged.
OEFC was a welcoming and encouraging environment where kids could grow, but every year, Christy and Brian saw players miss that opportunity because they simply couldn’t afford the uniforms, equipment and travel. Committed to taking action, in 2024, the couple partnered with OEFC and the Oklahoma City Community Foundation to start an endowment fund to expand access to the sport they love by providing scholarships so more children can participate.
“We want kids to become part of Oklahoma’s soccer legacy and feel no one should be left behind,” Christy said. “It’s about guaranteeing that every child who needs help receives a scholarship for their entire OEFC career.”
While OEFC has had a scholarship program in place for years, the number and value of awards available have varied based on sponsorships and donations. With the prospect of a sustainable funding source in the form of an endowment, the OEFC board
⌃ Team using Oklahoma Energy Football Club (OEFC) field
‹ Christy and Brian Gordon, donors
of directors unanimously gave its approval. Spearheaded by the Gordons, they set out to build their endowment and quickly garnered support from a broad range of donors.
“Every child who wants to play soccer should have that opportunity regardless of their family’s financial situation,” said Tim McLaughlin, OEFC donor and founder of Fields and Futures. “The endowment fund established by the Gordons on behalf of the Oklahoma Energy Football Club is something I proudly support.”
Last spring, OEFC awarded its first endowed scholarships to two players, guaranteeing they can play at OEFC as long as they are able. It was an exciting step toward building a sustainable scholarship
program so no child gets left behind, and OEFC can continue to grow and excel on a national scale. The OEFC Players Endowment also proudly partners with the OKC Police Athletic League to expand pathways for PAL players to grow and thrive within the Energy Programs through sustained scholarship opportunities.
“ THE ENDOWMENT FUND ESTABLISHED BY THE GORDONS ON BEHALF OF THE OKLAHOMA ENERGY
FOOTBALL
CLUB IS SOMETHING I PROUDLY SUPPORT.”
TIM MCLAUGHLIN DONOR, OCCF & OEFC / FOUNDER, FIELDS & FUTURE
“This is our chance to set a new standard for what youth soccer can be – a model of opportunity, inclusion and excellence that the rest of the nation looks to,” said Christy.
At OCCF, we know that leading the way with reliable, ongoing support provides a model for others. Every gift, large and small, contributes, and we are excited to see people come together to expand futures for countless young athletes.
⌃ Recipient of 2025 OEFC Endowment Fund Player’s Scholarship, with Gordon family; Team huddles on OEFC field
Support an Endowment
Call us today at 405-235-5603 to learn how you can make an impact!
CASH GIFTS
Mail cash or checks to:
Oklahoma City Community Foundation
1000 N. Broadway Ave.
Oklahoma City, OK 73102
CREDIT CARDS
Visit donate.occf.org for secure online giving.
DONOR-ADVISED FUNDS
Log into your fund portal and recommend grants directly to a Nonprofit Endowment Fund.
MORE WAYS TO GIVE
Our team is well-versed in receiving various gift types from appreciated stock to planned gifts, maximizing tax benefits. We partner with professional advisors and donors to make giving simple so you can focus on making an impact.
• Qualified Charitable Distributions from your IRA
• Cryptocurrency
• Real Estate
• Stocks, Bonds and Mutual Funds
• Business-Related Assets
• Termination of a Private Foundation
• Charitable Gift Annuities
• Charitable Remainder Trust
• Retained Life Estate
• Oil and Gas Interests
• Gift through a Will or Trust
• Retirement Plan Assets
• Life Insurance
