The Year in Review

The Grantmaking Committee oversees distribution of funds, including the Beeson Fund and the 44 Unitized Funds. In 2022, the committee chaired by Jean Shanks:

• Conducted the annual IPC Foundation grants cycle. Reviewed 117 applications (31 from new applicants) and awarded 100 grants for $2.1 million. The grants will be distributed in mid February, and funding comes from the Beeson and Yarboro Funds.

• Managed a Youth Grant team of 16 junior and senior high school students charged with researching and recommending distributions totaling $20,000.

• Approved 31 grant requests for small grants totaling $169,800.

• Approved 6 emergency grants for 36,500 to assist with natural disasters in Alabama, Kentucky and Haiti, to provide wartime relief to Church of the Risen Christ in the Ukraine, to assist with the economic crisis in Syria and Lebanon, and to purchase new batteries and a charger for the golf cart donated a few years back to Hayes K-8.

• Approved distributions from 34 Unitized Funds totaling $706,000, benefiting mostly IPC in addition to other organizations such as STAIR, Kirkwood, SOZO – a family-style home for children in Uganda – and The Wellhouse, an organization that rescues female victims of human trafficking.

• Conducted site visits, both virtually and in person, of organizations requesting large grants.

• Began receiving applications online. This development has been tremendously useful for the Foundation in determining which organizations receive funding and, we believe, is more efficient for those organizations seeking funding.

The Finance Committee actively oversees financial matters, with its major focus being the investment of Foundation endowments. In 2022, the committee, chaired by John Norris:

• Met quarterly with the Foundation’s investment advisors and reviewed investment performance compared to benchmark, monitored asset allocation, reviewed manager performance and fees, and discussed industry outlook.

• Reviewed and set spending policy for 2022 – reaffirmed 4% disbursement for all Funds.

• Received the annual financial audit, which had no findings. The audit is conducted independently.

The Development Committee oversees efforts to publicize the Foundation and grow the endowments. In 2022, the committee, chaired by Melanie Talbot:

• Published the 2021 Annual Report

• Held six lunch and learns including Alabama Interfaith Refugee Partnership, Build Up, Church of the Risen Christ, Friends of Forman College, Lift Up the Vulnerable and Raleigh’s Place.

• Approved the Virginia Talbot Markle Fund established by Melanie Talbot and Tom Booker in loving memory of her daughter, Virginia Talbot. The primary purpose of the fund is to provide financial support for the IPC Emergency Fund.

The Governance Committee handles matters which span multiple committees. In 2022, the committee chaired by Bud Keller:

• Nominated 2022 officers and proposed new directors to replace those whose terms end in 2022.

As you can imagine, serving on the Foundation Board is both rewarding and depressing. All Foundation members get a great deal of satisfaction from making a difference in the lives of the neediest people locally, nationally, and internationally. On the other hand, it can be humbling to make only a small dent in the needs of so many deserving people.

On a personal note, both I and IPC owe a tremendous debt of gratitude to Denise Moore and Patricia Harper who help administer the funds on behalf of the Foundation.

Bud Keller, 2022 President

The Independent Presbyterian Church Foundation