Smith Richardson Foundation Inc

GREENSBORO, NC EIN: 56-0611550

The Smith Richardson Foundation is a private grantmaking foundation incorporated in 1935 and based in Greensboro, North Carolina. The foundation was founded by H. Smith Richardson and his wife, Grace Jones Richardson. H. Smith Richardson was the son of Lunsford Richardson, who created Vicks VapoRub and founded The Vick Chemical Company. The foundation operates as a 501(c)(3) organization and has been tax-exempt since May 1948.

Financial Overview

From 2024 IRS Form 990-PF · View filing

Total Assets

$557.9M

+2.3% YoY

Annual Giving

$22.9M

+0.7% YoY

Grant Count

282

+0.0% YoY

Avg Grant Size

$81K

+0.7% YoY

Research compiled by Grantable AI from public sources. Last updated April 2026.

Mission & Focus Areas

The mission of the Smith Richardson Foundation is to contribute to important public debates and to address serious public policy challenges facing the United States. The foundation seeks to help ensure the vitality of social, economic, and governmental institutions. It also seeks to assist with the development of effective policies to compete internationally and advance U.S. interests and values abroad.

The foundation operates through two primary programs:

International Security & Foreign Policy Program This program assists the U.S. policy community in developing effective national security strategies and foreign policies. The foundation supports projects addressing great power competition, disruptive technologies, and regional security issues in Europe, East Asia, and the Middle East, specifically examining challenges from adversaries like China, Russia, Iran, and North Korea.

Domestic Public Policy Program This program supports research on and evaluation of existing public policies and programs, as well as projects that inject new ideas into public debates to help the public and policymakers understand and address critical challenges facing the United States.

Grantmaking

The foundation's typical grant awards range from $500 to $404,355. Recent grant opportunities include:

Review Cycle

basis.

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Geographic Focus

Where this funder awards grants

The foundation funds projects primarily in the District of Columbia, North Carolina, and Connecticut, though it supports projects across a wide range of U.S. cities and states, including major urban centers.

Grant Distribution by State

37states
+29 more states

Cities

AlbanyAlexandriaAnn ArborAnnandaleonhudsonAnnapolisArlingtonAspenAthensAtlantaAustinBaltimoreBeaufortBennettBergenfieldBerkeleyBethesdaBostonBradentonBridgeportBristol

Financial History

Multi-year comparison from IRS filings

As of 2024:

  • Total Assets: $558 million
  • Annual Revenue: $39.8 million
  • Annual Expenses: $34.5 million
  • Total Liabilities: $42.2 million
  • Total Giving: $22,921,010

As of 2023:

  • Total Assets: approximately $557.9 million
Revenue
Expenses
Qualifying Distributions
Net Investment Income
$0$24M$49M$73M$97M20202021202220232024
Metric202420232022
Total Assets$557,948,572$545,245,316$517,774,018
Revenue$39,816,880$44,427,804$-54,374,393
Expenses$34,477,058$24,151,633$35,127,481
Qualifying Distributions$29,547,796$28,312,157$31,603,141
Net Investment Income$39,342,631$18,806,996$11,403,112
Distributable Amount$26,930,805$26,338,252$27,365,714

Giving Over Time

Total grant dollars and number of grants per year

$0$7M$13M$20M$26M299 grants2020250 grants2021302 grants2022282 grants2023282 grants2024

Grant Insights

How this funder distributes its grants

Top Recipients

Top 10 recipients in 2024

AMERICAN FOREIGN POLICY …$400KAMERICAN ACADEMY FOR STR…$275KAMERICAN ENTERPRISE INST…$270KADMINISTRATORS OF THE TU…$200KAMERICAN ENTERPRISE INST…$200KAMERICAN INSTITUTES FOR …$200KATLANTIAC COUNCIL OF THE…$200KBROOKINGS INSTITUTION$200KATLANTIC COUNCIL OF THE …$180KATLANTIC COUNCIL OF THE …$175K

Grant Size Distribution

250 grants across all recorded years

114<$50K36$50–100K72$100–250K26$250–500K$500K–1M2$1–5M$5M+

Open Grants

3 open opportunities from Smith Richardson Foundation Inc

Giving History

Grant recipients and amounts by year

No grants recorded for .

Leadership & Key People

Leadership team and compensation from IRS filings

Peter L. Richardson serves as President of the foundation.

Compensation Overview

From 2024 IRS filing

PL RICHARDSONCHAIRMAN OF THE TRUSTEES$776KDR MARIN STRMECKIPRESIDENT, DIRECTOR OF PROGR…$711KROSS HEMPHILLSENIOR VP, CFO, INVESTMENT CMT$173KNICOLE BATEMANASSISTANT SECRETARY$114KDR ARVID R NELSONTRUSTEE, SECRETARY, AUDIT CM…$80KWWINBURNE KING IIIVICE CHAIR OF THE TRUSTEES, …$71KMICHAEL BLAIRTRUSTEE, AUDIT & COMPENSATIO…$40KJOHN P RICHARDSON JRTRUSTEE, AUDIT COMMITTEE$40KNICOLAS L RICHARDSONTRUSTEE, INVESTMENT CMT., GR…$40KTYLER B RICHARDSONTRUSTEE, GRANTS & INVESTMENT…$40KE WILLIAM STETSON IIITRUSTEE, GRANTS COMMITTEE$40K

From 2024 filing

NameTitleHoursCompensation
PL RICHARDSONCHAIRMAN OF THE TRUSTEES50$775,554
MR RICHARDSON'S SUPPLEMENTALN/A
DR MARIN STRMECKIPRESIDENT, DIRECTOR OF PROGRAMS50$711,430
NICOLE BATEMANASSISTANT SECRETARY40$114,107
ROSS HEMPHILLSENIOR VP, CFO, INVESTMENT CMT47$172,660
WWINBURNE KING IIIVICE CHAIR OF THE TRUSTEES, INVST CMT40$70,902
DR ARVID R NELSONTRUSTEE, SECRETARY, AUDIT CMT. CHAIR22$80,000
MICHAEL BLAIRTRUSTEE, AUDIT & COMPENSATION CMT.1$40,000
JOHN P RICHARDSON JRTRUSTEE, AUDIT COMMITTEE1$40,000
NICOLAS L RICHARDSONTRUSTEE, INVESTMENT CMT., GRANTS CMT1$40,000
TYLER B RICHARDSONTRUSTEE, GRANTS & INVESTMENT CMT1$40,000
E WILLIAM STETSON IIITRUSTEE, GRANTS COMMITTEE1$40,000
THE ABOVE COMPENSATION SHOWS THEN/A

Subject Areas

Focus areas based on grantmaking activity

Data last updated April 2026. Sourced from IRS Form 990-PF filings. Research dossier generated April 2026.

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