Southern Foundation Inc
Southern Foundation Inc is a private foundation based in Carbondale, Illinois. Its 2025 filing reports grants to preselected charitable organizations in Illinois, Missouri, and Kentucky.
Southern Foundation Inc at a glance
In short: Southern Foundation Inc gave $60K across 11 grants in 2025 (avg $5K), top state Illinois. 73% of 2025 grantees were new. Source: 2025 IRS Form 990-PF.
- Annual giving (2025)
- $60,375
- -7.0% vs 2024
- Grants made (2025)
- 11
- -15.4% vs 2024
- Average grant
- $5,489
- +9.9% vs 2024
- Median grant
- $4,755
- Total assets
- $1,082,757
- +2.3% vs 2024
- New grantees (estimate)
- 73% first-time grantees (8 of 11, 2025; small sample)
- Primary geography
- Illinois (46% of itemized 2025 grant dollars)
- Latest 990 filing
- Form 990-PF, 2025 View filing
Data from IRS Form 990-PF, 2025; updated October 2026. New grantees are estimated by matching recipient names across years (methodology).
How to apply to Southern Foundation Inc
- Accepts unsolicited proposals
- No
- How to Apply
-
The foundation states that it makes contributions only to preselected charitable organizations and does not accept unsolicited requests for funds.
- Contact
Mailing address: PO Box 565, Carbondale, IL 62903
Phone: (618) 713-6215
Application details from Grantable's research on the foundation's public materials; confirm on its website before applying.
Who Southern Foundation Inc funds
How this funder distributes its grants
Top Recipients
Top 10 recipients in 2025
The largest 2025 recipient was Cairo Historical Association ($10K). Together the top 10 received $58K.
Grant Size Distribution
51 grants across all recorded years
The most common grant size was under $50K: 51 grants of 51 (100%).
Geographic Focus
Where this funder awards grants
The 2025 filing attributes 46% of grant dollars to recipients in Illinois, 37% to recipients in Missouri, and 17% to recipients in Kentucky.
Grant Distribution by State
Share of 2025 grant dollars across all 11 itemized grants.
Cities
Is Southern Foundation Inc open to new grantees?
73%
first-time grantees, 2025
In 2025, 8 of 11 grantees (73%) were first-time recipients. With only 11 grantees, that is a small sample: one grantee more or less moves the share by about 9 points. First grants averaged $6K; repeat grants $5K. How we count
Medians: $5K first-time, $5K repeat.
- 9% of 2025 grantees were also funded in 2024. Method
- Giving grew 27% from 2022 to 2025. Method
- In 2025 it paid out 97% of its IRS minimum distribution (the 5% rule). Foundations have until the end of the next year to meet it. Method
Estimate from itemized grant lists in IRS Form 990-PF filings (2019–2025). Recipient names are matched across years, so a renamed or misspelled grantee can look new; grants to individuals are left out. Methodology.
Giving History
Giving Over Time
Total grant dollars and number of grants per year
From 2019 to 2025, annual grant giving ranged from $30K (2019) to $65K (2024). In 2025 it made 11 grants totaling $60K.
Grants by year
Grant recipients and amounts by year
| Recipient | Purpose | Amount |
|---|---|---|
| Cairo Historical Association Cairo, IL | For Their Exempt Purpose | $10,000 |
| Shining Light Center Charleston, MO | For Their Exempt Purpose | $9,847 |
| East Prairie Chamber of Commerce East Prairie, MO | For Their Exempt Purpose | $8,000 |
| Cairo Baptist Upward Basketball Cairo, IL | For Their Exempt Purpose | $6,000 |
| Community Health & Emer Carbondale, IL | For Their Exempt Purpose | $5,000 |
| Cairo Auxiliary Fire Dept Cairo, IL | For Their Exempt Purpose | $4,755 |
| Charleston Nutrition Center Charleston, MO | For Their Exempt Purpose | $4,622 |
| Mount Inc (Ballard Co) Kevil, KY | For Their Exempt Purpose | $4,000 |
| Ballard Co Senior Citizens Barlow, KY | For Their Exempt Purpose | $3,751 |
| Ballard Co Chamber of Comm Kevil, KY | For Their Exempt Purpose | $2,400 |
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Financial History
Multi-year comparison from IRS filings
| Filing year | Total Assets | Revenue | Expenses | Grants paid | Grants | Qualifying Distributions | Net Investment Income | Distributable Amount |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2025 | $1,082,757 | $110,146 | $85,614 | $60,375 | 11 | $70,733 | $92,866 | $73,149 |
| 2024 | $1,058,225 | $87,484 | $85,785 | $64,928 | 13 | $73,665 | $74,264 | $68,854 |
| 2023 | $1,056,526 | $53,154 | $54,401 | $35,000 | 9 | $42,916 | $40,319 | $58,378 |
| 2022 | $1,057,773 | $27,775 | $68,981 | $47,649 | 10 | $56,315 | $18,865 | $60,704 |
| 2021 | $1,098,979 | $114,594 | $51,587 | $34,320 | 8 | $40,168 | $100,850 | $66,464 |
| 2020 | $1,035,972 | $32,738 | $54,720 | $37,573 | 9 | — | $20,848 | $56,915 |
| 2019 | $1,057,954 | $49,009 | $48,195 | $30,411 | 10 | — | $36,880 | $56,806 |
Under IRS private-foundation payout rules, Southern Foundation Inc reported a distributable amount of $73K for 2025 — the minimum it must pay out in qualifying distributions.
Research compiled by Grantable AI from public sources. Last updated September 2026.
Mission & Focus Areas
No mission statement for the foundation is provided. Its 2025 grants went to organizations including historical, community, senior-services, health, and youth-sports organizations, based on the recipients listed in that filing. Charleston Nutrition Center describes its own mission as preparing and serving congregate and home-delivered meals to people age 60 and older and to disabled people, and providing social activities for senior citizens.
Grantmaking
In 2025, the foundation reported 11 grants totaling $60,375. Grant amounts ranged from $2,000 to $10,000, with a median of $4,755. Listed recipients included Cairo Historical Association ($10,000), Shining Light Center ($9,847), East Prairie Chamber of Commerce ($8,000), Cairo Baptist Upward Basketball ($6,000), and Community Health & Emer ($5,000). Charleston Nutrition Center received $4,622.
Leadership & Key People
Leadership team and compensation from IRS filings
The 2025 filing lists Peggy Meriedith as president; Pam Jones as vice president; Patti Clark as secretary; Lee Essex as treasurer; and Sarah Basler, Darrell Hoppe, Guy Johnson, Devon Secoy, and Roslyn Smith as directors.
Southern Foundation Inc is led by Peggy Meriedith, President since 2025 (on filings since 2024); 1 of 9 officers listed in 2025 is compensated.
Officers on the 2025 filing
Peggy Meriedith
President
Director → President, 2025
On filings since 2024
0.1 hrs/week
No compensation reported
Darrell Hoppe
Director
On filings since 2024
0.1 hrs/week
No compensation reported
Devon Secoy
Director
New on the 2025 filing
0.1 hrs/week
No compensation reported
Guy Johnson
Director
New on the 2025 filing
0.1 hrs/week
No compensation reported
Roslyn Smith
Director
New on the 2025 filing
0.1 hrs/week
No compensation reported
Sarah Basler
Director
New on the 2025 filing
0.1 hrs/week
No compensation reported
Patti Clark
Secretary
On filings since 2019
2 hrs/week
$6K (2019) → $7K (2025)
Lee Essex
Treasurer
Director → Treasurer, 2025
On filings since 2024
0.1 hrs/week
No compensation reported
Pam Jones
Vice President
New on the 2025 filing
0.1 hrs/week
No compensation reported
Former officers (22)
- Former: Bob Wilson (2021–2024) — Treasurer
- Former: Richard Pitcher (2021–2024) — Vice President
- Former: Rodney Jones (2021–2024) — President
- Former: David Bell (2023–2024) — Director
- Former: Stephanie Dixon (2023–2024) — Director
- Former: Dana Brown Ellis (2024) — Director
- Former: Claudia Arington (2021–2023) — Director
- Former: Landon Sommer (2021–2023) — Director
- Former: Lynn Lane (2021–2023) — President
- Former: Jerry Smith (2020–2022) — Director
- Former: Mark Clarke (2020–2022) — President
- Former: Chuck Wade (2021–2022) — Treasurer
- Former: Clinton Graham (2019–2020) — Director
- Former: David Meinschein (2019–2020) — Vice President
- Former: Glen Klett (2019–2020) — Director
- Former: Larry Klein (2019–2020) — Director
- Former: Rob Reichert (2019–2020) — President
- Former: Todd Cooper (2019–2020) — Treasurer
- Former: Claire Poley (2020) — Director
- Former: Dewey Dixon (2019) — Director
- Former: Monica Smith (2019) — President
- Former: Tammi Hutcheson (2019) — Director
Data from IRS Form 990 filings, 2019–2025. "On filings since" is the earliest filing we hold that lists the person; hours are average hours per week as reported.
Compensation Overview
From 2025 IRS filing
The highest reported compensation on the 2025 filing was $7K, to Patti Clark (Secretary).
Frequently asked questions about Southern Foundation Inc
How much does Southern Foundation Inc give each year?
Southern Foundation Inc gave $60K across 11 grants in 2025, according to its 2025 IRS Form 990-PF. In 2024 it gave $65K across 13 grants.
What is Southern Foundation Inc's typical grant size?
Southern Foundation Inc's median grant in 2025 was $4,755, and its average grant was $5,489, across 11 grants on its 2025 IRS Form 990-PF. Organizations receiving their first grant from Southern Foundation Inc that year got $6K on average.
Where does Southern Foundation Inc give grants?
Southern Foundation Inc's top state is Illinois, with 46% of the grant dollars itemized on its 2025 IRS Form 990-PF. The next largest states were Missouri (37%) and Kentucky (17%). The most frequent recipient cities were Cairo, IL (3 grants), Charleston, MO (2 grants) and Kevil, KY (2 grants).
Who are Southern Foundation Inc's largest grantees?
Southern Foundation Inc's largest 2025 grantees include Cairo Historical Association ($10,000), Shining Light Center ($9,847) and East Prairie Chamber of Commerce ($8,000), according to its 2025 IRS Form 990-PF. Together they received 46% of its itemized 2025 grant dollars.
How large is Southern Foundation Inc?
Southern Foundation Inc reported $1.1M in total assets on its 2025 IRS Form 990-PF. It paid out $71K in qualifying distributions that year, against a required minimum of $73K (roughly 5% of its investment assets). Falling short in one year is not a violation: foundations have until the end of the next year to meet the minimum.
What does Southern Foundation Inc fund?
No mission statement for the foundation is provided. Its 2025 grants went to organizations including historical, community, senior-services, health, and youth-sports organizations, based on the recipients listed in that filing. See mission & focus areas ↑
How do I apply for a grant from Southern Foundation Inc?
The foundation states that it makes contributions only to preselected charitable organizations and does not accept unsolicited requests for funds. Eligibility and process details are in the grantmaking section of this profile. See how to apply ↑
What is Southern Foundation Inc's EIN?
Southern Foundation Inc's EIN (Employer Identification Number) is 37-1101365. IRS Form 990 filing data is available on this page for 2019–2025.
Does Southern Foundation Inc accept unsolicited proposals?
No, according to Grantable's research on the foundation's published guidelines. See how to apply ↑
Data last updated October 2026. Sourced from IRS Form 990-PF filings. Research dossier generated September 2026.
Data update history
(8)
When this profile's IRS filing data changed on Grantable
- Updated Form 990-PF for fiscal year 2019 (received by the IRS April 30, 2020)
- Updated Form 990-PF for fiscal year 2020 (received by the IRS May 6, 2021)
- Updated Form 990-PF for fiscal year 2021 (received by the IRS May 5, 2022)
- Updated Form 990-PF for fiscal year 2022 (received by the IRS April 28, 2023)
- Updated Form 990-PF for fiscal year 2023 (received by the IRS May 2, 2024)
- Updated Form 990-PF for fiscal year 2024 (received by the IRS May 8, 2025)
- Added Form 990-PF for fiscal year 2025 (received by the IRS April 30, 2026)
- IRS filings on file for fiscal years 2019–2024
Live grants for the work Southern Foundation Inc funds
Philanthropy, Voluntarism & Grantmaking Open opportunities, soonest deadline first.
Explore Open Grants
Browse active grant opportunities in Southern Foundation Inc's focus areas in our free grants database
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Cite this profile
Grantable. (2026). Southern Foundation Inc funder profile. GrantGraph. Retrieved October 17, 2026, from https://grantable.co/funders/southern-foundation-inc-morg_9a448499a8bc4af9a7d20896f72b57ce
BibTeX
@misc{grantable_371101365_2026,
author = {{Grantable}},
title = {{Southern Foundation Inc funder profile}},
howpublished = {GrantGraph},
year = {2026},
url = {https://grantable.co/funders/southern-foundation-inc-morg_9a448499a8bc4af9a7d20896f72b57ce},
note = {Accessed 2026-10-17. Data licensed CC BY 4.0}
}The figures on this page are open data under CC BY 4.0: reuse them with credit to Grantable and a link. Download the data.
Figures come from Southern Foundation Inc's IRS filings (methodology). AI-written summaries, news items and logos are not covered by the open licence. Spot an error? Email hello@grantable.co.
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