Spire Foundation

Private foundation · Grantmaker St. Louis, MO EIN: 43-6068197
Arts and cultureEducationEnvironmentNatural resourcesPhilanthropy

Spire Foundation is a private foundation based in St. Louis, Missouri. Its 2024 filing describes its charitable activity as direct cash contributions to qualified charitable and public assistance organizations; its 2025 grants included public-assistance grants and a contribution to a university foundation.

Spire Foundation at a glance

In short: Spire Foundation gave $2.3M across 10 grants in 2025 (avg $235K), mostly in Missouri. Source: 2025 IRS Form 990-PF.

Annual giving (2025)
$2,349,334
+6.0% vs 2024
Grants made (2025)
10
+42.9% vs 2024
Average grant
$234,933
-25.8% vs 2024
Median grant
$65,000
Total assets
$5,031,960
-16.6% vs 2024
Primary geography
Missouri (99% of itemized 2025 grant dollars)
Latest 990 filing
Form 990-PF, 2025 View filing

Data from IRS Form 990-PF, 2025; updated October 2026.

How to apply to Spire Foundation

How to Apply

The 2024 filing says the foundation does not restrict giving to preselected organizations. Applicants should use the Missouri Common Grant Application forms. Organizations seeking operating support should complete the short form and provide required attachments; those seeking capital support should complete the long form and provide required attachments. Applications are limited to one request per fiscal year. The filing also says contributions will not be made if they may impair the independence of a company board member; organizations seeking capital support should not seek operating support at the same time. The foundation does not fund individuals, family support or reunions, advertising, political, labor, fraternal or religious organizations or civic clubs, sports or athletic activities, travel-related events, development or production of books, films, videos or television programs, or endowment or memorial campaigns.

Review Cycle
Applications are limited to one request per fiscal year, which the filing defines as October 1 through September 30.
Deadline
Applications are limited to one request per fiscal year, which the filing defines as October 1 through September 30.
Contact

Application contact: Spire Foundation-Grant Applications
Mailing address: 700 Market St, St Louis, MO 63101
Phone: (800) 887-4173

Application details from Grantable's research on the foundation's public materials; confirm on its website before applying.

Who Spire Foundation funds

How this funder distributes its grants

Top Recipients

Top 10 recipients in 2025

United Way - Matched Contributions: $1.3MUnited Way - MatchedContributions$1.3MUnited Way: $573KUnited Way$573KUnited Way - Dollar Help: $150KUnited Way - Dollar Help$150KCommunity Action Agency of St Louis County: $80KCommunity Action Agency of StLouis County$80KUrban League of Metro St Louis: $80KUrban League of Metro St Louis$80KEast Missouri Action Agency: $50KEast Missouri Action Agency$50KSouth Central Mo Community Action Agency: $35KSouth Central Mo CommunityAction Agency$35KNortheast Mo Community Action Corp: $35KNortheast Mo Community ActionCorp$35KJefferson Franklin Community Action Corp: $20KJefferson Franklin CommunityAction Corp$20KUniversity of Montevallo Foundation: $13KUniversity of MontevalloFoundation$13K

The largest 2025 recipient was United Way - Matched Contributions ($1.3M). Together the top 10 received $2.3M.

Grant Size Distribution

20 grants across all recorded years

7<$50K6$50–100K1$100–250K$250–500K1$500K–1M5$1–5M$5M+

The most common grant size was under $50K: 7 grants of 20 (35%).

Geographic Focus

Where this funder awards grants

In 2025, 99% of grant dollars went to recipients in Missouri and 1% to a recipient in Alabama. The listed grants that year went mainly to Missouri organizations, with one grant to the University of Montevallo Foundation in Alabama.

Grant Distribution by State

2states

Share of 2025 grant dollars across all 10 itemized grants.

Cities

St. LouisBowling GreenHillsboroPark HillsWinonaMontevallo

How Spire Foundation gives

  • 70% of 2025 grantees were also funded in 2024. Method
  • Giving grew 55% from 2022 to 2025. Method
  • In 2025 it paid out 659% of its IRS minimum distribution (the 5% rule). Method

Estimate from itemized grant lists in IRS Form 990-PF filings (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

$0$1M$2M$3M1 grant2020 1 grant2021 1 grant2022 1 grant2023 7 grants2024 10 grants2025

From 2020 to 2025, annual grant giving ranged from $1.2M (2021) to $2.3M (2025). In 2025 it made 10 grants totaling $2.3M.

Grants by year

Grant recipients and amounts by year

RecipientPurposeAmount
United Way - Matched Contributions St. Louis, MOPublic Assistance Programs$1,313,528
United Way St. Louis, MOPublic Assistance Program$573,306
United Way - Dollar Help St. Louis, MOPublic Assistance Programs$150,000
Community Action Agency of St Louis County St. Louis, MOPublic Assistance Program$80,000
Urban League of Metro St Louis St. Louis, MOPublic Assistance Program$80,000
East Missouri Action Agency Park Hills, MOPublic Assistance Program$50,000
South Central Mo Community Action Agency Winona, MOPublic Assistance Program$35,000
Northeast Mo Community Action Corp Bowling Green, MOPublic Assistance Program$35,000
Jefferson Franklin Community Action Corp Hillsboro, MOP.O. BOX 920$20,000
University of Montevallo Foundation Montevallo, ALSupport mission of the university - including granting scholarships, program management, and providing academic support$12,500
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Financial History

Multi-year comparison from IRS filings

Figures from IRS filings, by filing year
Filing yearTotal AssetsRevenueExpensesGrants paidGrantsQualifying DistributionsNet Investment IncomeDistributable Amount
2025$5,031,960$1,004,676$2,380,913$2,349,33410$2,349,334$984,176$356,720
2024$6,034,335$1,469,602$2,228,154$2,216,3067$2,216,306$1,469,602$404,057
2023$7,963,841$780,426$1,625,230$1,615,2301$1,615,230$780,426$464,093
2022$9,134,714$934,542$1,523,292$1,516,0921$1,516,092$934,542$548,033
2021$4,964,033$686,670$1,241,868$1,235,4371—$686,670$386,652
2020$5,350,381$643,152$1,607,297$1,606,7701—$643,152$399,604

Under IRS private-foundation payout rules, Spire Foundation reported a distributable amount of $357K 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 separate mission statement for the foundation is provided. In its 2024 filing, the foundation said its primary charitable activity was making direct cash contributions to qualified charitable and public assistance organizations.

Grantee descriptions illustrate the kinds of organizations it supported in 2025. East Missouri Action Agency said its mission is to leverage community resources to help individuals reach their highest potential. Jefferson Franklin Community Action said it serves individuals and families through partnerships, empowerment, and education to strengthen the community. The University of Montevallo Foundation said it advances the university’s educational, instructional, service, charitable, and outreach activities.

Grantmaking

In 2025, the foundation reported 10 grants totaling $2,349,334. Grant amounts ranged from $12,500 to $1,313,528, with a median of $65,000.

The largest reported awards included $1,313,528 to United Way – Matched Contributions, $573,306 to United Way, and $150,000 to United Way – Dollar Help, each for public-assistance programs. Other grants included $80,000 each to Community Action Agency of St. Louis County and Urban League of Metro St. Louis, and $50,000 to East Missouri Action Agency. The University of Montevallo Foundation received $12,500 for support of the university’s mission, including scholarships, program management, and academic support.

Leadership & Key People

Leadership team and compensation from IRS filings

The 2025 filing lists M Aplington, S Doyle, J Hampton, S Mills, C Vomund, A Woodard, and D Popielski as trustees.

Spire Foundation's 2025 filing lists 7 officers; none of the 7 officers listed in 2025 report compensation.

Officers on the 2025 filing

  • A. Woodard

    Trustee

    Treasurer & Trustee → Trustee, 2021

    On filings since 2020

    No compensation reported

  • J. Hampton

    Trustee

    On filings since 2020

    No compensation reported

  • C. Vomund

    Trustee

    On filings since 2022

    No compensation reported

  • M. Aplington

    Trustee

    On filings since 2022

    No compensation reported

  • S. Doyle

    Trustee

    On filings since 2022

    No compensation reported

  • S. Mills

    Trustee

    On filings since 2022

    No compensation reported

  • D. Popielski

    Trustee

    New on the 2025 filing

    No compensation reported

Former officers (6)
  • Former: B. Lalov (2024) — Trustee
  • Former: J. Willingham (2020–2023) — Trustee
  • Former: E Theroff (2020–2021) — Trustee
  • Former: M Darrell (2020–2021) — Trustee
  • Former: S Carter (2020–2021) — Trustee
  • Former: S Lindsey (2020–2021) — Trustee

Data from IRS Form 990 filings, 2020–2025. "On filings since" is the earliest filing we hold that lists the person; hours are average hours per week as reported.

Frequently asked questions about Spire Foundation

How much does Spire Foundation give each year?

Spire Foundation gave $2.3M across 10 grants in 2025, according to its 2025 IRS Form 990-PF. In 2024 it gave $2.2M across 7 grants.

What is Spire Foundation's typical grant size?

Spire Foundation's median grant in 2025 was $65,000, and its average grant was $234,933, across 10 grants on its 2025 IRS Form 990-PF.

Where does Spire Foundation give grants?

Spire Foundation gives mostly in Missouri: 99% of the grant dollars itemized on its 2025 IRS Form 990-PF went to recipients there. The most frequent recipient cities were St. Louis, MO (5 grants).

Does Spire Foundation give general operating support?

Not in 2025: none of the 10 grants with a stated purpose on Spire Foundation's 2025 IRS Form 990-PF were described as general or operating support. Recurring purposes include "Public Assistance Program" (6 grants).

Who are Spire Foundation's largest grantees?

Spire Foundation's largest 2025 grantees include United Way - Matched Contributions ($1,313,528), United Way ($573,306) and United Way - Dollar Help ($150,000), according to its 2025 IRS Form 990-PF. Together they received 87% of its itemized 2025 grant dollars.

How large is Spire Foundation?

Spire Foundation reported $5.0M in total assets on its 2025 IRS Form 990-PF. It paid out $2.3M in qualifying distributions that year, against a required minimum of $357K (roughly 5% of its investment assets).

What does Spire Foundation fund?

No separate mission statement for the foundation is provided. In its 2024 filing, the foundation said its primary charitable activity was making direct cash contributions to qualified charitable and public assistance organizations. See mission & focus areas ↑

How do I apply for a grant from Spire Foundation?

The 2024 filing says the foundation does not restrict giving to preselected organizations. Eligibility and process details are in the grantmaking section of this profile. See how to apply ↑

What is Spire Foundation's EIN?

Spire Foundation's EIN (Employer Identification Number) is 43-6068197. IRS Form 990 filing data is available on this page for 2020–2025.

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

Data update history

(7)

When this profile's IRS filing data changed on Grantable

  1. Updated Form 990-PF for fiscal year 2020 (received by the IRS September 17, 2021)
  2. Updated Form 990-PF for fiscal year 2021 (received by the IRS February 17, 2023)
  3. Updated Form 990-PF for fiscal year 2022 (received by the IRS March 21, 2024)
  4. Updated Form 990-PF for fiscal year 2023 (received by the IRS March 21, 2024)
  5. Updated Form 990-PF for fiscal year 2024 (received by the IRS August 15, 2025)
  6. Added Form 990-PF for fiscal year 2025 (received by the IRS August 14, 2026)
  7. IRS filings on file for fiscal years 2020–2024

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Cite this profile

Grantable. (2026). Spire Foundation funder profile. GrantGraph. Retrieved October 12, 2026, from https://grantable.co/funders/spire-foundation-morg_297d0fa698384d59af810ddcb3be68b0

BibTeX
@misc{grantable_436068197_2026,
  author       = {{Grantable}},
  title        = {{Spire Foundation funder profile}},
  howpublished = {GrantGraph},
  year         = {2026},
  url          = {https://grantable.co/funders/spire-foundation-morg_297d0fa698384d59af810ddcb3be68b0},
  note         = {Accessed 2026-10-12. 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 Spire Foundation'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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