The Stephens Endowment
The Stephens Endowment is a private foundation based in Morganton, North Carolina. In its 2025 filing, it reported 12 grants totaling $67,000, with grants listed for operational purposes.
The Stephens Endowment at a glance
In short: The Stephens Endowment gave $67K across 12 grants in 2025 (avg $6K), mostly in North Carolina. 25% of 2025 grantees were new. Source: 2025 IRS Form 990-PF.
- Annual giving (2025)
- $67,000
- +25.8% vs 2024
- Grants made (2025)
- 12
- +50.0% vs 2024
- Average grant
- $5,583
- -16.1% vs 2024
- Median grant
- $3,500
- Total assets
- $1,213,636
- +0.7% vs 2024
- New grantees (estimate)
- 25% first-time grantees (3 of 12, 2025; small sample)
- Primary geography
- North Carolina (76% 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 The Stephens Endowment
- Accepts unsolicited proposals
- No
- How to Apply
-
The foundation makes contributions only to preselected charitable organizations and does not accept unsolicited requests for funds.
- Contact
Mailing address: 101 Riverwoods Drive, Morganton, NC 28655
Phone: (828) 205-9310
Application details from Grantable's research on the foundation's public materials; confirm on its website before applying.
Who The Stephens Endowment funds
How this funder distributes its grants
Top Recipients
Top 10 recipients in 2025
The largest 2025 recipient was Southeastern Baptist Theological Seminary ($20K). Together the top 10 received $65K.
Grant Size Distribution
39 grants across all recorded years
The most common grant size was under $50K: 39 grants of 39 (100%).
Geographic Focus
Where this funder awards grants
In 2025, 76% of grant dollars went to recipients in North Carolina, 18% to recipients in Georgia, and 6% to recipients in Texas.
Grant Distribution by State
Share of 2025 grant dollars across all 12 itemized grants.
Cities
Is The Stephens Endowment open to new grantees?
25%
first-time grantees, 2025
In 2025, 3 of 12 grantees (25%) were first-time recipients. With only 12 grantees, that is a small sample: one grantee more or less moves the share by about 8 points. First grants averaged $2K; repeat grants $7K. How we count
Medians: $1K first-time, $4K repeat.
- 67% of 2025 grantees were also funded in 2024. Method
- Giving grew 22% from 2022 to 2025. Method
- In 2025 it paid out 114% of its IRS minimum distribution (the 5% rule). Method
Estimate from itemized grant lists in IRS Form 990-PF filings (2020–2025). 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 2020 to 2025, annual grant giving ranged from $53K (2024) to $67K (2025). In 2025 it made 12 grants totaling $67K.
Grants by year
Grant recipients and amounts by year
| Recipient | Purpose | Amount |
|---|---|---|
| Southeastern Baptist Theological Seminary Wake Forest, NC | Operations | $20,000 |
| Emmanuel University Franklin Springs, GA | Operations | $12,000 |
| Summit Community Church Morganton, NC | Operations | $12,000 |
| Christ Classical Academy Morganton, NC | Operations | $5,000 |
| Burke United Christian Ministries Morganton, NC | Operations | $5,000 |
| Baptist Children's Homes of NC Thomasville, NC | Operations | $4,000 |
| Mission Dignity - Guidstone Dallas, TX | Operations | $3,000 |
| The Outreach Center Morganton, NC | Operations | $2,000 |
| Engage Hope Ministries Plano, TX | Operations | $1,000 |
| Bible Broadcasting Network Charlotte, NC | Operations | $1,000 |
Ready to take the next step with The Stephens Endowment?
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 | $1,213,636 | $72,100 | $89,952 | $67,000 | 12 | $67,000 | $58,324 | $58,536 |
| 2024 | $1,205,442 | $147,354 | $64,030 | $53,250 | 8 | $53,250 | $132,157 | $55,870 |
| 2023 | $1,066,037 | $-6,394 | $69,253 | $56,000 | 7 | $56,000 | $16,288 | $55,376 |
| 2022 | $1,141,050 | $5,290 | $72,595 | $55,000 | 9 | $55,000 | $14,231 | $62,340 |
| 2021 | $1,395,774 | $148,595 | $81,063 | $67,000 | 3 | — | $112,816 | $64,326 |
| 2020 | $1,202,095 | $17,834 | $74,044 | $59,000 | 4 | — | $15,610 | $59,953 |
Under IRS private-foundation payout rules, The Stephens Endowment reported a distributable amount of $59K 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 educational institutions, churches, and community and ministry organizations. For example, Burke United Christian Ministries describes its mission as restoring resilience for people living in poverty or experiencing homelessness; The Outreach Center says it assists disadvantaged citizens through food distribution, education, and job-skills training. These are the grantees’ stated missions, not the foundation’s.
Grantmaking
In 2025, the foundation reported 12 grants totaling $67,000. Grant amounts ranged from $1,000 to $20,000, with a median of $3,500. The largest awards were $20,000 to Southeastern Baptist Theological Seminary, $12,000 each to Emmanuel University and Summit Community Church, and $5,000 each to Christ Classical Academy and Burke United Christian Ministries. The listed purpose for each 2025 grant was operations.
Leadership & Key People
Leadership team and compensation from IRS filings
The 2025 filing lists Gerald K Stephens as president, G Kenneth Stephens as vice president, and Jean T Stephens as secretary.
The Stephens Endowment is led by Gerald K. Stephens, President on every filing since 2020; none of the 3 officers listed in 2025 report compensation.
Officers on the 2025 filing
Gerald K. Stephens
President
On filings since 2020
No compensation reported
G. Kenneth Stephens
Vice President
On filings since 2020
No compensation reported
Jean T. Stephens
Secretary
On filings since 2020
No compensation reported
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 The Stephens Endowment
How much does The Stephens Endowment give each year?
The Stephens Endowment gave $67K across 12 grants in 2025, according to its 2025 IRS Form 990-PF. In 2024 it gave $53K across 8 grants.
What is The Stephens Endowment's typical grant size?
The Stephens Endowment's median grant in 2025 was $3,500, and its average grant was $5,583, across 12 grants on its 2025 IRS Form 990-PF. Organizations receiving their first grant from The Stephens Endowment that year got $2K on average.
Where does The Stephens Endowment give grants?
The Stephens Endowment gives mostly in North Carolina: 76% of the grant dollars itemized on its 2025 IRS Form 990-PF went to recipients there. The next largest states were Georgia (18%) and Texas (6%). The most frequent recipient cities were Morganton, NC (6 grants).
Does The Stephens Endowment give general operating support?
Not in 2025: none of the 12 grants with a stated purpose on The Stephens Endowment's 2025 IRS Form 990-PF were described as general or operating support. Recurring purposes include "Operations" (12 grants).
Who are The Stephens Endowment's largest grantees?
The Stephens Endowment's largest 2025 grantees include Southeastern Baptist Theological Seminary ($20,000), Emmanuel University ($12,000) and Summit Community Church ($12,000), according to its 2025 IRS Form 990-PF. Together they received 66% of its itemized 2025 grant dollars.
How large is The Stephens Endowment?
The Stephens Endowment reported $1.2M in total assets on its 2025 IRS Form 990-PF. It paid out $67K in qualifying distributions that year, against a required minimum of $59K (roughly 5% of its investment assets).
What does The Stephens Endowment fund?
No mission statement for the foundation is provided. Its 2025 grants went to organizations including educational institutions, churches, and community and ministry organizations. See mission & focus areas ↑
How do I apply for a grant from The Stephens Endowment?
The foundation 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 The Stephens Endowment's EIN?
The Stephens Endowment's EIN (Employer Identification Number) is 56-0633355. IRS Form 990 filing data is available on this page for 2020–2025.
Does The Stephens Endowment 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
(1)
When this profile's IRS filing data changed on Grantable
- IRS filings on file for fiscal years 2020–2025
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Cite this profile
Grantable. (2026). The Stephens Endowment funder profile. GrantGraph. Retrieved October 13, 2026, from https://grantable.co/funders/the-stephens-endowment-morg_15fe62ebcf9a4161a5bf1730e3a025d3
BibTeX
@misc{grantable_560633355_2026,
author = {{Grantable}},
title = {{The Stephens Endowment funder profile}},
howpublished = {GrantGraph},
year = {2026},
url = {https://grantable.co/funders/the-stephens-endowment-morg_15fe62ebcf9a4161a5bf1730e3a025d3},
note = {Accessed 2026-10-13. 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 The Stephens Endowment'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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