Frances P. Bunnelle Foundation

What Frances P. Bunnelle Foundation does

The Frances P. Bunnelle Foundation is a private charitable foundation established in 2000 and headquartered in Pawleys Island, South Carolina. It operates exclusively as a community-rooted grantmaker for Georgetown County, SC, distributing capital across five mission areas: meeting basic human needs, addressing root causes of poverty, encouraging positive youth development, preserving the environment, and promoting economic vitality. Its core products are grant programs — Grants for the Common Good (up to $15,000, two annual cycles), Mini Grants (up to $5,000), Youth Board Grants (up to $2,500, awarded by high school students), and Sustaining Grants (multi-year, by invitation) — complemented by community programs including Palmetto Giving Day (a 36-hour online giving event), The Bunnelle Center (free meeting space for nonprofits), Common Issues/Common Threads training, and Cradle-to-Career workforce pipelines such as Pathways to Possibilities and the Georgetown RISE internship program with Coastal Carolina University.

The Foundation's revenue model is endowment-based rather than transactional: it does not sell products or services, and all funding is distributed as grants to nonprofit organizations serving Georgetown County. Grantmaking has run at approximately $1.9–2.0 million annually across roughly 110–115 organizations in each of the last three years, with cumulative deployed capital exceeding $40 million since inception. Distribution is managed through an online Grant Portal with structured eligibility assessment, Letter of Intent, full application, and site visit stages evaluated by staff and a community-based Allocations Committee. The organization operates with 1–10 employees and is led by Executive Director Ashley Nelson, who assumed the role in 2025 following a leadership transition.

Name

Frances P. Bunnelle Foundation

Legal name

Frances P. Bunnelle Foundation

Website

https://bunnelle.org

Company type

Private

Founded year

2000

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

1–10 employees

Short description

The Frances P. Bunnelle Foundation is a Pawleys Island, SC-based private charitable foundation established in 2000 that grants approximately $2 million annually to nonprofits across five mission areas in Georgetown County, South Carolina.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Philanthropic Foundation / Community Grantmaking

NAICS

Grantmaking Foundations (813211)

SIC

Services-Membership Organizations (8600)

akta.pro primary industry

Private Foundations (BPAGAKAA)

akta.pro secondary industry

Community Foundations (BPAGAKAB)

Keywords

• Community grantmaking
• Nonprofit foundation
• Capacity building training
• Youth development programs
• Philanthropic funding

Headquarters

HQ city

Pawleys Island

HQ country

United States

HQ region

North America

Offices1 record

Markets served

GTM type

B2B

Offering type

Services

Cost components

Operations, Personnel, Others, Marketing or Sales

Distribution channels1 record

Marketing channels5 records

Core offering

The Frances P. Bunnelle Foundation is a private charitable foundation that makes competitive and invitation-based grants to nonprofit organizations serving Georgetown County, South Carolina, across five mission areas: meeting basic human needs, addressing root causes of poverty, encouraging positive youth development, preserving the environment, and promoting economic vitality. Beyond direct grantmaking, the Foundation operates community programs including Palmetto Giving Day (an annual online giving event), free meeting space at The Bunnelle Center, quarterly nonprofit training, a youth-led grantmaking board, and career and internship programs for local students.

Product overview

Frances P. Bunnelle Foundation is a charitable grantmaking foundation established in 2000, offering a portfolio of grant programs and community initiatives focused on improving lives in Georgetown County, South Carolina. The Foundation's core offerings include: Grants for the Common Good (competitive two-cycle annual grants up to $15,000), Mini Grants (quick-turnaround grants up to $5,000), Youth Board Grants (up to $2,500 awarded by high school students), and Sustaining Grants (multi-year by-invitation grants). Beyond direct grantmaking, the Foundation provides community programs including Palmetto Giving Day (36-hour online giving events), The Bunnelle Center (free meeting space for nonprofits), Common Issues/Common Threads (quarterly nonprofit training), Pathways to Possibilities (career expo for 8th graders), Georgetown RISE Internship Program, and a Youth Board for student leadership development. The Foundation also maintains an online Nonprofit Directory and Grant Portal for applicant management. Total grants invested exceed $40M since inception.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Products and services

• Grants for the Common Good Competitive grant program offering up to $15,000 in two annual cycles (Spring and Fall) for general operating or special project support to Georgetown County nonprofits across the Foundation's focus areas.
• Mini Grants Small grant program offering up to $5,000 with quick turn-around for special projects in Georgetown County nonprofits across all five focus areas.
• Youth Board Grants Grant program up to $2,500 reviewed and awarded by Georgetown County high school students for community-based projects strengthening the county.
• Sustaining Grants Multi-year grant funding program for nonprofit organizations with long-standing relationships with the Foundation, providing three-year non-competitive grants for general operating support, available by invitation only.
• Palmetto Giving Day Annual 36-hour online giving event uniting the community in support of local nonprofits, featuring matching gifts and challenges to amplify donations for Georgetown County organizations.
• The Bunnelle Center Meeting space available at no charge to nonprofits serving Georgetown County, featuring the Community Room (capacity 30) and Peace Room (capacity 12) at 95 Centermarsh Lane, Pawleys Island, SC.
• Common Issues/Common Threads (CICT) Quarterly lunch-and-learn training sessions for Georgetown County nonprofits covering topics such as management skills, fundraising trends, communication, governance, and philanthropy.
• Pathways to Possibilities Career expo for 8th graders connecting students with regional employers to explore career pathways and educational requirements.
• Georgetown RISE Internship Program Internship program in partnership with Coastal Carolina University placing Spring and Summer interns in Georgetown County businesses to support workforce development.
• Bunnelle Youth Board Youth board of Georgetown County high school Juniors and Seniors serving two-year terms, learning leadership through philanthropy and awarding Youth Board Grants.
• Grant Portal Online platform for grant applications, reporting, and grant history access for current and potential applicants, current grantees, and Grants Allocation Committee members.

Quantifiable outcome

• Over $40M invested in Georgetown County since 2000
• +3 more outcomes

Segments5 records

Ideal customer profiles1 record

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Partnerships

Five partnerships are on record, tiered core, secondary and minor.

• Marlanda Dekine and Scott Neely (Diversity, Equity, Inclusion & Belonging)coreStrategic or Co-development Partner · 1 January 2024The Foundation engaged Georgetown County native Marlanda Dekine and colleague Scott Neely to strengthen work in the diversity, equity, inclusion, and belonging space. These conversations, hosted throughout the county, bring awareness to issues prevalent in the community across a variety of topics, with learning focused on how a more equitable community benefits everyone.
• The Weathers GroupsecondaryStrategic or Co-development Partner · 1 January 2022Engaged for a second year to teach an online series for community leaders entitled Leading and Engaging Across Differences (L.E.A.D.) - an online series focused on building leadership capacity across differences in the Georgetown County community.
• Palmetto Giving Day Participating NonprofitscoreStrategic or Co-development Partner · 1 January 2022Palmetto Giving Day is an online giving event that unites the community in support of local nonprofits. For 36 hours the Foundation engages donors, businesses, and organizations to amplify impact for Georgetown County nonprofits. 83 nonprofits participated in 2024, collectively raising over $4.1M.
• Coastal Carolina UniversitycoreStrategic or Co-development Partner · 1 January 2017Partnership established in 2017 to support the Georgetown RISE internship program. Coastal Carolina University students serve as Spring and Summer interns working in Georgetown County businesses. The Foundation provides funding and administrative support for this workforce development initiative, with record numbers of interns participating annually.
• Saint Frances Animal CenterminorOthersDesignated as Mrs. Bunnelle's 'favorite charity' and receives an annual gift as requested. Provides animal sheltering services for Georgetown city and county, sheltering more than 1,300 homeless, abused, or neglected cats and dogs annually, plus a low-cost public veterinary clinic.

Scale indicators8 records

Recent moves7 records

Expansion highlights4 records

Direct peers

• Blue Ridge Community Foundation: Western North Carolina community foundation providing competitive grants, scholarships, and capacity-building support to nonprofits in a defined geographic region. Strongly comparable place-based grantmaking model.
• Foundation For The Carolinas: One of the largest community foundations in the Carolinas, with multi-county grantmaking, scholarship administration, and nonprofit capacity building. Highly comparable in model and mission scope, though at substantially larger scale.
• Erie Community Foundation: A community foundation serving a defined geographic region (Erie County, PA) with competitive grants, scholarships, and donor services. Comparable as a place-based private foundation with similar grant cycle and nonprofit capacity support.
• Coastal Community Foundation of South Carolina: A regional community foundation serving the South Carolina Lowcountry (adjacent to Georgetown County), distributing grants across focus areas including education, health, environment, and economic vitality. Directly comparable as a place-based community foundation using grants, donor-advised funds, and capacity building.
• Central Carolina Community Foundation: Columbia, SC-based community foundation with competitive grant cycles, scholarship programs, and place-based community development. Comparable as a multi-county SC community foundation with similar grant program structure.
• Spartanburg County Foundation: A South Carolina county-based community foundation that distributes competitive grants, manages endowments, and funds nonprofits across basic needs, education, and economic mobility. Closely matches Bunnelle's county-restricted grantmaking model.

Broad incumbents

• The Duke Endowment: A large private foundation (est. 1924) operating across North and South Carolina, funding child care, education, health, and rural communities. Comparable as a SC-focused private foundation with multi-decade endowment and broad mission coverage.

Regional players

• Hollingsworth Funds: A family of South Carolina-focused funds (Greenville) addressing community needs through grantmaking and leadership development. Operates in the same state with overlapping focus areas including youth and economic opportunity.

Market position

Strengths4 records

Weaknesses4 records

Competitive moat4 records

Key risks5 records

Key highlights6 records

Customer concentration

• Facebookfacebook.com/FrancesPBunnelleFoundation
• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/frances-p-bunnelle-foundation

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles2 records

Funding overview

Funding rounds

Investors

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M&A

Investments

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Frequently asked questions about Frances P. Bunnelle Foundation