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Anne & Gene Worrell Foundation

Annual Giving
$8.5M
Grant Range
$3K - $0.8M

Anne & Gene Worrell Foundation (formerly The Genan Foundation)

Quick Stats

  • Annual Giving: $8,532,563 (2024)
  • Total Assets: $179 million
  • Decision Time: Varies by initiative
  • Grant Range: $2,600 - $750,000
  • Geographic Focus: Southwest Virginia, Greater Charlottesville Area, and Surry County, Virginia
  • Application Method: Invitation only (no unsolicited proposals)

Contact Details

Address: 120 S. Garrett Street, Suite 101, Charlottesville, VA 22902
Phone: (434) 218-4130
Email: info@agworrellfoundation.org
Website: https://www.agworrellfoundation.org

Overview

The Anne & Gene Worrell Foundation, originally established in 1986 as the Genan Foundation, honors the philanthropic legacy of Anne and Gene Worrell, founders of Worrell Newspapers. Following Anne Worrell's death in 2019, her estate contributed additional assets and established the foundation's Board of Directors with a time-limited mandate of 35 years. This spend-down approach means the foundation will distribute all its assets by 2054. The foundation was renamed in 2023 to honor its founders, who built their newspaper empire from a single Bristol, Virginia publication in 1949 into one of the largest chains of small dailies in the country, eventually controlling about 70 daily and weekly newspapers. As first-generation college students, the Worrells were passionate about access to higher education and believed in preserving cultural heritage and natural assets in the regions they called home. In 2024, the foundation awarded 100 grants totaling over $8.5 million across 90 grantees, with a new strategic focus on three Virginia regions.

Funding Priorities

Geographic Focus

The foundation concentrates grantmaking in three specific Virginia regions:

  • Greater Charlottesville Area: Charlottesville and Albemarle County, plus Fluvanna, Greene, Louisa, Nelson, and Orange counties (59 grants totaling $2,920,102 in 2024)
  • Southwest Virginia: Cities of Bristol and Norton, plus Buchanan, Dickenson, Grayson, Lee, Russell, Scott, Smyth, Tazewell, Washington, and Wise counties (32 grants totaling $3,975,561 in 2024)
  • Surry County: Limited to specific initiatives only (5 grants totaling $601,900 in 2024)

Three Primary Grantmaking Priorities

1. Economic Mobility & Well-Being

Supporting programs that assist people experiencing poverty and expand economic opportunities through:

  • Education: High-quality early childhood care and education, K-12 support programs, and community college access
  • Health: Mental and behavioral health services, community medical and dental care, and food access initiatives
  • Housing: Home retention initiatives and construction of community facilities (childcare centers, healthcare facilities) connected to housing developments
  • Workforce & Entrepreneurship: Job training programs for high-wage employment and small business development

Recent grants include $637,355 to Southwest Virginia Community College for the Great Expectations Program and Honors Program, and $1.5 million to a Regional Workforce and Child Development Hub.

2. Preserving Natural Assets

Protecting ecosystems while providing community benefits through:

  • Conservation of species and responsible land management
  • Sustainable energy initiatives
  • Outdoor recreation access and green urban spaces
  • River conservation and strengthening community relationships with waterways

Recent grants include a three-year, $375,000 commitment to The Nature Conservancy's Cumberland Forest Community Fund, $350,000 for the Clinch Mountain Forest Conservation Corridor program, and $30,000 to the Wildlife Center of Virginia for raptor rehabilitation pens.

3. Family Legacy

Honoring the Worrells' commitment to preserving place identity and what makes communities unique:

  • Historic preservation and adaptive reuse projects
  • Community-based arts organizations
  • Local news organizations filling information gaps

Recent grants include a five-year, $640,000 commitment to support a regional humanities center at UVA Wise, and support for Thomas Jefferson's Poplar Forest (which Anne Worrell helped acquire and restore in the 1980s).

Recent Major Grants (2024)

  • $750,000 to Miller Center Foundation (Obama Oral History project)
  • $500,000 to Appalachian Sustainable Development
  • $500,000 to Blue Ridge Public Television
  • $250,000 to Piedmont Housing Alliance
  • $250,000 to PVCC Educational Foundation
  • $250,000 to Mountain Empire Community College

Governance and Leadership

Board of Directors

  • Phillip C. Stone, Chair
  • Shannon Worrell, Vice-Chair
  • R. Marshall Merriman, Jr., Board Member
  • Meghan R. Murray, Board Member
  • Thomas S. Word Jr., Board Member
  • Zack Worrell, Board Member

Staff

  • Holly Hatcher, President & CEO
  • Daniel Grizzard, Resource & Relationship Partner; Secretary
  • Kirby Reed, Controller; Treasurer
  • Amy Marlow, Executive Operations Manager

Grants Committee

  • Shannon Worrell
  • Daniel Fairley II
  • R. Marshall Merriman, Jr.
  • Meghan R. Murray
  • Idalina Williams

Quotes from Leadership:

Holly Hatcher, President & CEO: "We're excited to see how Southwest Virginians use their creativity and entrepreneurial skills to leverage the region's glorious natural assets so that Appalachia and its people can thrive."

Holly Hatcher on the foundation's values: "Integral to a healthy region is maintaining a sense of place and preserving what makes a community unique. For the Worrells this included preserving cultural heritage, history, the arts, and traditional knowledge."

Shannon Worrell, Vice-Chair, on the founders: "Anne and Gene were individuals who believed in educational opportunities for all."

Application Process & Timeline

How to Apply

The foundation does not accept unsolicited proposals. Instead, a dedicated team of professionals works with the Grants Committee to identify potential grantees whose work aligns with the foundation's priorities and demonstrates strong organizational capacity.

Organizations interested in the foundation's support should contact the foundation to inquire about grant eligibility:

Getting on Their Radar

While the foundation does not have a public application process, they emphasize partnership as fundamental to their approach. The foundation states: "We recognize that communities and organizations delivering solutions are the experts, and partnership is core to our work."

The foundation is an active member of the Virginia Funders Network and Appalachia Funders Network, which provides networking opportunities within Virginia's philanthropic community.

Cumberland Forest Community Fund: Organizations in Southwest Virginia working on nature-based economic and community development projects may apply through the Cumberland Forest Community Fund, a partnership between The Nature Conservancy, the Cumberland Forest Limited Partnership, and UVA Wise. This fund is supported by the Anne & Gene Worrell Foundation and operates through a competitive grant process led by UVA Wise for seven Southwest Virginia counties.

Decision Timeline

The foundation does not publish specific decision timelines. Given that they identify and invite grantees rather than accept unsolicited proposals, timelines vary based on the initiative and relationship development.

2024 Grantmaking Statistics

  • Total Grants: 100
  • Total Grantees: 90 (indicating some organizations received multiple grants)
  • Total Funding: $8,532,563
  • Grant Range: $2,605 to $750,000

Application Success Factors

Since the foundation does not accept unsolicited applications, success depends on alignment with the foundation's proactive grantmaking strategy rather than application quality. However, the foundation's approach offers important insights:

Organizational Capacity is Critical: The foundation explicitly seeks organizations that "demonstrate strong organizational capacity," suggesting they look for well-managed nonprofits with track records of successful program delivery.

Regional Alignment: Geographic focus is non-negotiable. Organizations must operate in one of the three priority regions: Greater Charlottesville Area, Southwest Virginia, or Surry County.

Mission Alignment: The foundation's website states they support "initiatives and organizations that align with our mission to cultivate resilient communities and ecosystems." Organizations should demonstrate clear connections to:

  • Economic mobility and well-being
  • Preserving natural assets
  • Family legacy (historic preservation, arts, local news)

Partnership Approach: The foundation emphasizes that "communities and organizations delivering solutions are the experts, and partnership is core to our work." This suggests they value collaborative relationships and may provide support beyond funding, including "connections, capacity building, and communication support."

Multi-Year Commitments: Recent examples show the foundation making multi-year commitments (three-year and five-year grants), indicating they invest in long-term relationships with grantees rather than one-off funding.

Higher Education Focus: Given the Worrells' backgrounds as first-generation college students, organizations connected to community colleges and access to higher education appear particularly aligned with the foundation's values.

Examples of Recently Funded Projects:

  • UVA Wise student scholarships and regional leadership initiatives
  • Southwest Virginia Community College's Great Expectations Program for students from foster care backgrounds
  • Cumberland Forest Community Fund supporting nature-based economic development
  • Regional humanities center preserving Southwest Virginia's cultural heritage
  • Workforce development and childcare initiatives supporting economic mobility

Key Takeaways for Grant Writers

  • Don't submit unsolicited proposals – The foundation proactively identifies and invites grantees. Instead, make initial contact to inquire about eligibility and express interest in partnership.

  • Geographic focus is strict – Your organization must operate in Greater Charlottesville Area, Southwest Virginia (specific counties listed), or Surry County, Virginia.

  • Demonstrate organizational capacity – The foundation seeks established organizations with strong management and track records, not startup or high-risk ventures.

  • Think partnership, not transactions – The foundation emphasizes collaborative relationships and may offer support beyond funding, including capacity building and connections.

  • Multi-year commitments are possible – Recent grants include three-year and five-year commitments, suggesting opportunities for sustained partnerships with aligned organizations.

  • Time-limited spend-down creates urgency – With a 35-year sunset (ending in 2054), the foundation is actively deploying significant resources and increased grantmaking in recent years.

  • Community college access is a sweet spot – Given the founders' backgrounds and stated priorities, programs supporting access to community colleges and workforce development align strongly with the foundation's values.

References

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