The Tucker Foundation
At a glance
Key takeaways
- The foundation's stated aims are young people's development and conservation of the natural environment, so a request should show how the work serves one or both.
- Its filing names Hamilton and Bradley Counties of East Tennessee and Atlanta, Georgia as priorities, and says these locations are not exclusive, so a group elsewhere may still be worth a short enquiry.
- About 8 in 10 grants fall between $2,000 and $91,000, with a median of $10,000, which is a typical band rather than a limit, so a modest request in that region fits well.
- Repeat funding is a real part of its giving, with 38% of grant dollars to organisations going to groups it had funded in earlier filings, and the filing gives no deadlines and requires no specified format, so a short letter is the simplest route in.
Overview
The Tucker Foundation is a US private foundation based in Ooltewah, TN.
What they fund
Profile derived from the foundation's IRS Form 990-PF filings (TY2024, TY2023, TY2022) and its website, with every statement checked against those sources. Sources read on 7 October 2026.
Priority Areas
The Tucker Foundation provides financial support to non-profit organisations working to develop in young people the character and skills needed to live productive and happy lives, and to organisations that conserve essential elements of the natural environment. These stated aims are reflected in grants to schools and youth-support organisations, conservation and land-protection work, social services, arts and cultural organisations, museums and food-access programmes. Grants are generally focused in Hamilton and Bradley Counties of East Tennessee and Atlanta, Georgia, though the foundation states that these are not exclusive locations. Its giving therefore supports both young people's development and the long-term conservation of the natural environment.
Themes
- Young people's development
- Natural environment conservation
Geographic Focus
Priority: Hamilton and Bradley Counties of East Tennessee; Atlanta, Georgia.
How to apply
No specified format is required.
Application success factors
- Repeat giving: In its TY2024 filing, 38% of its grant dollars to organisations went to organisations it had also funded in its TY2022 or TY2023 filing.
- Grant size: Across its TY2022, TY2023 and TY2024 filings, half of its 248 grants to organisations were $10,000 or less.
Where grants go
From grants to organisations in the foundation’s filings for tax years 2022–2024.
Grant dollars by state
6 other states: <1%
- The largest single recipient received 22% of grant dollars to organisations.
- In tax year 2024, 38% of grant dollars went to organisations The Tucker Foundation had funded in earlier filings.
- No grants were paid directly to organisations outside the US.
- 42% of grant dollars went to intermediaries that regrant to other organisations.
Grants
How much do they typically give?
Share of 83 grants in tax year 2024 by size
Median $10,000 (tax year 2024)
The largest grants to organisations in the foundation’s latest filing:
- Community Foundation of Greater Chattanooga · The tucker fund$2,497,6002024 tax year
- Ut Foundation · Wildwood farm fund$200,0002024 tax year
- On Point · General support - increasing social-emotional health and academic support for hamilton county youth of great promise$192,5502024 tax year
- The Nature Conservancy of Tennessee · Acquisitions for the ocoee gateway and the pain rock river national wildlife refuge$186,0002024 tax year
- Lee University · General support - string theory season xvi (2024-25)$150,0002024 tax year
- Doubleday Sports Complex · General support - doubleday sports complex$125,0002024 tax year
- Lookout Mountain Conservancy · General support - howard school$91,0002024 tax year
- Buffalo Bill Center Of West · Internship program, summer 2024$75,6242024 tax year
Grants to organisations listed in the foundation’s Form 990-PF filings. Grants to individuals are not shown.
Officers and directors
- Matthew D Bentley — Trustee
- Amy Moore — Vice President
- Katherine Tudor — Trustee
- Robert T Johnston — Trustee
- Gillian E Johnston — Trustee
- David Y Smith — President
- Lavinia J Johnston — Trustee
- Pamela K Cuzzort — Secretary / Treasurer
From the latest Form 990-PF filing
3 years of tax filings
| Year | Total expenses | Grants paid | Assets | Filing document |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2022 tax year | $5,167,375 | $4,326,542 | $92,427,651 | Filing for 2022 tax year |
| 2023 tax year | $5,370,811 | $4,500,951 | $120,565,950 | Filing for 2023 tax year |
| 2024 tax year | $5,740,178 | $4,801,432 | $115,319,843 | Filing for 2024 tax year |
Figures from the foundation’s IRS Form 990-PF filings. Assets are at fair market value at year end. The document icon links to each year’s filing on ProPublica Nonprofit Explorer.
Sources
Registers and filings
Other sources
🎯 You've done the research. Now write an application they can't refuse.
Hinchilla combines funder's specific priorities with your organisation's past successful grants and AI analysis of what reviewers want to see.
Data privacy and security by default
Your organisation's past successful grants and experience
AI analysis of what reviewers want to see
A compelling draft application in 10 minutes instead of 10 hours
Spotted something that needs correcting? Let us know
At a glance
Applying to The Tucker Foundation?
Hinchilla drafts your answers around this funder's priorities, using your organisation's own documents.
No credit card required
Contact
- (423) 664-2107
- Ooltewah, TN
- thetuckerfoundation.org
Applying to The Tucker Foundation?
Hinchilla drafts your answers around this funder's priorities, using your organisation's own documents.
No credit card required
Contact
- (423) 664-2107
- Ooltewah, TN
- thetuckerfoundation.org