The R S & G B Kerr Foundation is a private family foundation based in Wilson, Wyoming. Since 1986 it has supported art and culture, the environment, education and human services — with a particular attachment to the landscape, wildlife and horses of the West.
Who we are
The R S & G B Kerr Foundation was established in 1986 and carries the names of Robert S. and Grayce B. Kerr. The family's roots run through Oklahoma; its present home is in Wilson, Wyoming, at the foot of the Tetons. Both places shape what the foundation chooses to support.
It remains what it began as: a private family foundation, governed by members of the family. There is no development office, no campaign, no annual gala. Decisions are made by people who know the organizations they support and, in most cases, have known them for years.
That structure has consequences worth stating plainly. It means the foundation can commit to an organization over a long horizon rather than a grant cycle. It also means it is small, deliberately quiet, and closed to unsolicited requests — a point covered in full further down this page.
"The work worth funding is rarely the work that shouts loudest for funding."
Directed by members of the Kerr family
Nearly four decades of continuous giving
Based in Teton County, with Oklahoma roots
Ongoing support rather than one-off grants
Areas of interest
Four broad areas, with a handful of particular attachments within them that have held steady for decades.
Museums, collections and cultural institutions — with a particular attachment to the art and culture of the American West, and to wildlife art in the region the foundation calls home.
Conservation of open land, habitat and the wildlife that depends on it — work that matters especially in a region where the landscape is both the economy and the inheritance.
Horse rescue, rehabilitation and care. A long-standing interest of the family and one of the areas where the foundation's support has been most consistent over the years.
Educational institutions and programs, alongside organizations providing direct human services to communities in the states where the foundation concentrates its giving.
Where we give
Most foundations describe their geography as a strategy. Here it is simply a matter of where the family has lived and what it knows. Oklahoma is where the story starts; Wyoming is where it continues.
A small number of grants go to organizations elsewhere, generally where a long relationship or a specific area of interest reaches beyond those two states.
The foundation's home state — conservation, wildlife art and community organizations
Where the family's roots lie — education, human services and cultural institutions
Selected organizations in other states, usually through existing relationships
We want to be clear about this at the outset, out of respect for the time of the organizations that might otherwise apply. The foundation identifies and approaches its grantees directly. It does not operate an open application process, publish deadlines, or review proposals submitted on spec.
If you represent a nonprofit organization seeking funding, a proposal sent to this address will not enter a review process, and we would rather tell you that plainly than let it sit unanswered. Foundations with open application programs are listed in public philanthropy directories, and your time is far better spent there.
The contact details on this page are for general correspondence — questions about the foundation itself, or matters relating to organizations it already supports.
How we give
Several organizations have received support year after year. A museum or a rescue operation cannot plan around a funder who leaves after two seasons, and continuity is often the most useful thing a small foundation can offer.
Because there is no application process, the work of finding grantees falls to us. That means visiting, asking, and paying attention to what people in the region are actually doing — which is slower, and considerably more reliable.
The foundation does not seek recognition for its giving and does not publicize individual grants. The organizations doing the work are the ones who should be visible, not the family that helped pay for it.
FAQ
Contact
For questions about the foundation or matters relating to organizations it already supports. Please note that unsolicited grant proposals are not reviewed.