About Us
Our Geographic Focus
Our grantmaking is deeply rooted in East Central Illinois, the original service area of Illinois Consolidated Telephone (ICTC), the company founded by the Lumpkin family in 1894. We also support organizations in Chicago and national organizations whose efforts align with our core focus on promoting health and wellness through sustainable food systems, mental health initiatives, and regenerative agriculture.
Our Mission & Vision
The Lumpkin Family Foundation is guided by the vision of a Healthy, Sustainable World.
We activate progress toward this vision through our mission, "Supporting people working together to build healthy, sustainable communities in East Central Illinois and across the U.S."
Our Values
We value family, and we enjoy working together to improve lives.
We value our roots in East Central Illinois as a lens through which we see the broader world in which we’re engaged.
We value trusting relationships that arise from being open, transparent, and accountable.
We strive to be a learning organization.
We accept our responsibility to care for the earth.
We value and commit to employing just and equitable practices in our process and programs.
Who We Are
The Lumpkin Family Foundation is a private, family foundation created in 1953 from the estate of Besse A. Lumpkin of Mattoon, Illinois.
We are a multi-generational organization whose programs reflect the collective aspirations of a diverse family living in communities across the country. We make grants and conduct programs that support people working together to build healthy, sustainable communities in East Central Illinois and beyond. After 70 years, members of the Lumpkin family continue to support the Foundation’s work, serving alongside members of the larger community on committees and the Board of Trustees.
We appreciate the special needs of the mostly small and rural communities where we work, and we do our best to leverage additional resources and enhance local philanthropy.
We strive to be a learning organization. We believe in action, evaluation and continuous improvement. Much of our grant-making supports collaboration and networks which support learning, develop understanding of issues, and encourage work across organizations and sectors.
