Annual Report 2024
Greetings!
When 2024 came to a close, I was once again in awe of the impact of our donors at Greater Horizons. More than $676 million was deployed from charitable funds to causes across the country. The majority of grants came from donor-advised funds, which offer the most flexibility for donors to support their favorite charities.
Many of our donors continue to work with trusted professional advisors to thoughtfully set aside assets for charitable giving. We are working with more wealth advisors and family offices than ever before to oversee charitable assets with care and purpose, helping to grow long-term impact to causes in all corners of philanthropy.
Thank you to philanthropists and their advisors, our board members and advisory council members and our exceptional staff for playing one of the greatest roles: making our world a better place through charitable giving.
Debbie Wilkerson
President & CEO
Assets
Our assets are held in charitable funds established by donors with unique philanthropic goals and interests. This graphic highlights assets as of December 31, 2024, with three-fourths of our assets held in donor-advised funds.
Total Assets: $6,901,896,402
*Other may include charitable gift annuities, charitable remainder trusts, unrestricted funds and administrative funds.
Contributions
In 2024, donors contributed more than $1.2 billion to charitable investment accounts, permanently setting assets aside for philanthropy. These contributions included cash, publicly traded securities and unique assets like privately held business interests, real estate and cryptocurrency.
Total Contributions:
$1,270,265,457
Grants
Donors used their charitable funds to grant more than $676 million to their favorite causes in 2024.
Total Grants: $676,659,064
Funds
Donors established 760 new charitable funds in 2024. Most chose donor-advised funds as their preferred giving vehicle. This chart shows our total funds as of December 31, 2024.
Total Funds: 7,407
*Other may include charitable gift annuities, charitable remainder trusts, unrestricted funds and administrative funds.
Donor-Advised Funds
Donors use donor-advised funds as an investment account for their charitable dollars, setting aside money for tax-free growth to maximize donations to nonprofit organizations. Donor-advised funds allow customization to help organize your charitable giving in a way that's most meaningful to you.
Donors support their favorite charities across the country. The following map shows where donors granted in 2024.
Every year, donors give to areas that appeal most to them, and 2024 followed that trend. The largest share of our donor-advised fund grants supported nonprofit organizations working to improve education and enhance human services.
Engaging the Next Generation in Philanthropy with Donor-Advised Funds
Mark and Rebecca have been active in the community for decades, regularly volunteering their time and using their donor-advised fund to support nonprofits financially. They recognized the importance of involving their entire family, especially their grandchildren, in philanthropy early on. To encourage this, they determined that a portion of their donor-advised fund's grants would be discussed and deployed as a larger family unit, and they used family gatherings with their children and grandchildren to make decisions about which nonprofits would receive grants from their fund. Then, as each grandchild turned 25, Mark and Rebecca set them up with individual donor-advised funds. The grandchildren have since contributed their own assets to their donor-advised funds and continue to support causes that are meaningful to the family, so that their philanthropic legacy can thrive for generations.
Agency Funds
Agency funds help nonprofit organizations build long-term assets, serving as a home for reserve funds. In 2024, funds were distributed to meet immediate nonprofit organizational needs.
Agency Funds: A Sustainable Financial Solution for Charities
A treasured community museum and tourist destination wanted to ensure they were set up for long-term financial sustainability. We worked with their leaders to establish an agency fund to invest their long-term assets as an endowment. Since we handle the complexities of managing their investments, the museum staff can instead focus on elevating the museum's footprint for many years to come.
Field-of-Interest Funds
Field-of-interest funds support a specific cause or community. Many of our field-of-interest funds are set up to carry out a donor’s legacy after they pass, with an advisory committee providing oversight. We consistently work to ensure donor objectives and goals are met.
Field-of-Interest Funds Make a Focused Impact
We met three sisters who are deeply committed to helping our youngest learners thrive. They understand that this starts with investing in early childhood professionals who can build careers in the industry. We helped the sisters establish a field-of-interest fund focused on charities that support early childhood professionals. Field-of-interest funds are designed for targeted giving in a distinct area, so it was the right fit for the sisters who wanted to focus their philanthropy on this one cause. With their field-of-interest fund, the sisters are making granting decisions guided by their commitment to providing early childhood professionals with the resources they need to set up the next generation of learners for success.
Designated Funds
Designated funds support one specific charity, distributing donations to the charity over time. Designated funds are especially popular with donors who choose to make a charitable distribution from an IRA.
Strengthening Charities with Designated Funds
As a family from a rural town, the Smiths understand the challenges of traveling long distances for health care, and they were inspired to give back after a recent experience visiting a loved one in a hospital far from home. We worked with the Smiths to establish a designated fund to support a charity that provides free lodging for families near hospitals where they can stay for an extended period of time. Their designated fund offers reliable and consistent grant support that the charity can count on, and they’re helping families across their region by ensuring they have a comfortable place to stay.
Scholarship Funds
Through scholarship funds, donors provided direct assistance to more than 2,400 students during the 2024 - 2025 school year.
Donors who establish scholarship funds determine the criteria for their scholarship awards and can serve on selection committees.
Crafting a Legacy by Supporting Students
Several years ago, we worked with a retired farmer to establish a scholarship fund that would receive assets after his death. His goal was to support students with financial need who aspired to pursue a career in agriculture. The scholarship he created covers all four years of a student’s undergraduate education. After he passed away, the fund began awarding scholarships. We are now seeing students graduate and pursue careers thanks to this support. His legacy lives on through these scholars and their impact on the world around them.
Corporate Giving
We work with employers of all sizes who want to foster a corporate culture of giving. Many companies choose to set up corporate donor-advised funds to serve as their corporate foundations. Corporate donor-advised funds organize and maximize a company’s philanthropy while providing tax and budget advantages.
Total Corporate Giving in 2024:
$35,726,381
Celebrating a Corporate Milestone Anniversary with Purpose
About two decades ago, an insurance company came to us to enhance its corporate giving program. We helped the company establish a corporate donor-advised fund to receive a portion of the company’s profits, invest those charitable assets to grow, and ultimately grant the dollars to charities. The corporate donor-advised fund serves as their corporate foundation and has helped the company further its community impact, especially this past year as it celebrated its centennial anniversary. To mark the occasion, the company made large grants to charities in communities where employees live and work.
Grantmaking Services
We provided grantmaking services to foundations, businesses, and other local and national funders.
Our custom approach equips them with the tools and resources to make the impact they deem most valuable. Grantmaking clients also work with us to hone their giving strategies and engage multiple generations in their philanthropy.
Investments
Assets in charitable funds are invested and grow tax-free. Donors can customize their funds’ investments to meet their charitable goals.
In 2024, we worked with more than 880 financial advisors to manage their clients’ charitable assets.
About Our 2024 Annual Report:
Assets, funds and investments are as of December 31, 2024. Due to rounding, percentages may not total 100.
Financials are subject to change upon completion of the 2024 audit and appraisals.
Data reflects Greater Horizons and Greater Kansas City Community Foundation consolidated financials.
Fund stories referenced throughout illustrate how some donors choose to use their funds.