F. M. Kirby Foundation

The F. M. Kirby Foundation is a family foundation that aims to effectively manage and utilize that which has been entrusted to it over multiple generations of the Kirby family, investing in opportunities that foster self-reliance and create strong, healthy communities. Established in 1931 by Fred Morgan Kirby, it supports a wide array of education, health, environmental, arts, religious, public affairs, and human services organizations. Its stated areas of interest include arts, culture and humanities, education, environment, health, human services, and public affairs. In 2025, the Foundation approved $17.1 million in grants.

Fred Morgan Kirby, a five-and-dime merchant, opened his first store in Wilkes-Barre, PA, in 1887. He merged his business with Frank Woolworth's in 1912, bringing 94 stores to the merger and becoming one of the founders of the F.W. Woolworth Company. The F. M. Kirby Foundation was endowed by Fred Morgan Kirby in 1931 and funded with approximately nine million dollars with the intention of continuing in perpetuity through generations of the family. The Foundation's earliest grants were to hospitals, churches, and schools of significant importance to F. M. Kirby and his family. Fred Morgan Kirby served as president of the Foundation until 1940, at which point his son, Allan P. Kirby, succeeded his father as president. In 1967, Allan's son, Fred M. Kirby II, assumed leadership; through careful management of assets, he greatly enlarged the Foundation's endowment and stature in the communities served over the course of forty years. Fred M. Kirby II passed away on February 8, 2011, and his son, S. Dillard Kirby, succeeded him as President in April, 2010. In 2015, an initiative referred to as the "Kirby Alliance" resulted in the allocation of approximately one third of the Foundation's corpus.

A family foundation making thoughtful and prudent philanthropic commitments to highly selective grantee partners.

1. 1Home - F. M. Kirby Foundationfmkirbyfoundation.org
2. 2History - F. M. Kirby Foundationfmkirbyfoundation.org
3. 3About the Foundation - F. M. Kirby Foundationfmkirbyfoundation.org
4. 4Educating for the Future: Partners Teaching the Next Generations About Nature - F. M. Kirby Foundationfmkirbyfoundation.org
5. 5F. M. Kirby Foundationwikidata.org