A Good Name Foundation Inc.

A Good Name Foundation Inc. is a Cathy family private foundation — the philanthropic vehicle of the family that built Chick-fil-A — and operates as a closed, invitation-only grantmaker with no public application process. Understanding this structural reality is the starting point for any strategy: the foundation explicitly carries no application instructions and is flagged as 'preselected only' in every grantmaker database. Cold outreach or unsolicited proposals are not a viable path.

The foundation's board is exclusively composed of Cathy family members and one long-standing associate. Dan T. Cathy (President/Director), Don M. Cathy (Secretary/Director), Trudy Cathy White, Rhonda P. Cathy, and Cynthia K. Cathy serve without compensation, confirming this is a tightly held family vehicle rather than a staffed philanthropy. There is no program officer to call, no grants portal to submit to, and no publicly stated mission statement.

The foundation's entire documented grant history flows through two channels: National Christian Foundation (NCF) — the world's largest Christian grantmaker and a donor-advised fund platform — received $150.1 million across three grants, and WinShape Foundation Inc. — the Cathy family's own operating foundation — received $14.3 million in one documented grant. This pass-through structure reveals the foundation's true function: it is an investment vehicle that pools the family's philanthropic capital and routes it downstream through trusted intermediaries aligned with deeply held Christian values.

For organizations seeking alignment with this foundation's ultimate philanthropic priorities, the strategic entry point is not A Good Name Foundation itself but rather the NCF ecosystem. NCF has distributed more than $22 billion to over 90,000 charities and churches across causes including youth ministry, homelessness services, evangelism, adoption, human trafficking prevention, and disaster relief. Faith-based organizations that are registered or connected within NCF's donor-advised network stand the best chance of benefiting indirectly from A Good Name Foundation's annual $50+ million contributions to NCF.

The second channel — WinShape Foundation — operates five direct programs serving children, college students, married couples, foster families, and corporate teams. Christian-aligned organizations that can partner operationally with WinShape's ministries may find a more structured entry point there.

A Good Name Foundation's financial profile is striking in its concentration and scale. With $646.9 million in assets (2024) and $50-57 million in annual grants, the foundation ranks among the largest family foundations in Georgia and the United States. Yet virtually all of this capital flows through a single intermediary — National Christian Foundation — making the de facto grant universe for direct applicants essentially zero.

Annual giving trajectory: - 2019: $57.9M total giving ($57.2M grants paid) - 2020: $51.9M total giving ($51.7M grants paid) - 2021: $57.4M total giving ($56.7M grants paid) - 2022: $56.7M total giving ($56.0M grants paid) - 2023: $51.1M total giving ($50.3M grants paid) - 2024: $50.3M (single grant to NCF, per CauseIQ)

The five-year average annual grant payout is approximately $54.4 million, nearly all of it in a single annual transaction. The foundation's investment income of $32-35M/year covers roughly 60-65% of giving, with the remainder drawn from principal — explaining the asset decline from $750.2M (2019) to $646.9M (2024).

Grant concentration: Of the four grants documented in grantee data: - National Christian Foundation: 3 grants totaling $150.1M (average: $50.0M per grant) - WinShape Foundation Inc.: 1 grant of $14.3M - All grants originated in Georgia

Grant size range: The documented range is $14.3M (minimum, WinShape) to $56.7M (maximum, NCF). There is no evidence of small or mid-size grants — this is a bulk-transfer philanthropic model.

Revenue structure: 99%+ of revenue derives from net investment income ($32-34M/year on a ~$650-750M portfolio, implying an ~4.5-5% return). The foundation receives no meaningful outside contributions, confirming it is a self-sustaining family endowment.

The practical implication: there is no "grant program" in the traditional sense. The annual transfer to NCF is a programmatic decision by the Cathy family about how to deploy their philanthropic capital, not a competitive grant cycle.

A Good Name Foundation occupies an unusual niche in the philanthropic landscape: it is a massive private foundation ($647M) that functions as a single-purpose conduit to NCF rather than as an independent grantmaker. Its peers in terms of asset scale — the Arthur M. Blank Family Foundation and similar large Atlanta family foundations — maintain program officers, published guidelines, and open or invited application cycles. A Good Name Foundation does none of this, positioning it closer in function to a donor-advised account than a traditional private foundation, despite its legal structure. Organizations seeking Christian-focused funding in the $25K-$500K range are far better served by applying directly to NCF's grant processes than by pursuing A Good Name Foundation.

No public news, press releases, or leadership announcements from A Good Name Foundation have surfaced in 2025 or 2026 searches. The foundation maintains a deliberately low public profile consistent with its family foundation structure and closed grantmaking posture.

The most recent documented activity is a $50,328,908 grant to National Christian Foundation in 2024, continuing an unbroken pattern of single annual NCF transfers dating to at least 2022. This represents a simplification from 2019, when the foundation made 6 documented grants distributed across Georgia and Pennsylvania.

Leadership continuity: All six Cathy family board members — Dan T. Cathy, Don M. Cathy, Trudy Cathy White, Rhonda P. Cathy, Cynthia K. Cathy, and associate John W. White III — have remained unchanged across multiple IRS filing years (2021, 2022, 2023). Treasurer Brent D. Ragsdale also continues in his role. No leadership transitions have been announced.

Asset trajectory: The foundation's total assets declined from $750.2M (2019) to $646.9M (2024) — a $103M reduction over five years. This is an intentional spending pattern, as distributions consistently exceed investment returns by $15-25M annually. No public statement about this drawdown strategy has been made, but it suggests the family views the current endowment as deployable capital rather than a perpetual fund.

WinShape connection: WinShape Foundation, recipient of a $14.3M grant, continues operating its five ministries from Rome, Georgia. No new documented grants from A Good Name to WinShape appear in recent filings.

The most important tip for any organization researching A Good Name Foundation is this: do not apply. The foundation has zero staff, no application portal, no published guidelines, and is explicitly marked as 'preselected only' in grantmaker databases. Spending proposal-writing resources on this foundation is a strategic error.

The real strategy — work through National Christian Foundation: NCF is A Good Name Foundation's de facto grants distribution arm, receiving 91%+ of all documented giving. NCF operates as a donor-advised fund platform with published application processes for partner organizations. To benefit from the Cathy family's philanthropy, pursue these concrete steps:

• Register your organization with NCF at ncfgiving.com as a verified grantee partner. NCF verifies eligibility and vets mission alignment before donors can direct grants to your organization.
• Align with NCF's faith-based criteria. NCF requires faith-consistent mission statements and governance. Organizations that do not explicitly identify as Christian-mission entities are unlikely to receive NCF-directed grants.
• Use NCF's donor community. NCF has 90,000+ donors with donor-advised accounts. Relationship-building with NCF-affiliated donors — including Cathy family members and their networks — is the path to receiving NCF-routed grants.

The WinShape pathway: For organizations whose programs intersect with WinShape's five ministry areas (camps, college programs, foster homes, marriage enrichment, corporate leadership), direct partnership outreach to WinShape Foundation in Rome, Georgia is appropriate. WinShape operates programs rather than making open grants, so the frame should be operational collaboration, not grant solicitation.

Timing and relationship: Cathy family philanthropy is relationship-first. The family's community ties are rooted in evangelical Christian networks in metro Atlanta and across the Southeast. Building relationships through shared church communities, Christian business networks (e.g., Christian Business Fellowship, C12 Group), and NCF donor events is the most realistic multi-year path toward alignment.

Language to use: In any materials that may reach Cathy-network donors, emphasize faith-rooted mission, program outcomes framed around individual transformation and discipleship, and organizational values consistent with evangelical Christian principles.