Mcmurry Foundation

The McMurry Foundation is a deeply community-rooted family foundation established in 1998 by Mick and Susie McMurry, whose wealth derived from natural gas development at Wyoming's Pinedale Anticline and Jonah Field. With more than $100 million distributed since inception, the foundation is one of the most consequential private funders in Wyoming history.

The foundation strongly favors established local institutions with deep Natrona County roots. The pattern is unmistakable across the grantee list: Casper Family YMCA ($841,667 across 3 grants), Child Development Center of Natrona County ($362,289 across 8 grants), Boys & Girls Clubs of Central Wyoming ($355,000 across 6 grants), and CASA of Natrona County ($153,500 across 7 grants) all reflect multi-year, multi-cycle relationships. First-time applicants should understand that this is a relationship funder — longevity, community ties, and demonstrated impact in Casper carry more weight than proposal sophistication.

The typical relationship arc: complete the online eligibility quiz at fsrequests.com/mcmurryfoundation, submit a Letter of Inquiry (LOI) through the same Foundation Source portal, await staff review, and if invited, complete the full online application. Site visits or additional documentation may be required before a board decision. Applications are accepted year-round and reviewed at scheduled board meetings — no fixed deadline exists.

Following co-founder Susie McMurry's death in February 2023, the foundation is now led by daughter Trudi Holthouse (Treasurer) and granddaughter Tayla Davis (Secretary and primary staff contact at tdavis@mcmurry.net). Scott Neu serves as President. The transition marks a shift from the intensely personal giving style of Mick and Susie's era, though the commitment to Natrona County remains the foundation's defining characteristic.

Organizations outside Natrona County may submit a brief project summary as an entry point, but 96.4% of documented grants (187 of 194) went to Wyoming recipients, nearly all in Natrona County and greater Casper. Any extra-county organization must demonstrate specific, measurable impact on Natrona County residents to compete effectively against established local grantees.

The McMurry Foundation's annual giving has varied substantially, reflecting investment returns, asset flows, and major estate contributions. Based on IRS 990 filings:

• FY2023: $8.3M total giving ($7.8M grants paid) — spike from $19.9M estate contribution following Susie McMurry's death
• FY2022: $3.7M total giving ($3.3M grants paid)
• FY2021: $3.9M total giving ($3.3M grants paid)
• FY2020: $3.4M total giving ($2.9M grants paid)
• FY2019: $4.7M total giving ($4.3M grants paid)
• FY2015: $7.5M total giving ($6.3M grants paid)
• FY2014: $7.6M total giving ($6.3M grants paid)

With current assets of $21.96M (FY2024), expect annual giving to stabilize in the $3–5M range absent another major infusion. Historically, the foundation has paid out 15–38% of assets annually — far above the IRS-required 5% minimum — reflecting the founders' philosophy of active, community-first deployment.

Grant size distribution (106-grant dataset): - Median: $10,000 - Average: $31,215 - Minimum: $160 (event sponsorships) - Maximum: $666,667 (single-year cap in data; the WYO Sports Complex commitment was structured as a multi-year $4M gift) - Total documented: $6.1M across 194 grants

Grant tier breakdown: - Micro (<$5,000): Charitable event sponsorships and one-time gifts — common entry point - Standard ($5,000–$50,000): Program operating support, most first-time grants - Significant ($50,000–$500,000): Capital campaigns and established multi-year relationships - Transformational ($500K+): Major infrastructure (WYO Sports Complex, YMCA, Literacy Leadership Inc. at $166,666)

Estimated focus area allocation: - Youth development and children's services: ~35% (YMCA, Boys & Girls Clubs, CDC, CASA, Mimi's House) - Sports and recreation: ~15% (WYO Sports Complex, Casper Boxing Club, 4-H livestock) - Health and human services: ~15% (Cancer Care, Wyoming Cares, Rescue Mission) - Community services and religious organizations: ~12% (Catholic schools, Meals on Wheels, churches) - Education: ~10% (Natrona County School District, Literacy Leadership, 4-H, Casper Children's Chorale) - Arts and culture: ~8% (Nicolaysen Art Museum, Wyoming Symphony, Troopers Drum & Bugle Corps) - Other: ~5%

The five database-matched peer foundations hold nearly identical assets (~$22M each) and share the NTEE T22 (Private Grantmaking Foundation) classification, but differ markedly in geography, payout rate, and accessibility.

Peer annual giving estimates reflect the IRS 5% minimum payout assumption on $22M assets; McMurry's actual 15–38% historical payout rate is dramatically higher.

For Natrona County nonprofits, the McMurry Foundation stands apart from its asset-comparable peers in three ways. First, it maintains a genuinely open, accessible online application process via Foundation Source — rare for any family foundation of this size. Second, its payout rate dwarfs standard foundation norms, meaning more dollars actually reach the community relative to asset size. Third, its intense geographic concentration creates a favorable competitive environment: you are not competing against a national field but against a finite universe of Casper-area nonprofits, most of which the foundation already knows.

The most consequential recent development was co-founder Susie McMurry's death in February 2023. Her passing triggered a $19.9M estate contribution in FY2023, pushing total giving to $8.3M — the highest documented figure since the foundation's peak giving years of 2014–2015. Foundation assets briefly reached $33.4M before returning to $21.96M by FY2024 as distributions were made.

The foundation's largest documented grant commitment is the $4M investment in the WYO Sports Complex (referred to as 'Wyo Sports Ranch' in IRS filings), a major community recreation facility in Natrona County slated to open in 2025. A $2M installment is documented in the grantee database for 'General operating support for the Wyo Sports Ranch.'

The University of Wyoming Foundation has received $399,333 across five grants, including a named endowment: 'The McMurry Foundation Fund in Mental Health and Integrated Care in Honor of Mary Burman.' This legacy naming signals mental health as a growing institutional priority — distinct from the founders' more operational giving style.

The 'Susie McMurry Technology Center' expansion fund at Boys & Girls Clubs of Central Wyoming (part of a $355,000 multi-grant relationship) reflects the foundation's openness to technology infrastructure and naming opportunities at trusted partner organizations.

No new strategic programs or leadership changes beyond the 2023 generational transition have been publicly announced for 2025–2026. The foundation maintains a deliberately low public profile, with no press releases or social media presence identified in web research.

Lead with community tenure, not program innovation. The foundation's largest grantees — YMCA, Boys & Girls Clubs, Child Development Center — have received funding across 3–8 grant cycles. McMurry rewards longevity and community roots over novel concepts. Your organization's history in Casper and Natrona County, and any prior McMurry relationship, belong in the opening paragraph of your LOI.

Complete the eligibility quiz first, every time. The quiz at fsrequests.com/mcmurryfoundation is the mandatory gateway to the LOI — there is no alternative path for organizations that meet the county focus. Treat it carefully; ineligible responses end the process before it starts.

Match their vocabulary precisely. Use the foundation's exact language in your LOI: 'favorable business environment,' 'children and advocacy for children,' 'healthy lifestyles and physical activity,' 'long-term well-being of the community.' These phrases appear in published materials and signal alignment to board reviewers who have read them for decades.

Charitable event sponsorships are a documented entry point. 'Charitable Event' appears as a grant purpose across dozens of grantees at amounts from $1,500 to $15,000+. If your organization hosts a well-known Casper-area fundraising event, a sponsorship ask is an appropriate lower-stakes first grant to initiate a relationship before requesting operating or program support.

Signal urgency when it is real. Applications are accepted year-round, but noting a matching grant deadline, capital campaign close, or program launch window in your LOI communicates time-sensitivity and helps board reviewers sequence decisions.

Contact Tayla Davis before submitting. As Secretary, primary staff contact, and granddaughter of the founders, Tayla Davis (tdavis@mcmurry.net, (307) 261-9953 ext. 7113) is the right person for a brief, respectful pre-submission inquiry about current priorities and fit. This mirrors how the foundation's relationships have always operated.

Build reporting into your project plan. Grant reports are required within 12 months of project start or one month after project completion — whichever comes first. Address your organization's reporting systems explicitly in the application. Consistent, high-quality reporting is the clearest path to renewal and relationship escalation.