Morby Family Foundation Inc.

The Morby Family Foundation operates as a deeply personal, invitation-only private foundation that has never publicly solicited applications. Founded in 1988 and headquartered at 18 S. Island Drive in Key Largo, Florida, the foundation reflects the direct philanthropic passions of Jeffrey L. Morby (1937–2023) and Jacqueline C. 'Jacqui' Morby (1937–2026), who together built one of the most focused family-giving vehicles in the Florida Keys.

Both founders are now deceased — Jeffrey passed in September 2023 and Jacqueline in May 2026 — placing the foundation at its most consequential inflection point. Children Michelle and Drew Morby are now the logical heirs to leadership. Any engagement strategy must account for this transition: the foundation may maintain a quiet posture or reduce new grant activity while the family processes this period.

The giving philosophy was built around deep personal commitment rather than broad programmatic grantmaking. The Morbys did not run competitive grant rounds. Instead, they co-founded Cure Alzheimer's Fund in 2004 (alongside two other families), served as WWF Leaders for community-led conservation, and personally supported arts and cultural institutions in Pittsburgh, Cambridge, and Martha's Vineyard. This means existing grantees are organizations where the Morbys had board roles, personal relationships, or founding involvement — not organizations that applied through a portal.

For first-time applicants, the practical reality is stark: there is no application process. The foundation's 990-PF filings confirm it 'only makes contributions to preselected charitable organizations and does not accept unsolicited requests for funds.' This language has been consistent across all available filings. Relationship-first strategies are the only viable path — specifically, building credibility within the Cure Alzheimer's Fund research ecosystem, WWF's conservation network, or through mutual connections with Michelle or Drew Morby. Organizations that pursue cold outreach through the Key Largo address should expect no response. Patient, mission-aligned relationship cultivation over 12–24 months is the realistic timeline for any new grantee relationship.

The Morby Family Foundation has distributed between $437,000 and $1.84 million annually across available tax years, with a clear upward trajectory over the past 15 years. Total confirmed charitable disbursements across known fiscal years exceed $9.7 million.

Year-by-year giving: - FY2010: $472,922 (assets: $16.8M) - FY2011: $436,975 (assets: $21.4M) - FY2012: $1,153,238 (assets: $22.9M) - FY2013: $1,461,707 (assets: $24.2M) - FY2014: $1,137,294 (assets: $22.7M) - FY2018: $1,751,704 (assets: $25.1M) - FY2019: $940,907 (assets: $25.2M) - FY2023: ~$1,840,000 (assets: $23.2M)

The foundation's asset base has been remarkably stable in the $22–25M range since 2012, with revenue driven almost entirely by investment returns (99.6% dividends in 2023: $743,549). Grants paid consistently consume the majority of the expense budget — in FY2023, charitable disbursements represented 93.1% of all expenses ($1.84M of $1.98M total).

No grantee-level data is publicly listed in 990-PF schedules reviewed, as the foundation reports giving as supplemental detail available upon request. However, based on confirmed board affiliations and founder biographies, likely recurring grantees include: Cure Alzheimer's Fund (Alzheimer's research), World Wildlife Fund (conservation), Carnegie Museums of Pittsburgh, Andy Warhol Museum, National Public Radio, Planned Parenthood affiliates, Population Action International, and Martha's Vineyard mental health organizations.

The foundation does not publish median or range data for individual grants. Given total annual giving of roughly $940K–$1.84M spread across a small, personally selected portfolio, individual awards likely range from $25,000 to $500,000+, with multi-year commitments to flagship causes like Cure Alzheimer's Fund probable. The sharp jump from $437K (2011) to $1.15M+ (2012) suggests a deliberate ramp-up in grantmaking as assets stabilized above $22M.

The Morby Family Foundation is an exceptionally private grantmaker with no peers listed in foundation databases. The most relevant comparisons are organizations within the Morby philanthropic ecosystem and similar-sized invitation-only family foundations.

The Morby Family Foundation sits at the intimate end of the private family foundation spectrum — similar in asset size to regional community foundations but far more restricted in approach. Unlike Cure Alzheimer's Fund (which accepts competitive research proposals from academic institutions) or the Community Foundation of the Florida Keys (which runs open grant cycles), the Morby Foundation has never published application guidelines or deadlines. The foundation's closest functional peers are other founder-led invitation-only vehicles of $15–30M in assets. With both founders now deceased, the foundation's trajectory will be shaped by second-generation leadership priorities — potentially broadening or narrowing from the established portfolio.

The most significant development affecting the Morby Family Foundation is the death of both founders within three years of each other. Jeffrey L. Morby died September 2, 2023, at approximately age 86, after 64 years of marriage and two decades as co-chair of Cure Alzheimer's Fund. Jacqueline 'Jacqui' Morby died May 28, 2026, at age 88. As of June 2026, the foundation is navigating generational transition to children Michelle and Drew Morby.

On the philanthropic legacy front, Cure Alzheimer's Fund — the public charity Jeffrey and Jacqui co-founded in 2004 with two other families — continues to honor their memory through the annual Jeffrey L. Morby Prize for Exceptional Research. In May 2026, the prize was awarded to researchers at Washington University School of Medicine in St. Louis and Lund University in Sweden for a landmark paper on the MTBR-tau243 biomarker in Alzheimer's disease, published in Nature Medicine in March 2025. The prize total in 2026 was $197,000 ($175,000 to research labs, $10,000 to each senior author, $2,000 for a lab celebration). CureAlz also reports having distributed more than $275 million in cumulative research funding — a legacy Jacqui Morby helped build from the foundation's earliest giving.

The family also established the 'Jacqui Morby Impact Fund at Cure Alzheimer's Fund' as a living memorial, signaling that Alzheimer's research will remain the foundation's most prominent ongoing legacy even as second-generation leadership determines future priorities. No public announcements about new leadership, grant program changes, or mission evolution have been issued.

This foundation does not accept unsolicited applications. The 990-PF filing language is unambiguous: the Morby Family Foundation 'only makes contributions to preselected charitable organizations and does not accept unsolicited requests for funds.' This has been its consistent posture since at least 2010. Any organization submitting a cold proposal to 18 S. Island Drive, Key Largo, FL 33037 will receive no response.

For organizations with genuine mission alignment, the path is relationship-first:

• Cure Alzheimer's Fund ecosystem (highest priority). Organizations conducting Alzheimer's research that overlaps with CureAlz's portfolio are the most natural candidates. Engagement with CureAlz's grant programs, consortium work, or scientific advisory structure can create proximity to the Morby family legacy. The Jacqui Morby Impact Fund at CureAlz is the most direct channel the family has designated for Alzheimer's donations post-transition.

• WWF community-led conservation network. The Morbys were named WWF Leaders and personally launched the Sustainable Communities Partnership in Namibia in 2016. Conservation organizations working in community-based natural resource management — particularly in Sub-Saharan Africa — have the clearest thematic fit with the Morbys' documented WWF priorities.

• Pittsburgh arts and cultural institutions. Jacqui Morby served on boards of the Carnegie Museums of Pittsburgh and the Andy Warhol Museum. Organizations in that network with existing relationships to these institutions may have indirect pathways to family connections.

• Women's health, reproductive rights, and population issues. Jacqui's board affiliations included Planned Parenthood, Population Action International, and the International Women's Forum — a documented but less publicized thread in the foundation's giving.

• Timing and transition sensitivity. As of June 2026, the foundation is in bereavement and succession mode. Any outreach should be patient, formal, and relationship-grounded — not grant-seeking in tone. Reaching out to Michelle or Drew Morby through mutual connections in the Cure Alzheimer's Fund or WWF networks is far more likely to be received than direct solicitation. Allow 12–24 months minimum before any grant conversation is appropriate.