The John William Pope Foundation is a non-profit

501(c)(3) A 501(c)(3) organization is a United States corporation, trust, unincorporated association or other type of organization exempt from federal income tax under section 501(c)(3) of Title 26 of the United States Code. It is one of the 29 types of 50 ...

private

charitable foundation A foundation (also a charitable foundation) is a category of nonprofit organization or charitable trust that typically provides funding and support for other charitable organizations through grants, but may also engage directly in charitable act ...

based in

Raleigh, North Carolina Raleigh (; ) is the capital city of the state of North Carolina and the List of North Carolina county seats, seat of Wake County, North Carolina, Wake County in the United States. It is the List of municipalities in North Carolina, second-most ...

, that contributes to conservative

public policy Public policy is an institutionalized proposal or a decided set of elements like laws, regulations, guidelines, and actions to solve or address relevant and real-world problems, guided by a conception and often implemented by programs. Public p ...

organizations and

think tank A think tank, or policy institute, is a research institute that performs research and advocacy concerning topics such as social policy, political strategy, economics, military, technology, and culture. Most think tanks are non-governmenta ...

educational institution An educational institution is a place where people of different ages gain an education, including preschools, childcare, primary-elementary schools, secondary-high schools, and universities. They provide a large variety of learning environments an ...

s, humanitarian charities, and

the arts The arts are a very wide range of human practices of creative expression, storytelling and cultural participation. They encompass multiple diverse and plural modes of thinking, doing and being, in an extremely broad range of media. Both ...

Art Pope James Arthur Pope (born May 5, 1956) is an American businessman, attorney and former government official. Pope is the owner, chairman and CEO of Variety Wholesalers, a group of 370 retail stores in 16 states. He is also the president and chairm ...

, a businessman and philanthropist, is the current president and chairman of the board of directors. The Pope Foundation "has invested millions in a network of foundations and think tanks, and

advocacy group Advocacy groups, also known as interest groups, special interest groups, lobbying groups or pressure groups use various forms of advocacy in order to influence public opinion and ultimately policy. They play an important role in the developm ...

s, both in North Carolina and nationally, that are designed to further conservative and

free market In economics, a free market is an economic system in which the prices of goods and services are determined by supply and demand expressed by sellers and buyers. Such markets, as modeled, operate without the intervention of government or any o ...

ideas", including the

John Locke Foundation The John Locke Foundation (JLF) is a conservative think tank based in North Carolina. The organization was founded in 1990 to work "for truth, for freedom, and for the future of North Carolina." It is named after the philosopher John Locke, who was ...

James G. Martin Center for Academic Renewal The James G. Martin Center for Academic Renewal, formerly known as the Pope Center for Higher Education Policy and simply the Pope Center, is an American conservative nonprofit institute located in Raleigh, North Carolina. The Martin Center is o ...

Americans for Prosperity Americans for Prosperity (AFP), founded in 2004, is a libertarian conservative political advocacy group in the United States funded by Charles Koch and formerly his brother David. As the Koch brothers' primary political advocacy group, it is one ...

, and North Carolina Institute for Constitutional Law.

History

John William Pope, founder of the retail discount chain

Variety Wholesalers Variety Wholesalers, Inc., is a privately held company based in Henderson, North Carolina, which owns more than 380 retail stores in the southeast including the Roses and Maxway stores, and employs more than 7,000 workers. History It originated i ...

, created the Pope Foundation in 1986. The Pope Foundation celebrated its 25th anniversary in December 2011 by hosting a fundraiser for StepUp Ministry, a nonprofit that assists low-income individuals in getting a job and achieving a stable lifestyle. The ministry gained $300,000 from the Pope Foundation dinner.

Philanthropy

In the 2011–2012 fiscal year, the John William Pope Foundation made over $9.3 million in grants, of which 60% went to support North Carolina public policy organizations, 28% went to support educational causes, 7% went to support national public policy organizations, 4% went to support

humanitarian organization An aid agency, also known as development charity, is an organization dedicated to distributing aid. Many professional aid organisations exist, both within government, between governments as multilateral donors and as private voluntary organization ...

s, and 1% went to support the arts. The Pope Foundation also underwrites scholarships for

Eagle Scout Eagle Scout is the highest achievement or rank attainable in the Scouts BSA program of the Boy Scouts of America (BSA). Since its inception in 1911, only four percent of Scouts have earned this rank after a lengthy review process. The Eagle Sc ...

s to attend college. Since the first class of scholars in 2001, the Pope Foundation has invested over $1 million in Scouts who plan to pursue careers in the

free-enterprise In economics, a free market is an economic system in which the prices of goods and services are determined by supply and demand expressed by sellers and buyers. Such markets, as modeled, operate without the intervention of government or any o ...

system. The Pope Foundation also has invested heavily in capital construction projects for area universities, including $3 million to UNC-Chapel Hill for the renovation of

Kenan Memorial Stadium Kenan Memorial Stadium is a stadium located in Chapel Hill, North Carolina and is the home field of the North Carolina Tar Heels. It is primarily used for football. The stadium opened in 1927 and holds 50,500 people. It is located near the center ...

; $4.5 million for a convocation center at

Campbell University Campbell University is a private Baptist university in Buies Creek, North Carolina. It is affiliated with the Baptist State Convention of North Carolina (Southern Baptist Convention). Southern Baptist ConventionColleges and Universities sbc.net ...

; and $1.2 million to finish renovations on Campbell University's law school –

Norman Adrian Wiggins School of Law The Norman Adrian Wiggins School of Law (also known as Campbell Law School or Campbell University School of Law) is a private law school in Raleigh, North Carolina, United States. Founded in 1976, the law school is one of six graduate programs ...

. In December 2012, the Pope Foundation announced $810,500 in grants to community charities, schools, churches, and the arts. To counter the effects of the federal government shutdown in October 2013, the Pope Foundation gave $185,000 in grants to "13 food bank-type groups" in central, eastern, and western North Carolina., including three charities in Vance County. The Pope Foundation gave a total of over $1 million to humanitarian and arts nonprofits in 2013.

References

External links

John William Pope Foundation
{{Authority control Political and economic research foundations in the United States Non-profit organizations based in North Carolina Organizations based in Raleigh, North Carolina 1986 establishments in North Carolina