Children

St. Louis

Animals

The Dana Brown Charitable Trust believes in discovery. We’re on a search for organizations who embrace new perspectives and innovative approaches to seizing possibilities and turning them into outcomes, specifically with regard to those who need our support the most, disadvantaged children in the St. Louis Metropolitan Statistical Area (MSA).

Most of Dana Brown’s lifetime philanthropic efforts were centered in his beloved St. Louis, the place where he built the Safari Coffee brand and the place he called home. As a result, The Dana Brown Charitable Trust proudly limits our grants to the Greater St. Louis metro area. We are honored to support local nonprofit organizations as they follow in Dana Brown’s footsteps, displaying the courage, ambition, and entrepreneurial spirit needed to truly influence positive change and pioneer for a better St. Louis.

The Dana Brown Charitable Trust honors the legacy of the great philanthropist, entrepreneur, and adventurer, Dana Brown.

Throughout his lifetime, Dana infamously shared his world-travels with the St. Louis community through broadcast television and Safari Coffee commercials. It was Dana’s belief that exposure to the beauty of nature, other cultures, and wild animals was deeply enriching to others. We continue this tradition by providing grants to organizations focused on protecting and promoting the health and welfare of animals in the St. Louis Metropolitan Statistical Area (MSA).

The Dana Brown Charitable Trust provides for the health, education, and welfare of disadvantaged children and the health and welfare of animals in the St. Louis Metro area.

By The Numbers

We believe our impact on the St. Louis community should be both strong and direct and we’re proud to showcase the positive outcomes we’ve helped influence since 1994.

100%
Money for Animals and Children
100%
Money for St. Louis Organizations
28
Years of Grantmaking Excellence
69
Unique Grant Requests Fulfilled In 2022
454
Total Organizations Funded

$3.4million
Distrubuted Annually

$91.4million
Distrubuted in Total

Grant Rules and Guidelines

As with any great adventure, there are a few rules and guidelines in place to ensure that we all get the most out of our journey. Read through the grant rules and guidelines below to get a feel for if applying for a grant is a good fit for you.

Are you a public charity currently registered as a 501(c)(3) organization? If you answered yes, you are off to a good start.

Are you a Supporting Organization or looking for funding for a feasibility study? That’s not quite in our wheelhouse. The Dana Brown Charitable Trust makes grants to organizations that will use their funds directly for the benefit of animals or children in the St. Louis Metro area.

Are you wondering how to get started? The first step is to submit a Letter of Intent. All potential grant recipients must first complete this requirement before being invited to submit a full grant application.

Are you wondering about deadlines? We have two grant cycles, Spring and Fall. The spring grant cycle is from January 1st, with a deadline of March 4th for the Letters of Intent. The fall grant cycle is July 1st, with a deadline of September 2nd for Letters of Intent. In both cycles, our grantmaking committee will meet within the month to review Letters of Intent and invite organizations to complete our full grant application. If invited, full grant applications begin April 1st with a deadline of May 13th for the Spring. Fall grant applications begin on October 1st and end on November 18th.

For more grant rules and guidelines, view our Frequently Asked Questions.

Recipient Showcase