# Catholic Foundation of Oklahoma

Catholic Foundation of Oklahoma is an Endowment / Foundation based in Oklahoma City, United States.

## Overview

- **Organization type:** Endowment / Foundation
- **Headquarters:** Oklahoma City, United States
- **Region:** North America
- **Address:** 7501 Northwest Expressway, Oklahoma City, OK 73132, United States
- **Founded:** 1965
- **Assets under management:** $50M - $100M (Altss estimate)
- **Website:** cfook.org
- **LinkedIn:** https://www.linkedin.com/company/cfook

## Regulatory record

- **Reports private funds:** No

## About

The Catholic Foundation of Oklahoma was established in 1965 to build permanent endowments supporting Catholic ministry, education, and service within the Archdiocese of Oklahoma City. Founded by the Archdiocese, the foundation operates under the leadership of Chairman Archbishop Paul Coakley and a board of directors that includes Chaparral Energy CEO Chuck Duginski as President and Archdiocesan CFO David Johnson as Secretary/Treasurer. The foundation's wealth originates from donor contributions, planned gifts, and transfers of real property — not a single family's liquidity event — which shapes its perpetual-time-horizon investment approach. Investment strategy spans a deliberate mix of asset classes designed for intergenerational support of Oklahoma's Catholic institutions. The foundation maintains a diversified endowment growth pool, holds direct real estate including the Saint Ann Retirement Center and Resurrection Cemetery in Oklahoma City, and manages a ministry fund that functions as a granting vehicle for parishes and schools. Geographic deployment concentrates within the Archdiocese's territory stretching across central and western Oklahoma, with collaborative grantmaking alongside partners such as the SSM Health St. Anthony Foundation. The foundation stewards an estimated $76 million in assets (Altss estimate) and operates from its headquarters on Northwest Expressway in Oklahoma City. Its professional network extends through the Assembly of Catholic Professionals, a regional group of business and professional leaders, and the Meerschaert Society, its legacy giving recognition program for donors who include the foundation in their estate plans. The foundation's structural differentiator is its hybrid role as both endowment manager and active grantmaker within a single nonprofit entity, governed by a board that mixes clergy and operating-company CEOs. This creates an unusual governance tension — and discipline — that pure family offices or independent foundations rarely face: investment returns must satisfy both fiduciary standards for permanent endowments and the annual spending expectations of parish and school beneficiaries across dozens of distinct Catholic institutions.

## Sectors

- Real Estate
- Private Credit
- Education

## People

- Archbishop Paul Coakley — Chairman of the Board of Directors
- Chuck Duginski — President of the Board
- David Johnson — Secretary/Treasurer
- Gary Gatewood — Board Member

## Questions

### What is the geographic focus of the foundation's grantmaking and investment activity?

Grantmaking and investment activity concentrate within the territory of the Archdiocese of Oklahoma City, covering central and western Oklahoma. Beneficiaries include parishes, Catholic schools, and ministries operating within that jurisdiction. Real estate holdings — including the foundation's headquarters and the Saint Ann Retirement Center — are located in Oklahoma City, reinforcing a deeply local investment posture.

### Does the foundation co-invest or partner with other institutional allocators?

The foundation has a collaborative philanthropic relationship with the SSM Health St. Anthony Foundation, a co-investor for certain charitable initiatives. It maintains relationships with Catholic institutional donors and participates in the Assembly of Catholic Professionals network, but there is no public evidence of co-investment alongside private equity firms, venture funds, or out-of-state family offices in for-profit deals.

### How is the foundation structurally related to the Archdiocese of Oklahoma City?

The foundation functions as the Archdiocese's primary endowment steward, managing charitable funds and permanently restricted assets on behalf of parishes, schools, and ministries. The Archdiocesan CFO serves as the foundation's Secretary/Treasurer, and the Archbishop chairs the board. This creates a close operational link, but the foundation is legally distinct, allowing it to hold assets and make grants independently of the Archdiocese's operating budget.

### What is the Meerschaert Society, and what does it signal about the foundation's capital base?

The Meerschaert Society is the foundation's legacy giving recognition program for donors who include it in their estate plans — wills, trusts, or beneficiary designations. This signals that a material portion of future AUM growth will come from planned gifts rather than annual fundraising, creating a predictable but slow-building capital base that supports the foundation's perpetual-horizon investment posture.

## Related profiles

- [Bonfils-Stanton Foundation](https://altss.com/profile/bonfils-stanton-foundation)
- [Currier Museum of Art](https://altss.com/profile/currier-museum-of-art)

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Last updated: 2026-08-11T02:43:31.692Z

Canonical page: https://altss.com/profile/catholic-foundation-of-oklahoma

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