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Frey Foundation
Edward J. Frey founded the Frey Foundation in 1974, formalizing the family’s philanthropic and investment activities around the wealth generated by Foremost...
Frey Foundation
Edward J. Frey founded the Frey Foundation in 1974, formalizing the family’s philanthropic and investment activities around the wealth generated by Foremost Insurance Co. The foundation is now governed by third-generation family members, with David G. 'Tripp' Frey, Jr. serving as Board Chair. The family’s commercial interests remain interwoven with the foundation’s identity, including Tripp Frey's own ventures, Revolution Farms and TREW. The foundation combines a traditional grant-making portfolio with a multi-asset investment strategy. It pursues venture capital, direct secondaries, distressed debt, and natural resources, alongside early-stage startup and growth equity positions. Co-investment and fund-of-funds structures appear alongside direct buyout activity. The headquarters at 40 Pearl Street NW includes a commercial real estate component, and the foundation holds an additional investment property in Michigan. Its philanthropic grant-making is intensely geographic, limited to Kent, Emmet, and Charlevoix Counties in west and northern Michigan. Kathleen Vogelsang—also the CIO of the Van Andel Institute—chairs the investment committee, while Holly Johnson serves as foundation President. The foundation is deeply embedded in the Grand Rapids institutional fabric. It holds memberships in the Council of Michigan Foundations, the National Center for Family Philanthropy, and Grand Action, a collaborative for Grand Rapids capital projects. The foundation shares a building with the angel network Grand Angels. The foundation’s structural distinction lies in its geography-bound mandate. It operates as a hybrid, coupling a concentrated place-based grant-making mission with an opportunistic, multi-asset-class investment portfolio. The blending of a single-family commercial legacy—via Foremost Insurance and active operating businesses like Revolution Farms—with a foundation vehicle that is both a local civic anchor and a diversified investor, creates an unusual governance and capital allocation profile not replicated at scale in the Michigan market.
General information
Firm type
Foundation
Year founded
1974
Location
Region
North America
Country
United States
City
Grand Rapids
Corporate office
40 Pearl Street NW, Suite 1100, Grand Rapids, MI 49503
Principals
David G. 'Tripp' Frey, Jr.
Chair of the Board of Trustees
Holly Johnson
President
Kathleen Vogelsang
Chair of the Investment Committee
Sector focus
Frequently asked questions
Who runs investment decisions at the Frey Foundation?
Kathleen Vogelsang chairs the Investment Committee. She concurrently serves as Chief Investment Officer of the Van Andel Institute. Holly Johnson, the foundation’s President, oversees the broader organizational strategy, while Board Chair Tripp Frey represents the founding family’s third generation.
How is the Frey Foundation related to the Frey family’s operating businesses?
The foundation was seeded by Edward J. Frey's wealth from Foremost Insurance. Current Board Chair Tripp Frey is also the CEO of Revolution Farms and co-founder of TREW, an outdoor sports apparel company. The foundation and the family’s commercial activities share overlapping principals and real estate but remain legally distinct entities under the foundation structure.
Does the Frey Foundation restrict its grant-making to specific geographies?
Yes. The foundation is explicitly place-based, funding projects primarily in Kent, Emmet, and Charlevoix Counties, with a broader interest in west and northern Michigan. Its four program pillars are Building Community, Children & Families, Community Arts, and the Environment within that footprint.
What is the foundation's posture on direct investments versus fund commitments?
The Frey Foundation’s disclosed strategy tags include direct secondaries, buyout, early-stage venture, and fund-of-funds, indicating active participation in both direct deals and LP commitments. Specific fund commitments or direct positions are not publicly itemized.
Where does the underlying wealth come from?
The fortune derives from Foremost Insurance Co., a specialty insurer founded by Edward J. Frey. The foundation was established in 1974 to steward a portion of that wealth for philanthropic purposes in Michigan.
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