# Lakeshore Foundation

Lakeshore Foundation is an Endowment / Foundation based in Birmingham, United States.

## Overview

- **Organization type:** Endowment / Foundation
- **Headquarters:** Birmingham, United States
- **Region:** North America
- **Address:** 4000 Ridgeway Drive, Birmingham, AL 35209
- **Founded:** 1984
- **Assets under management:** Undisclosed
- **Website:** lakeshore.org
- **LinkedIn:** https://www.linkedin.com/company/lakeshorefoundation

## Regulatory record

- **Reports private funds:** No

## About

Founded in 1984 by Michael E. Stephens, the Lakeshore Foundation operates as a Birmingham, Alabama-based non-profit dedicated to advancing physical activity and research for individuals with physical disabilities. The organization was built around a sprawling campus that houses fitness, aquatic, and recreational facilities, now recognized as an official U.S. Olympic and Paralympic Training Site. The foundation’s capital base supports a diversified investment pool spanning private equity, hedge funds, alternative funds, and fixed income. These assets underpin both programmatic spending and the physical infrastructure of its campus, which includes a main fitness and research facility and residential cottages. Operational partnerships with the University of Alabama at Birmingham drive a collaborative research agenda, while the Birmingham Squadron, an NBA G League affiliate, uses the Lakeshore campus as its primary practice home. Jeff Underwood served as CEO for three decades before retiring in 2021, handing leadership to John D. Kemp, the former CEO of the Viscardi Center. The board includes family representation through Allison Stephens, widow of the founder. Real assets tied to the foundation include multiple commercial buildings clustered along Ridgeway Drive. A disclosed collaboration with the U.S. Olympic & Paralympic Committee gives the foundation a dual designation unique among American training sites. The structure is that of a traditional philanthropic endowment with an unusually specific operational mission tied to elite adaptive sports. Its hybrid posture combines grantmaking, direct campus operations, and a multi-asset investment portfolio managed to sustain both. The presence of a parallel commercial real estate footprint alongside campus operations creates an uncommon physical endowment architecture for a non-profit of its scale.

## Sectors

- Healthcare Services
- Real Estate

## People

- John D. Kemp — President and CEO
- Allison Stephens — Board of Directors
- Michael E. Stephens — Founder

## Questions

### Who oversees investment decisions at the Lakeshore Foundation?

The foundation has not publicly disclosed the members of its investment committee. Day-to-day management falls under John D. Kemp, who has served as President and CEO since the retirement of three-decade leader Jeff Underwood in 2021. The board of directors, which includes family representation through Allison Stephens, holds fiduciary oversight.

### What is in the Lakeshore Foundation's investment portfolio?

The foundation maintains a diversified pool that spans private equity, hedge funds, alternative funds, and fixed income vehicles. These holdings work alongside a tangible real estate portfolio that includes multiple commercial buildings on its Birmingham campus. The specific fund names and direct investment stakes have not been publicly itemized.

### How is the Lakeshore Foundation connected to the U.S. Olympic and Paralympic Committee?

The USOPC designated the Lakeshore Foundation campus as an official U.S. Olympic and Paralympic Training Site. It was the first facility in the United States to hold that dual designation, enabling it to serve as a regular training hub for elite adaptive athletes. This partnership also connects the foundation's mission directly to high-performance Paralympic sport.

### Does the Lakeshore Foundation make grants or operate programs directly?

The foundation operates core programming directly from its 4000 Ridgeway Drive campus, including aquatic, fitness, recreation, and competitive sports programs. It also runs research projects through the UAB/Lakeshore Research Collaborative. Its business partnerships with organizations like the USOPC and Birmingham Squadron suggest a model weighted toward direct service delivery rather than external grantmaking.

## Related profiles

- [Central Piedmont Community College Foundation](https://altss.com/profile/central-piedmont-community-college-foundation)
- [New Canaan Country School](https://altss.com/profile/new-canaan-country-school)

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Last updated: 2026-06-03T20:00:00.000Z

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