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Simone Charitable Foundation
The Simone Charitable Foundation incorporated in Arizona in August 2018, funded by the estate of Arizona real estate investor Pat Michael Simone.
Simone Charitable Foundation
The Simone Charitable Foundation incorporated in Arizona in August 2018, funded by the estate of Arizona real estate investor Pat Michael Simone. Mark Grayson serves as president, directing the foundation's strategic grantmaking, while treasurer Curt Christensen manages its financial operations. Board member Grant M. Boland, a past president of both the Scottsdale Bar Association and the Central Arizona Estate Planning Council, provides legal and tax oversight, reflecting a board built for fiduciary discipline rather than public profile. The foundation's $115 million asset base (per 2024 IRS filings) is atypical for a private foundation of its size. It does not solely hold a diversified portfolio of equities and bonds managed by external advisors. The corpus includes direct ownership of commercial real estate—a Frito-Lay regional distribution center in Gilbert, the Warner Courtyards complex in Tempe, and an office portfolio on East Broadway Road in Phoenix—alongside a residential estate in Paradise Valley and a portfolio of corporate bonds and government obligations. Grantmaking is geographically concentrated, directed toward Human Services, Health Care, and general philanthropy in Arizona, New York, and Illinois. The foundation's team remains lean, with no public-facing investment staff beyond its named officers. The direct real estate holdings suggest asset management is handled in-house or through a closely held family entity, a structure more common among family offices than institutional foundations. The board's composition—anchored by an estate planning attorney with deep local professional ties—indicates a governance model designed for multi-generational asset stewardship rather than rapid grant disbursement. This foundation's structural differentiator is the fusion of its philanthropic mission with a direct real estate operating posture. Rather than liquidating Pat Simone's real estate holdings to fund a purely financial endowment, the foundation retained income-producing properties that generate ongoing revenue for its grant programs. For an institutional allocator, the entity functions less like a pure LP seeking external managers and more like a vertically integrated family holding company with a charitable mandate, a profile that can make it an unconventional co-investor or direct deal participant.
General information
Firm type
Endowment / Foundation
Year founded
2018
Location
Region
North America
Country
United States
City
Scottsdale
Corporate office
Scottsdale, AZ, United States
Principals
Pat Michael Simone
Founder
Mark Grayson
President
Curt Christensen
Treasurer
Grant M. Boland
Board Member
John Kelly
Trustee
Sector focus
Frequently asked questions
Who directs investment decisions at the Simone Charitable Foundation?
Curt Christensen, the foundation's treasurer, oversees financial operations and asset management. Unlike a foundation that delegates to an OCIO, the foundation retains direct ownership of commercial real estate, suggesting in-house management of its largest asset class. The board, which includes estate planning attorney Grant M. Boland, governs the overall investment and grantmaking strategy.
How does the foundation's real estate portfolio influence its grantmaking capacity?
The foundation owns several income-producing properties directly, including a Frito-Lay distribution center in Gilbert and office complexes in Phoenix and Tempe. Revenue from these assets supplements the foundation's financial portfolio, providing a recurring income stream that funds its charitable distributions. This structure makes its grantmaking budget partially dependent on the performance of the Arizona commercial real estate market.
What is the foundation's geographic focus for grants?
Grants are concentrated in Arizona, where the foundation is headquartered and where its real estate holdings are located, as well as in New York and Illinois. The foundation's stated areas of interest are Human Services, Health Care, and general philanthropy and voluntarism. The multi-state focus suggests the family maintains significant ties beyond Arizona.
Does the Simone Charitable Foundation accept outside capital or co-invest?
As a private non-operating foundation incorporated in 2018, it is funded entirely by the estate of Pat Michael Simone and files a Form 990-PF. It does not fundraise from the public or accept outside donor-advised funds. Its posture toward external co-investment alongside other institutions is not publicly documented, making direct inquiry to its officers the only path to confirm partnership appetite.
Who was Pat Michael Simone, and what was the source of the foundation's endowment?
Pat Michael Simone was an Arizona-based real estate investor whose accumulated properties and estate seeded the foundation upon its incorporation in 2018. The foundation directly holds several of what appear to be assets from that original portfolio, rather than having liquidated them, preserving a direct link between the founder's operating business and the charitable entity.
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