The Kelvin and Eleanor Smith Foundation

The foundation is governed by a board of family trustees. Ellen Stirn Mavec, granddaughter of founders Kelvin and Eleanor Smith, serves as President and Chair. Great-granddaughters Vanessa Mavec King and Madelaine C. Mavec serve as Treasurer and Trustee respectively. Investment decisions flow through this family governance structure, though the specific internal investment committee composition and any external OCIO relationships are not publicly disclosed.

The endowment was seeded by Kelvin Smith, who co-founded Lubrizol Corporation — the Wickliffe, Ohio-based specialty-chemical company now a publicly traded component of the S&P 500. Lubrizol was sold to Berkshire Hathaway in 2011 for approximately $9 billion, though the Smith family's wealth had already been largely diversified into the foundation and other holdings by that point.

The foundation's investment posture spans buyout, early-stage venture, growth equity, fund of funds, secondaries, and turnaround strategies. It also holds direct commercial real estate in North America, a corporate stock portfolio, and corporate bonds. The foundation's 990-PF filings provide the most granular public disclosure of specific fund commitments and direct holdings.

Ellen Stirn Mavec serves as Board Chair of the Cleveland Museum of Art. The foundation donated the Kelvin and Eleanor Smith Collection to the museum, cementing a multi-decade cultural partnership. This relationship is a cornerstone of the foundation's arts-and-culture grantmaking focus in Northeast Ohio.