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The Rollin M. Gerstacker Foundation
The Rollin M. Gerstacker Foundation was established in 1957 by Eda U. Gerstacker to memorialize her husband, Rollin, an early leader and major shareholder of...
The Rollin M. Gerstacker Foundation
The Rollin M. Gerstacker Foundation was established in 1957 by Eda U. Gerstacker to memorialize her husband, Rollin, an early leader and major shareholder of The Dow Chemical Company. The foundation's endowment stems directly from the Gerstacker family's multigenerational Dow fortune, and its governance remains firmly in family hands with Lisa J. Gerstacker serving as President and CEO alongside Chairperson Laurie G. Bouwman. The board blends family stewards with senior Dow alumni including former Chairman and CEO William S. Stavropoulos and former Dow Inc. President and CFO Howard I. Ungerleider. The foundation's capital is deployed across two distinct lanes. The primary mandate is place-based grantmaking concentrated heavily in Michigan and Ohio where it funds education, healthcare networks, church organizations, and general community welfare programs aligned with the founders' original vision. A secondary and more unusual posture is its direct venture capital allocation, distinguishing it from peer community foundations that remain strictly fixed-income or public-equity oriented. Confirmed grant and investment recipient sectors include educational institutions and healthcare service providers across the Great Lakes Bay Region. The foundation also carries the related Elsa U. Pardee Foundation as part of its broader philanthropic architecture. The board was reshaped by the December 2023 passing of longtime trustee and former Dow Chemical CEO Paul F. Oreffice. The current leadership roster includes former Michigan Attorney General Bill Schuette as Executive Vice President and Assistant Treasurer. The foundation maintains active ties through the Council of Michigan Foundations and Business Leaders for Michigan, where trustees Ungerleider and Schuette hold intersecting private and civic roles. An Altss estimate places total assets around $137 million based on public filings and operational scope. The foundation's structural differentiator is its hybrid posture: it operates as a deeply local, family-governed grantmaker rooted in Midland but allocates a carve-out to direct venture strategies, a combination rarely observed among single-family foundations of this vintage. Its governance also embeds an unusual concentration of former Dow Chemical C-suite executives serving as trustees, creating a permanent throughline between the corporation that generated the wealth and the foundation that stewards it.
General information
Firm type
Endowment / Foundation
Year founded
1957
Location
Region
North America
Country
United States
City
Midland
Corporate office
Midland, MI, United States
Principals
Lisa J. Gerstacker
President and CEO
Laurie G. Bouwman
Chairperson of the Board
Bill Schuette
Executive Vice President and Assistant Treasurer
William S. Stavropoulos
Trustee
Howard I. Ungerleider
Trustee
Sector focus
Frequently asked questions
Who runs investment decisions at the Gerstacker Foundation?
Investment governance rests with the board of trustees chaired by Laurie G. Bouwman, with President and CEO Lisa J. Gerstacker managing day-to-day operations. The board includes former Dow Chemical executives William S. Stavropoulos and Howard I. Ungerleider, providing deep operational and financial acumen. Bill Schuette, a former Michigan Attorney General, serves as Executive Vice President and Assistant Treasurer.
How does the foundation source its direct venture capital deals?
The foundation's venture capital activity is a carve-out within a predominantly grants-driven portfolio. Given the Dow Chemical lineage of its board, deal sourcing likely leverages the industrial and chemicals network concentrated in Midland and the broader Great Lakes region. Specific sourcing channels are not publicly detailed.
Is the Gerstacker Foundation purely a grantmaker or does it also make direct investments?
It operates a hybrid model rare for foundations of its vintage. The primary function is place-based grantmaking concentrated in Michigan and Ohio, supporting education, healthcare, and community programs. However, the foundation also holds a direct venture capital allocation, marking it as an active allocator beyond traditional fixed-income or public-equity foundation mandates.
Which sectors does the Gerstacker Foundation explicitly focus on for grants?
Grantmaking concentrates on community development, education, healthcare services, and religious organizations. The geographical focus is overwhelmingly targeted at Michigan and Ohio, with the Midland area receiving significant attention as the Gerstacker family's multigenerational home and the location of Dow Chemical's global headquarters.
Where does the underlying wealth of the Gerstacker Foundation come from?
The endowment originates from Rollin M. Gerstacker, an early investor in and longtime leader of The Dow Chemical Company. The foundation was established in 1957 by his wife Eda U. Gerstacker. Subsequent generations, including Carl Gerstacker, deepened the family's industrial and philanthropic footprint in Midland, Michigan, creating the fortune that endows the foundation today.
What is the foundation's relationship with Dow Chemical and its current leadership?
The foundation is legally independent from Dow but deeply interwoven through governance. Trustees include former Dow Chairman and CEO William S. Stavropoulos and former Dow Inc. President and CFO Howard I. Ungerleider. This enduring board composition maintains an informal but permanent link to the corporation whose stock created the original endowment.
How is the Gerstacker Foundation different from the Elsa U. Pardee Foundation?
Both foundations trace to the same extended Gerstacker family lineage in Midland. The Rollin M. Gerstacker Foundation is the primary vehicle with the larger asset base and broader grantmaking scope, while the Elsa U. Pardee Foundation is a related entity with a specific focus on cancer research. The Altss research record lists the Pardee Foundation as a related philanthropic structure under the Gerstacker umbrella.
Profile maintained by Altss using OSINT (open-source intelligence), regulatory filings, licensed data partners, and verified direct submissions. Read the methodology. Last updated: . Continuous refresh with full update cycles at least every 30 days.
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