Foundation Staff

The Foundation has a small but dedicated staff team that works in in close coordination with other teams across the various Laird Norton entities and with Laird Norton family members. ​

Katie Briggs, Managing Director
kbriggs at lairdnorton dot org
​206.501.4510
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When not juggling the responsibilities that come with being half of the staff for the Laird Norton Family Foundation, I can usually be found at home in my kitchen or garden, hanging out with my husband, our young children, and our aging Chesapeake Bay retriever. When life allows, I jump at the first opportunity to hit the road or strap a backpack to my back, searching for sunshine (or seaglass). I'm a Montana native who couldn't resist the siren song of large bodies of water; I now get a daily dose of that water as a ferry commuter, which beats pretty much all other forms of commuting, no question.

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Karyn McKelvey, Program Assistant
kmckelvey at lairdnorton dot org
206.501.4509

I am a Puget Sound native, and truly love the natural beauty of this part of the world. After living in a few other places, I returned to Seattle and have been immersed in our local nonprofit and philanthropic community for more than a decade. During my career I have built knowledge in the arts, health and human services, education, and environmental sectors – with a deep personal commitment to caring for our planet and all creatures. Outside of work, I can be found exploring beaches, traveling, hiking or snowshoeing, volunteering with animals, and practicing or teaching yoga. ​

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Cadence Miller, Program Officer
cmiller at lairdnorton dot org
206.501.4535

I am a life-long Seattleite with experience with local and national nonprofits dedicated to health, social services, and youth. I spend free time with my son and friends enjoying the beautiful Pacific Northwest by camping, hiking, or working in the garden. I also love to create, whether it be cooking or making homemade Halloween costumes. 

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Grants

Please note: the Foundation does not accept unsolicited proposals or letters of inquiry, and rarely makes grants to organizations that were not invited to apply. For more information, please visit our FAQ.

About Our Grants

The Laird Norton Family Foundation awards grants by invitation only. We do not accept unsolicited applications for grants, though we do accept brief information forms from organizations whose work is closely aligned with our priorities. However, it is extremely rare for an unsolicited inquiry to result in an invitation to apply for funding.

If you have thoroughly reviewed the Foundation’s priorities and grantmaking activity on the website and you believe your organization is a good match for our mission, you can fill out an information form here. Please be aware that the Foundation does not accept unsolicited proposals or formal letters of inquiry and rarely makes grants to organizations that first come to our attention through the website information form. We urge you to carefully review your fit with our organization’s priorities before investing time in filling out our inquiry form. Full applications may be submitted by invitation only.

If you do fill out an information form, please be as specific as possible about how you see the fit between the work you do and our priorities. We will review all information submitted, but cannot respond to all due to the volume of inquiries we receive. Please do not call before submitting an inquiry form, or to inquire on the status of an inquiry form submitted.

Types of Support we offer

Laird Norton Family Foundation awards roughly $1.25 million per year in grants. The Foundation generally provides program or operating support, with approximately 30% of grant dollars awarded from 2007–13 designated as general operating support. The Foundation does not make multi-year commitments; however, we seek to develop strong partnerships with our grantees and will consider awarding multiple or successive grants to an organization. Between 2007 and 2013, approximately 40% of the Foundation's grantees received funding over multiple years.

The Foundation makes grants to organizations located within the United States qualified under Internal Revenue Code Section 501(c)(3) and classified as public charities (not private foundations) under Section 509(a). Following are additional guidelines around our grants:

• No grants are made to religious institutions for religious purposes.
• The Foundation does not provide grants for individuals, scholarships, endowments, capital campaigns, for-profit organizations, or unincorporated associations or groups.
• We generally do not support publications, documentary films, television productions and the like.
• From 2007–2016, LNFF awarded grants through our Global Fundamentals program, focused on improving the quality of life in developing countries through clean water and sanitation access, technology, and policy. The Foundation has since shifted focus to other areas of impact and no longer makes Global Fundamentals grants.

The Laird Norton Family

The Laird and Norton families, related to each other from their pioneer origins in Pennsylvania, settled in Winona, Minnesota, in the mid-1850s. There, William Harris Laird and his cousins, Matthew G. Norton and James Laird Norton, formed the Laird Norton Company.

The pioneer logging and lumberyard operation was the first of several family-owned companies, first in the Midwest, later in the Pacific Northwest, and finally all over the West, including Alaska. Today, Laird Norton Company, LLC is still a privately owned and operated family business, committed to contributing value to its family and community.

A seventh-generation family, the Laird Norton family now includes approximately 500 living family members. Family members live throughout the world and occupy a wide array of professions. We come together every year to share skills and interests, and strengthen our connection to each other and our shared history.

A History of Collective Philanthropy

The family’s collective philanthropy began in 1940 in Winona, Minnesota, when Laird and Natalie Bell, descendants of William Laird and Matthew and James Norton, established the Briarcombe Fund.

Since then, the foundation has undergone several name changes and a variety of operating styles.
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​The most significant shift in direction came in 2006 when the family company made a significant investment in the foundation following the sale of a substantial legacy business holding. The increased investment in the family foundation coincided with a new name - the Laird Norton Family Foundation - and a new strategic direction for the foundation:

1. Fund advisory committees were formed to involve more family members in the family foundation, catalyze informed personal philanthropy among Laird Norton family members, and educate future Laird Norton leaders.
2. Family members agreed to focus the Foundation's giving by developing program areas that reflect family values.
3. Sapling Fund, which previously operated as a Laird Norton Company program, was integrated into the Foundation in 2009 to strengthen the connection between the family foundation and the philanthropic activities of the family’s younger members.

The Foundation encourages and supports individual philanthropy through the Taproot Fund, which matches family members' charitable donations and volunteer commitments up to $1,000 per family member per year.

In addition to the Laird Norton Family Foundation, Laird Norton family members are engaged in many other charitable activities – from foundations, trusts and funds to generous personal philanthropy, civic engagement, and volunteer service.

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