Mary Kay Ash Foundation gives $20,000 each to 51 shelters across the states and territories

The Mary Kay Ash Foundation of Dallas announced on October 15 that it is awarding more than $2.5 million in 2026 grants for cancer research and domestic violence shelters, across more than 70 grants, according to the foundation's announcement. The foundation said the awards mark 30 years of work and more than $100 million donated toward its two missions. The announcement comes during Domestic Violence Awareness Month.

Unrestricted money for shelters

The largest group is $1,020,000 in shelter grants: 51 grants of $20,000 each to shelters across the 50 states and U.S. territories, the foundation said. The grants are unrestricted, and the foundation said they can cover services such as mental health and post-trauma counseling, childcare, financial assistance and emergency and transitional housing. Four North Texas shelters, Denton County Friends of the Family, Hope's Door New Beginning Center, Genesis Women's Shelter & Support and The Family Place, received $25,000 each, or $100,000 in total.

The foundation also gave $75,000 to the National Domestic Violence Hotline for a digital and social media campaign with loveisrespect on healthy relationships for teens and young adults. Another $75,000 went to the Conference on Crimes Against Women in Dallas, which the foundation has presented for 20 consecutive years and says draws about 3,000 attendees a year.

Cancer research and patient support

On the cancer side, the foundation made 10 grants of $100,000 each, $1 million in total, to researchers studying cancers that primarily affect women, including breast, ovarian, uterine, endometrial and cervical cancers. It gave $134,000 to the Baylor Scott & White Dallas Foundation, the second-year installment of a five-year, $500,000 commitment to the Texas Cancer Interception Institute, plus $75,000 to CancerCare and $25,000 to Cancer Support Community North Texas.

Michael Lunceford, president of the foundation's board, said: "These grants are an investment in hope and brighter futures for women facing some of life's most difficult challenges." The amounts are the foundation's own figures; we found no independent coverage of this year's awards.

What small shelters and funders can note

In our view, the notable feature is the form of the shelter awards: flat, unrestricted $20,000 grants that a small shelter can put where the need is greatest. Shelters can look for funders that publish their criteria and amounts, and funders can ask whether a flat award is easier on applicants than a long, customized budget. For how program officers read requests, see a grant budget a program officer can read, and for recent data on giving to women's causes, see the women and girls giving index.