Anschutz Family Foundation
A Denver-based private foundation supporting Colorado communities, especially rural areas and economically disadvantaged groups.
Last updated August 25, 2026
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Overview
The Anschutz Family Foundation is a private philanthropic foundation based in Denver, Colorado. It was established in 1982 by businessman Fred Anschutz and his wife, Marian Pfister Anschutz, who initially endowed the organization with $4.6 million. The foundation is a family-funded grantmaker rather than a commercial company, and its principal activity is distributing charitable support to nonprofit organizations. Its grantmaking priorities center on community development and assistance for economically disadvantaged people, children and youth, older adults, and people with disabilities. Although the foundation has a Colorado focus, its work has not been limited to the state’s most populous urban corridor. A notable feature of its approach is the emphasis on rural communities and statewide services, including efforts to strengthen the administrative and organizational capacity of nonprofit groups outside Colorado’s densely populated Front Range. Fred and Marian Anschutz’s daughter, Sue Anschutz-Rodgers, became the foundation’s executive director and president in 1983, one year after its creation. Under her leadership, the foundation developed a more deliberate rural-philanthropy orientation. In 1991, she established Colorado Rural Philanthropy Days, a recurring conference intended to bring foundations and other philanthropic participants from urban areas into rural Colorado counties. The program’s purpose is to help nonprofit organizations in those communities build capacity and improve access to funders and other resources. The foundation reports a large cumulative grantmaking record. Reference material describes more than 9,000 grants with a combined value exceeding $63 million since its establishment. It has also been described as holding more than $66 million in assets. The foundation generally distributes more than $2 million in grants each year, with most individual awards reported to be below $10,000. In 2022, approximately 43 percent of its funding went to rural Colorado. In 2024, more than 58 percent of grants were directed toward rural communities or statewide services, indicating a continuing emphasis on geographic reach beyond the state’s principal metropolitan areas. Governance remains closely connected to the Anschutz family. As of 2021, four grandchildren and five great-grandchildren of Fred and Marian Anschutz were reported to serve on the foundation’s board. Sue Anschutz-Rodgers later transferred the executive-director role to Abel Wurmnest, who works with program officers and a grants manager in administering the foundation’s programs. The foundation has also supported organizations beyond conventional social-service and community-development grantmaking. It has regularly donated to the Common Sense Institute, a conservative think tank, and is identified as the sole donor to the Foundation for a Better Life, a nonprofit that promotes positive role models. These activities have given the foundation a presence in civic and political discourse in addition to its charitable work. Overall, the Anschutz Family Foundation is best understood as a family philanthropy institution with a Colorado-centered, rural-aware grantmaking strategy and a broad portfolio of nonprofit support.
History
The Anschutz Family Foundation was created in 1982 by Colorado businessman Fred Anschutz and his wife, Marian Pfister Anschutz. The founders endowed the new private foundation with $4.6 million, establishing a family-controlled vehicle for charitable giving. From its beginning, the organization’s work was directed toward nonprofit and community needs rather than commercial activity. In 1983, the founders’ daughter, Sue Anschutz-Rodgers, became executive director and president. Her long association with the foundation shaped its identity and grantmaking priorities. The foundation focused on community development and on programs serving economically disadvantaged people, children and youth, seniors, and people with disabilities. While it supported organizations throughout Colorado, it deliberately sought to reach areas beyond the state’s heavily populated Front Range. That geographic emphasis became more visible in 1991, when Anschutz-Rodgers established Colorado Rural Philanthropy Days. The initiative was designed as a recurring conference in which foundations and other funders based largely in urban areas could visit rural Colorado counties and engage with local nonprofit organizations. Its stated purpose was to enhance nonprofit capacity, improve communication between funders and rural groups, and broaden philanthropic attention beyond metropolitan centers. Over time, the foundation built a substantial record of small-scale and community-oriented grantmaking. It has been credited with distributing more than 9,000 grants totaling over $63 million since 1982. The organization has also been described as holding assets of more than $66 million and awarding over $2 million annually. Most grants are reported to be under $10,000, a pattern consistent with support for local organizations and targeted community programs rather than a small number of very large institutional awards. The foundation’s later leadership structure included Abel Wurmnest as executive director, working with two program officers and a grants manager. Sue Anschutz-Rodgers continued as president. Family participation also remained significant: as of 2021, several descendants of Fred and Marian Anschutz were reported to sit on the board, including four grandchildren and five great-grandchildren. The foundation’s grantmaking has included organizations with civic and ideological dimensions. It has regularly supported the Common Sense Institute, described as a conservative think tank, and has been identified as the sole donor to the Foundation for a Better Life, a nonprofit promoting positive role models. These relationships extend the foundation’s public profile beyond conventional social services and into policy, civic messaging, and political-adjacent activity. Geographic targeting remained an important feature of the foundation’s later work. In 2022, rural Colorado accounted for approximately 43 percent of funding. By 2024, more than 58 percent of grants were directed to rural communities or statewide services. These figures indicate that rural access and statewide reach continued to be central to the foundation’s operating strategy. The available reference material does not establish a formal end date or dissolution, and the organization is therefore treated as active.
- 2024
Rural and statewide grantmaking exceeds 58 percent
[1]More than 58 percent of grants were directed toward rural communities or statewide services.
- 2022
Rural Colorado grant share reaches 43 percent
[1]Approximately 43 percent of the foundation’s funding was directed to rural Colorado.
- 2021
Family representation reported on the board
[1]Four grandchildren and five great-grandchildren of the founders were reported to serve on the foundation’s board.
- 1991
Colorado Rural Philanthropy Days launched
[1]Sue Anschutz-Rodgers established a recurring conference intended to connect urban foundations with rural Colorado nonprofits and strengthen local nonprofit capacity.
- 1983
Sue Anschutz-Rodgers assumes leadership
[1]The founders’ daughter, Sue Anschutz-Rodgers, became executive director and president.
- 1982
Foundation established
[1]Fred Anschutz and Marian Pfister Anschutz founded the private foundation and endowed it with $4.6 million.
Products and positioning
A family philanthropy organization focused on strengthening Colorado communities, with particular attention to rural areas, vulnerable populations, and nonprofit capacity.
Marketing campaigns
- 1991Colorado Rural Philanthropy Days
Colorado
A recurring rural-philanthropy conference established to bring urban foundations and other funders into rural Colorado counties and improve nonprofit capacity, funder access, and community connections.
Outcome. The initiative became a continuing component of the foundation’s rural grantmaking orientation; the available reference does not provide a separate quantified outcome.
Brand decisions
2022
Maintain significant rural funding allocationStrategyBackground
The foundation’s grantmaking model emphasized communities outside Colorado’s principal urban corridor.
Action taken
The foundation directed approximately 43 percent of its funding to rural Colorado.
Aftermath
The rural allocation was followed by an even higher reported share for rural communities or statewide services in 2024.
Share of funding directed to rural Colorado. 43% (2022)
1991
Prioritize rural Colorado philanthropyStrategyBackground
The foundation sought to direct attention and resources beyond Colorado’s densely populated Front Range and to improve nonprofit capacity in rural counties.
Action taken
Sue Anschutz-Rodgers established Colorado Rural Philanthropy Days as a recurring forum connecting urban foundations with rural nonprofit organizations.
Aftermath
Rural and statewide services remained a major focus, accounting for 43 percent of funding in 2022 and more than 58 percent of grants in 2024.
Recent events
- 2024
Foundation increases emphasis on rural and statewide services[1]
Other
More than 58 percent of grants were directed toward rural communities or statewide services in 2024.
- 2022
Rural Colorado receives a substantial share of foundation funding[1]
Other
Approximately 43 percent of the foundation’s funding was directed to rural Colorado during 2022.
- 2021
Family members continue to participate in foundation governance[1]
Leadership change
Four grandchildren and five great-grandchildren of founders Fred and Marian Anschutz were reported to serve on the foundation’s board.
Anschutz Family Foundation reports extensive Colorado grantmaking[1]
Other
The foundation is described as having distributed more than 9,000 grants worth over $63 million since 1982, with annual grantmaking exceeding $2 million.
Sources2 sources
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