A Corporate Commitment to Iowa: What to Know About the Athene Charitable Foundation

With a population of around 212,000, Des Moines is the largest city in Iowa and plays host to the headquarters of numerous companies in the Midwest. One of them, Athene, is a company that provides retirement services, such as different kinds of annuities. Like many other financial firms, Athene maintains a commitment to social responsibility and giving back to the local community. To help support the places where the company operates, Athene has a corporate social responsibility committee overseen by the board of directors’ legal and risk committee.

Here’s what nonprofits in Iowa should know about the Athene Charitable Foundation (ACF) and how it gives locally in the state.

Four areas of interest

ACF has broad interest areas and supports many types of nonprofits in Iowa. There are four areas of philanthropic giving at ACF — education, environmental sustainability, human services, and health and wellbeing.

The company and its foundation provide support via donations of money and materials, as well as employee volunteer hours. The Des Moines Community Playhouse and the Leukemia & Lymphoma Society of Iowa have received grants in the past from ACF. Education is ACF’s largest funding area, and to address local educational needs, it often supports reading programs, school supply donation projects and scholarships.

Over $1 million in annual giving

Due to Athene’s success, ACF has been able to ramp up its philanthropic giving over the years. In 2021, for example, the company donated $1,084,768 through its foundation. On top of this, company employees donated $869,091 and volunteered at least 5,085 hours that year. Many ACF grants are between $1,000 and $25,000 and mostly stay local to communities in Iowa.

Non-monetary donations

Keep in mind that ACF donates more than just money. Referencing the 2021 figures again, ACF donated 48,296 meals, 12,096 books and 425 computers that year. Meanwhile, the company is pursuing goals related to recycling and energy reduction to minimize its environmental footprint. Its facility in west Des Moines complies with Leadership in Energy & Environmental Design (LEED)-certified building guidelines.

Open to unsolicited requests

One important reason for Iowa groups to get to know ACF: it is open to receiving unsolicited funding requests. This marks a change from its policy in the past, and the funder has now set a goal to respond to funding requests within 30 days of submission. To apply, nonprofits can complete a downloadable form on ACF’s website and submit by email with supplemental documentation as attachments.

Learn more about this funder in IP’s full profile of the Athene Charitable Foundation, which is part of our Iowa grants for nonprofits guide.

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