Mercer University

ABOUT US

Our Foundation

We provide need-based scholarships for female Christian students in nine Southeastern states. We also support the care of senior women.We have awarded grants totaling over $1 billion since inception.

A painting of an older woman with short curly blonde hair, wearing a black lace dress with a large white flower on the front, pearl necklace, and a ring, sitting on a wooden chair against a dark background with a hint of a landscape.

Legacy of Mrs. Whitehead

Our grantmaking is inspired by the legacy of Lettie Pate Whitehead Evans, an extraordinary businesswoman and philanthropist. She was the wife of Joseph B. Whitehead, one of the original bottlers of Coca-Cola. When Mr. Whitehead died in 1906, Lettie took over the family’s bottling and real estate businesses and steered them to great success. She joined the board of The Coca-Cola Company in 1934, becoming one of the first woman directors of a major U.S. corporation.

Mrs. Whitehead gave generously to educational institutions throughout her life, and she had a special empathy for senior women in need. At her death, The Coca-Cola Company honored her thus: “Truly Mrs. Evans, by her life and example, made this world a better place within which to live.”

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A large group of mostly young women is gathered on the steps outside a brick building with the word 'BUILDING' above the entrance. They are posing for a photo, smiling and dressed casually. 
Lee University

About the Foundation

Conkey Pate Whitehead established the Lettie Pate Whitehead Foundation in 1946 in honor of his mother. He dedicated the Foundation to the “aid and benefit of poor and deserving Christian girls and women.”

The Foundation shares an office and staff with other Whitehead family philanthropies – the Joseph B. Whitehead Foundation and the Lettie Pate Evans Foundation – as well as with the Robert W. Woodruff Foundation. This arrangement came about through the friendship between Mrs. Whitehead and Mr. Woodruff, longtime leader of The Coca-Cola Company, and allows us to jointly consider and administer grants for all four foundations.

The Lettie Pate Whitehead Foundation devotes most of its resources to the scholarship program, which supports the education of female Christian students with financial need at nearly 200 colleges, universities and schools in nine Southeastern states: Alabama, Florida, Georgia, Louisiana, Mississippi, North Carolina, South Carolina, Tennessee and Virginia. We also support 15 senior care facilities in Georgia, North Carolina and Virginia. 

Georgia State University

Leadership and Policies

Governance

The Lettie Pate Whitehead Foundation is governed by a self-perpetuating Board of Trustees, which sets policies and makes decisions regarding the Foundation’s operations, grantmaking, management, investments and governance.

Board of Trustees →
Financials →

Articles of Incorporation

Provides specific purposes for the Lettie Pate Whitehead Foundation as a Georgia corporation and public charity.

Bylaws

Lists the rules that guide the Board of Trustees in managing the Foundation’s operations.

Statement of Principles

Serves as a guide for everyday professional conduct for the Foundation’s Board of Trustees and staff.