Suffolk, VA, October 27, 2025 — A new grant program, dubbed the Bradshaw Benevolence Grant, was announced this month by the Suffolk Foundation. The program will help nonprofits providing food, clothing, shelter, and/or medical care to residents of Suffolk, Franklin, Southampton County, and/or Isle of Wight County.
With funds contributed by a Southampton County native, the $25,000 grant will be awarded in February 2026, and again each year thereafter, to a charitable organization that provides relief to local individuals and families facing poverty, hardship, and other struggles.
The endowment for the Bradshaw Benevolence Grant was bequeathed by the late Brenda Ward Bradshaw, who was born and raised in Southampton County, Virginia, and graduated from Southampton High School. Her husband of 49 years—Elmer “Tres” Amos Bradshaw, III, of Franklin, Virginia—was a Vietnam Veteran who served in the US Marine Corps for 12 years. He also coached golf, which took the couple to South Carolina for many years, where he coached at North Greenville University, among other places, and was inducted into the Athletic Hall of Fame.
The Bradshaws eventually moved back home and lived their last years in Franklin, Virginia. Devout Christians, the Bradshaws shared their faith with countless friends whose lives were changed by their prayer, kindness, and generosity. Mrs. Bradshaw, who passed away in February, remembered two of their favorite charities in her will: Bernie’s Book Bank in Illinois, and the Child Evangelism Fellowship of Greenville, South Carolina.
Mrs. Bradshaw also entrusted the Suffolk Foundation with a field-of-interest endowment to “provide relief to the poor, distressed, or underprivileged.” That gift is the basis for the Bradshaw Benevolence Grant.
“The goal of the Bradshaw Grant is to provide tangible assistance to members of our community, and to fund a project that would not be possible otherwise,” said Lorelei Morrow, the Executive Director of the Suffolk Foundation. “We are especially interested in launching a new initiative, or expanding an existing initiative.”
“This assistance could not come at a better time for the community,” she said, “when so many people in our community are struggling.”
The Suffolk Foundation has also partnered during the federal government shutdown with the Coalition Against Poverty in Suffolk, Isle of Wight Christian Outreach Program, and Franklin Cooperative Ministry to assist furloughed and unpaid federal government employees who are struggling to pay bills while going without a paycheck.
Letters of inquiry for the Bradshaw Benevolence Grant are due to the Suffolk Foundation by November 19. Prospective applicants should call the Suffolk Foundation before starting a letter. More information can be found at www.suffolkfoundation.org/bradshaw-benevolence-grant.
The Suffolk Foundation is a 501c3 community foundation, whose mission is to benefit the people of Suffolk and Western Tidewater by facilitating and developing philanthropy, and by awarding grants and scholarships to meet a broad range of local community needs. Since the Suffolk Foundation was formed in 2006, it has awarded over $9.5 million locally in grants and scholarships.
Anyone can make a gift to the Brenda Ward Bradshaw Fund in her memory, or to any fund within the Suffolk Foundation. To learn more your giving options, including information on leaving a bequest or establishing a fund of your own, visit www.suffolkfoundation.org, or call the office at 757-923-9090.
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For more information:
Lorelei Costa Morrow
Executive Director
Suffolk Foundation
110 West Finney Avenue
Suite 100
Suffolk, VA 23434
O: 757-923-9090
M: 757-774-8399
E: lmorrow@suffolkfoundation.org
W: www.suffolkfoundation.org
