Ruth Nelson Family Foundation’s $350 Million Tulsa Legacy

Tulsa philanthropist Ruth K. Nelson dedicated her life to making the world a better place for families and children. Although she passed in 2023, the Ruth Nelson Family Foundation (RNFF) is ensuring that her impact will be felt for years to come.

Unlike most foundations, RNFF has pledged to give away all of Nelson’s assets — valued at approximately $350 million — to charitable causes in the Tulsa area by 2038. This unique strategy honors Nelson’s final wish.

“Ruth is a trendsetter in this space,” says Gina Stilp, the founding executive director at RNFF. “I think she felt an urgency, and she could see that there were challenges facing the community … (she) had the recognition that she could allocate those resources to today’s needs.”

Ruth Nelson

Remembering Ruth

Born Ruth Kaiser in London in 1935, Nelson was the daughter of Herman and Kate Kaiser. Her mother had traveled to England so her first child would not be born Jewish in Nazi Germany. The family later emigrated to Tulsa in 1941. Her father and brother, George Kaiser, founded the Kaiser-Francis Oil Company, which made their family an immense fortune.

During her lifetime, Nelson was committed to helping others, becoming one of Tulsa’s most prolific philanthropists and civic leaders. She served as chairwoman of the Tulsa Housing Authority and as board chair of Planned Parenthood for Eastern Oklahoma and Northwestern Arkansas, now part of Planned Parenthood Great Plains.

Nelson was also a lifelong learner and avid reader who approached the world with curiosity. A graduate of Bryn Mawr College, she traveled extensively throughout her life and embraced the Jewish principle of Tikkun Olam — repairing the world. The words on her gravestone perhaps best summarize the life she sought to lead: “She Lived to Know and Repair the World.”

Between 1995 and 2023, Nelson used RNFF to direct $160 million in grants to more than 200 nonprofits — much of it anonymously.

“Ruth’s philanthropy was driven, I think, by two key values, which were humility and integrity,” adds Stilp. “(Having worked) in philanthropy for a long time now, that’s not always the case. She was in it to help the community.”

For her years of philanthropic and volunteer work, Nelson was inducted into the Tulsa Historical Society’s Hall of Fame and Tulsa Library Hall of Fame. She was also awarded the key to the City of Tulsa in 2016 for her devotion to improving Tulsa’s housing.

Gina Stilp, the founding executive director at RNFF. Photo by Shane Bevel

Investing in Tulsa Families

To drive positive change for families throughout Tulsa, RNFF partners with nonprofits that are already addressing the community’s most critical needs. Much like Nelson herself, RNFF prioritizes supporting youth development and women’s health.

“Our north star is making sure that our investments are contributing to 5,500 families achieving economic mobility,” explains Stilp. “We really believe that we’re not only laying pathways for children when we’re working at the youth level. We’re (also) creating pathways for babies by supporting healthy pregnancies and those first thousand days of brain development.”

This year alone, RNFF has funded children’s extracurricular programs in partnership with Global Gardens, a Tulsa nonprofit that improves children’s well-being through community garden programs, and Youth at Heart, which provides after-school programs to underserved families in Tulsa.

“(Ruth) was an avid reader and was someone who was highly informed — a real believer in access to education as a pathway to opportunity,” explains Stilp. “We’re developing a strategy right now to make sure that when the school bell rings, kids still have … strong opportunities for fun and academic support outside of the classroom.”

In the women’s health space, the foundation has provided grants to Crossover Health Services and the Foundation for Health Oklahoma to help expand the availability of midwifery services and prenatal and postpartum care in the Tulsa area.

Gina Stilp and Alex Paschal tour the Owasso location of A New Leaf with the executive director. Photo by Shane Bevel

A Place to Call Home

According to Tulsa’s Housing Office, the city is facing an affordable housing crisis, with a shortage of about 6,000 housing units. To address the existing shortage and meet future demand, the city needs to build nearly 13,000 housing units over the next 10 years.

RNFF is working to help solve this problem, acknowledging the impact that it has on families and children living in Tulsa.

“There are reams of evidence that show that supportive housing and affordable housing are truly the foundation of economic stability. It allows families to be safe, have a home … and get their kids to school on time,” says Stilp.

Since 2025, the foundation has allocated approximately $26 million to affordable housing projects, which has helped with the construction of 500 housing units across the city. RNFF was also one of the first organizations to contribute to Tulsa’s Housing Impact Fund to help accelerate the buildout of 6,000 affordable housing units by 2028.

Ruth Nelson Family Foundation’s 2026 Giving Highlights:

• $5 million to Tulsa Habitat for Humanity for affordable housing development and down payment assistance for Habitat homebuyers.
• $800,000 to City Lights to complete the City Lights Village, a 75-unit permanent supportive housing development.
• $750,000 to support the construction of Community Health Connection’s Maternal and Child Health Center, a 22,000-square foot healthcare facility that will open in 2027 and serve the greater Tulsa area.
• $450,000 to Union Public Schools to sustain out-of-school programming for elementary, middle school and freshman students.
• $300,000 to Sistema Tulsa to sustain accessible, high-quality youth music education programs for underserved children.
• $70,000 to Tulsa Girls Arts School for arts programming and mentorship opportunities.

Inspired by Nelson’s legacy, the team at RNFF is excited to drive long-term, positive change that will outlive the foundation’s existence. “It’s a gift to work here and know that what (Ruth) wanted us to do was improve Tulsa and the community—to use her resources to help people live better lives and create pathways for them to have opportunities that continue well after her foundation closes its doors,” shares Stilp.

Faith Harl is an independent writer and journalist who is passionate about community-centered storytelling. Born and raised in Tulsa, she writes about her hometown’s culture, people and places.