# The Poston Foundation

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**Page description:** The Poston Foundation is a South Carolina 501(c)(3) public charity supporting practical direct aid, community development, and local preservation.

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The Poston Foundation · South Carolina

## Practical help. Local impact. Stronger communities.

The Poston Foundation strengthens South Carolina communities through practical direct aid, place-based community development, and the preservation of local history and identity.

[Donate](https://www.thepostonfoundation.org/donate/)

[Explore Our Initiatives](https://www.thepostonfoundation.org/initiatives/)

*Image: Carolina Cares Essentials Kit with hygiene supplies, socks, water, a snack, and first-aid basics*

Carolina Cares Essentials Kit · Contents vary with need and availability.

501(c)(3) Public Charity

The Poston Foundation

## Practical help. Directly delivered. Carefully documented.

Founded in 2020 · Columbia, South Carolina · EIN 85-0559047

South Carolina

Carolina Cares

Current Priority

## Help build the next Carolina Cares distribution.

A clean pair of socks. Toothpaste. Water. A snack. Basic first aid. These are small things until someone needs them and does not have them.

Your support helps purchase approved supplies, prepare Essentials Kits, coordinate local distribution, and keep the program ready for the next opportunity to serve.

[Donate to Carolina Cares](https://www.thepostonfoundation.org/carolina-cares/#donate)

[Explore the Program](https://www.thepostonfoundation.org/carolina-cares/)

Embedded media: Help South Carolinians in Need — Carolina Cares Initiative. Available on the canonical HTML page.

Two Focused Initiatives

## Two ways we are putting the mission to work.

Carolina Cares addresses immediate practical needs. Poston Preserve takes a longer view of place, history, and community. Keeping the work focused makes it easier to see what each initiative is for and where support goes.

*Image: Carolina Cares Essentials Kits campaign visual*

Carolina Cares Initiative

### Practical essentials for immediate resource gaps.

Carolina Cares prepares and distributes practical Essentials Kits and related direct aid as funding, supplies, partners, and operating capacity allow.

[Explore Carolina Cares](https://www.thepostonfoundation.org/carolina-cares/)

[Sponsor Essentials Kits](https://www.thepostonfoundation.org/sponsor/)

*Image: The Poston Preserve Initiative — Restore Poston, South Carolina*

The Poston Preserve Initiative

### Preservation, public history, and community development.

Restore Poston begins a place-based effort to document, preserve, and strengthen historic Poston, South Carolina, while building the groundwork for future community support.

[Explore Poston Preserve](https://www.thepostonfoundation.org/poston-preserve/)

[Support Phase One](https://www.thepostonfoundation.org/poston-preserve/#support)

*Image: Carolina Cares Essentials Kit with hygiene supplies, first-aid basics, socks, water, snack, and resource information*

The Essentials Kit

## Useful by design.

Our objective is not to create an elaborate package. It is to create a practical one. Every item should serve a purpose.

**Hygiene** Soap, oral care, wipes, deodorant, personal-care items

**Clean Basics** Socks and other practical clothing basics

**Food & Water** Shelf-stable snacks and bottled water

**First Aid** Simple first-aid supplies and appropriate safety items

**Seasonal Needs** Useful items selected for weather and distribution context

**Resource Information** Relevant local service and referral information when appropriate

Contents vary with community need, season, supply availability, donated products, pricing, distribution setting, and available funding.

[Explore Essentials Kits](https://www.thepostonfoundation.org/carolina-cares/#essentials-kits)

[Sponsor the Program](https://www.thepostonfoundation.org/sponsor/)

**Carolina Cares responds at that immediate level.** Essentials Kits are not represented as substitutes for housing, employment, health care, case management, education, or long-term social services.

*Image: Archival Carolina Cares street outreach in Columbia, South Carolina, in 2020*

Enhanced image of Carolina Cares field outreach · Columbia, South Carolina · 2020

Carolina Cares: 2020 → Today

## The work came first. The structure followed.

Carolina Cares began during the first months of COVID-19 in Columbia. The original volunteer task force went into the community with food, water, sleeping bags, blankets, hygiene items, clothing, and other basic supplies.

In June 2020, WACH FOX 57 documented one Carolina Cares story involving a man who had lost work during the pandemic, became homeless, reached Columbia, and received practical help while applying for jobs. He later secured employment in Greenville.

**Today, the same basic idea remains:** practical help, delivered directly. What has changed is the structure around it—standardized Essentials Kits, defined budgets, volunteer coordination, financial controls, privacy and dignity standards, partnerships, and measured reporting.

[Explore Carolina Cares History](https://www.thepostonfoundation.org/carolina-cares/history/)

[View WACH Coverage](https://www.thepostonfoundation.org/media/wach-homeless-man-receives-unexpected-surprise/)

Trust & Transparency

## You should be able to verify who we are.

The Poston Foundation is a South Carolina nonprofit corporation and IRS-recognized 501(c)(3) public charity. We publish the identifiers, documents, program budgets, and reporting framework that donors and partners commonly need to verify the organization and understand how current work is structured.

Charitable Status

### 501(c)(3) Public Charity

IRS-recognized charitable organization based in Columbia, South Carolina.

EIN 85-0559047

Public Transparency

### Candid Platinum 2026

Public organizational and transparency information is available through the Foundation’s Candid profile.

[View Candid profile ↗](https://app.candid.org/profile/9897244/the-poston-foundation-85-0559047/)

*Image: Together SC 2026 Member — Nonprofit Network*

Nonprofit Network

### Together SC

2026 participation in South Carolina’s statewide nonprofit network.

South Carolina nonprofit community

Federal Registration

### SAM.gov Registered Entity

Active federal assistance registration for The Poston Foundation.

[UEI Y3THS74NACW6 ↗](https://sam.gov/entity/Y3THS74NACW6/coreData)

[View Transparency & Public Documents](https://www.thepostonfoundation.org/transparency/)
[Review Impact & Accountability](https://www.thepostonfoundation.org/impact/)

The Poston Foundation · EIN 85-0559047 · Columbia, South Carolina

Current Program Framework

## Most of the budget is intended for the work itself.

Carolina Cares currently uses a $30,000 twelve-month working framework. Approximately 93% is planned for supplies and other direct program costs. The remaining share supports the recordkeeping, reporting, communications, compliance, and limited administration needed to operate the program responsibly.

These are planning figures—not completed impact claims. Actual costs, kit contents, and output depend on funding, sourcing, donated supplies, season, and operating conditions.

[See the Full Program Budget ›](https://www.thepostonfoundation.org/carolina-cares/#funding-title)

**$30,000** Current twelve-month working framework

**≈93%** Planned for supplies and other direct program costs

**$0** Salaries charged to the current Carolina Cares program budget

Take Part

## There is more than one way to help.

Carolina Cares is built to give individuals, businesses, volunteers, civic groups, churches, and community organizations practical ways to participate.

### Give

Help purchase the next round of approved supplies and support upcoming preparation and distribution.

[Donate to Carolina Cares ›](https://www.thepostonfoundation.org/carolina-cares/#donate)

### Sponsor

Put your business or organization behind Carolina Cares through a defined Essentials Kit Sponsorship.

[View Sponsorship Levels ›](https://www.thepostonfoundation.org/sponsor/)

### Volunteer

Help organize supplies and prepare kits when coordinated volunteer opportunities are available.

[Join the Interest List ›](https://www.thepostonfoundation.org/volunteer/)

### Provide or Partner

Donate approved new products, support a supply drive, or discuss a distribution, referral, or community partnership.

[Contact the Foundation ›](https://www.thepostonfoundation.org/contact/)

Carolina Cares

## Every Essentials Kit starts with someone deciding to help.

A donor contributes. A business provides supplies. A volunteer gives time. A community partner helps connect the work with people who need it. Those individual actions become something useful placed directly into someone’s hands.

[Donate to Carolina Cares](https://www.thepostonfoundation.org/carolina-cares/#donate)

[Sponsor Essentials Kits](https://www.thepostonfoundation.org/sponsor/)

[Volunteer](https://www.thepostonfoundation.org/volunteer/)