The Stranahan Foundation was created in 1944 by two brothers, Frank D. and Robert A. Stranahan, founders of the Champion Spark Plug Company in Toledo, Ohio. The Foundation is governed by a board of trustees representing third and fourth generation family members of Frank and Robert as well as non-family members whose expertise is especially beneficial to the work of the Foundation.

The Foundation seeks to improve the quality of people´s lives. We support groups and institutions that give people the tools to become educated, healthy, self-reliant and contributing members of our society. In doing this, we seek to strengthen the social networks that build reciprocity and trust amongst peoples, so that the diverse communities and activities within our society work better together.