It started on a flight home from Iraq. Lt. Col. Dan Rooney, an F-16 fighter pilot, was aboard a commercial plane carrying the remains of a fallen soldier, Corporal Brock Bucklin, and watched from his window as the corporal's twin brother walked a flag draped casket to the family waiting on the tarmac, the corporal's young son among them. That moment became Folds of Honor, the Owasso, Oklahoma charity Rooney founded in 2007 to give educational scholarships to the spouses and children of America's fallen or disabled service members, and, since 2022, first responders. [1][4] The organization says it has awarded roughly 73,000 scholarships worth more than $340 million across all 50 states, with 43 percent of all scholarships awarded going to minority recipients, and it holds a four star rating from Charity Navigator and a Platinum seal from Candid, and says 91 percent of its expenses go to its scholarship program. [1][3][13]
- The founder ran for Congress as a Republican in 2026, then quit after Trump endorsed a rival.
- Nearly 73,000 scholarships worth over $340 million have gone to service and first responder families.
- A 501(c)(3) that runs no campaigns but reported $115,000 in lobbying in 2024.
- Its founder built a fee-waived Jack Nicklaus golf course to fund the mission.
- Ninety-one cents of every dollar spent goes to scholarships; thousands of applicants still go unfunded.
Quick Take
Folds of Honor is built on a cause its founder calls the single most unifying position Americans hold, and as a 501(c)(3) public charity it runs no candidate or party campaign activity: no political action committee and no contributions to candidates. [1] It is not politically inactive, though; its 2024 IRS filing reports $115,000 in direct lobbying of federal and state legislators to press for funding of the scholarship need. [10] Its identity is openly and deliberately patriotic, and its founder is a distinctly political figure in his own right. Dan Rooney is a self described Christian and, in 2026, launched a campaign for the Republican nomination for an Oklahoma congressional seat on an explicitly Trump aligned platform, before suspending it weeks later when President Trump endorsed a rival. [5][6] That is Rooney's personal politics, not the charity's, and the two are worth keeping distinct.
A Fighter Pilot's Promise
Dan Rooney is, by his organization's account, the only person to be both an F-16 fighter pilot, with three combat tours in Iraq, and a PGA golf professional. [3] He and his wife started Folds of Honor above their garage in Broken Arrow, Oklahoma, and grew it into one of the country's best known military charities, now headquartered in Owasso with Rooney as founder and chief executive. [4] He continues to serve as an officer in the Oklahoma Air National Guard. [5]
Rooney does not keep his beliefs private. He is a Fox News contributor and the author of a book subtitled "Living Life Between Fear and Faith," describes himself as a Christian, and has said his home state represents Folds of Honor because it is, in his words, God fearing and unapologetically patriotic. [7] Those are his own statements about his own outlook, and they help explain why the charity's brand leans so heavily on flag, faith adjacent language, and military tribute.
Where the Charity Ends and the Politics Begin
The distinction matters because a 501(c)(3) is barred by law from partisan campaign activity, and Folds of Honor operates no PAC and gives to no candidates. [1] Its scholarship mission reaches families across the political spectrum, in every state, and disproportionately serves minority recipients. [3] By its own framing, honoring service members and first responders is common ground rather than a partisan cause. [4]
That does not mean the organization is politically inactive. A 501(c)(3) is barred from partisan campaign activity but not from all political activity, and Folds does some: its 2024 IRS Form 990 reports $115,000 in direct lobbying and states that the foundation hired a lobbyist to educate federal and state legislators about the unmet scholarship need and to support efforts to fund it, while reporting no political campaign activity. Lobbying a legislature to fund scholarships for the families of the fallen and disabled is issue advocacy tied to the mission rather than partisan campaigning, but it is documented political activity by the organization itself, distinct from its founder's. [10]
Its founder's personal path is another matter. In April 2026, Rooney announced on Fox News that he was running for the Republican nomination in Oklahoma's open 1st Congressional District, centered on Tulsa, campaigning on securing the border, energy independence, support for veterans, and an America First message aligned with President Trump. [6] About a month later, in May 2026, he suspended the campaign after Trump endorsed another Republican, Jackson Lahmeyer, saying he would not campaign against a candidate backed by his commander in chief; his name remained on the June 16 primary ballot, where he finished seventh in an eleven candidate field with about 3.5 percent of the vote. [5][12] The charity itself took no part in the campaign, and none of this is Folds of Honor activity, but for a donor weighing where the organization sits, the founder's public alignment is a documented fact.
Patriotism and the Corporate Partners
Much of the charity's fundraising runs through high visibility corporate partnerships that carry their own cultural charge. Anheuser-Busch and its Budweiser brand have backed Folds of Honor for well over a decade, selling patriotic packaging between Memorial Day and Labor Day, sending the Budweiser Clydesdales on national tours, and presenting donations at NFL games and the World Series. [8] Rooney has said Budweiser pledged a dollar for every case sold and has raised well over $18 million that way, and he has credited the convenience chain QuikTrip and the grassroots Patriot Golf Day, involving thousands of golf courses, as the other pillars of the charity's growth. [7] The Anheuser-Busch relationship drew extra attention after the company leaned into patriotic causes following the 2023 Bud Light controversy.
Golf Is the Engine
Golf is not a side activity for Folds of Honor; it is central to how the charity raises money. Rooney, a PGA professional, founded Patriot Golf Day with the PGA of America in 2007, and it grew into a Labor Day weekend drive run across thousands of courses. [7][14] In 2021 he opened American Dunes Golf Club in Grand Haven, Michigan, built from a course his family had owned for decades and designed by Jack Nicklaus, who waived his design fee; the club's proceeds go to the foundation. [14][15] In 2024 the charity added Folds of Honor Friday at select PGA Tour events, starting at the Memorial Tournament, where scholarship recipients gather at the 18th green for the national anthem while a veterans parachute team delivers a folded flag. [14]
The golf strategy also produced the charity's sharpest public controversy. In 2024 a proposal surfaced to build Nicklaus designed golf courses inside Jonathan Dickinson State Park, one of Florida's largest, with the proceeds intended for Folds of Honor. The Tampa Bay Times reported that Rooney had pitched the idea to Martin County officials, who warned him against it, and that he then met privately with Governor Ron DeSantis in April 2024; after the plan became public it drew statewide protests and bipartisan opposition, and the group behind it withdrew, saying the park was not the right location. [16]
What Folds of Honor Does
Folds of Honor awards need and merit based educational scholarships covering K-12 tuition and tutoring as well as college and postsecondary costs, for the spouses and children of service members and first responders who were killed or disabled in the line of duty. [1] It expanded from a purely military mission to include police, firefighters, EMTs, and paramedics in 2022, citing the roughly two million first responders in the United States. [4] Applications have outpaced funding in recent years. For the 2025-26 academic year the organization reported a single year record of nearly 11,000 scholarships worth more than $53 million, while about 7,700 qualified applicants did not receive full funding. [4][9] For 2024 the organization reported $65.5 million in revenue against $62.7 million in expenses, with about $57 million going directly to scholarships. The same filing reports founder and CEO Dan Rooney's compensation at about $475,000 in reportable pay plus roughly $35,000 in other compensation, and shows that the volunteer board includes two members of the Rooney family, who serve without pay. [10]
Recent News
The past year's headline development was personal rather than organizational: Rooney's short lived 2026 congressional bid, launched in April and suspended in May after Trump's endorsement of a rival. [5][6] The charity meanwhile continued its long running Anheuser-Busch partnership, which delivered fresh rounds of game day donations during the 2025 NFL and World Series seasons. [8] In March 2026 the foundation became an official supporting partner of America250, the congressionally chartered nonpartisan body organizing the nation's 250th anniversary, with Rooney saying Folds of Honor is red, white and blue, not red or blue. [11]
Where to Find Them
Folds of Honor is headquartered in Owasso, Oklahoma, and accepts donations and scholarship applications at foldsofhonor.org. [1]
Footnotes
[1] Folds of Honor, "About Us," foldsofhonor.org, accessed August 20, 2026 (mission, motto, and founding account). https://foldsofhonor.org/about-us/
[3] Folds of Honor, "Who We Are," and Charity Navigator rating for Folds of Honor Foundation (EIN 75-3240683), accessed August 20, 2026 (about 73,000 scholarships totaling more than $340 million; 43 percent minority recipients; four star and Platinum ratings). https://www.charitynavigator.org/ein/753240683
[4] "Folds of Honor Attains Significant Milestones," Firehouse, October 2023 (founding story, 2022 first responder expansion, unfunded qualified applications, founder statements). https://www.firehouse.com/careers-education/press-release/53076821/folds-of-honor-foundation-folds-of-honor-attains-significant-milestones
[5] "Lt. Col. Dan Rooney withdraws from Oklahoma CD1 congressional race," News On 6, May 13, 2026 (Republican primary; Trump endorsed Jackson Lahmeyer; Rooney suspended campaign; continues Air National Guard service). https://www.newson6.com/national-politics-oklahoma/dan-rooney-withdraws-oklahoma-cd1-congressional-race
[6] "Lt. Col. Dan Rooney seeks Republican support in Oklahoma's First Congressional District Primary," CityNewsOKC, May 6, 2026 (April 2026 launch; campaign's stated America First platform: strengthening the military, securing the border, restoring energy independence, prioritizing American families over Washington politics). https://www.citynewsokc.com/news/lt-col-dan-rooney-seeks-republican-support-in-oklahomas-first-congressional-district-primary/article_ce6caf7d-b735-5b38-96c9-8a737be36260.html
[7] "Dan Rooney," Oklahoma Magazine interview, accessed August 20, 2026 (corporate partners QuikTrip, Budweiser, and Patriot Golf Day; Budweiser dollar per case pledge; founder's own description of Oklahoma as God fearing and unapologetically patriotic). https://okmag.com/blog/dan-rooney/
[8] "Anheuser-Busch boosts Folds of Honor with new donations across major sports events for First Responders Day," Fox Business, October 29, 2025 (2025 NFL and World Series donations); and Budweiser and Folds of Honor 14 year partnership, patriotic packaging and Clydesdale tour, June 2024. https://www.foxbusiness.com/sports/anheuser-busch-boosts-folds-honor-new-donations-across-major-sports-events-first-responders-day
[9] "Folds of Honor Sets Another Single-Year Academic Scholarship Distribution Record," The Golf Wire, October 8, 2025 (2025-26 single year record of nearly 11,000 scholarships worth over $53 million; about 7,700 qualified applicants not fully funded; 91 percent of expenses to program). https://thegolfwire.com/folds-of-honor-scholarship-distribution-record/
[10] Folds of Honor Foundation, IRS Form 990 for calendar year 2024, Schedule C Part II-B and Part IV (lobbying $115,000; hired lobbyist to educate federal and state legislators on the scholarship need; no political campaign activity) and Parts I, III, and IX (revenue $65,470,463; expenses $62,718,422; program service $57,006,620; grants $41,565,143; approximately 62,000 scholarships awarded as of 12/31/2024; American Dunes Golf Club as a fundraising entity), accessed August 25, 2026. https://foldsofhonor.org/wp-content/uploads/2025/09/Folds-of-Honor-2024-Completed-990.pdf
[11] "Folds of Honor Joins America250 as an Official Supporting Partner," GlobeNewswire, March 26, 2026 (named an official supporting partner of America250; Rooney quote "red, white and blue, not red or blue"). https://www.globenewswire.com/news-release/2026/03/26/3262927/0/en/Folds-of-Honor-Joins-America250-as-an-Official-Supporting-Partner.html
[12] Oklahoma State Election Board, 2026 June Primary Election official results, U.S. Representative District 1 (Republican), accessed August 25, 2026 (Rooney seventh of eleven with 2,520 votes, about 3.5 percent; Tedford and Lahmeyer advanced to the August 25 runoff). https://oklahoma.gov/elections/elections-results/election-results/2026-election-results/june-primary-election.html
[13] Folds of Honor, "2025-2026 Folds of Honor Fact Sheet," foldsofhonor.org, accessed August 25, 2026 (cumulative figures: nearly 73,000 scholarships totaling over $340 million, 91 percent of spending to program, minority recipients 43 percent of all scholarships awarded; single year 2025-2026: nearly 11,000 scholarships worth over $53 million, about 7,700 applicants not fully funded). https://foldsofhonor.org/wp-content/uploads/2026/04/2025-2026-Folds-of-Honor-Fact-Sheet.pdf
[14] Golf Digest, "Memorial takes military appreciation to next level with Folds of Honor Friday," June 7, 2024 (Jack Nicklaus waived his fee designing American Dunes Golf Club, opened 2021; Patriot Golf Day; Folds of Honor Friday launch at the Memorial Tournament with national anthem and folded flag ceremony). https://www.golfdigest.com/story/pga-tour-memorial-folds-of-honor-friday
[15] Sports Illustrated (SI.com Golf), "This College Tournament With a Patriotic Mission Continues to Shape Lives" (American Dunes in Grand Haven, Michigan, built from the Rooney family's longtime Grand Haven course as a fundraising course for Folds of Honor). https://www.si.com/golf/college-tournament-patriotic-mission-folds-of-honor
[16] Max Chesnes and Emily L. Mahoney, Tampa Bay Times, "Veterans group previously pitched building golf courses at Florida state park," August 24, 2024 (Folds of Honor and the linked Tuskegee Dunes Foundation proposed golf courses at Jonathan Dickinson State Park; Rooney warned by Martin County officials and later met Governor DeSantis; proposal withdrawn after statewide protests). https://www.tampabay.com/news/environment/2024/08/24/jonathan-dickinson-florida-state-park-jack-nicklaus-golf-course-desantis/
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