Native Texan Jason Burress grew up attending the annual Willie Nelson Fourth of July Picnics. As a young adult, he told his grandparents that once he achieved professional success, he would host a picnic of his own. There would be one key difference: it would celebrate food, family, and fun while raising funds for charity. He has fulfilled that promise through Burress Community Foundation, a nonprofit that awards student scholarships and supports local nonprofits.
Since 2009, Burress Injury Law has hosted an annual picnic that benefits a variety of nonprofits. In 2022, Jason formally established a nonprofit foundation (Burress Community Foundation) to ensure transparency and maximize the Team Burress's charitable giving.
Jason explains, “I served on a community development corporation for years where you learn how to audit financials of non-profits. I realized our foundation was not going to support any organization that allocates 80% of gifts for salaries and overhead. Sadly, you see that often.” To qualify as a beneficiary, charities must demonstrate exceptional financial stewardship, a thoughtful approach, and remain true to their core mission.
One of the foundation’s defining principles is discipline. The hallmark of giving for Burress Injury Law (now in conjunction with the Foundation) is to fund all costs and overhead expenses associated with its events and initiatives (e.g., annual picnic, spring and fall semester scholarships) to ensure 100 percent of all donations and sponsorships reach its beneficiaries, in addition to a dollar for dollar matching gift. No portion of monetary gifts that the foundation receives will ever be used to offset foundation expenses or event costs. The Burress Injury Law Firm provides all manpower and covers all expenses on behalf of the foundation. “So, if there is $75,000 donated, then that’s what goes to the beneficiaries plus the law firm matches the donation,” effectively doubling the gift.
Jason emphasizes the foundation’s unique ethos. “Our foundation does the very best work and gets the very least amount of love. In a perfect world, everyone would know what perfect stewards we are of the money so that we could raise more, allowing us to give more,” he declares. “That is what sets us apart. The money does not go to a CEO salary or inflated staff. We have been blessed with our business, and Burress Community Foundation is able to give back to the people who need it the most.”
The mission of Burress Community Foundation is to support the local community, youth, and first responders through grants, scholarships, and giveback initiatives. By this October, the foundation will have awarded more than $1 million to nonprofits and educational scholarships, a milestone Jason knows would make his grandparents proud. To date, over $707,000 has been donated to local nonprofits such as Love Life Foundation, Hugs Café in McKinney, Mane Gait, various Frisco ISD schools, Celina High School, the Prosper Fishing Team, and many more.
The foundation also provides one-time assistance to individuals, helping families or people in need. When recalling recently helping two local at-risk families in dire need of financial assistance, “We reviewed and audited the situation and jumped in to help. This was even more special as the foundation found an additional sponsor to match the gift.”
This hands-on approach inspired the foundation to expand into college scholarships, awarding a minimum of six each year to deserving students. Over the last four years, 75 scholarships totaling $187,500 have been awarded. The foundation currently offers two types of scholarships: Underdog scholarships and Friends of the Firm scholarships.
Burress Injury Law is devoted to serving victims of serious injuries, often advocating for those who feel overlooked. The Underdog Scholarship supports students who have “persevered in the face of adversity and want to use their life experiences to help others,” according to the foundation’s website. Jason shares, “This means a lot to us to give scholarships to kids who have overcome adversity like a significant crisis or bad injury, cancer, or losing a parent. That is the kind of person who prevails and those are the ones we like to support.” The foundation receives over 1,000 applications per semester, with staff dedicating countless hours to verify each applicant’s story of hardship. “No proof, no scholarship,” Jason underscores.
The Friends of the Firm Scholarship offers a more targeted award for students with a direct connection to the firm, including the children of employees, clients, or volunteers who have contributed to the foundation. The foundation’s long-term goal is to give $500,000 in educational scholarships by 2030.
Based in North Texas with offices in Frisco, McKinney, Sherman and Paris, Burress Injury Law has increased its outreach to raise awareness of the foundation and attract more applications for its grants and scholarships. Jason anticipates announcing a gift to a Frisco nonprofit in the coming months.
For more information, visit www.mytexasfirm.com.