The Grainger Foundation, an independent private foundation based in Lake Forest, Illinois, provides substantive support to a broad range of organizations including educational, medical, cultural, and human services institutions. The Grainger Foundation was established in 1949 by William Wallace Grainger, founder of W.W. Grainger, Inc., North America’s leading broad line supplier of maintenance, repair, and operating (MRO) products, with operations primarily in North America, Japan and Europe.