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Ama Olukai Foundation at a glanceAlso receives grants: funding profile →

· Private foundation

Ama Olukai Foundation

Its FY2025 filing reports that it accepted unsolicited grant applications.

$1.2M
Granted FY2025still arriving
17
Grants FY2025still arriving
1
States reached
$1.0M
Largest
01What it fundsRead
02The needRead
03Its granteesRead
04Its fieldRead
05Through PlinthRead
01What it funds
0193% classified

What it funded, over time

Every grant placed by its stated purpose and the recipient’s mission, by year, FY2017 to 2024.

Arts & Culture$313kEnvironment$253kPublic Safety & Disaster$224kEducation$100kPhilanthropy$85kFood & Nutrition$83kCommunity Improvement$61kRecreation & Sports$31kOther$0
02FY2025 · 17 grants

Where the money goes

Grants by size, and the largest recipients.

By grant size · FY2025

  • Under $10k1 grant · $5k
  • $10k–50k15 grants · $187k
  • $250k+1 grant · $1.0M
$12,000
Median grant
1
States reached
$92k
Total assets
Largest grants
RecipientAmount
LELE ALOHA$1,016,462
POLYNESIAN VOYAGING SOCIETY PVS$15,000
NA KAMA KAI$15,000
KOKUA HAWAI'I FOUNDATION$15,000
HULI HAWAII LLC$15,000
Individual grant recipient$15,000
HAWAIIAN LIFEGUARD ASSOCIATION HLA$12,000
OUTRIGGER DUKE KAHANAMOKU ODKF WATERMAN'S HOF$12,000
HO'OLA MUSIC & CUTURAL ARTS$12,000
I NUI KE AHO$12,000
KAUAI COMMUNITY RADIO KKCR$12,000
IMILOA ASTRONOMY CENTER (UNIVERSITY OF HAWAII FOUNDATION)$12,000
LAHAINALUNA AGRICULTURE LEARNING CENTER$10,000
KAULUAKALANA$10,000
KA MA'O$10,000
02The need
03

Does the money reach high-need areas?

Each grant placed by the hardship in its grantee’s ZIP, against the area’s typical level.

show:

Its human-services grants (FY18–19, $16k) land where the poverty rate runs at 9%, against an area that typically sits at 7%. 100% of those dollars go to grantees based in above-average-need neighborhoods. Most of its grants land in higher-need ZIPs.

area typical 7%PAEPAE O HE'EIA: $8k → 9%PAEPAE O HE'EIA: $8k → 9%0%20%40%50%more need →
grant to an above-average-need area below average· circle size = grant amount
How this is measured
Matched: human-services grants are those whose grantee’s IRS cause code is Human Services. Placed by people below the poverty line in the grantee’s ZIP, averaged from the tracts in that ZIP.
How this is measured
US grants placed by each grantee’s ZIP, which can differ from where services are delivered. Need from public data (U.S. Census/ACS, CDC PLACES, Eviction Lab, USDA), shown as context about the area, never attributed to the funder’s giving.
03Its grantees
repeat funding

Who it funds again

Organizations funded in more than one year, against those funded once.

45%of every dollar goes to organizations it has funded before.
$1.1M · 25 repeat orgs$1.4M to everyone else

Grantees it renews have grown median revenue +89% since the first grant, against -1% for those funded once.

25 repeat relationships: 6 still active in FY2025, 19 since wound down; 11 grantees were first funded in FY2025 (too recent to call).

How the two cohorts compare

Re-uppedFunded once

Organizations

25
17

Total granted

$1.1M
$222k

Median revenue growth · since first grant

+89%
-1%

Still filing today

68%
41%

New vs renewed · share of each year

In FY2025, 6% of grant dollars renewed an existing relationship; $1.1M went to new ones.

50%100%’17’18’19’20’21’22’23’24’25
RenewedFirst-time

Where new relationships form · theme of each grantee’s first grant

’17’18’19’20’21’22’23’24’25
Arts & CultureEnvironmentEducationPublic Safety & DisasterMembership BenefitYouth DevelopmentOther
How this is measured
First-time means a grantee’s first year in the filing window; renewed means funded in an earlier year too. The renewed share climbs naturally as a portfolio matures, so the signal is a year that bucks it (a wave of new grantees). The earliest year is left-censored: relationships that predate the data read as new. Theme is the grantee’s IRS cause.

Backed again, and grew

  • NK
    NA KAMA KAI
    9× · 2017–2025 · $109k · revenue +416%
  • PV
    POLYNESIAN VOYAGING SOCIETY
    8× · 2017–2024 · $96k · revenue +68%
  • HL
    HAWAIIAN LIFEGUARD ASSOCIATION
    7× · 2017–2024 · $70k · revenue +558% · 60% of their budget

Funded once

  • CS
    Collaborative Support Services Inc
    one grant, 2023 · $50k · revenue -34%
  • IG
    Individual grant recipient
    one grant, 2024 · $25k
  • KK
    Kaha Kukahi
    one grant, 2024 · $25k · revenue 0%
How this is measured

Repeat means funded in two or more distinct years. Growth and survival are read from each grantee’s own subsequent IRS filings.

04Its field

Closest unfunded matches

The nonprofits that most resemble its grantees but are not funded by it, scored along the direction from the rest of the field toward the portfolio. A resemblance in what they say they do, not a recommendation.

1
E Kupaku Ka Aina - the Hawaii Land Restoration Institute
Environment
2
Na Mamo o Kawa

to rehabilitate, curate, and steward the natural and cultural resources of Kawa to honor the past, benefit the present, and preserve for the future generations of Ka'u, the Island of Hawaii and all humankind.

Environment
3
Ka Ha O Ka Aina
Environment
4
Na 'Aina Kai Botanical Gardens
Philanthropy
5
Hiikua a Hiialo Cultural Foundation
Arts & Culture
6
Malama Kua Aina
Environment
7
The Haiku Aina Permaculture Initiative
—
8
Na Hoa Aloha O Ka Pu Uhonua O Honaunau

For the benefit and inspiration of ALL, Na Hoa Aloha o ka Pu'uhonua o Honaunau participates with NPS and other partners to protect and preserve cultural and natural resources, guided by the aacestral knowledge of South Kona.

—
9
Na Kua Aina O Waimanalo
Arts & Culture
10
Kahea the Hawaiian Environmental Alliance

Kahea is a community-based organization working to improve the quality of life for hawai`i's people and future generations through the revitalization and protection of hawai`i's unique natural and cultural resources. kahea advocates for…

Environment
11
Na Maka Haloa O Waipio

The purpose is to preserve and restore the indigenous hawiian culture, farming traditions, fishing practices and hula.

Arts & Culture
12
Hawaii Book and Music Festival
Arts & Culture
How this is measured
The grantee most central to the portfolio’s shape is Kua Aina Ulu Auamo; the most unlike its peers is Kapena School of Music. Resemblance is measured on each organization’s own IRS 990 mission text; it reflects how work is described, not its quality or impact.
04the grantee network

27 grantees tracked through their own filings, 2017–2025.

Each grant beside the grantee’s revenue from every source, year by year.

How this is measured

Counted here: distinct organizations funded across 2017 to 2025, not grant rows in a single year, so this will not match the grant count on the cover. 27 of the 53 grantees resolved in that span have returns of their own we could reconcile.

Each grantee is resolved to its own IRS returns. Association, dated; never a causal claim.

1
Load-bearing (≥25% of a budget)
14
Early backer (in before they grew)
27/27
Grantees still filing
20/27
Grew since first funded

Where the money sits, by cause and then by grantee

LELE ALOHA: $1,016,462 · Public Safety & DisasterLELE ALOHAHAWAIIAN LIFEGUARD ASSOCIATION: $70,000 · Public Safety & DisasterHAWAIIAN LIFEGUARD ASSOCIATIONVICTIMS OF MAUI WILDFIRE DISASTER: $148,800 · OtherVICTIMS OF MAUI WILDFIRE DISASTERHULI HAWAII INC: $100,000 · OtherHULI HAWAII INCMAUI NUI MAKAI NETWORK: $61,500 · OtherMAUI NUI MAKAI NETWORKOUTRIGGER DUKE KAHANAMOKU FOUNDATION: $34,500 · Other+29 more: $408,000 · Other+29 morePOLYNESIAN VOYAGING SOCIETY: $96,000 · Arts & CulturePOLYNESIAN…HOOLA MUSIC AND CULTURAL ARTS: $46,500 · Arts & CultureHOOLA MUSI…HUI ALOHA AINA MOMONA: $42,000 · Arts & CultureHUI ALOHA …KAPENA SCHOOL OF MUSIC: $20,000 · Arts & CultureKAPENA SCH…KA MA'O INC: $10,000 · Arts & CultureMOANALUA GARDENS FOUNDATION INC: $10,000 · Arts & CultureKONA HISTORICAL SOCIETY: $10,000 · Arts & Culture+1 more: $4,327 · Arts & CultureNA KAMA KAI: $109,350 · EnvironmentKOKUA HAWAII FOUNDATION: $32,500 · EnvironmentHULIAUAPAA: $20,000 · EnvironmentI NUI KE AHO: $12,000 · EnvironmentKUA AINA ULU AUAMO: $8,000 · EnvironmentUNIVERSITY OF HAWAII FOUNDATION: $68,000 · EducationEDITH KANAKA'OLE FOUNDATION: $22,000 · EducationHIKA'ALANI FKA NAONEALAA: $10,000 · EducationKAULUAKALANA: $51,000 · Community ImprovementCollaborative Support Services Inc: $50,000 · Membership Benefit
Public Safety & Disaster$1,086,462Other$752,800Arts & Culture$238,827Environment$181,850Education$100,000Community Improvement$51,000Membership Benefit$50,000

Each grantee by its size and the funder’s share of it; top left is load-bearing

25%50%75%100%$100k$1.0M$10M$100Mgrantee revenue →↑ funder's share of their budgetNA KAMA KAI: $109,350 over 9y, 4.3% of budgetPOLYNESIAN VOYAGING SOCIETY: $96,000 over 8y, 1.0% of budgetHAWAIIAN LIFEGUARD ASSOCIATION: $70,000 over 7y, 60% of budgetUNIVERSITY OF HAWAII FOUNDATION: $68,000 over 6y, 0.0% of budgetKAULUAKALANA: $51,000 over 5y, 2.9% of budgetCollaborative Support Services Inc: $50,000 over 1y, 0.7% of budgetHOOLA MUSIC AND CULTURAL ARTS: $46,500 over 4y, 22% of budgetHUI ALOHA AINA MOMONA: $42,000 over 5y, 5.3% of budgetOUTRIGGER DUKE KAHANAMOKU FOUNDATION: $34,500 over 3y, 6.9% of budgetKOKUA HAWAII FOUNDATION: $32,500 over 2y, 0.7% of budgetKaha Kukahi: $25,000 over 1y, 4.2% of budgetHAWAII AGRICULTURAL FOUNDATION: $24,500 over 2y, 1.1% of budgetEDITH KANAKA'OLE FOUNDATION: $22,000 over 2y, 1.8% of budgetKULEANA CORAL REEFS: $20,500 over 2y, 13% of budgetHULIAUAPAA: $20,000 over 2y, 1.6% of budgetKAPENA SCHOOL OF MUSIC: $20,000 over 2y, 3.4% of budgetWAIPA FOUNDATION: $18,000 over 2y, 1.0% of budgetPAEPAE O HE'EIA: $16,000 over 2y, 1.1% of budgetRISE AND SHINE ART: $10,000 over 2y, 20% of budgetMOANALUA GARDENS FOUNDATION INC: $10,000 over 1y, 1.6% of budgetKONA HISTORICAL SOCIETY: $10,000 over 1y, 2.1% of budgetHIKA'ALANI FKA NAONEALAA: $10,000 over 1y, 4.3% of budgetKUA AINA ULU AUAMO: $8,000 over 1y, 0.9% of budgetMAUI CULTURAL LANDS INC: $4,327 over 1y, 8.6% of budget
Grantee by grantee: a decade per organization, before and after funding

A decade per grantee: revenue shaded, grants as bars, all rows on one timeline.

  • Who funds LELE ALOHA ↗
  • Who funds NA KAMA KAI ↗
  • Who funds POLYNESIAN VOYAGING SOCIETY ↗
  • Who funds HAWAIIAN LIFEGUARD ASSOCIATION ↗
  • Who funds UNIVERSITY OF HAWAII FOUNDATION ↗
  • Who funds KAULUAKALANA ↗
  • Who funds Collaborative Support Services Inc ↗
  • Who funds HOOLA MUSIC AND CULTURAL ARTS ↗
  • Who funds HUI ALOHA AINA MOMONA ↗
  • Who funds OUTRIGGER DUKE KAHANAMOKU FOUNDATION ↗
  • Who funds KOKUA HAWAII FOUNDATION ↗
  • Who funds Kaha Kukahi ↗
  • Who funds HAWAII AGRICULTURAL FOUNDATION ↗
  • Who funds EDITH KANAKA'OLE FOUNDATION ↗
  • Who funds KULEANA CORAL REEFS ↗
  • Who funds HULIAUAPAA ↗
  • Who funds KAPENA SCHOOL OF MUSIC ↗
  • Who funds WAIPA FOUNDATION ↗
  • Who funds PAEPAE O HE'EIA ↗
  • Who funds I NUI KE AHO ↗
  • Who funds KA MA'O INC ↗

Co-funders

Grantmakers whose grantees overlap with this funder’s far more than size alone predicts. Closer means stronger alignment; arcs show where they also fund each other. Here they form a tightly interlocked group: most of these funders back each other's grantees too.

Trustees of the Estat…Atherton Family Found…Council for Native Ha…The Strong FoundationThe Harry and Jeanett…PatagoniaorgJohnson Ohana Foundat…Historic Hawai'I Foun…Hawaii Council for Hu…Harold Kl Castle Foun…Bank of Hawaii Charit…Aloha United Way Inc
Trustees of the Estate of Bernice Pauahi Bishop Dba Kamehameha SchoolsHI28.1× affinity11 shared granteesties to 11 of 11Hover any node to trace its alignments.Compare side by side →

Open a dossier: Trustees of the Estate of Bernice Pauahi Bishop Dba Kamehameha Schools · Atherton Family Foundation · Council for Native Hawaiian Advancement · The Strong Foundation · The Harry and Jeanette Weinberg Foundation Inc · Patagoniaorg · Johnson Ohana Foundation · Historic Hawai'I Foundation · Hawaii Council for Humanities · Harold Kl Castle Foundation · Bank of Hawaii Charitable Fdn · Aloha United Way Inc

How this is measured
Affinity is a Gamma-Poisson posterior co-funding rate, re-centered on the typical rate, so thin evidence shrinks toward no signal. Overlap is association, not proof of shared intent.

How much its grantees rely on government

Each dot is one organization Ama Olukai Foundation funds: left to right is the share of its income from government, bottom to top the share from Ama Olukai Foundation. Bigger dots raise more.

2024
’20’21’22’23’24’25
no gov · 00%4%15%34%60%funder's share of their income ↑0%25%50%75%100%share of the org’s income from government →
    no gov moneyreceives it· size = income
    0get no government money at all
    4report government grants on their 990 we could not trace to a source (not plotted)
    0rely on government for over half their income
    typical government reliance, FY20–25
    How this is measured
    Government income is each org’s traced federal awards (USASpending grants and contracts) plus state payments (open checkbooks) as a share of its total revenue (IRS Form 990); the self-reported government-grant line (990 line 1e) is carried for cross-check: a grantee that reports government grants we could not trace to a source is left off the chart rather than shown as receiving none. An association, not a claim that a grant caused the public funding. Coverage is precision-first, a floor rather than a census; state records exist for 9 states, so a grantee outside them shows no state figure (dimmed) rather than a false zero. Federal award amounts are obligations, which can span years, so a single-year share is indicative. 990 filings lag 12 to 24 months.
    05Through Plinth

    Warm introductions · Powered by PlinthPlus

    How do I get to Ama Olukai Foundation?

    Find your warmest path to Ama Olukai Foundation through trustees and officers whose names appear on both boards. Search for your organization and Plinth traces the shortest route it can evidence.

    Each link is a name appearing on two organizations’ public IRS 990 filings, matched on that name and, where the filings support it, on location. A same-state match has geographic support, which is a second matching feature rather than confirmation that the two are one person; a cross-state one is the likeliest to be two people who share a name. Every hop shows its tier, low-confidence and distant paths are held back rather than guessed, and it is worth confirming the person before you use the introduction.

    On method. Every financial figure here is read from IRS e-file XML, the funder’s own 990/990-PF, and from the multi-year returns of the 53 grantees we resolved, each linked to its source. Grantee outcomes are each organization’s own program-service reporting (Form 990, Part III), read as association with funding, never as caused by it. Low-confidence name matches are suppressed rather than guessed. How we build these →

    How this is measured
    Each figure carries one of six labels. Filed is what the funder reported on its return. Official is another government record about an organization, such as a federal award or a charity register, joined by name where no shared identifier exists. Resolved is an identity we worked out where the filing named a recipient without an EIN, kept only above a measured confidence threshold. Computed is arithmetic over those, like themes, portfolio clusters and co-funder strength. Context is a statistic about a place rather than about an organization, which is what the need overlay is: it describes the area a grantee’s address sits in, not where its work lands. Inferred is drawn by a model from text, like the partnerships read out of public news and organization websites. Each is labeled where it appears.

    Generated from the IRS Form 990-PF e-file return for fiscal year 2025, released 2025. Filings run roughly 12 to 24 months behind; figures are dated accordingly.

    Source object · view filing

    Play a game based on Ama Olukai’s filings →

    More from the funding graph

    The unnamed billions
    grants reported with no recipient in the public record
    The regranting layer
    51% of grant dollars land in the regranting layer
    The DAF merry-go-round
    $9.7B circulates between donor-advised funds
    The endowment market
    who holds foundation money, and what just moved
    The camps
    funders cluster by geography, not ideology
    By state
    where grant money is based, and what stays home