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Brown Family Foundation at a glance

· Private foundation

Brown Family Foundation

Its FY2024 filing reports that it accepted unsolicited grant applications.

$901k
Granted FY2024still arriving
1
Grants FY2024still arriving
1
States reached
$901k
Largest
01What it fundsRead
02The needRead
03Its granteesRead
04Its fieldRead
01What it funds
0197% classified

What it funded, over time

Every grant placed by its stated purpose and the recipient’s mission, by year, FY2020 to 2024.

Philanthropy$901kReligion$59kInternational$25kPublic Benefit$21kEducation$17kHealth$13kFood & Nutrition$13kHuman Services$4kOther$0
02FY2024 · 1 grant

Where the money goes

Grants by size, and the largest recipients.

$900,888
Median grant
1
States reached
$0
Total assets
Largest grants
RecipientAmount
MORGAN STANLEY GIFT DAF$900,888
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:

Dollar for dollar, its grants (FY20–24) land where the poverty rate runs at 10%, against an area that typically sits at 10%. 11% of its dollars go to grantees based in above-average-need neighborhoods. Its grants skew toward lower-need ZIPs.

area typical 10%ALLIANCE DEFENDING FREEDOM: $1k → 11%NAVIGATORS: $1k → 12%RONALD MCDONALD CHARITIES: $250 → 15%MORGAN STANLEY GIFT DAF: $901k → 9%DOCTORS WITHOUT BORDERS: $9k → 17%MERCY SHIPS: $9k → 12%AMERICAN HEART ASSOCIATION: $250 → 14%HEIFER INTERNATIONAL: $770 → 17%JUDICIAL WATCH: $10k → 14%JESUS ONLINE CHURCH: $500 → 11%FOOD FOR THE POOR: $4k → 13%HILLSDALE COLLEGE: $500 → 14%JOYCE MEYER MINISTRIES: $500 → 9%COLLEGE OF THE OZARKS: $8k → 14%HABITAT FOR HUMANITY INTERNATIONAL: $250 → 22%BILLY GRAHAM MINISTRIES: $20k → 19%TRINITY INTERNATIONAL UNIVERSITY: $4k → 8%MOODY BIBLE INSTITUTE: $4k → 14%NATIONAL PRO LIFE ALLIANCE: $500 → 6%THE LEADERSHIP INSTITUTE: $10k → 7%MEALS ON WHEELS FOUNDATION: $250 → 11%NATIONAL FOUNDATION FOR CANCER RESEARCH: $1k → 8%NAVIGATORS: $1k → 12%DOCTORS WITHOUT BORDERS: $3k → 17%MERCY SHIPS: $3k → 12%JUDICIAL WATCH: $500 → 14%FOOD FOR THE POOR: $750 → 13%COLLEGE OF THE OZARKS: $2k → 14%BILLY GRAHAM MINISTRIES: $8k → 19%TRINITY INTERNATIONAL UNIVERSITY: $2k → 8%MOODY BIBLE INSTITUTE: $2k → 14%THE LEADERSHIP INSTITUTE: $500 → 7%MERCY SHIPS: $1k → 12%FOOD FOR THE POOR: $570 → 13%BILLY GRAHAM MINISTRIES: $1k → 19%PACIFIC GARDEN MISSION: $4k → 14%PACIFIC GARDEN MISSION: $750 → 14%PACIFIC GARDEN MISSION: $500 → 14%INNER CITY IMPACT: $1k → 14%INNER CITY IMPACT: $1k → 14%INNER CITY IMPACT: $500 → 14%BRIGHT HOPE: $9k → 14%BRIGHT HOPE: $5k → 14%BRIGHT HOPE: $2k → 14%BRIGHT HOPE: $296 → 14%WHEELING TOWNSHIP EMERGENCY FUND INC: $2k → 14%WHEELING TOWNSHIP EMERGENCY FUND INC: $750 → 14%GREATER CHICAGO FOOD DEPOSITORY: $750 → 14%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.

Which US states its grants reach

MN
IL
MI
NY
WY
PA
MO
KY
VA
MD
AZ
AR
NC
DC
GA
TX
FL
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.

13%of every dollar goes to organizations it has funded before.
$134k · 17 repeat orgs$908k to everyone else

Grantees it renews have grown median revenue +20% since the first grant, against -14% for those funded once.

17 repeat relationships: 0 still active in FY2024, 17 since wound down; 1 grantees were first funded in FY2024 (too recent to call).

How the two cohorts compare

Re-uppedFunded once

Organizations

17
14

Total granted

$134k
$7k

Median revenue growth · since first grant

+20%
-14%

Still filing today

59%
50%

New vs renewed · share of each year

In FY2024, 0% of grant dollars renewed an existing relationship; $901k went to new ones.

50%100%’20’21’22’23’24
RenewedFirst-time

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

’20’21’22’23’24
InternationalFood & NutritionEducationPublic BenefitCivil RightsHealthOther
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

  • Mercy Ships International
    3× · 2021–2023 · $13k · revenue +18%
  • SMILE TRAIN INC
    3× · 2020–2022 · $12k · revenue +24%
  • MEDECINS SANS FRONTIERES USA INC
    2× · 2021–2022 · $12k · revenue +20%

Funded once

  • ALLIANCE DEFENDING FREEDOMgraduated
    one grant, 2021 · $1k · revenue +52%
  • NF
    NATIONAL FOUNDATION FOR CANCER RESEARCH
    one grant, 2021 · $1k
  • HI
    HEIFER INTERNATIONAL
    one grant, 2022 · $770
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
Evangel University

Evangel is a comprehensive christian university that is committed to excellence in educating and equipping students to become spirit empowered servants of god who will impact the church and society globally.

Education
2
Saint Xavier University

Saint xavier university, a catholic institution inspired by the heritage of the sisters of mercy, educates persons to search for truth, think critically, communicate effectively and serve wisely and compassionately in support of human…

Education
3
President and Fellows of Harvard College

Undergraduate, graduate, and professional education and research across a broad array of academic domains.

Education
4
Hope International University

The mission of hope international university is to empower students through christian higher education to serve the church and impact the world for christ. the university specializes in fields offering significant influence on society…

Education
5
Compassion International Incorporated

Compassion exists to release children from poverty in Jesus' name. Compassion serves all children, regardless of religion, race, ethnicity, or gender.

International
6
Christianity Today International

Christianity Today is a global community inspired by evangelical conviction to advance the stories and ideas of the kingdom of God. Our mission is to elevate the storytellers and sages of the global church.

Religion
7
International Aids Vaccine Initiative Inc

A nonprofit scientific research organization that develops vaccines and antibodies for hiv, tuberculosis, and emerging infectious diseases.

International
8
Dallas International University

As a christian university, we provide education and research opportunities preparing global leaders to partner with local communities.

Education
9
The Global FoodBanking Network

To nourish the world's hungry through uniting and advancing food banks.

International
10
Arizona Christian University

Arizona christian university provides a biblically-integrated, liberal arts education equipping graduates to serve the lord jesus christ in all aspects of life, as leaders of influence and excellence.

Education
11
Lehigh University

The university's goal in the coming decade is to advance learning through the integration of teaching, research and service to others. the core of this goal is to prepare graduates to engage with the world and lead lives of meaning. to do…

Education
12
Trinity University

Trinity university is an independent co-educational university whose mission is excellence in the interrelated areas of teaching, research and services.

Education
How this is measured
The grantee most central to the portfolio’s shape is Food for the Poor Inc; the most unlike its peers is Meals on Wheels Foundation. 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

20 grantees tracked through their own filings, 2017–2026.

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 2026, not grant rows in a single year, so this will not match the grant count on the cover. 20 of the 35 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.

0
Load-bearing (≥25% of a budget)
1
Early backer (in before they grew)
20/20
Grantees still filing
13/20
Grew since first funded

Where the money sits, by cause and then by grantee

MORGAN STANLEY GIFT DAF: $900,888 · OtherMORGAN STANLEY GIFT DAF+21 more: $77,616 · Other+21 moreMercy Ships International: $12,750 · InternationalMEDECINS SANS FRONTIERES USA INC: $12,000 · InternationalFOOD FOR THE POOR INC: $5,320 · International+1 more: $250 · InternationalCOLLEGE OF THE OZARKS: $10,000 · EducationTrinity International University: $6,000 · EducationThe Moody Bible Institute of Chicago: $6,000 · Education+1 more: $500 · EducationLeadership Institute: $10,500 · Public BenefitJUDICIAL WATCH INC: $10,500 · Public BenefitInner City Impact: $2,500 · Youth DevelopmentWHEELING TOWNSHIP EMERGENCY FUND INC: $2,250 · Community ImprovementCHRISTIAN APPALACHIAN PROJECT INC: $2,000 · Human Services
Other$978,504International$30,320Education$22,500Public Benefit$21,000Youth Development$2,500Community Improvement$2,250Human Services$2,000

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

25%50%75%100%$1.0M$10M$100Mgrantee revenue →↑ funder's share of their budgetMercy Ships International: $12,750 over 3y, 0.0% of budgetSMILE TRAIN INC: $12,000 over 3y, 0.0% of budgetMEDECINS SANS FRONTIERES USA INC: $12,000 over 2y, 0.0% of budgetLeadership Institute: $10,500 over 2y, 0.0% of budgetJUDICIAL WATCH INC: $10,500 over 2y, 0.0% of budgetCOLLEGE OF THE OZARKS: $10,000 over 2y, 0.0% of budgetTrinity International University: $6,000 over 2y, 0.0% of budgetThe Moody Bible Institute of Chicago: $6,000 over 2y, 0.0% of budgetFOOD FOR THE POOR INC: $5,320 over 3y, 0.0% of budgetInner City Impact: $2,500 over 3y, 0.1% of budgetWHEELING TOWNSHIP EMERGENCY FUND INC: $2,250 over 2y, 2.6% of budgetCHRISTIAN APPALACHIAN PROJECT INC: $2,000 over 2y, 0.0% of budgetALLIANCE DEFENDING FREEDOM: $1,000 over 1y, 0.0% of budgetGREATER CHICAGO FOOD DEPOSITORY: $750 over 1y, 0.0% of budgetNATIONAL PRO-LIFE ALLIANCE INC: $500 over 1y, 0.0% of budgetHILLSDALE COLLEGE: $500 over 1y, 0.0% of budgetHABITAT FOR HUMANITY INTERNATIONAL INC: $250 over 1y, 0.0% of budgetAmerican Heart Association Inc: $250 over 1y, 0.0% of budgetMeals on Wheels Foundation: $250 over 1y, 0.0% of budgetFeeding America: $250 over 1y, 0.0% 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.

How much its grantees rely on government

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

2024
’20’21’22’23’24’25
no gov · 00%0%1%3%5%funder's share of their income ↑0%4%8%11%15%share of the org’s income from government →median 0%
  • Food for the Poor Inc: 0% of income from government
no gov moneyreceives it· size = income
0get no government money at all
3report government grants on their 990 we could not trace to a source (not plotted)
0rely on government for over half their income
⤢ axis zoomed · 0–15%
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.

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 35 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 2024, released 2024. Filings run roughly 12 to 24 months behind; figures are dated accordingly.

Source object · view filing

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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