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Build-A-Bear Foundation Inc at a glanceAlso receives grants: funding profile →

· Public charity

Build-A-Bear Foundation Inc

Build-a-bear foundation seeks to add a little more heart to life by sharing hugs, inspiring creativity, and making days a little bit brighter for those in need.

$1.7M
Granted FY2024still arriving
8
Grants FY2024still arriving
5
States reached
$1.0M
Largest
01What it fundsRead
02The needRead
03Its granteesRead
04Its fieldRead
01What it funds
01100% classified

What it funded, over time

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

Education$2.9MPhilanthropy$760kHealth$684kPublic Safety & Disaster$429kHuman Services$285kCivil Rights$126kCommunity Improvement$53kFood & Nutrition$50kOther$0
02FY2024 · 8 grants

Where the money goes

Grants by size, and the largest recipients.

How this is measured
The 8 grants below total $1,185,000, the rows itemized in this filing. The $1,670,696 headline is the total grant expense on the return; the other $485,696 is giving the schedule does not break out (grants under the $5,000 itemization floor, grants to individuals, grants on other schedules). Every figure below describes the itemized rows only.

By grant size · FY2024

  • $10k–50k5 grants · $55k
  • $50k–250k2 grants · $130k
  • $250k+1 grant · $1.0M
$15,000
Median grant
5
States reached
$2.6M
Total assets
Largest grants
RecipientAmount
First Book$1,000,000
Make A Wish Foundation of America$75,000
American Red Cross$55,000
Make A Wish Missouri$15,000
Pflag Inc$10,000
Marine Toys for Tots$10,000
National Urban League$10,000
First Responders Children's Foundation$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 (FY20–24, $579k) land where the poverty rate runs at 14%, against an area that typically sits at 10%. 100% of those dollars go to grantees based in above-average-need neighborhoods. Most of its grants land in higher-need ZIPs.

area typical 10%Make A Wish Missouri: $25k → 11%Make A Wish Missouri: $25k → 11%Make A Wish Missouri: $25k → 11%National Urban League: $20k → 17%AMERICAN RED CROSS: $150k → 14%Make A Wish Missouri: $15k → 11%National Urban League: $10k → 17%AMERICAN RED CROSS: $100k → 14%Make-A-Wish Foundation International: $20k → 11%National Urban League: $10k → 17%American Red Cross: $74k → 14%American Red Cross: $55k → 14%AMERICAN RED CROSS: $50k → 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

NY
OH
PA
CA
MO
VA
MD
AZ
DC
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.

89%of every dollar goes to organizations it has funded before.
$4.7M · 10 repeat orgs$577k to everyone else

10 repeat relationships: 7 still active in FY2024, 3 since wound down.

How the two cohorts compare

Re-uppedFunded once

Organizations

10
12

Total granted

$4.7M
$577k

Median revenue growth · since first grant

+12%
+44%

Still filing today

100%
67%

New vs renewed · share of each year

In FY2024, 100% of grant dollars renewed an existing relationship; $0 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
Human ServicesEducationPhilanthropyHealthCommunity ImprovementRecreation & SportsOther
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

  • MT
    MARINE TOYS FOR TOTS FOUNDATION
    5× · 2020–2024 · $460k · revenue +45%
  • MAKE-A-WISH FOUNDATION OF AMERICA
    5× · 2020–2024 · $429k · revenue +30%
  • AN
    American National Red Cross & Its Constituent Chapters and Branches
    5× · 2020–2024 · $429k · revenue +38%

Funded once

  • B
    BABY2BABY
    4× · 2020–2023 · $150k · revenue +15%
  • SL
    St Louis Community Foundation
    one grant, 2020 · $100k
  • TT
    THE TOY FOUNDATION INCgraduated
    one grant, 2022 · $53k · revenue +206%
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
Child Welfare League of America

Child welfare league of america engages its network of public and private agencies and partners to advance policies, best practices, and collaborative strategies that result in better outcomes for vulnerable children, youth, and families.

Human Services
2
United States Fund for Unicef

The organization's mission is to relentlessly pursue a better world for every child. unicef usa advances the global mission of unicef by rallying the american public to support the world's most vulnerable children. through fundraising,…

International
3
Make-a-Wish Foundation of the Texas Gulf Coast & Louisiana Inc

Together, we create life-changing wishes for children with critical illnesses.

Health
4
Make-a-Wish Foundation of the Mid-Atlantic Inc

The make-a-wish foundation of the mid-atlantic creates life-changing wishes for children with critical illnesses.

—
5
Make-a-Wish Foundation of San Diego

Together, we create life-changing wishes for children with critical illnesses.

—
6
Childfund Alliance

Childfund alliance is a global network of 11 child-focused development and humanitarian organizations working in more than 70 countries. we help nearly 30 million children and their families to overcome poverty and the underlying…

International
7
Kids in Need Foundation

We believe every child in america should have equal opportunity and resources to engage in a quality education. by partnering with teachers and students in under-resourced schools, we provide the support needed to create equitable learning…

Education
8
Make-a-Wish Foundation of Illinois Inc

Together, we create life-changing wishes for children with critical illnesses.

—
9
The Children's Hospital of Philadelphia

The children's hospital of philadelphia, the oldest hospital in the united states dedicated exclusively to pediatrics, strives to be the world leader in the advancement of health care for children by integrating excellent patient care,…

Health
10
Children's Hospital

Organization's mission to improve health outcomes for children; be a leader in creating innovative solutions to pediatric healthcare problems; and excel in care, advocacy, research. as the nation's children's hospital, the mission of…

Health
11
Make-a-Wish Foundation of Greater Los Angeles

The make-a-wish foundation of greater los angeles creates life-changing wishes for children with critical illnesses.

—
12
Save the Children Federation Inc

Save the children is an international nonprofit children's relief and development organization. our mission is to inspire breakthroughs in the way the world treats children and to achieve immediate and lasting change in their lives.

International
How this is measured
The grantee most central to the portfolio’s shape is Make-a-Wish Foundation of America; the most unlike its peers is National Law Enforcement and Firefighters Childrens 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

26 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.

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)
26/26
Grantees still filing
19/26
Grew since first funded

Where the money sits, by cause and then by grantee

FIRST BOOK: $2,731,012 · EducationFIRST BOOKSt Louis Black Authors of Childrens Literature: $140,000 · EducationMAKE-A-WISH FOUNDATION OF AMERICA: $429,495 · OtherMAKE-A-WISH FOUNDAT…BABY2BABY: $150,000 · OtherBABY2BABYSt Louis Community Foundation: $100,000 · OtherSt Louis Community …The Columbus Foundation - Cash: $50,000 · OtherThe Columbus Founda…Urban League of Metro St Louis - Cash: $50,000 · OtherUrban League of Met…Mid-Ohio Foodbank: $50,000 · OtherMid-Ohio Foodbank+5 more: $84,000 · Other+5 moreMARINE TOYS FOR TOTS FOUNDATION: $460,000 · PhilanthropyMARINE TOYS FOR…UNITED WAY OF GREATER ST LOUIS INC: $250,000 · PhilanthropyUNITED WAY OF G…American National Red Cross & Its Constituent Chapters and Branches: $429,000 · Human ServicesAmerican Nat…MAKE-A-WISH FOUNDATION OF MISSOURI AND KANSAS: $90,000 · Human ServicesMAKE-A-WISH …NATIONAL URBAN LEAGUE INC: $40,000 · Human ServicesNATIONAL URB…MAKE-A-WISH FOUNDATION INTERNATIONAL: $20,000 · Human ServicesSHRINERS HOSPITALS FOR CHILDREN: $100,000 · HealthChildren's Hospital Los Angeles: $50,000 · HealthTHE TOY FOUNDATION INC: $52,500 · Community ImprovementNational Law Enforcement and Firefighters Childrens Foundation: $35,000 · Crime & Legal
Education$2,871,012Other$913,495Philanthropy$710,000Human Services$579,000Health$150,000Community Improvement$52,500Crime & Legal$35,000

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 budgetFIRST BOOK: $2,731,012 over 3y, 1.2% of budgetMARINE TOYS FOR TOTS FOUNDATION: $460,000 over 5y, 0.1% of budgetMAKE-A-WISH FOUNDATION OF AMERICA: $429,495 over 5y, 0.1% of budgetAmerican National Red Cross & Its Constituent Chapters and Branches: $429,000 over 5y, 0.0% of budgetUNITED WAY OF GREATER ST LOUIS INC: $250,000 over 4y, 0.1% of budgetBABY2BABY: $150,000 over 4y, 0.2% of budgetSt Louis Black Authors of Childrens Literature: $140,000 over 2y, 20% of budgetSHRINERS HOSPITALS FOR CHILDREN: $100,000 over 2y, 0.0% of budgetMAKE-A-WISH FOUNDATION OF MISSOURI AND KANSAS: $90,000 over 4y, 0.4% of budgetTHE TOY FOUNDATION INC: $52,500 over 1y, 0.4% of budgetMid-Ohio Foodbank: $50,000 over 1y, 0.0% of budgetChildren's Hospital Los Angeles: $50,000 over 1y, 0.0% of budgetNATIONAL URBAN LEAGUE INC: $40,000 over 3y, 0.0% of budgetNational Law Enforcement and Firefighters Childrens Foundation: $35,000 over 2y, 0.1% of budgetPFLAG: $30,000 over 3y, 0.3% of budgetKABOOM INC: $25,000 over 1y, 0.2% of budgetMAKE-A-WISH FOUNDATION INTERNATIONAL: $20,000 over 1y, 0.4% of budgetST LOUIS AQUARIUM AT UNION STATION FOUNDATION: $8,000 over 1y, 1.1% of budgetCASA OF LOS ANGELES: $6,000 over 1y, 0.1% 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.

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.

The Bank of America C…American Online Givin…Donor Advised Charita…Fidelity Investments …Amazonsmile Foundation
The Bank of America Charitable Foundation IncNC7.9× affinity4 shared granteesties to 4 of 4Hover any node to trace its alignments.Compare side by side →

Open a dossier: The Bank of America Charitable Foundation Inc · American Online Giving Foundation Inc · Donor Advised Charitable Giving Inc · Fidelity Investments Charitable Gift Fund · Amazonsmile Foundation

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 Build-A-Bear Foundation Inc funds: left to right is the share of its income from government, bottom to top the share from Build-A-Bear Foundation Inc. Bigger dots raise more.

2024
’20’21’22’23’24’25
no gov · 10%2%6%14%25%funder's share of their income ↑0%15%30%45%60%share of the org’s income from government →median 0%
  • Shriners Hospitals for Children: 0% of income from government
no gov moneyreceives it· size = income
1get 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
⤢ axis zoomed · 0–60%
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 23 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 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

Play a game based on Build-A-Bear’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