· Private foundation
Carlson Family Lightshield Foundation
Its FY2024 filing reports that it funds preselected organizations and did not take unsolicited requests; check the foundation's own site before ruling it out.
What it funded, over time
Every grant placed by its stated purpose and the recipient’s mission, by year, FY2020 to 2024.
Where the money goes
Grants by size, and the largest recipients.
By grant size · FY2024
- Under $10k22 grants · $39k
- $10k–50k8 grants · $123k
- $50k–250k1 grant · $153k
- $250k+1 grant · $350k
| Recipient | Amount |
|---|---|
| COVENANT CHRISTIAN ACADEMY | $350,000 |
| GATEWAY CHURCH | $153,466 |
| MN ADULT TEEN CHALLENGE | $25,500 |
| CITY OF BIG LAKE FINANCEHUMAN RESOURSES DEPARTMENT | $25,000 |
| ST JUDES | $17,000 |
| BIG LAKE COMMUNITY FOOD SHELF | $12,500 |
| CAER FOOD SHELF AKA COMMUNITY AID ELK RIVER | $12,500 |
| HUNTER HOULE MEMORIAL FOUNDATION | $10,000 |
| FISHING FOR LIFE | $10,000 |
| Individual grant recipient | $10,000 |
| SRP CRITICAL RESPONSE TEAM | $5,000 |
| ALL NATIONS NEW LIFE | $5,000 |
| THUMBS UP HIGH | $5,000 |
| Individual grant recipient | $5,000 |
| COOK LIONS CLUB FLOOD RELIEF | $3,510 |
Does the money reach high-need areas?
Each grant placed by the hardship in its grantee’s ZIP, against the area’s typical level.
Its human-services grants (FY20–24, $136k) land where the poverty rate runs at 7%, against an area that typically sits at 7%. 39% of those dollars go to grantees based in above-average-need neighborhoods. Its grants skew toward lower-need ZIPs.
How this is measured
Which US states its grants reach
How this is measured
Who it funds again
Organizations funded in more than one year, against those funded once.
Grantees it renews have grown median revenue +33% since the first grant, against -4% for those funded once.
18 repeat relationships: 14 still active in FY2024, 4 since wound down; 18 grantees were first funded in FY2024 (too recent to call).
How the two cohorts compare
Organizations
Total granted
Median revenue growth · since first grant
Still filing today
New vs renewed · share of each year
In FY2024, 40% of grant dollars renewed an existing relationship; $399k went to new ones.
Where new relationships form · theme of each grantee’s first grant
How this is measured
Backed again, and grew
- FFFishing For Life4× · 2020–2024 · $90k · revenue +50%
- CACOMMUNITY AID OF ELK RIVER2× · 2020–2021 · $41k · revenue +33%
- ASACHIEVE SERVICES INC3× · 2020–2024 · $31k · revenue +49%
Funded once
- IGIndividual grant recipientone grant, 2020 · $250k
- COCITY OF ELK RIVERone grant, 2021 · $58k
- TPTURNING POINT INCone grant, 2023 · $50k · 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.
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.
See schedule o. founded in 1902, university of northwestern - st. paul is a nondenominational christian university that integrates the educational philosophy of "faith, learning and living" through two focuses: higher education and media.…
We empower individuals and families to confidently navigate aging so that it is a purposeful journey filled with dignity and support.
To be the leading voice of medicine to make minnesota the healthiest state and the best place to practice.
Abhe is the quality and credibility resource partner that connects efforts among christian postsecondary educational institutions and with others invested in serious bible learning that shapes a life of godly influence and service to the…
Augsburg university educates students to be informed citizens, thoughtful stewards, critical thinkers, and responsible leaders.the augsburg experience is supported by an engaged community that is committed to intentional diversity in its…
The mission of crown college is to provide a biblically based education for christian leadership in the christian and missionary alliance, the church-at-large, and the world.
St. olaf college challenges students to excel in the liberal arts, examine faith and values, and explore meaningful vocation in an inclusive, globally engaged community nourished by lutheran tradition.
The mission of advocate health care is to serve the health needs of individuals, families and communities through a wholistic philosophy rooted in our fundamental understanding of human beings as created in the image of god.
In the spirit of service, not self, the mission of the american legion auxiliary is to support the american legion and to honor the sacrifice of those who serve by enhancing the lives of our veterans, military, and their families, both at…
The university of minnesota alumni association (umaa) fosters a lifelong spirit of belonging and pride by connecting alumni, students, and friends to the university of minnesota and each other. the alumni association advocates for the…
The organization's mission is to bring stakeholders together to promote prosperity and long-term growth of minnesota's economy.
Shaped by the catholic benedictine heritage, the college of st. scholastica provides intellectual and moral preparation for responsible living and meaningful work. in conjunction with this mission statement, the college's vision statement…
How this is measured
34 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. 34 of the 85 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.
Where the money sits, by cause and then by grantee
Each grantee by its size and the funder’s share of it; top left is load-bearing
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 COVENANT CHRISTIAN ACADEMY ↗
- Who funds Fishing For Life ↗
- Who funds TURNING POINT INC ↗
- Who funds COMMUNITY AID OF ELK RIVER ↗
- Who funds STMA BREAKFAST CLUB ↗
- Who funds BIG LAKE COMMUNITY FOOD SHELF INC ↗
- Who funds ACHIEVE SERVICES INC ↗
- Who funds OAK HILLS FELLOWSHIP ↗
- Who funds ABBA CORPORATION ↗
- Who funds Hunter Houle Memorial Foundation ↗
- Who funds LIVIN FOUNDATION ↗
- Who funds THUMBS UP HIGH 5K ↗
- Who funds FELLOWSHIP OF CHRISTIAN ATHLETES ↗
- Who funds CONCORDIA UNIVERSITY ST PAUL ↗
- Who funds 2WHEELS4HEROES ↗
- Who funds GUSTAVUS ADOLPHUS COLLEGE ↗
- Who funds CHILDREN'S CANCER RESEARCH FUND ↗
- Who funds AMERICAN LEGION POST 112 ↗
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.
Open a dossier: Connexus Energy Foundation · Xcel Energy Foundation · Bame Foundation · Mightycause Charitable Foundation · Communitygiving · Hunger Solutions Minnesota · Otto Bremer Trust · The Blackbaud Giving Fund · Charities Aid Foundation America · Natl Christian Charitable Fdn Inc · National Philanthropic Trust · Network for Good
How this is measured
How much its grantees rely on government
Each dot is one organization Carlson Family Lightshield Foundation funds: left to right is the share of its income from government, bottom to top the share from Carlson Family Lightshield Foundation. Bigger dots raise more.
How this is measured
Play a game based on Carlson Family Lightshield’s filings →