Skip to content
Donald & Elizabeth Cooke Foundation at a glance

· Private foundation

Donald & Elizabeth Cooke 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.

$270k
Granted FY2024still arriving
19
Grants FY2024still arriving
2
States reached
$100k
Largest
01What it fundsRead
02The needRead
03Its granteesRead
04Its fieldRead
05Through PlinthRead
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$587kArts & Culture$207kInternational$180kAnimals$175kRecreation & Sports$71kEnvironment$59kHuman Services$35kPhilanthropy$31kOther$0
02FY2024 · 19 grants

Where the money goes

Grants by size, and the largest recipients.

By grant size · FY2024

  • Under $10k7 grants · $15k
  • $10k–50k11 grants · $155k
  • $50k–250k1 grant · $100k
$10,000
Median grant
2
States reached
$3.9M
Total assets
Largest grants
RecipientAmount
Samaritan's Purse$100,000
Union Pines High School$35,000
Weymouth Center for the Arts & Humanities$15,000
Moore Humane Society$15,000
North Moore High School$15,000
PBS North Carolina$15,000
Campbell University$10,000
Wake Forest University$10,000
Duke University$10,000
North Carolina Zoological Society$10,000
Friends of the WNC Nature Center$10,000
Arts Council of Moore County$10,000
Prancing Horse Inc$5,000
Boys and Girls Homes of NC$5,000
The Nature Conservancy$1,000
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, $25k) land where the poverty rate runs at 21%, 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%BOYS AND GIRLS HOMES OF NC: $5k → 21%BOYS AND GIRLS HOMES OF NC: $5k → 21%Boys and Girls Homes of NC: $5k → 21%Boys and Girls Homes of NC: $5k → 21%BOYS AND GIRLS HOMES OF NC: $5k → 21%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.

95%of every dollar goes to organizations it has funded before.
$1.3M · 22 repeat orgs$70k to everyone else

Grantees it renews have grown median revenue +49% since the first grant, against +46% for those funded once.

22 repeat relationships: 17 still active in FY2024, 5 since wound down; 1 grantees were first funded in FY2024 (too recent to call).

How the two cohorts compare

Re-uppedFunded once

Organizations

22
10

Total granted

$1.3M
$55k

Median revenue growth · since first grant

+49%
+46%

Still filing today

77%
50%

New vs renewed · share of each year

In FY2024, 94% of grant dollars renewed an existing relationship; $15k 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
EducationArts & CultureAnimalsFood & NutritionReligionHousing & ShelterOther
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

  • SP
    SAMARITAN'S PURSE
    5× · 2020–2024 · $180k · revenue +106%
  • WAKE FOREST UNIVERSITY
    5× · 2020–2024 · $160k · revenue +45%
  • NORTH CAROLINA ZOOLOGICAL SOCIETY INC
    5× · 2020–2024 · $95k · revenue +72%

Funded once

  • VH
    Village Heritage Foundationgraduated
    one grant, 2022 · $15k · revenue +159% · 84% of their budget
  • CC
    CARTHAGE CENTURY COMMITTEE
    one grant, 2020 · $10k
  • FB
    FIRST BAPTIST CHURCH OF VASS
    one grant, 2020 · $5k
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
Davidson Lands Conservancy Inc

The mission of the Davidson Lands Conservancy is to protect local lands and natural resources, connect lives to nature, and promote a conservation ethic. The Conservancy advances its work through four conservation programs or pillars: land…

Environment
2
Catawba Lands Conservancy

As a nationally accredited land trust, we conserve and manage land for public benefit in North Carolinas Southern Piedmont. We have conserved 235 properties, totaling 17,786 acres of land. We also facilitate the creation of a 1600 mile…

Environment
3
TreesCharlotte

Public/private collaborative to plant trees, raise awareness of the canopy, and educate about tree care.

Environment
4
Sandhills Area Land Trust Inc

To protect land and water, natural open spaces and farmland in the sandhills region of north carolina

—
5
Conservation Trust for North Carolina

Ctnc conserves land in ways that inspire and enable people to build resilient, just communities. we carry out our mission in collaboration with other conservation organizations and the communities we serve. our goal is to lessen the…

Environment
6
Marian Cheek Jackson Center

To honor, renew, and build community in the historic Northside, Pine Knolls, and Tin-Top neighborhoods of Chapel Hill and Carrboro, NC.

Arts & Culture
7
North Carolina Museum of Life & Science Inc

To create a place of lifelong learning where people, from young child to senior citizen, embrace science as a way of knowing about themselves, their community, and their world.

Arts & Culture
8
Sandhills Community Care Network Inc

Prior to dissolution on July 8, 2019, CCS sought to improve the health and quality of life of the patients it served by collaborating with patients, health care providers, hospitals, health departments, community partners, and departments…

—
9
Highlands-Cashiers Land Trust Inc

The mission of the Highlands-Cashiers Land Trust is to safeguard the unique and irreplaceable landscape of our area through conservation of ecologically valuable land and protection of the biodiversity dependent on such landscapes.

Environment
10
Humane Society of Charlotte Inc

Humane Society of Charlotte mission is to champion the wellbeing of companion animals and strengthen their bond with the people who know, love, and need them.

Animals
11
Trees for the Triangle

We plant native trees in the Research Triangle region of North Carolina.

Environment
12
Children's Home Society of North Carolina Inc

The Children's Home Society of North Carolina's mission is to promote the right of every child to a permanent, safe, and loving family.

Human Services
How this is measured
The grantee most central to the portfolio’s shape is North Carolina Zoological Society Inc; the most unlike its peers is Wake Forest University. 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

23 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. 23 of the 34 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)
8
Early backer (in before they grew)
23/23
Grantees still filing
18/23
Grew since first funded

Where the money sits, by cause and then by grantee

Moore County Schools: $97,000 · OtherMoore County SchoolsTHE WALTHOUR - MOSS FOUNDATION: $71,000 · OtherTHE WALTHOUR - MOSS FOUNDATIONPBS NORTH CAROLINA: $55,000 · OtherPBS NORTH CAROLINAWeymouth Center for the Arts & Humanities: $55,000 · OtherWeymouth Center for the Arts & HumanitiesNorth Moore High School: $55,000 · OtherNorth Moore High SchoolSANDHILLS COMMUNITY COLLEGE FOUNDATION INC: $41,000 · OtherSANDHILLS COMMUNITY COLLEGE FOUNDATION INCFriends of the WNC Nature Center Inc: $20,000 · OtherTHE NATURE CONSERVANCY: $18,500 · OtherFRIENDS OF WESTERN NORTH CAROLINA NATURE CENTER: $17,500 · OtherPrancing Horse Inc: $20,000 · Other+11 more: $67,000 · Other+11 moreWAKE FOREST UNIVERSITY: $160,000 · EducationWAKE FOREST UNIVERSITYCAMPBELL UNIVERSITY: $150,000 · EducationCAMPBELL UNIVERSITYDUKE UNIVERSITY: $60,000 · EducationDUKE UNIVERSITYGiven Tufts Foundation Inc: $16,000 · Education+1 more: $5,000 · EducationSAMARITAN'S PURSE: $180,000 · ReligionSAMARITAN'S PU…NORTH CAROLINA ZOOLOGICAL SOCIETY INC: $95,000 · AnimalsNORTH CAROLIN…MOORE HUMANE SOCIETY: $70,000 · AnimalsMOORE HUMANE …Arts Council of Moore County: $50,000 · Arts & CultureATLANTIC CENTER FOR THE ARTS INC: $17,000 · Arts & CultureVillage Heritage Foundation: $15,000 · Arts & CulturePENICK VILLAGE FOUNDATION INC: $31,000 · Housing & ShelterBOYS & GIRLS HOMES OF NC INC: $25,000 · Human Services
Other$517,000Education$391,000Religion$180,000Animals$165,000Arts & Culture$82,000Housing & Shelter$31,000Human Services$25,000

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 budgetSAMARITAN'S PURSE: $180,000 over 5y, 0.0% of budgetWAKE FOREST UNIVERSITY: $160,000 over 5y, 0.0% of budgetCAMPBELL UNIVERSITY: $150,000 over 5y, 0.0% of budgetNORTH CAROLINA ZOOLOGICAL SOCIETY INC: $95,000 over 5y, 0.1% of budgetTHE WALTHOUR - MOSS FOUNDATION: $71,000 over 5y, 3.6% of budgetMOORE HUMANE SOCIETY: $70,000 over 5y, 3.4% of budgetDUKE UNIVERSITY: $60,000 over 5y, 0.0% of budgetArts Council of Moore County: $50,000 over 5y, 1.8% of budgetSANDHILLS COMMUNITY COLLEGE FOUNDATION INC: $41,000 over 5y, 0.4% of budgetPENICK VILLAGE FOUNDATION INC: $31,000 over 5y, 1.4% of budgetBOYS & GIRLS HOMES OF NC INC: $25,000 over 5y, 0.1% of budgetFriends of the WNC Nature Center Inc: $20,000 over 2y, 0.8% of budgetPrancing Horse Inc: $20,000 over 4y, 2.1% of budgetTHE NATURE CONSERVANCY: $18,500 over 5y, 0.0% of budgetATLANTIC CENTER FOR THE ARTS INC: $17,000 over 4y, 0.7% of budgetGiven Tufts Foundation Inc: $16,000 over 4y, 1.2% of budgetVillage Heritage Foundation: $15,000 over 1y, 84% of budgetST JOSEPH OF THE PINES INC: $10,000 over 2y, 0.0% of budgetMeals on Wheels of the Sandhills INC: $7,500 over 2y, 5.1% of budgetSANDHILLS CHILDREN'S CENTER: $5,000 over 1y, 0.1% of budgetFOOD BANK OF CENTRAL & EASTERN NC INC: $3,500 over 1y, 0.0% of budgetTHREE RIVERS LAND TRUST INC: $2,500 over 1y, 0.0% of budgetSANDHILLS-MOORE COALITION FOR HUMAN CARE INC: $1,000 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.

  • Who funds SAMARITAN'S PURSE ↗
  • Who funds WAKE FOREST UNIVERSITY ↗
  • Who funds CAMPBELL UNIVERSITY ↗
  • Who funds NORTH CAROLINA ZOOLOGICAL SOCIETY INC ↗
  • Who funds THE WALTHOUR - MOSS FOUNDATION ↗
  • Who funds MOORE HUMANE SOCIETY ↗
  • Who funds DUKE UNIVERSITY ↗
  • Who funds Arts Council of Moore County ↗
  • Who funds SANDHILLS COMMUNITY COLLEGE FOUNDATION INC ↗
  • Who funds PENICK VILLAGE FOUNDATION INC ↗
  • Who funds BOYS & GIRLS HOMES OF NC INC ↗
  • Who funds Friends of the WNC Nature Center Inc ↗
  • Who funds Prancing Horse Inc ↗
  • Who funds THE NATURE CONSERVANCY ↗
  • Who funds ATLANTIC CENTER FOR THE ARTS INC ↗
  • Who funds Given Tufts Foundation Inc ↗
  • Who funds Village Heritage Foundation ↗
  • Who funds ST JOSEPH OF THE PINES INC ↗
  • Who funds Meals on Wheels of the Sandhills INC ↗
  • Who funds SANDHILLS CHILDREN'S CENTER ↗
  • Who funds FOOD BANK OF CENTRAL & EASTERN NC INC ↗
  • Who funds THREE RIVERS LAND TRUST INC ↗
  • Who funds SANDHILLS-MOORE COALITION FOR HUMAN CARE 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.

North Carolina Commun…The Cannon Foundation…Foundation for the Ca…Pinehurst Community F…Duke Energy FoundationIbm International Fou…Rauch Rainoff Foundat…Raymond James Charita…The Pfizer Foundation…American Endowment Fo…Vanguard Charitable E…Natl Christian Charit…
North Carolina Community FoundationNC20.8× affinity8 shared granteesties to 11 of 11Hover any node to trace its alignments.Compare side by side →

Open a dossier: North Carolina Community Foundation · The Cannon Foundation Inc · Foundation for the Carolinas · Pinehurst Community Foundation Inc · Duke Energy Foundation · Ibm International Foundation · Rauch Rainoff Foundation Inc · Raymond James Charitable Endowment Fund · The Pfizer Foundation Inc · American Endowment Foundation · Vanguard Charitable Endowment Program · Natl Christian Charitable Fdn 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 Donald & Elizabeth Cooke Foundation funds: left to right is the share of its income from government, bottom to top the share from Donald & Elizabeth Cooke Foundation. Bigger dots raise more.

2024
’20’21’22’23’24’25
no gov · 00%6%23%51%90%funder's share of their income ↑0%8%15%22%30%share of the org’s income from government →median 5%
  • Atlantic Center for the Arts Inc: 5% of income from government
no gov moneyreceives it· size = income
0get no government money at all
5report government grants on their 990 we could not trace to a source (not plotted)
0rely on government for over half their income
⤢ axis zoomed · 0–30%
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 Donald & Elizabeth Cooke Foundation?

Find your warmest path to Donald & Elizabeth Cooke 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 34 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

Play a game based on Donald & Elizabeth Cooke’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