Skip to content
Plinth
Foundation Dossiers
Plinth

· Private foundation

Elizabeth M Pfriem 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.

$2.5M
Granted FY2024still arriving
33
Grants FY2024still arriving
1
States reached
$400k
Largest
01What you fundRead
02The needRead
03Your edgeRead
04Your fieldRead
05Through PlinthRead
01What you fund
01100% classified

What you funded, over time

Every grant placed by its stated purpose and the recipient’s mission, by year — across FY2019–2024.

Health$1.7MEducation$1.6MCrime & Legal$1.4MYouth Development$1.3MFood & Nutrition$855kHousing & Shelter$735kArts & Culture$700kHuman Services$355kOther$0
02FY2024 · 33 grants

Where the money goes

Your grants by size, and where they go.

By grant size · FY2024

  • Under $10k1 grant · $9k
  • $10k–50k14 grants · $275k
  • $50k–250k15 grants · $1.3M
  • $250k+3 grants · $950k
$50,000
Median grant
1
States reached
$37M
Total assets
Largest grants
RecipientAmount
BRIDGEPORT HOSPITAL FOUNDATION$400,000
CENTER FOR FAMILY JUSTICE$300,000
WAKEMAN MEMORIAL ASSOCIATION$250,000
PEAK ACADEMY INC$160,000
PARK CITY INITIATIVE CORP$150,000
DISCOVERY MUSEUM INC$148,500
CATHOLIC CHARITIES OF FAIRFIELD COUNTY$100,000
HOUSATONIC COMMUNITY COLLEGE FOUNDATION$100,000
BARNUM FESTIVAL PT BARNUM FOUNDATION INC$100,000
CENTER FOR FAMILY JUSTICE$75,000
WAKEMAN MEMORIAL ASSOCIATION$75,000
LEAPS OF FAITH WATER SKI CLUB$68,253
MCGIVNEY COMMUNITY CENTER INC$62,500
KOLBE CATHEDRAL HIGH SCHOOL$60,000
NOURISH BRIDGEPORT$50,000
02The need
03

Do your dollars go where the need is?

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

show:

Your human-services grants (FY19–24, $1.7M) land where the poverty rate runs at 9%, against an area that typically sits at 11%. 0% of those dollars go to grantees based in above-average-need neighborhoods. Your grants skew toward lower-need ZIPs.

area typical 11%CENTER FOR FAMILY JUSTICE: $300k → 9%CENTER FOR FAMILY JUSTICE: $300k → 9%CENTER FOR FAMILY JUSTICE: $300k → 9%CENTER FOR FAMILY JUSTICE: $296k → 9%CENTER FOR FAMILY JUSTICE: $75k → 9%BRIDGEPORT RESCUE MISSION: $50k → 9%BRIDGEPORT RESCUE MISSION: $50k → 9%CENTER FOR FAMILY JUSTICE: $29k → 9%THE CHILD & FAMILY GUIDANCE CENTER: $25k → 9%CENTER FOR FAMILY JUSTICE: $25k → 9%LIFEBRIDGE COMMUNITY SERVICES INC: $10k → 9%THE CENTER FOR FAMILY JUSTICE INC: $6k → 9%FILLING IN THE BLANKS INC: $15k → 9%FILLING IN THE BLANKS INC: $15k → 9%MCGIVNEY COMMUNITY CENTER INC: $88k → 9%MCGIVNEY COMMUNITY CENTER INC: $63k → 9%MCGIVNEY COMMUNITY CENTER INC: $30k → 9%MCGIVNEY COMMUNITY CENTER INC: $20k → 9%0%20%40%50%more need →
grant to an above-average-need area below average· circle size = grant amount

Matched: human-services grants are those whose grantee’s IRS cause code is Human Services. Placed by people below the poverty linein the grantee’s ZIP, averaged from the tracts in that ZIP; grantee ZIP can differ from where services are delivered.

US grants placed by each grantee’s ZIP, which can differ from where services are actually delivered. Need from public data — U.S. Census/ACS, CDC PLACES, Eviction Lab, USDA — shown as context about the area, never attributed to your giving.

04

Where the work is directed

The same grants, placed two ways — where each recipient sits, and where its stated purpose earmarks the money.

About 6% of Elizabeth M Pfriem Foundation’s grant dollars are earmarked, by their stated purpose, for a different county than the recipient’s own address — money that lands at a nonprofit in one place but is meant to do its work in another.

Elizabeth M Pfriem Foundationlessmore of its giving
Placed by recipient address

Recipient view: each grant at its grantee’s ZIP, mapped to a county. Directed view: each grant at the county its stated purpose names, falling back to the recipient’s county when the purpose names no place; US grants only. A county shows only if it carries the top 95% of that view’s dollars. Purposes are read from the foundation’s own 990 grant descriptions.

03Your edge
repeat funding

Who you back again

Which organizations you funded more than once, and which you funded a single time. Each grantee is matched to its own filings.

94%of every dollar goes to organizations you’ve funded before.
$8.5M · 27 repeat orgs$569k to everyone else

And the relationships you keep tend to grow: grantees you re-up on have seen median revenue of +25% since the first grant, against 0% for the ones you funded once.

27 repeat relationships — 26 still active in FY2024, 1 since wound down; 3 grantees were first funded in FY2024 (too recent to call).

How the two cohorts compare

Re-uppedFunded once

Organizations

27
14

Total granted

$8.5M
$511k

Median revenue growth · since first grant

+25%
0%

Still filing today

85%
64%

New vs renewed · share of each year

In FY2024, 98% of grant dollars renewed an existing relationship; $59k went to new ones.

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

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

’19’20’21’22’23’24
EducationHuman ServicesHealthPhilanthropyRecreation & SportsYouth DevelopmentOther

First-time = a grantee’s first year in your filing window; renewed = funded in an earlier year too. As a portfolio matures the renewed share naturally climbs — once funded, an org stays “renewable” — so the signal is the years that buck it (a new-grantee intake wave). 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

  • BH
    BRIDGEPORT HOSPITAL FOUNDATION INC
    5× · 2019–2024 · $1.6M · revenue +16%
  • TC
    THE CENTER FOR FAMILY JUSTICE INC
    6× · 2019–2024 · $1.3M · revenue +66%
  • WM
    WAKEMAN MEMORIAL ASSOCIATION INC
    5× · 2020–2024 · $891k · revenue +99%

Funded once

  • SI
    SHEPHERDS INC
    one grant, 2022 · $120k · revenue +3%
  • GR
    GINA ROSE MONTALTO MEMORIAL FOUNDATION INC
    one grant, 2020 · $75k · revenue -31% · 46% of their budget
  • RW
    REACH Western CT Inc
    one grant, 2019 · $60k · revenue +9%

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

04Your field

The map has a center of gravity: the average direction from the rest of the sector toward the organizations the foundation funds — the shape of its giving. Scoring every nonprofit along that direction surfaces the ones that look most like the portfolio. These are the closest matchesthat aren’t grantees — a resemblance in what they say they do, not a recommendation.

1
The Bridge Academy Inc

The bridge academy, inc. was granted a charter to operate the bridge academy, a public school located in the city of bridgeport, ct. the school was founded in 1997 to provide college preparatory curriculum designed to overcome the…

Education
2
Bridgeport Hospital

To operate an acute care hospital in bridgeport, connecticut for the care and treatment of persons suffering from disease or other physical or mental conditions without regard to race, color, creed, sex, age or ability to pay.

Health
3
Connecticut Public Broadcasting Inc

Connecticut public broadcasting, inc. will inform, educate and inspire the people of connecticut, connecting and empowering the people of ct through outstanding journalism, storytelling, education and experiences, to make our state a more…

Arts & Culture
4
Connecticut Foodshare Inc

The mission of the connecticut foodshare is to deliver an informed and equitable response to hunger by mobilizing community partners, volunteers, and supporters.

—
5
St Catherine Center for Special Needs Inc

The mission of the center is as follows:(a) to operate, oversee, administer, manage and supervise the assets and activities of saint catherine center for special needs, inc. and, including but not limited to, the assets and activities of…

—
6
The Community Action Agency of Western Connecticut Inc

The community action agency of western connecticut is a private non-profit corporation serving western connecticut. its primary purpose is to operate a multi-purpose organization to combat poverty and promote self sufficiency among low…

Community Improvement
7
Bridgton Hospital

To provide exceptional healthcare services in a safe and trustfulenvironment through the expertise, commitment, and compassion ofour family of caregivers.

Health
8
The Connecticut Project Inc

The connecticut project, a 501c3 organization, brings together people, ideas, and resources to build opportunity.

Community Improvement
9
Children in Placement Inc

The organization provides advocacy, monitoring, and guardian ad litem services to children in the connecticut foster care system.

—
10
The Inner-City Foundation for Charity & Education Inc

To provide financial support to agencies and institutions whose programs serve at-risk children and families in fairfield county.

—
11
Connstep Inc

To help connecticut manufacturers apply advanced manufacturing and management techniques to become more competitive, supporting the growth of connecticut economy.

Community Improvement
12
Cold Spring School Inc

Cold spring school challenges children to become self-reliant, curious and resourceful problem solvers with the academic and social skills to engage constructively and ethically in our diverse, changing world.

Education

For reference, the grantee most central to the portfolio’s shape is Lifebridge Community Services Inc and the most unlike its peers is Park City Initiative Corporation. Resemblance is measured on each organization’s own IRS 990 mission text; it reflects how work is described, not its quality or impact.

For each theme you fund, this compares how the sector’s money is shifting with how your own giving is shifting.

← shrinkinggrowing →↓ leaning in → pulling backsteadyFaith-Based Social ServicesFamily Counseling and Menta…Independent Schools and Ear…Social Services and SupportSupportive Housing ProvidersProfessional Standards and …Community Arts EducationUrban Youth & Community Dev…Healthcare Delivery Systems
the sector your giving your giving is ahead of the sector the sector’s ahead of you· dot size = how much the theme matters to each side
Ordered by the change in your giving — leaning in on top, pulling back at the bottom. The bar between the two dots is how out of step you are with the sector. Hover any row for detail.

Sector change and giving change are each shown relative to their own range, growing (right) or shrinking (left); both normalized, so inflation isn’t mistaken for growth.

Your grantees are a median of 32 years old; the field is 19. You back the established end — and your money leans older still.

THE FIELDby orgYOUR GRANTEESby number19%0%<5yr12%6%5–10yr19%28%10–20yr20%22%20–35yr12%16%35–55yr18%28%55yr+
THE FIELDby orgYOUR MONEYby value19%0%<5yr12%3%5–10yr19%15%10–20yr20%11%20–35yr12%28%35–55yr18%42%55yr+

The field is 19% startups (under 5 years old) — 0% of your grantees by number, and just 0% of your money.

Closures · last 5 years

The orgs you fund almost never close — 0.0% lost their exemption, against 11% of the field you don’t fund.

orgs you fund
0.0%0/36
the rest of the field
11%
677/6,417

Age = years since IRS exemption (a founding proxy). “Closed” = auto-revocation for 3 years of non-filing — a floor on closure, not proof, and bigger established orgs lapse least. Association, not causation.

05the grantee network

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

Each one resolved to its own IRS returns and tracked year by year — your grant beside their revenue from every source. Association, dated; never a causal claim.

Counted here: distinct organizations you funded across 2017–2025, not grant rows in a single year — so this will not match the grant count on the cover. 36 of the 44 grantees resolved in that span have returns of their own we could reconcile; the rest are funded organizations whose filings we could not track year by year.

2
Load-bearing (≥25% of a budget)
9
Early backer (in before they grew)
34/36
Grantees still filing
25/36
Grew since you first funded

Where your money sits — by cause, then by grantee

PEAK ACADEMY INC — $710,000 · OtherPEAK ACADEMY INCCATHOLIC CHARITIES OF FAIRFIELD COUNTY INC — $250,000 · OtherCATHOLIC CHARITIES OF FAIRFIELD COU…KOLBE CATHEDRAL HIGH SCHOOL — $210,000 · OtherKOLBE CATHEDRAL HIGH SCHOOLBARNUM FESTIVAL PT BARNUM FOUNDATION INC — $185,000 · OtherBARNUM FESTIVAL PT BARNUM FOUNDATIO…CARDINAL SHEHAN CENTER INC — $137,500 · OtherLEAPS OF FAITH WATER SKI CLUB INC dba LOF ADAPTIVE SKIERS — $328,253 · OtherLEAPS OF FAITH WATER SKI CLUB INC d…THE DISCOVERY MUSEUM INC — $300,000 · OtherTHE DISCOVERY MUSEUM INCFoundations in Education Inc — $145,000 · OtherTEAM WOOFGANG & CO INC — $130,000 · Other+14 more — $428,720 · Other+14 moreTHE CENTER FOR FAMILY JUSTICE INC — $1,330,760 · Human ServicesTHE CENTER FOR FAMILY…MCGIVNEY COMMUNITY CENTER INC — $200,500 · Human ServicesMCGIVNEY COMMUNITY CE…BRIDGEPORT RESCUE MISSION INC — $120,000 · Human ServicesBRIDGEPORT RESCUE MIS…+3 more — $65,460 · Human ServicesBRIDGEPORT HOSPITAL FOUNDATION INC — $1,600,000 · HealthBRIDGEPORT HOSPITAL F…+2 more — $90,000 · HealthWAKEMAN MEMORIAL ASSOCIATION INC — $890,800 · Youth DevelopmentWAKEMAN MEM…+1 more — $20,000 · Youth DevelopmentPARK CITY INITIATIVE CORPORATION — $635,000 · Housing & ShelterURBAN IMPACT OF BLACK ROCK INCORPORATED — $45,000 · Housing & ShelterNOURISH BRIDGEPORT INC — $675,000 · ReligionHOUSATONIC COMMUNITY COLLEGE FOUNDATION INC — $250,000 · EducationSHEPHERDS INC — $120,000 · EducationGINA ROSE MONTALTO MEMORIAL FOUNDATION INC — $75,000 · EducationMERCY LEARNING CENTER OF BRIDGEPORT INC — $65,000 · EducationREACH Western CT Inc — $60,000 · EducationSOLDIER STRONG INC — $25,000 · Education+1 more — $20,000 · Education
Other$2,824,473Human Services$1,716,720Health$1,690,000Youth Development$910,800Housing & Shelter$680,000Religion$675,000Education$615,000

Each org by its size and your share of it — top-left is where you’re load-bearing

25%50%75%100%$1.0M$10Mgrantee revenue →↑ your share of their budgetBRIDGEPORT HOSPITAL FOUNDATION INC — $1,600,000 over 5y, 4.1% of budgetTHE CENTER FOR FAMILY JUSTICE INC — $1,330,760 over 6y, 7.1% of budgetWAKEMAN MEMORIAL ASSOCIATION INC — $890,800 over 5y, 3.9% of budgetNOURISH BRIDGEPORT INC — $675,000 over 3y, 25% of budgetPARK CITY INITIATIVE CORPORATION — $635,000 over 4y, 25% of budgetLEAPS OF FAITH WATER SKI CLUB INC dba LOF ADAPTIVE SKIERS — $328,253 over 6y, 56% of budgetTHE DISCOVERY MUSEUM INC — $300,000 over 3y, 7.4% of budgetCATHOLIC CHARITIES OF FAIRFIELD COUNTY INC — $250,000 over 4y, 0.7% of budgetHOUSATONIC COMMUNITY COLLEGE FOUNDATION INC — $250,000 over 3y, 5.8% of budgetMCGIVNEY COMMUNITY CENTER INC — $200,500 over 4y, 16% of budgetFoundations in Education Inc — $145,000 over 4y, 0.7% of budgetCARDINAL SHEHAN CENTER INC — $137,500 over 3y, 4.0% of budgetTEAM WOOFGANG & CO INC — $130,000 over 4y, 9.4% of budgetSHEPHERDS INC — $120,000 over 1y, 18% of budgetBRIDGEPORT RESCUE MISSION INC — $120,000 over 3y, 0.7% of budgetGINA ROSE MONTALTO MEMORIAL FOUNDATION INC — $75,000 over 1y, 46% of budgetKLEIN MEMORIAL AUDITORIUM FOUNDATIONINC — $75,000 over 5y, 1.7% of budgetCONNECTICUT BALLET INC — $70,000 over 5y, 3.7% of budgetMERCY LEARNING CENTER OF BRIDGEPORT INC — $65,000 over 2y, 0.8% of budgetREACH Western CT Inc — $60,000 over 1y, 15% of budgetLIVFREE INC — $50,000 over 4y, 5.9% of budgetURBAN IMPACT OF BLACK ROCK INCORPORATED — $45,000 over 3y, 5.6% of budgetAPPLIED BEHAVIORAL REHABILITATION INSTIT — $40,000 over 2y, 0.5% of budgetFILLING IN THE BLANKS INC — $30,000 over 2y, 0.5% of budgetTHE CHILD AND FAMILY GUIDANCE CENTER INC — $25,460 over 1y, 0.2% of budgetCAROLINE HOUSE INC — $25,000 over 1y, 4.4% of budgetCONNECTICUT INSTITUTE FOR REFUGEES AND IMMIGRANTS INC — $25,000 over 1y, 0.3% of budgetSOLDIER STRONG INC — $25,000 over 1y, 1.3% of budgetHOLE IN THE WALL GANG FUND INC — $25,000 over 1y, 0.1% of budgetCURTAIN CALL INC — $20,000 over 2y, 0.9% of budgetREAD TO GROW INC — $20,000 over 2y, 0.8% of budgetFAIRFIELD CHRISTMAS TREE FESTIVAL — $15,000 over 1y, 9.9% of budgetLIFEBRIDGE COMMUNITY SERVICES INC — $10,000 over 1y, 0.1% of budgetASSOCIATION OF SMALL FOUNDATIONS — $220 over 1y, 0.0% of budget
Go grantee by grantee — a decade per org, and how each moved after you funded them

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

The grantmakers whose grantees overlap with yours far more than size alone predicts. Each orbits closer the stronger the alignment; the arcs between them show where they also fund each other. Here it reads as a tightly interlocked camp — most of these funders back each other's grantees too.

Fairfield County's Co…The Near and Far Asso…The Inner-City Founda…The Pitney Bowes Foun…Peoples United Commun…Ernest and Joan Trefz…The John and Ethel Ka…The Aiello Charitable…Young Mens Christian …Synchrony FoundationThe Demattia Charitab…The Bridgeport Rotary…
Fairfield County's Community Foundation IncCT46.9× affinity21 shared granteesties to 11 of 11Hover any node to trace its alignments.Compare side by side →

Open a dossier: Fairfield County's Community Foundation Inc · The Near and Far Association Inc · The Inner-City Foundation for Charity & Education Inc · The Pitney Bowes Foundation · Peoples United Community Foundation · Ernest and Joan Trefz Foundation · The John and Ethel Kashulon Foundation · The Aiello Charitable Foundation Inc · Young Mens Christian Association of Westport/Weston Ct Inc · Synchrony Foundation · The Demattia Charitable Foundation Inc · The Bridgeport Rotary Club Foundation Inc

Affinity is a Gamma-Poisson posterior co-funding rate, re-centered on the typical rate, so thin evidence shrinks toward no signal. A research starting point: overlap is association, not proof of shared intent.

Government reliance of your grantees

Every dot is one organization Elizabeth M Pfriem Foundation funds. Left–right is the share of its income from government; up–down is the share from you. Bigger dots raise more. Filter to federal, a single department, or state — and drag the year to watch it move.

2024
’20’21’22’23’24’25
no gov · 130%4%15%34%60%your share of their income ↑0%25%50%75%100%share of the org’s income from government →median 15%
  • The Child and Family Guidance Center Inc — 86% of income from government
  • The Center for Family Justice Inc — 49% of income from government
  • Connecticut Institute for Refugees and Immigrants Inc — 37% of income from government
  • Applied Behavioral Rehabilitation Instit — 35% of income from government
  • Lifebridge Community Services Inc — 32% of income from government
  • Nourish Bridgeport Inc — 19% of income from government
  • The Discovery Museum Inc — 15% of income from government
  • Wakeman Boys and Girls Club Corp — 11% of income from government
  • Mercy Learning Center of Bridgeport Inc — 4% of income from government
  • Cardinal Shehan Center Inc — 4% of income from government
  • Mcgivney Community Center Inc — 2% of income from government
  • Connecticut Ballet Inc — 2% of income from government
  • Klein Memorial Auditorium Foundationinc — 1% of income from government
  • Curtain Call Inc — 0% of income from government
no gov moneyreceives it· size = income
13get no government money at all
6report government grants on their 990 we could not trace to a source (not plotted)
1rely on government for over half their income
typical government reliance, FY20–25

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 your grant caused the public funding. Coverage is precision-first — a floor, not 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 12–24 months.

05Through Plinth

Warm introductions · Powered by PlinthPlus

How do I get to Elizabeth M Pfriem Foundation?

Find your warmest path to Elizabeth M Pfriem 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 directly from IRS e-file XML — your own 990/990-PF and the multi-year returns of the 44 grantees we resolved across every year we hold, several hundred filings in all (a different count from the grant rows on the cover, which are one fiscal year)— each linked to its source. Grantee achievements and outcomes are each organization’s own program-service reporting (Form 990, Part III); we read these as association with sustained funding — the foundation is one of several forces — suppress low-confidence name matches rather than guess, and say so where a figure rests on a single grant or filing. Not everything on this page is a filed figure, and the difference matters. Filed is what you reported on your 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. How we build these →

Generated from your IRS Form 990-PF e-file return for fiscal year 2024, released 2024. Filings run roughly 12–24 months behind; figures are dated accordingly.

Source object · view filing

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 camps
funders cluster by geography, not ideology
By state
where grant money is based, and what stays home
State money flows
the interactive map of money crossing state lines