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Eric James Benson Foundation at a glanceAlso receives grants: funding profile →

· Private foundation

Eric James Benson Foundation

Its FY2025 filing reports that it funds preselected organizations and did not take unsolicited requests; check the foundation's own site before ruling it out.

$3k
Granted FY2025still arriving
5
Grants FY2025still arriving
2
States reached
$1k
Largest
01What it fundsRead
02The needRead
03Its granteesRead
04Its fieldRead
05Through PlinthRead
01What it funds
0190% classified

What it funded, over time

Every grant placed by its stated purpose and the recipient’s mission, by year, FY2020 to 2025.

Philanthropy$18kEnvironment$4kYouth Development$3kEducation$2kHuman Services$2kHealth$2kArts & Culture$2kAnimals$500Other$0
02FY2025 · 5 grants

Where the money goes

Grants by size, and the largest recipients.

$500
Median grant
2
States reached
$21k
Total assets
Largest grants
RecipientAmount
BOLDER OPTIONS$1,000
OPEN HANDS FOUNDATION$1,000
WILDERNESS INQUIRY$500
SARAH SHULZE FDN$500
MINNESOTA LAND TRUST$200
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 (FY22–25, $2k) land where the poverty rate runs at 10%, against an area that typically sits at 10%. 0% of those dollars go to grantees based in above-average-need neighborhoods. Its grants skew toward lower-need ZIPs.

area typical 10%SARAH SCHULZE FDN: $1k → 10%SARAH SHULZE FDN: $500 → 10%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.

81%of every dollar goes to organizations it has funded before.
$29k · 7 repeat orgs$7k to everyone else

7 repeat relationships: 4 still active in FY2025, 3 since wound down; 1 grantees were first funded in FY2025 (too recent to call).

How the two cohorts compare

Re-uppedFunded once

Organizations

7
10

Total granted

$29k
$7k

Median revenue growth · since first grant

+8%
+10%

Still filing today

71%
50%

New vs renewed · share of each year

In FY2025, 94% of grant dollars renewed an existing relationship; $200 went to new ones.

50%100%’20’21’22’23’24’25
RenewedFirst-time

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

’20’21’22’23’24’25
EducationHealthEnvironmentPhilanthropyAnimalsReligionOther
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

  • OH
    OPEN HANDS FOUNDATION
    6× · 2020–2025 · $18k · revenue +107%
  • BO
    Bolder Options
    2× · 2024–2025 · $3k · revenue +63%
  • WI
    WILDERNESS INQUIRY INC
    3× · 2021–2025 · $2k · revenue +8%

Funded once

  • FS
    FIVE STONE MEDIA
    one grant, 2020 · $2k
  • AD
    ALZHEIMER'S DISEASE & RELATED DISORDERS ASSOCIATION INC
    one grant, 2021 · $1k · revenue +13%
  • STEPHEN SILLER TUNNEL TO TOWERS FOUNDATION
    one grant, 2024 · $610 · 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.

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
Minnesota Medical Association

To be the leading voice of medicine to make minnesota the healthiest state and the best place to practice.

—
2
Federation of State Medical Boards of the United States Inc

The fsmb serves as the voice for state medical boards, supporting them through education, assessment, research and advocacy while providing services and initiatives that promote patient safety, quality health care and regulatory best…

Health
3
University of Minnesota Foundation Investment Advisors

To provide the highest level of stewardship for university donors through professional management and oversight of the university of minnesota foundation's assets by creating a focused investment environment with clarity of purpose,…

Education
4
Sarasota Memorial Healthcare Foundation Inc

Sarasota memorial healthcare foundation is the philanthropic partner that helps sarasota memorial health care system bring world-class care to our community.

Health
5
The Water Research Foundation

The purpose of the water research foundation (wrf) is a definitive research organization to advance the science of all things water to better meet the evolving needs of its subscribers and the water sector. to engage exclusively in…

Environment
6
Minnesota Business Partnership

The minnesota business partnership's mission is to maintain a high quality of life for all minnesotans by ensuring that the state's economy remains strong, globally competitive and its prospects for growth bright by working with elected…

—
7
Ecumen

We empower individuals and families to confidently navigate aging so that it is a purposeful journey filled with dignity and support.

—
8
Allosource

Inspired by the gift of donation from our communities, allosource responsibly provides innovative cellular and tissue allografts to advance patient healing.

Health
9
Saint Paul & Minnesota Foundation

Purpose: we inspire, advocate and invest to advance community visions. continued on sch o

Philanthropy
10
Wetlands America Trust Inc

Wetlands america trust, inc. is a nonprofit organization formed in 1985 to expand ducks unlimited, inc's mission to provide leadership in the protection of the natural balance of wetlands ecosystems ensuring the future viability of…

Environment
11
American Academy of Neurology

The Academy's mission is to enhance member career fulfillment and promote brain health for all.

Community Improvement
12
St Joseph's Hospital of Tampa Foundation Inc

St. joseph's hospitals foundation secures, manages and stewards philanthropic support to benefit the health care mission of st. joseph's hospital, st. joseph's women's hospital, st. joseph's children's hospital of tampa, st. joseph's…

Health
How this is measured
The grantee most central to the portfolio’s shape is University of Minnesota Foundation; the most unlike its peers is Sarah Shulze Foundation Inc. 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

11 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. 11 of the 18 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)
3
Early backer (in before they grew)
11/11
Grantees still filing
6/11
Grew since first funded

Where the money sits, by cause and then by grantee

OPEN HANDS FOUNDATION: $18,000 · PhilanthropyOPEN HANDS FOUNDATIONIndividual grant recipient: $2,029 · OtherIndividual grant recipi…FAIRYLILYLONG LAKE ASSOCIATION INC: $2,000 · OtherFAIRYLILYLONG LAKE ASSO…FIVE STONE MEDIA: $1,500 · OtherFIVE STONE MEDIASHARING: $500 · OtherSHARINGBENEVITY: $500 · OtherBENEVITYSAUK CENTER LIONS CLUB: $500 · OtherSAUK CENTER LIONS CLUBSALVATION ARMY: $500 · OtherSALVATION ARMYBolder Options: $2,500 · EducationBolder OptionsUNIVERSITY OF MINNESOTA FOUNDATION: $1,500 · EducationUNIVERSITY OF …STEPHEN SILLER TUNNEL TO TOWERS FOUNDATION: $610 · EducationSTEPHEN SILLER…WILDERNESS INQUIRY INC: $1,500 · EnvironmentMINNESOTA LAND TRUST: $200 · EnvironmentALZHEIMER'S DISEASE & RELATED DISORDERS ASSOCIATION INC: $1,000 · HealthAmerican Heart Association Inc: $523 · HealthSarah Shulze Foundation Inc: $1,521 · Human ServicesTHE BOND BETWEEN: $500 · AnimalsSAMARITAN'S PURSE: $500 · Religion
Philanthropy$18,000Other$7,529Education$4,610Environment$1,700Health$1,523Human Services$1,521Animals$500Religion$500

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 budgetOPEN HANDS FOUNDATION: $18,000 over 6y, 7.7% of budgetBolder Options: $2,500 over 2y, 0.1% of budgetSarah Shulze Foundation Inc: $1,521 over 2y, 0.7% of budgetWILDERNESS INQUIRY INC: $1,500 over 3y, 0.0% of budgetUNIVERSITY OF MINNESOTA FOUNDATION: $1,500 over 2y, 0.0% of budgetALZHEIMER'S DISEASE & RELATED DISORDERS ASSOCIATION INC: $1,000 over 1y, 0.0% of budgetSTEPHEN SILLER TUNNEL TO TOWERS FOUNDATION: $610 over 1y, 0.0% of budgetAmerican Heart Association Inc: $523 over 1y, 0.0% of budgetTHE BOND BETWEEN: $500 over 1y, 0.0% of budgetSAMARITAN'S PURSE: $500 over 1y, 0.0% of budgetMINNESOTA LAND TRUST: $200 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.

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.

Margaret a Cargill Fo…Ch Robinson Worldwide…The Minneapolis Found…Mightycause Charitabl…The Blackbaud Giving …American Endowment Fo…National Philanthropi…Vanguard Charitable E…American Online Givin…Fidelity Investments …
Margaret a Cargill FoundationMN13.5× affinity4 shared granteesties to 9 of 9Hover any node to trace its alignments.Compare side by side →

Open a dossier: Margaret a Cargill Foundation · Ch Robinson Worldwide Foundation · The Minneapolis Foundation · Mightycause Charitable Foundation · The Blackbaud Giving Fund · American Endowment Foundation · National Philanthropic Trust · Vanguard Charitable Endowment Program · American Online Giving Foundation Inc · Fidelity Investments Charitable Gift Fund

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 Eric James Benson Foundation funds: left to right is the share of its income from government, bottom to top the share from Eric James Benson Foundation. Bigger dots raise more.

2024
’20’21’22’23’24’25
no gov · 00%1%3%6%10%funder's share of their income ↑0%3%5%8%10%share of the org’s income from government →
    no gov moneyreceives it· size = income
    0get no government money at all
    1report government grants on their 990 we could not trace to a source (not plotted)
    0rely on government for over half their income
    ⤢ axis zoomed · 0–10%
    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 Eric James Benson Foundation?

    Find your warmest path to Eric James Benson 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 18 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 2025, released 2025. Filings run roughly 12 to 24 months behind; figures are dated accordingly.

    Source object · view filing

    Play a game based on Eric James Benson’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