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Golden Pond Foundation at a glance

· Private foundation

Golden Pond 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.

$425k
Granted FY2024still arriving
7
Grants FY2024still arriving
4
States reached
$125k
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, FY2019 to 2024.

Education$3.2MPhilanthropy$1.5MHealth$451kRecreation & Sports$350kPublic Safety & Disaster$200k
02FY2024 · 7 grants

Where the money goes

Grants by size, and the largest recipients.

By grant size · FY2024

  • Under $10k2 grants · $14k
  • $10k–50k1 grant · $25k
  • $50k–250k4 grants · $386k
$50,000
Median grant
4
States reached
$28M
Total assets
Largest grants
RecipientAmount
UNITED STATES GOLF ASSOCIATION$125,000
ACCESS OPPORTUNITY$110,840
5430 FOUNDATIONS$100,000
DENVER POLICE ACADEMY LEAGUE$50,000
EVAN'S SCHOLARS FOUNDATION$25,000
ACCESS OPPORTUNITY$9,225
ST ELIZABETH'S SCHOOL$5,000
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 (FY19–24, $460k) land where the poverty rate runs at 12%, against an area that typically sits at 12%. 100% of those dollars go to grantees based in above-average-need neighborhoods. Most of its grants land in higher-need ZIPs.

area typical 12%ACCESS OPPORTUNITY: $113k → 12%ACCESS OPPORTUNITY: $111k → 12%ACCESS OPPORTUNITY: $81k → 12%ACCESS OPPORTUNITY: $67k → 12%ACCESS OPPORTUNITY: $50k → 12%ACCESS OPPORTUNITY: $30k → 12%ACCESS OPPORTUNITY: $9k → 12%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

NH
IL
NY
NV
IA
NJ
CA
CO
DC
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.

90%of every dollar goes to organizations it has funded before.
$4.2M · 8 repeat orgs$491k to everyone else

Grantees it renews have grown median revenue +76% since the first grant, against +44% for those funded once.

8 repeat relationships: 4 still active in FY2024, 4 since wound down; 2 grantees were first funded in FY2024 (too recent to call).

How the two cohorts compare

Re-uppedFunded once

Organizations

8
7

Total granted

$4.2M
$461k

Median revenue growth · since first grant

+76%
+44%

Still filing today

75%
43%

New vs renewed · share of each year

In FY2024, 93% of grant dollars renewed an existing relationship; $30k 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 ServicesPhilanthropyHealthRecreation & 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

  • HS
    HOLDERNESS SCHOOL
    2× · 2021–2023 · $1.6M · revenue +21%
  • UO
    UNIVERSITY OF COLORADO FOUNDATION
    4× · 2020–2023 · $1.1M · revenue +76%
  • AO
    ACCESS OPPORTUNITY
    6× · 2019–2024 · $460k · revenue +96%

Funded once

  • CO
    COLORADO OPPORTUNITY FUND
    one grant, 2023 · $250k
  • CU
    COLGATE UNIVERSITYgraduated
    one grant, 2019 · $100k · revenue +44%
  • BC
    BOULDER COMMUNITY HEALTH FUND
    one grant, 2020 · $50k
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
University of Virginia Investment Management Company

The university of virginia investment management company (uvimco) is organized to invest funds on behalf of the rector and visitors of the university of virginia (the university or uva) and university-associated organizations (uaos).

Education
2
Golden Gate University

Golden gate university prepares individuals to lead and serve by providing high quality, practice-based educational programs in law, taxation, business and related professions - as a nonprofit institution - in an innovative and challenging…

Education
3
Augustana College

Rooted in the liberal arts & sciences & lutheran expression of the christian faith, & is committed to offering a challenging education that develops qualities of mind, spirit, & body necessary for a rewarding life of leadership & service…

Education
4
The Common Application Inc

The common application is a not-for-profit membership organization of over 1,100 colleges and universities across the globe committed to access, equity, and integrity in the college admission process. every year, over 1.5 million students…

Education
5
Silicon Schools Fund Inc

The mission of the silicon schools fund is to improve education through supporting the launch of excellent new schools, improving academic instruction in existing schools, and by funding some of the boldest innovations in education…

Education
6
Colorado State University Foundation

See schedule o colorado state university foundation assists in the promotion, development, and enhancement of facilities and educational programs and enhancements of faculty, students, and alumni of colorado state university (csu). this is…

Education
7
Ucsf Foundation Investment Company

The organization provides professional investment management services for endowed gifts and financial assets entrusted to the ucsf foundation.

Education
8
Indiana University Foundation

The Indiana University Foundation (IUF) maximizes private philanthropic support for Indiana University by fostering lifelong relationships with key stakeholders and providing advancement leadership and fundraising services for (Continued…

Education
9
Massachusetts Institute of Technology

The mission of mit is to advance knowledge and educate students in science, technology, and other areas of scholarship that will best serve the nation and the world in the 21st century.

Education
10
Columbia College

Columbia college improves lives by providing quality education to both traditional and nontraditional students, helping them achieve their true potential.

Education
11
Furman University

The primary mission of furman as a liberal arts institution is to provide a distinctive education in fine arts, humanities, social sciences, mathematics and the sciences, as well as selected professional disciplines.

Education
12
The Governors of the University of Calgary

The University of Calgary is a global intellectual hub located in Canada's most enterprising city. In this spirited, high quality learning environment students will thrive in programs made rich by research, hands-on experiences and…

—
How this is measured
The grantee most central to the portfolio’s shape is Colgate University; the most unlike its peers is Wings for Life Usa - Spinal Cord Research 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
10/11
Grew since first funded

Where the money sits, by cause and then by grantee

HOLDERNESS SCHOOL: $1,558,530 · EducationHOLDERNESS SCHOOLUNIVERSITY OF COLORADO FOUNDATION: $1,095,000 · EducationUNIVERSITY OF COLORADO FOUNDATIONCOLGATE UNIVERSITY: $100,000 · Education+1 more: $5,000 · EducationGS DONOR ADVISED PHILANTHROPY FUND FOR WEALTH MANAGEMENT INC: $1,090,000 · PhilanthropyGS DONOR ADVISED PHILAN…COLORADO OPEN GOLF FOUNDATION INC: $100,000 · PhilanthropyCOLORADO OPEN GOLF FOUN…COLORADO OPPORTUNITY FUND: $250,000 · OtherCOLORADO OPPO…5430 FOUNDATIONS: $200,000 · Other5430 FOUNDATI…DENVER POLICE ACADEMY LEAGUE: $150,000 · OtherDENVER POLICE…BOULDER COMMUNITY HEALTH FUND: $50,000 · OtherBOULDER COMMU…EVAN'S SCHOLARS FOUNDATION: $25,000 · Other+3 more: $11,000 · OtherACCESS OPPORTUNITY: $460,365 · Human ServicesACCESS OP…American National Red Cross & Its Constituent Chapters and Branches: $50,000 · Human ServicesAmerican …Wings for Life USA - Spinal Cord Research Foundation Inc: $400,000 · HealthUNITED STATES GOLF ASSOCIATION: $250,000 · Recreation & Sports
Education$2,758,530Philanthropy$1,190,000Other$686,000Human Services$510,365Health$400,000Recreation & Sports$250,000

Each grantee by its size and the funder’s share of it; top left is load-bearing

25%50%75%100%$10M$100Mgrantee revenue →↑ funder's share of their budgetHOLDERNESS SCHOOL: $1,558,530 over 2y, 3.4% of budgetUNIVERSITY OF COLORADO FOUNDATION: $1,095,000 over 4y, 0.1% of budgetGS DONOR ADVISED PHILANTHROPY FUND FOR WEALTH MANAGEMENT INC: $1,090,000 over 4y, 0.0% of budgetACCESS OPPORTUNITY: $460,365 over 6y, 11% of budgetWings for Life USA - Spinal Cord Research Foundation Inc: $400,000 over 3y, 5.3% of budgetUNITED STATES GOLF ASSOCIATION: $250,000 over 2y, 0.1% of budgetCOLORADO OPEN GOLF FOUNDATION INC: $100,000 over 2y, 4.7% of budgetCOLGATE UNIVERSITY: $100,000 over 1y, 0.0% of budgetAmerican National Red Cross & Its Constituent Chapters and Branches: $50,000 over 1y, 0.0% of budgetST ELIZABETH'S SCHOOL: $5,000 over 1y, 0.1% of budgetIMPACT ON EDUCATION INC: $2,500 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 Janus Henderson F…The Denver FoundationColorado Gives Founda…American Endowment Fo…Morgan Stanley Global…National Philanthropi…American Online Givin…The Bank of America C…Vanguard Charitable E…Donor Advised Charita…Fidelity Investments …Amazonsmile Foundation
The Janus Henderson FoundationCO13.5× affinity4 shared granteesties to 11 of 11Hover any node to trace its alignments.Compare side by side →

Open a dossier: The Janus Henderson Foundation · The Denver Foundation · Colorado Gives Foundation · American Endowment Foundation · Morgan Stanley Global Impact Funding Trust Inc · National Philanthropic Trust · American Online Giving Foundation Inc · The Bank of America Charitable Foundation Inc · Vanguard Charitable Endowment Program · 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 Golden Pond Foundation funds: left to right is the share of its income from government, bottom to top the share from Golden Pond Foundation. Bigger dots raise more.

2024
’20’21’22’23’24’25
no gov · 00%1%4%8%15%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 Golden Pond Foundation?

    Find your warmest path to Golden Pond 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 2024, released 2024. Filings run roughly 12 to 24 months behind; figures are dated accordingly.

    Source object · view filing

    Play a game based on Golden Pond’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