Skip to content
Helena Area Community Foundation at a glanceMostly funded, not a grantmaker: see who funds it →

· Community foundation

Helena Area Community Foundation

To provide financial assistance to nonprofits benefiting lewis & clark county residents.

$86k
Granted FY2023
1
Grants FY2023
1
States reached
$8k
Largest
01What it fundsRead
02The needRead
03Its fieldRead
01What it funds
01100% classified

What it funded, over time

Every grant placed by its stated purpose and the recipient’s mission, by year, FY2022 to 2023.

Human Services$85kArts & Culture$83kCommunity Improvement$67kCrime & Legal$28kHousing & Shelter$28kHealth$24kPublic Benefit$14kYouth Development$14kOther$0
02FY2023 · 1 grant

Where the money goes

Grants by size, and the largest recipients.

How this is measured
The 1 grants below total $7,560, the rows itemized in this filing. The $85,811 headline is the total grant expense on the return; the other $78,251 is giving the schedule does not break out (grants under the $5,000 itemization floor, grants to individuals, grants on other schedules). Every figure below describes the itemized rows only.
$7,560
Median grant
1
States reached
$662k
Total assets
Largest grants
RecipientAmount
EXPLORATIONWORKS$7,560
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 (FY22–23, $71k) land where the poverty rate runs at 9%, against an area that typically sits at 7%. 100% of those dollars go to grantees based in above-average-need neighborhoods. Most of its grants land in higher-need ZIPs.

area typical 7%FAMILY OUTREACH INC: $19k → 9%YWCA HELENA: $14k → 9%EXPLORATIONWORKS: $10k → 9%EXPLORATIONWORKS: $8k → 9%MERLIN CCC: $6k → 9%FLORENCE CRITTENTON FAMILY SERVICES: $14k → 9%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 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
Confluence Public Health Alliance

None

Health
2
Catholic Social Services of Montana

Based on our commitment to catholic social teaching, catholic social services of montana provides for works of advocacy, compassion, pastoral outreach, education and social justice.

—
3
Mountainland Head Start

Empowering young children and families along a path to their highest potential.

Education
4
Haven

For more than four decades, haven has been bozemans trusted community partner in providing safe shelter, support (including a 24-hour support line and legal advocacy), and counseling for survivors of domestic violence, sexual assault, sex…

—
5
Helena Christian School Inc

To provide a Christian-based full curriculum to students in pre-K through 12th grade.

Education
6
Missoula Community Foundation

To enhance community vitality by inspiring community giving and strengthening nonprofits

Community Improvement
7
South Central Montana Regional Mental Health Center

The region iii mental health center is a registered non-profit 501(c)(3) corporation dedicated to the establishment, development and maintenance of high quality mental health and chemical dependency care in south central montana.

—
8
Central Montana Head Start

Central montana head start is an early learning center that empowers the whole child and family through health, education, and self-sufficiency.

Education
9
Habitat for Humanity Missoula Inc

Habitat for humanity of missoula is a nonprofit, ecumenical, christian housing ministry dedicated to the elimination of poverty housing in our community and throughout the world.

—
10
Hermits Peak Watershed Alliance

The Hermits Peak Watershed Alliance HPWA works to protect and restore the ecological and cultural heritage of the Hermits Peak region through restoration environmental education and community action.

Environment
11
The Montana Land Reliance

The mission of the montana land reliance (mlr) is to partner with landowners to provide permanent protection for private lands that are significant for agricultural production, fish and wildlife habitat, and open space.

Environment
12
Working Montanans

Working Montanans' mission is to advocate for an economy that works for working people and other critical issues.

—
How this is measured
The grantee most central to the portfolio’s shape is Ywca Helena; the most unlike its peers is Archie Bray Foundation. 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

28 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. 28 of the 30 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)
4
Early backer (in before they grew)
28/28
Grantees still filing
19/28
Grew since first funded

Where the money sits, by cause and then by grantee

GOOD SAMARITAN MINISTRIES SERIES 900 LLC: $14,000 · OtherGOOD SAMARITAN MINISTRIES SERIES 900 LLCIntermountain Deaconess Childrens Services: $14,000 · OtherIntermountain Deaconess Childrens ServicesMONTANA PRESERVATION ALLIANCE INC: $14,000 · OtherMONTANA PRESERVATION ALLIANCE INCHELENA AREA HABITAT FOR HUMANITY: $14,000 · OtherHELENA AREA HABITAT FOR HUMANITYMONTANA LEGAL SERVICES ASSOCIATION: $14,000 · OtherMONTANA LEGAL SERVICES ASSOCIATIONBIG BROTHERS BIG SISTERS OF CENTRAL MONTANA: $13,667 · OtherBIG BROTHERS BIG SISTERS OF CENTRAL MONTANAMUSIKANTEN INC: $11,000 · OtherMUSIKANTEN INCUNITED WAY OF THE LEWIS AND CLARK AREA INC: $10,000 · OtherUNITED WAY OF THE LEWIS AND CLARK AREA INCHELENA SYMPHONY: $9,000 · OtherHELENA SYMPHONYFRIENDSHIP CENTER OF HELENA INC: $14,000 · OtherFRIENDSHIP CENTER OF HELENA INCPRICKLY PEAR LAND TRUST: $13,050 · OtherPRICKLY PEAR LAND TRUSTHELENA FOOD SHARE INC: $10,000 · OtherHELENA FOOD SHARE INCLEWIS AND CLARK HUMANE SOCIETY: $10,000 · OtherLEWIS AND CLARK HUMANE SOCIETYFAMILY PROMISE OF GREATER HELENA INC: $24,000 · Human ServicesFAMILY PROMISE OF GREATER H…REGION IV FAMILY OUTREACH INC: $19,475 · Human ServicesREGION IV FAMILY OUTREACH I…EXPLORATIONWORKS INC: $17,670 · Human ServicesEXPLORATIONWORKS INCFLORENCE CRITTENTON HOME AND SERVICES: $14,000 · Human ServicesFLORENCE CRITTENTON HOME AN…YWCA HELENA: $14,000 · Human ServicesYWCA HELENAMERLIN MEDIATION COUNSELING & CONSULTING INC: $5,500 · Human ServicesMERLIN MEDIATION COUNSELING…BROADWATER PRODUCTIONS INC GRANDSTREET THEATRE: $14,000 · Arts & CultureBROADWATER PRODUC…THE MYRNA LOY: $14,000 · Arts & CultureTHE MYRNA LOYHOLTER MUSEUM OF ART: $12,000 · Arts & CultureHOLTER MUSEUM OF …QUEEN CITY BALLET COMPANY: $10,000 · Arts & CultureQUEEN CITY BALLET…COHESION DANCE PROJECT: $8,860 · Arts & CultureCOHESION DANCE PR…SHODAIR CHILDREN'S FOUNDATION: $14,000 · HealthHealthy Mothers Healthy Babies the Montana Coalition Inc: $10,000 · HealthARCHIE BRAY FOUNDATION: $10,598 · EducationTHE ANGEL FUND: $10,000 · EducationFIRST JUDICIAL DISTRICT CASA-GAL PROGRAM: $14,000 · Crime & LegalMONTANA BUDGET AND POLICY CENTER: $14,000 · Public Benefit
Other$160,717Human Services$94,645Arts & Culture$58,860Health$24,000Education$20,598Crime & Legal$14,000Public Benefit$14,000

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

25%50%75%100%$1.0M$10Mgrantee revenue →↑ funder's share of their budgetFAMILY PROMISE OF GREATER HELENA INC: $24,000 over 1y, 9.5% of budgetREGION IV FAMILY OUTREACH INC: $19,475 over 1y, 0.5% of budgetEXPLORATIONWORKS INC: $17,670 over 2y, 1.4% of budgetSHODAIR CHILDREN'S FOUNDATION: $14,000 over 1y, 0.4% of budgetIntermountain Deaconess Childrens Services: $14,000 over 1y, 0.1% of budgetBROADWATER PRODUCTIONS INC GRANDSTREET THEATRE: $14,000 over 1y, 1.1% of budgetMONTANA PRESERVATION ALLIANCE INC: $14,000 over 1y, 3.3% of budgetFLORENCE CRITTENTON HOME AND SERVICES: $14,000 over 1y, 0.2% of budgetFIRST JUDICIAL DISTRICT CASA-GAL PROGRAM: $14,000 over 1y, 5.0% of budgetMONTANA BUDGET AND POLICY CENTER: $14,000 over 1y, 0.9% of budgetHELENA AREA HABITAT FOR HUMANITY: $14,000 over 1y, 0.8% of budgetYWCA HELENA: $14,000 over 1y, 0.8% of budgetMONTANA LEGAL SERVICES ASSOCIATION: $14,000 over 1y, 0.2% of budgetFRIENDSHIP CENTER OF HELENA INC: $14,000 over 1y, 1.0% of budgetTHE MYRNA LOY: $14,000 over 1y, 1.6% of budgetBIG BROTHERS BIG SISTERS OF CENTRAL MONTANA: $13,667 over 1y, 2.9% of budgetPRICKLY PEAR LAND TRUST: $13,050 over 1y, 0.1% of budgetHOLTER MUSEUM OF ART: $12,000 over 1y, 2.5% of budgetARCHIE BRAY FOUNDATION: $10,598 over 1y, 0.5% of budgetTHE ANGEL FUND: $10,000 over 1y, 3.2% of budgetHealthy Mothers Healthy Babies the Montana Coalition Inc: $10,000 over 1y, 1.2% of budgetQUEEN CITY BALLET COMPANY: $10,000 over 1y, 17% of budgetHELENA FOOD SHARE INC: $10,000 over 1y, 0.1% of budgetLEWIS AND CLARK HUMANE SOCIETY: $10,000 over 1y, 0.9% of budgetUNITED WAY OF THE LEWIS AND CLARK AREA INC: $10,000 over 1y, 1.4% of budgetCOHESION DANCE PROJECT: $8,860 over 1y, 5.6% of budgetMERLIN MEDIATION COUNSELING & CONSULTING INC: $5,500 over 1y, 13% 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.

Montana Community Fou…First Interstate Banc…Dennis & Phyllis Wash…Treacy FoundationUnited Way of the Lew…Headwaters Health Fou…Otto Bremer TrustTown Pump Charitable …McBride Family Founda…M J Murdock Charitabl…Speyer Family Foundat…Sample Foundation Inc
Montana Community Foundation IncMT39.6× affinity17 shared granteesties to 11 of 11Hover any node to trace its alignments.Compare side by side →

Open a dossier: Montana Community Foundation Inc · First Interstate BancSystem Foundation Inc · Dennis & Phyllis Washington Foundation · Treacy Foundation · United Way of the Lewis and Clark Area Inc · Headwaters Health Foundation of Western Montana · Otto Bremer Trust · Town Pump Charitable Foundation · McBride Family Foundation · M J Murdock Charitable Trust · Speyer Family Foundation · Sample Foundation 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 Helena Area Community Foundation funds: left to right is the share of its income from government, bottom to top the share from Helena Area Community Foundation. Bigger dots raise more.

2024
’20’21’22’23’24’25
no gov · 00%1%5%11%20%funder's share of their income ↑0%25%50%75%100%share of the org’s income from government →
    no gov moneyreceives it· size = income
    0get no government money at all
    9report government grants on their 990 we could not trace to a source (not plotted)
    0rely on government for over half their income
    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.

    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 30 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 e-file return for fiscal year 2023, released 2023. Filings run roughly 12 to 24 months behind; figures are dated accordingly.

    Possibly out of date. A more recent filing (FY2025) is on record and reports $110k of grant expense, but none of it to a named recipient. On a Form 990 that can mean grants abroad, filed by region only (Schedule F), grants under $5,000, which are not itemized, or a schedule referenced as an attachment the e-file does not carry. The figures above are therefore from FY2023, the most recent year this funder named its grantees.

    Source object · view filing

    Play a game based on Helena Area’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