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Jean and Bernas Downing Charitable Trust at a glance

· Private foundation

Jean and Bernas Downing Charitable Trust

Its FY2025 filing reports that it accepted unsolicited grant applications.

$17M
Granted FY2025still arriving
5
Grants FY2025still arriving
1
States reached
$11M
Largest
01What it fundsRead
02The needRead
03Its granteesRead
04Its 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, FY2017 to 2025.

Arts & Culture$11MFood & Nutrition$8.6MEnvironment$6.3MScience & Tech$5.0MPhilanthropy$2.0MHuman Services$125kRecreation & Sports$75kEducation$20kOther$0
02FY2025 · 5 grants

Where the money goes

Grants by size, and the largest recipients.

By grant size · FY2025

  • $50k–250k2 grants · $100k
  • $250k+3 grants · $17M
$1,253,615
Median grant
1
States reached
$0
Total assets
Largest grants
RecipientAmount
CONNER PRAIRIE$10,500,000
PURDUE RESEARCH FOUNDATION$5,000,000
CENTRAL INDIANA LAND TRUST$1,253,615
GLEANERS FOOD BANK OF INDIANA$50,000
MIDWEST FOOD BANK$50,000
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 (FY20–25, $4.4M) land where the poverty rate runs at 16%, against an area that typically sits at 11%. 99% of those dollars go to grantees based in above-average-need neighborhoods. Most of its grants land in higher-need ZIPs.

area typical 11%GEM MINISTRIES INC: $25k → 7%MIDWEST FOOD BANK: $4.0M → 16%MIDWEST FOOD BANK: $50k → 16%MIDWEST FOOD BANK: $50k → 16%SHEPHERD COMMUNITY CENTER: $25k → 16%MIDWEST FOOD BANK: $50k → 16%SHEPHERD COMMUNITY CENTER: $25k → 16%MIDWEST FOOD BANK: $50k → 16%SHEPHERD COMMUNITY CENTER: $25k → 16%MIDWEST FOOD BANK: $25k → 16%SHEPHERD COMMUNITY CENTER: $25k → 16%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.

82%of every dollar goes to organizations it has funded before.
$26M · 7 repeat orgs$5.5M to everyone else

Grantees it renews have grown median revenue +38% since the first grant, against +11% for those funded once.

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
5

Total granted

$26M
$545k

Median revenue growth · since first grant

+38%
+11%

Still filing today

100%
60%

New vs renewed · share of each year

In FY2025, 70% of grant dollars renewed an existing relationship; $5.0M went to new ones.

50%100%’17’19’20’21’22’23’24’25
RenewedFirst-time

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

’17’19’20’21’22’23’24’25
Human ServicesEducationArts & CultureEnvironmentPhilanthropyRecreation & 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

  • GF
    GLEANERS FOOD BANK OF INDIANA INC
    6× · 2020–2025 · $4.3M · revenue +11%
  • MF
    MIDWEST FOOD BANK NFP
    6× · 2020–2025 · $4.3M · revenue +38%
  • SC
    Shepherd Community Inc
    4× · 2021–2024 · $100k · revenue +62%

Funded once

  • MC
    MIAMI COUNTY COMMUNITY FOUNDATION
    one grant, 2022 · $200k
  • WC
    WASHINGTON CO COMMUNITY FOUNDATION
    one grant, 2022 · $200k
  • UC
    UNION COUNTY FOUNDATION INCgraduated
    one grant, 2022 · $100k · revenue +161%
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
The Indianapolis Foundation Inc

To mobilize people, ideas, and investments to make this a community where all individuals have equitable opportunity to reach their full potential - no matter place, race or identity.

Community Improvement
2
Central Indiana Corporate Partnership Inc

Central indiana corporate partnership (cicp) is an alliance of indiana's business and research university leaders coming together to foster long-term prosperity for the region. cicp's mission is to transform the economy of indiana in order…

Community Improvement
3
Greater Indianapolis Chamber of Commerce Foundation Inc

The greater indianapolis chamber of commerce foundation's mission is to encourage, aid or promote educational or charitable organizations' endeavors or economic development activities and to operate for the benefit of the charitable,…

Community Improvement
4
Cicp Foundation Inc

Cicp foundation, inc. (the foundation) operates exclusively for the benefit of and carries out the mission of central indiana corporate partnership, inc. (cicp) by engaging in and supporting activities in furtherance of purposes that are…

Community Improvement
5
Indiana University Health Foundation Inc

Indiana university health foundation leverages the power of philanthropy to support the iu health goal of making indiana one of the healthiest states in the nation.

Health
6
Wayne County Indiana Foundation Inc

To foster and encourage private philanthropic giving, to enhance the spirit of community, and to improve the quality of life in the wayne county, indiana, area now and for future generations.

Philanthropy
7
Indiana Agribusiness Council Inc

An agribusiness network advocate, representing members' interests within all levels of government and keeping members informed of the latest industry trends and news.

—
8
University Family Physicians Inc

Engage actively and continuously in medical research, education and training in the practice of medicine in conjunction with the department of family medicine of the indiana university school of medicine and indiana university…

—
9
Leadership Indianapolis Inc

Educate, Inspire, Connect and Mobilize Community Leaders to serve and strengthen greater Indianapolis.

Public Benefit
10
Indiana Philanthropy Alliance Foundation Inc

The Foundation supports the Indiana Philanthropy Alliance, Inc. and its member community foundations through special initiatives that support or expand philanthropy in Indiana.

—
11
Community Foundation of the Fox River Valley

To provide effective and rewarding ways for donors to fulfill their philanthropic objectives by administering charitable funds that distribute grants and scholarships to benefit the citizens of kane and kendall counties of illinois…

Philanthropy
12
The Foundation for Indiana University of Pennsylvania (Iup)

To provide philanthropic support to indiana university of pennsylvania.

Education
How this is measured
The grantee most central to the portfolio’s shape is Union County Foundation Inc; the most unlike its peers is Gem Ministries 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

16 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. 16 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.

1
Load-bearing (≥25% of a budget)
3
Early backer (in before they grew)
16/16
Grantees still filing
11/16
Grew since first funded

Where the money sits, by cause and then by grantee

Conner Prairie Museum Inc: $11,025,000 · Arts & CultureConner Prairie Museum IncCENTRAL INDIANA LAND TRUST INCORPORATED: $6,253,615 · EnvironmentCENTRAL INDIANA LAND …Purdue Research Foundation: $5,000,000 · EducationPurdue Research F…+1 more: $20,000 · EducationGLEANERS FOOD BANK OF INDIANA INC: $4,275,000 · OtherGLEANERS FOOD BA…MIAMI COUNTY COMMUNITY FOUNDATION: $200,000 · OtherWASHINGTON CO COMMUNITY FOUNDATION: $200,000 · Other+1 more: $225 · OtherMIDWEST FOOD BANK NFP: $4,275,000 · Human ServicesMIDWEST FOOD BA…+2 more: $125,000 · Human ServicesMORGAN STANLEY GLOBAL IMPACT FUNDING TRUST INC: $675,801 · PhilanthropyORANGE COUNTY COMMUNITY FOUNDATION INC: $200,000 · PhilanthropyWABASH VALLEY COMMUNITY FOUNDATION INC: $200,000 · PhilanthropySCOTT COUNTY COMMUNITY FOUNDATION INC: $200,000 · PhilanthropyJOHNSON COUNTY COMMUNITY FOUNDATION INC: $200,000 · PhilanthropyUNION COUNTY FOUNDATION INC: $100,000 · PhilanthropyINDIANA GOLF FOUNDATION INC: $75,000 · Recreation & Sports
Arts & Culture$11,025,000Environment$6,253,615Education$5,020,000Other$4,675,225Human Services$4,400,000Philanthropy$1,575,801Recreation & Sports$75,000

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 budgetConner Prairie Museum Inc: $11,025,000 over 3y, 1.3% of budgetCENTRAL INDIANA LAND TRUST INCORPORATED: $6,253,615 over 2y, 70% of budgetPurdue Research Foundation: $5,000,000 over 1y, 2.1% of budgetGLEANERS FOOD BANK OF INDIANA INC: $4,275,000 over 6y, 2.4% of budgetMIDWEST FOOD BANK NFP: $4,275,000 over 6y, 0.7% of budgetMORGAN STANLEY GLOBAL IMPACT FUNDING TRUST INC: $675,801 over 2y, 0.0% of budgetORANGE COUNTY COMMUNITY FOUNDATION INC: $200,000 over 1y, 14% of budgetWABASH VALLEY COMMUNITY FOUNDATION INC: $200,000 over 1y, 2.6% of budgetSCOTT COUNTY COMMUNITY FOUNDATION INC: $200,000 over 1y, 16% of budgetJOHNSON COUNTY COMMUNITY FOUNDATION INC: $200,000 over 1y, 3.9% of budgetShepherd Community Inc: $100,000 over 4y, 0.3% of budgetUNION COUNTY FOUNDATION INC: $100,000 over 1y, 11% of budgetINDIANA GOLF FOUNDATION INC: $75,000 over 3y, 1.3% of budgetGEM MINISTRIES INC: $25,000 over 1y, 21% of budgetCOLLEGE MENTORS FOR KIDS INC: $20,000 over 1y, 1.0% of budgetHUMANE SOCIETY FOR BOONE COUNTY INC: $225 over 2y, 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.

Lilly Endowment IncDuke Energy FoundationIndiana Philanthropy …Indiana Philanthropy …Independent Colleges …Nina Mason Pulliam Ch…The Indianapolis Foun…Centerpoint Energy Fo…Central Indiana Commu…The Pfizer Foundation…American Online Givin…American Endowment Fo…
Lilly Endowment IncIN23× affinity9 shared granteesties to 11 of 11Hover any node to trace its alignments.Compare side by side →

Open a dossier: Lilly Endowment Inc · Duke Energy Foundation · Indiana Philanthropy Alliance Inc · Indiana Philanthropy Alliance Foundation Inc · Independent Colleges of Indiana Inc · Nina Mason Pulliam Charitable Trust · The Indianapolis Foundation Inc · Centerpoint Energy Foundation Inc · Central Indiana Community Foundation Inc · The Pfizer Foundation Inc · American Online Giving Foundation Inc · American Endowment 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 Jean and Bernas Downing Charitable Trust funds: left to right is the share of its income from government, bottom to top the share from Jean and Bernas Downing Charitable Trust. Bigger dots raise more.

2024
’20’21’22’23’24’25
no gov · 00%5%19%42%75%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
    5report 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 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 Jean and Bernas Downing’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