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John and Denise Graves Foundation at a glance

· Private foundation

John and Denise Graves Foundation

Its FY2024 filing reports that it accepted unsolicited grant applications.

$2.8M
Granted FY2024still arriving
85
Grants FY2024still arriving
11
States reached
$250k
Largest
01What it fundsRead
02The needRead
03Its granteesRead
04Its fieldRead
05Through PlinthRead
01What it funds
0198% classified

What it funded, over time

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

Education$4.9MYouth Development$3.9MCommunity Improvement$1.9MHousing & Shelter$1.4MHuman Services$1.1MPhilanthropy$681kHealth$601kCivil Rights$498kOther$0
02FY2024 · 85 grants

Where the money goes

Grants by size, and the largest recipients.

By grant size · FY2024

  • Under $10k26 grants · $80k
  • $10k–50k42 grants · $1.3M
  • $50k–250k16 grants · $1.1M
  • $250k+1 grant · $250k
$30,000
Median grant
11
States reached
$48M
Total assets
Largest grants
RecipientAmount
YOUTHPRISE$250,000
YMCA OF THE NORTH$190,000
VENN FOUNDATION$150,000
ACHIEVE TWIN CITIES$83,316
GREAT MN SCHOOLS$75,000
PERIS FOUNDATION$65,000
YOUTHPRISE$60,000
PROJECT FOR PRIDE AND LIVING$50,000
FRIENDSHIP ACADEMY OF THE ARTS$50,000
EDUCATORS 4 EXCELLENCE$50,000
IMPROVE YOUR TOMORROW$50,000
FOSTER ADVOCATES$50,000
ED ALLIES$50,000
CATHOLIC CHARITIES TWIN CITIES$50,000
FOSTER ADVOCATES$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 (FY19–24, $2.3M) land where the poverty rate runs at 11%, against an area that typically sits at 11%. 25% of those dollars go to grantees based in above-average-need neighborhoods. Its grants skew toward lower-need ZIPs.

area typical 11%LIFEWORKS SERVICES INC: $5k → 6%LEE CARLSON CENTER: $40k → 7%EDUCATION FOR LIBERATION NETWORK: $5k → 21%CHAPIN HALL CENTER FOR CHILDREN: $100k → 14%LIFEWORKS SERVICES INC: $5k → 6%CHAPIN HALL CENTER FOR CHILDREN: $50k → 14%LIFEWORKS SERVICES INC: $5k → 6%MINNESOTA ONE STOP FOR COMMUNITIES: $75k → 6%LIFEWORKS SERVICES INC: $5k → 6%FOSTER ADVOCATES: $55k → 14%FOSTER ADVOCATES: $50k → 14%FOSTER ADVOCATES: $50k → 14%FOSTER ADVOCATES: $42k → 14%FOSTER ADVOCATES: $25k → 14%PROOF ALLIANCE: $25k → 14%PROOF ALLIANCE: $15k → 14%MINNESOTA COALITION FOR THE HOMELESS: $15k → 14%FOSTER ADVOCATES: $50k → 14%FOSTER ADVOCATES: $40k → 14%COMMUNITY EMERGENCY ASSISTANCE PROGRAMS: $5k → 11%FOSTER ADVOCATES: $5k → 14%YMCA OF THE NORTH: $190k → 11%THE LINK: $300k → 11%THE LINK: $250k → 11%INTERNATIONAL INSTITUTE OF MINNESOTA: $50k → 14%THE LINK: $100k → 11%THE LINK: $40k → 11%THE LINK: $10k → 11%THINK SMALL: $3k → 14%PROJECT FOR PRIDE IN LIVING: $100k → 11%PROJECT FOR PRIDE IN LIVING: $100k → 11%PROJECT FOR PRIDE IN LIVING: $50k → 11%PROJECT FOR PRIDE AND LIVING: $50k → 11%PROJECT FOR PRIDE IN LIVING: $50k → 11%PROJECT FOR PRIDE AND LIVING: $40k → 11%SOMALI AMERICAN COMMUNITY: $33k → 11%CENTRO TYRONE GUZMAN: $30k → 11%CENTRO TYRONE GUZMAN: $25k → 11%BRIDGE TO BASICS: $11k → 11%YOUTHLINK: $50k → 11%REBOUND INC: $5k → 11%THE ANIKA FOUNDATION: $47k → 11%REBOUND INC: $45k → 11%AL-MAA'UUN: $30k → 11%AL-MAA'UUN: $30k → 11%REBOUND INC: $5k → 11%THE ANIKA FOUNDATION: $5k → 11%THE ANIKA FOUNDATION: $1k → 11%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

MN
IL
WI
MI
NY
MA
OR
OH
NJ
CA
KY
WV
VA
MD
TN
DC
LA
MS
AL
GA
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.

66%of every dollar goes to organizations it has funded before.
$11M · 74 repeat orgs$5.4M to everyone else

Grantees it renews have grown median revenue +36% since the first grant, against 0% for those funded once.

74 repeat relationships: 42 still active in FY2024, 32 since wound down; 25 grantees were first funded in FY2024 (too recent to call).

How the two cohorts compare

Re-uppedFunded once

Organizations

74
160

Total granted

$11M
$4.7M

Median revenue growth · since first grant

+36%
0%

Still filing today

76%
39%

New vs renewed · share of each year

In FY2024, 72% of grant dollars renewed an existing relationship; $754k 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 ServicesYouth DevelopmentArts & CultureCommunity ImprovementHealthOther
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

  • TL
    THE LINK
    5× · 2019–2023 · $700k · revenue +86%
  • LOCAL INITIATIVES SUPPORT CORPORATION
    2× · 2022–2023 · $661k · revenue +25%
  • AT
    ACHIEVE TWIN CITIES
    5× · 2019–2024 · $489k · revenue +33%

Funded once

  • IG
    Individual grant recipient
    one grant, 2020 · $849k
  • OY
    OPPORTUNITY YOUTH NETWORK
    one grant, 2023 · $250k
  • WE
    WALLIN EDUCATION PARTNERS
    one grant, 2022 · $130k · revenue -9%
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
African Development Center

Grow businesses, build wealth and increase reinvestement in the african communities of minnesota

Human Services
2
Minnesota Council on Foundations

MCF is a vibrant philanthropic community connecting, strengthening and mobilizing the power of philanthropy to advance prosperity and equity.

—
3
Breakthrough Twin Cities

Breakthrough Twin Cities supports students on their journey to college by fostering a community of mutual learning with the next generation of educators so they both can collaborate, grow, and thrive.

Education
4
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…

—
5
St Paul Transportation Management Organization

Move minnesota leads the movement for an equitable and sustainable transportation system that puts people first. we are passionate about connecting communities, ending the climate crisis, expanding access to jobs and resources, and…

Environment
6
Growth & Justice

To develop and advocate for public policy that makes Minnesota's economy more prosperous and fair for all Minnesotans.

—
7
Women's Foundation of Minnesota

Women's Foundation of Minnesota is a statewide community foundation investing in ending systemic inequities and driving innovation for gender and racial justice. WFM applies an Intersectional Equity Framework inclusive of gender, race,…

Philanthropy
8
United Way of Ne Minnesota

United way of northeastern minnesota invests in nonprofits, programs, and collaborations that equip and empower, creating opportunities for people to thrive in our communities.

—
9
Leadership Matters Mn

Leadership matters mn is focused on advancing a policy agenda that places working minnesotans first. we support economic growth, job creation and equitable tax and education policies that will allow every minnesotan to thrive.

Education
10
Minnesota Chamber of Commerce and Industry

The minnesota chamber of commerce proactively leads the business community statewide to: advance pro-business, responsible minnesota public policy that creates jobs and grows the econony; provde member services to address evolving business…

—
11
Minnesota Council of Nonprofits Inc

The Minnesota Council of Nonprofits informs, promotes, connects and strengthens individual nonprofits and the nonprofit sector.

Philanthropy
12
World Youth Connect

World Youth Connect builds communities across cultures and beyond borders. By creating and encouraging civic engagement opportunities we help young people gain the skills and experience they need to be successful. World Youth Connect…

Youth Development
How this is measured
The grantee most central to the portfolio’s shape is The Minneapolis Foundation; the most unlike its peers is Princeton Einstein Museum 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

146 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. 146 of the 264 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.

6
Load-bearing (≥25% of a budget)
33
Early backer (in before they grew)
141/146
Grantees still filing
87/146
Grew since first funded

Where the money sits, by cause and then by grantee

Individual grant recipient: $848,843 · OtherIndividual grant recipientPILLSBURY UNITED COMMUNITIES: $300,200 · OtherIndividual grant recipient: $253,880 · OtherOPPORTUNITY YOUTH NETWORK: $250,000 · Other+124 more: $5,404,681 · Other+124 moreYouthprise: $962,500 · EducationYouthpriseEd Allies: $360,000 · EducationEd AlliesGREAT MN SCHOOLS: $335,000 · EducationGREAT MN SCHOOLSEDUCATORS FOR EXCELLENCE INC: $262,100 · EducationEDUCATORS FOR EXCELLEN…AUGSBURG UNIVERSITY: $170,000 · EducationFRIENDSHIP ACADEMY OF THE ARTS: $135,000 · EducationWALLIN EDUCATION PARTNERS: $130,000 · EducationAdvancing Equity Coalition: $125,000 · Education+15 more: $806,880 · Education+15 moreTHE LINK: $700,000 · Human ServicesTHE LINKPROJECT FOR PRIDE IN LIVING INC: $390,000 · Human ServicesPROJECT FOR PRI…Foster Advocates: $317,516 · Human ServicesFoster Advocate…YOUNG MENS CHRISTIAN ASSOCIATION OF THE NORTH: $190,000 · Human ServicesYOUNG MENS CHRI…CHAPIN HALL CENTER FOR CHILDREN: $150,000 · Human ServicesCHAPIN HALL CEN…+15 more: $566,862 · Human Services+15 moreACHIEVE TWIN CITIES: $489,328 · Youth DevelopmentMinnesota Alliance With Youth: $238,821 · Youth DevelopmentPARTNERSHIPS FOR PERMANENCE: $114,000 · Youth DevelopmentCONNECTIONS TO INDEPENDENCE: $107,000 · Youth DevelopmentThe Why You Initiative: $80,000 · Youth DevelopmentLATINO YOUTH DEVELOPMENT COLLABORATIVE-LYDC: $60,000 · Youth DevelopmentJUXTAPOSITION ARTS INC: $50,000 · Youth DevelopmentIMPROVE YOUR TOMORROW INC: $50,000 · Youth Development+4 more: $80,000 · Youth DevelopmentLOCAL INITIATIVES SUPPORT CORPORATION: $661,094 · Community ImprovementLake Street Council: $192,500 · Community ImprovementPowderhorn Park Neighborhood Association: $124,000 · Community ImprovementBEACON INTERFAITH HOUSING COLLABORATIVE: $36,000 · Community Improvement+2 more: $42,000 · Community ImprovementTHE MINNEAPOLIS FOUNDATION: $379,750 · PhilanthropyPROPEL NONPROFITS: $160,000 · PhilanthropyVENN FOUNDATION: $150,000 · PhilanthropyACCESS PHILANTHROPY CHARITIES: $119,000 · Philanthropy+3 more: $50,000 · PhilanthropyPERIS Foundation: $330,500 · Housing & ShelterHOPE COMMUNITY INC: $190,000 · Housing & ShelterPEOPLE SERVING PEOPLE INC: $50,000 · Housing & ShelterHOME LINE: $35,000 · Housing & Shelter
Other$7,057,604Education$3,286,480Human Services$2,314,378Youth Development$1,269,149Community Improvement$1,055,594Philanthropy$858,750Housing & Shelter$605,500

Showing the 200 largest grantees by grant value.

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

25%50%75%100%$100k$1.0M$10M$100Mgrantee revenue →↑ funder's share of their budgetYouthprise: $962,500 over 5y, 5.1% of budgetTHE LINK: $700,000 over 5y, 2.2% of budgetLOCAL INITIATIVES SUPPORT CORPORATION: $661,094 over 2y, 0.1% of budgetACHIEVE TWIN CITIES: $489,328 over 5y, 2.1% of budgetPROJECT FOR PRIDE IN LIVING INC: $390,000 over 6y, 0.3% of budgetTHE MINNEAPOLIS FOUNDATION: $379,750 over 2y, 0.1% of budgetEd Allies: $360,000 over 6y, 7.6% of budgetGREAT MN SCHOOLS: $335,000 over 6y, 2.1% of budgetPERIS Foundation: $330,500 over 3y, 38% of budgetFoster Advocates: $317,516 over 5y, 13% of budgetPILLSBURY UNITED COMMUNITIES: $300,200 over 5y, 1.0% of budgetEDUCATORS FOR EXCELLENCE INC: $262,100 over 5y, 0.8% of budgetMinnesota Alliance With Youth: $238,821 over 6y, 1.6% of budgetLake Street Council: $192,500 over 4y, 8.9% of budgetYOUNG MENS CHRISTIAN ASSOCIATION OF THE NORTH: $190,000 over 1y, 0.1% of budgetHOPE COMMUNITY INC: $190,000 over 4y, 1.5% of budgetCoalition of Asian American Leaders: $180,000 over 4y, 4.1% of budgetAUGSBURG UNIVERSITY: $170,000 over 4y, 0.0% of budgetVOICES FOR RACIAL JUSTICE: $160,000 over 5y, 2.7% of budgetPROPEL NONPROFITS: $160,000 over 4y, 1.3% of budgetCIRCLE OF DISCIPLINE INC: $155,123 over 4y, 12% of budgetVENN FOUNDATION: $150,000 over 1y, 2.1% of budgetHENNEPIN HEALTH FOUNDATION: $150,000 over 3y, 0.9% of budgetCHAPIN HALL CENTER FOR CHILDREN: $150,000 over 2y, 0.4% of budgetFRIENDSHIP ACADEMY OF THE ARTS: $135,000 over 3y, 1.7% of budgetWALLIN EDUCATION PARTNERS: $130,000 over 1y, 1.2% of budgetAdvancing Equity Coalition: $125,000 over 2y, 81% of budgetPowderhorn Park Neighborhood Association: $124,000 over 3y, 12% of budgetACCESS PHILANTHROPY CHARITIES: $119,000 over 3y, 5.1% of budgetPARTNERSHIPS FOR PERMANENCE: $114,000 over 5y, 24% of budgetCLOSEKNIT: $108,000 over 3y, 23% of budgetCONNECTIONS TO INDEPENDENCE: $107,000 over 5y, 2.6% of budgetUNIDOS MINNESOTA EDUCATION FUND: $105,250 over 2y, 8.7% of budgetThrive Ed: $101,130 over 1y, 19% of budgetLITERACY MINNESOTA: $100,000 over 3y, 0.7% of budgetNEW SECTOR ALLIANCE INC: $100,000 over 1y, 24% of budgetHIRED: $100,000 over 2y, 0.5% of budgetPACER CENTER INC: $80,000 over 2y, 0.6% of budgetBRIDGEMAKERS: $80,000 over 2y, 6.3% of budgetThe Why You Initiative: $80,000 over 2y, 63% of budgetFRIENDS OF THE HENNEPIN COUNTY LIBRARY: $80,000 over 3y, 0.9% of budgetLEGAL RIGHTS CENTER: $80,000 over 2y, 1.8% of budgetTRUSTEES OF THE HAMLINE UNIVERSITY OF MINNESOTA: $75,000 over 1y, 0.1% of budgetWildflyer Coffee: $75,000 over 2y, 2.9% of budgetCHARTERSOURCE: $75,000 over 2y, 6.1% of budgetSIMPSON HOUSING SERVICES INC: $68,250 over 1y, 0.7% of budgetLATINO YOUTH DEVELOPMENT COLLABORATIVE-LYDC: $60,000 over 2y, 31% of budgetAl-Maa'uun: $60,000 over 2y, 1.7% 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.

  • Who funds Youthprise ↗
  • Who funds THE LINK ↗
  • Who funds LOCAL INITIATIVES SUPPORT CORPORATION ↗
  • Who funds ACHIEVE TWIN CITIES ↗
  • Who funds PROJECT FOR PRIDE IN LIVING INC ↗
  • Who funds THE MINNEAPOLIS FOUNDATION ↗
  • Who funds Ed Allies ↗
  • Who funds GREAT MN SCHOOLS ↗
  • Who funds PERIS Foundation ↗
  • Who funds Foster Advocates ↗
  • Who funds PILLSBURY UNITED COMMUNITIES ↗
  • Who funds EDUCATORS FOR EXCELLENCE INC ↗
  • Who funds Minnesota Alliance With Youth ↗
  • Who funds Lake Street Council ↗
  • Who funds YOUNG MENS CHRISTIAN ASSOCIATION OF THE NORTH ↗
  • Who funds HOPE COMMUNITY INC ↗
  • Who funds Coalition of Asian American Leaders ↗
  • Who funds AUGSBURG UNIVERSITY ↗
  • Who funds VOICES FOR RACIAL JUSTICE ↗
  • Who funds PROPEL NONPROFITS ↗
  • Who funds CIRCLE OF DISCIPLINE INC ↗
  • Who funds VENN FOUNDATION ↗
  • Who funds HENNEPIN HEALTH FOUNDATION ↗
  • Who funds CHAPIN HALL CENTER FOR CHILDREN ↗
  • Who funds FRIENDSHIP ACADEMY OF THE ARTS ↗
  • Who funds WALLIN EDUCATION PARTNERS ↗
  • Who funds Advancing Equity Coalition ↗
  • Who funds Powderhorn Park Neighborhood Association ↗
  • Who funds ACCESS PHILANTHROPY CHARITIES ↗
  • Who funds PARTNERSHIPS FOR PERMANENCE ↗
  • Who funds CLOSEKNIT ↗

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.

Saint Paul & Minnesot…The Minneapolis Found…The McKnight Foundati…Otto Bremer TrustPohlad Family Foundat…YouthpriseFr Bigelow FoundationGreater Twin Cities U…Headwaters Foundation…Mortenson Family Foun…Women's Foundation of…Propel Nonprofits
Saint Paul & Minnesota FoundationMN102.7× affinity81 shared granteesties to 11 of 11Hover any node to trace its alignments.Compare side by side →

Open a dossier: Saint Paul & Minnesota Foundation · The Minneapolis Foundation · The McKnight Foundation · Otto Bremer Trust · Pohlad Family Foundation · Youthprise · Fr Bigelow Foundation · Greater Twin Cities United Way · Headwaters Foundation for Justice · Mortenson Family Foundation · Women's Foundation of Minnesota · Propel Nonprofits

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 John and Denise Graves Foundation funds: left to right is the share of its income from government, bottom to top the share from John and Denise Graves Foundation. Bigger dots raise more.

2024
’20’21’22’23’24’25
no gov · 40%6%23%51%90%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
    4get no government money at all
    52report 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.
    05Through Plinth

    Warm introductions · Powered by PlinthPlus

    How do I get to John and Denise Graves Foundation?

    Find your warmest path to John and Denise Graves 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 264 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 John and Denise Graves’ 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