· Private foundation
Lester E Foster & Phyllis M Foster Foundation
Its FY2025 filing reports that it accepted unsolicited grant applications.
What it funded, over time
Every grant placed by its stated purpose and the recipient’s mission, by year, FY2017 to 2025.
Where the money goes
Grants by size, and the largest recipients.
By grant size · FY2025
- Under $10k13 grants · $36k
- $10k–50k1 grant · $10k
- $50k–250k1 grant · $50k
| Recipient | Amount |
|---|---|
| CHAKOUR MUSIC INSTITUTE | $50,000 |
| EASTERN CONNECTICUT STATE UNIV | $10,000 |
| WILLIMANTIC RENAISSANCE | $6,000 |
| GREATER HARTFORD FESTIVAL OF JAZZ | $5,000 |
| WILLIMANTIC VFW POST 1724 | $5,000 |
| BIG BROTHERS BIG SISTERS | $5,000 |
| HORIZONS INC - GOLF TOURNAMENT | $3,500 |
| WINDHAM HOSPITAL GOLF CLA | $3,000 |
| CT AUDUBON SOCIETY | $2,500 |
| TEMPLE BNAI ISRAEL | $1,200 |
| SOROPTIMIST INTERNATIONAL | $1,000 |
| JOLLY JOHNS KEEP YOU TRUCKIN | $1,000 |
| THREAD CITY HOP FEST | $1,000 |
| ESCU FOUNDATION INC | $1,000 |
| WINDHAM HOSPITAL FOUNDATION | $750 |
Does the money reach high-need areas?
Each grant placed by the hardship in its grantee’s ZIP, against the area’s typical level.
None of its grants could be placed against low income need for this view.
How this is measured
Who it funds again
Organizations funded in more than one year, against those funded once.
26 repeat relationships: 8 still active in FY2025, 18 since wound down; 7 grantees were first funded in FY2025 (too recent to call).
How the two cohorts compare
Organizations
Total granted
Median revenue growth · since first grant
Still filing today
New vs renewed · share of each year
In FY2025, 20% of grant dollars renewed an existing relationship; $77k went to new ones.
Where new relationships form · theme of each grantee’s first grant
How this is measured
Backed again, and grew
- CSCOVENANT SOUP KITCHEN INC8× · 2017–2024 · $622k · revenue +155%
- EFECSU FOUNDATION INC4× · 2017–2022 · $338k · revenue +14%
- WHWINDHAM HOSPITAL FOUNDATION INC7× · 2018–2025 · $303k · revenue +312% · 39% of their budget
Funded once
- WNWINDHAM NO FREEZE PROJECTone grant, 2022 · $275k
- OCOUR COMPANIONS DOMESTIC ANIMAL SANCTUARY INCgraduatedone grant, 2022 · $100k · revenue +58%
- FNFIRST NATIONAL NIU FOUDATIONone grant, 2021 · $58k
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.
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.
The purpose of the "Society" is to collect, preserve, and interpret Wethersfield's past for the education and enjoyment of present and future generations.
The foundation devotes its time to the preservation and beautification of public areas within the town of windham and provides support, including to other qualified tax-exempt organizations, to help achieve this goal (continues on schedule…
The purpose of this charitable organization shall be to assist Hartford Hospital in promoting the health, education and welfare of the community in accordance with the policies set forth by the governing body of Hartford Hospital; to raise…
The mission of the library is to serve to the community, cultivate knowledge, promote curiosity, and inspire lifelong learning.
Provide fire and emergency protection to residents of Harwinton, Ct and surrounding towns
The mission of the Hampton Historical Society is to increase public knowledge and understanding of the history and cultural heritage of the town of Hampton, New Hampshire, from its earliest inhabitants to the present generation. We will…
The West Hartford Library Foundation promotes and supports the West Hartford Public Library by providing a source of funding for the purchase of library materials, services, equipment, furnishings and capital improvements.
To preserve historically significant properties in the hartford community, purchasing same, if possible, and maintaining them as historical landmarks.
The Hartford Artisans Weaving Center is a supportive and creative community that preserves, promotes and teaches the craft of hand-weaving. We teach fiber-related classes for all ages, curate exhibits and sales, and run a unique artisan…
To Promote Intellectual Improvement and Social Culture; and to Establish and Maintain a Library for Residents and Taxpayers of the Town of Watertown, Connecticut.
Promote cinemas for education
How this is measured
20 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. 20 of the 76 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.
Where the money sits, by cause and then by grantee
Each grantee by its size and the funder’s share of it; top left is load-bearing
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 COVENANT SOUP KITCHEN INC ↗
- Who funds ECSU FOUNDATION INC ↗
- Who funds WINDHAM HOSPITAL FOUNDATION INC ↗
- Who funds HORIZONS INC ↗
- Who funds GREATER HARTFORD FESTIVAL OF JAZZ INC ↗
- Who funds THE HAMPTON FIRE COMPANY ↗
- Who funds OUR COMPANIONS DOMESTIC ANIMAL SANCTUARY INC ↗
- Who funds GENERATIONS FAMILY HEALTH CENTER ↗
- Who funds GOOD HOPE COUNTRY DAY SCHOOL INC ↗
- Who funds WINDHAM THEATRE GUILD INC ↗
- Who funds CONNECTICUT AUDUBON SOCIETY INC ↗
- Who funds The Katharine Hepburn Cultural Arts Center Inc ↗
- Who funds WORK VESSELS FOR VETS INC ↗
- Who funds WINDHAM TEXTILE AND HISTORY MUSEUM INC ↗
- Who funds Willimantic Renaissance Inc ↗
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.
Open a dossier: Newalliance Foundation Inc · Connecticut Humanities Council Inc · Hartford Foundation for Public Giving · Ossen Family Foundation · Aetna Foundation Inc · Sbm Charitable Foundation Inc · Chelsea Groton Foundation · Arbella Insurance Foundation · The Pfizer Foundation Inc · Paypal Charitable Giving Fund · American Online Giving Foundation Inc · National Philanthropic Trust
How this is measured
How much its grantees rely on government
Each dot is one organization Lester E Foster & Phyllis M Foster Foundation funds: left to right is the share of its income from government, bottom to top the share from Lester E Foster & Phyllis M Foster Foundation. Bigger dots raise more.
- Horizons Inc: 39% of income from government
- Generations Family Health Center: 20% of income from government
- The Hampton Fire Company: 2% of income from government
- Connecticut Audubon Society Inc: 1% of income from government
How this is measured
Play a game based on Lester E Foster & Phyllis M Foster’s filings →