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Luna Foundation at a glance

· Private foundation

Luna Foundation

Its FY2024 filing reports that it accepted unsolicited grant applications.

$91k
Granted FY2024still arriving
8
Grants FY2024still arriving
6
States reached
$25k
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, FY2019 to 2024.

Health$183kYouth Development$159kEducation$111kPhilanthropy$75kHuman Services$46kReligion$29kHousing & Shelter$22kArts & Culture$15kOther$0
02FY2024 · 8 grants

Where the money goes

Grants by size, and the largest recipients.

By grant size · FY2024

  • Under $10k4 grants · $20k
  • $10k–50k4 grants · $71k
$10,000
Median grant
6
States reached
$2.8M
Total assets
Largest grants
RecipientAmount
CANCER SUPPORT COMMUNITY$25,000
JUNIOR ACHIEVEMENT OF SOUTHERN NEVADA$25,000
AMERICAN SCHOOLS ABROAD$11,214
JDRF DESERT WEST CHAPTER$10,000
PHILADELPHIA THEATRE COMPANY$7,500
REGINA APOSTOLORUM FOUNDATION$5,250
MARIO BASNER PASSION PROJECT$5,000
THE LEUKEMIA AND LYMPHOMA SOCIETY$2,500
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 (FY22–22, $700) land where the poverty rate runs at 17%, 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%HIP HOP PUBLIC HEALTH: $700 → 17%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

ME
IL
WI
NY
NV
PA
AR
DC
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.
04

Where the work is directed

The same grants placed two ways: where each recipient sits, and where its stated purpose sends the money.

About 8% of Luna Foundation’s grant dollars are earmarked for a different county than the recipient’s own address.

Luna Foundationlessmore of its giving
Placed by recipient address · 3.1% directed abroad (not shown)
How this is measured
Recipient view: each grant at its grantee’s ZIP, mapped to a county. Directed view: each grant at the county its stated purpose names, falling back to the recipient’s county when the purpose names no place; US grants only. A county shows only if it carries the top 95% of that view’s dollars. Purposes are read from the funder’s own 990 grant descriptions.
03Its grantees
repeat funding

Who it funds again

Organizations funded in more than one year, against those funded once.

74%of every dollar goes to organizations it has funded before.
$470k · 13 repeat orgs$169k to everyone else

Grantees it renews have grown median revenue +84% since the first grant, against +13% for those funded once.

13 repeat relationships: 5 still active in FY2024, 8 since wound down; 3 grantees were first funded in FY2024 (too recent to call).

How the two cohorts compare

Re-uppedFunded once

Organizations

13
15

Total granted

$470k
$125k

Median revenue growth · since first grant

+84%
+13%

Still filing today

46%
27%

New vs renewed · share of each year

In FY2024, 52% of grant dollars renewed an existing relationship; $44k 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
PhilanthropyInternationalArts & CultureHealthEducationHuman ServicesOther
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

  • JA
    JUNIOR ACHIEVEMENT OF SOUTHERN NEVADA
    6× · 2019–2024 · $159k · revenue +159%
  • UO
    UNIVERSITY OF NEVADA LAS VEGAS FOUNDATION
    3× · 2019–2021 · $75k · revenue +64%
  • TJ
    THE JUST ONE PROJECT
    3× · 2021–2023 · $14k · revenue +84%

Funded once

  • J
    JDRF
    one grant, 2019 · $50k
  • SM
    SSVM MISSIONS
    one grant, 2021 · $20k
  • JW
    JDRF - WEST CHAPTER
    one grant, 2020 · $14k
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
Memorial Sloan-Kettering Cancer Center

Leadership in the prevention, treatment, and cure of cancer through excellence, vision and cost effectiveness in patient care, outreach programs, research, and education.

Health
2
University of Southern California

The central mission of the university of southern california is the development of human beings and society as a whole through the cultivation and enrichment of the human mind and spirit. the principal means by which our mission is…

Education
3
New York Genome Center Inc

Operate a state-of-the-art, world-class genomic research center that creates and uses advanced genomics to understand the genetic basis of disease. for more information, see schedule o.

Health
4
The Translational Genomics Research Institute

Please see schedule o

Health
5
The Royal National Theatre

Theatre can lead to extraordinary moments of shared imagination. it enables us to stand in anothers shoes to better understand ourselves and the world around us. it shows us who we are, who we have been, who we could be. the nt delivers on…

Arts & Culture
6
The Nebraska Medical Center

The Nebraska Medical Center (TNMC)'s mission is to lead the world in transforming lives to create a healthy future for individuals and communities through premier educational programs, innovative research, and extraordinary patient care.

Health
7
Children's Health Care

We champion the health needs of children and families. we are committed to improving children's health by providing the highest-quality, family centered care, advanced through research and education.

Health
8
International Youth Foundation

Iyf is a global ngo that prepares young people to be healthy, productive and engaged citizens.

International
9
Lehigh Valley Hospital

Our mission is to heal, comfort and care for the people of our community by providing advanced and compassionate health care of superior quality and value, supported by education and research.

Health
10
Management Sciences for Health Inc

(msh) saves lives and improves the health of the world's poorest (see schedule o) and most vulnerable people by closing the gap between knowledge and action in public health.

International
11
The Susan G Komen Breast Cancer Fdn Group

Susan g. komen 's mission is to save lives by meeting the most critical needs in our communities & investing in breakthrough research to prevent & cure breast cancer.

—
12
Breakthrough T1D

Breakthrough t1d is the leading global t1d organization working to accelerate life-changing breakthroughs to cure, prevent, and treat t1d and its complications.

Health
How this is measured
The grantee most central to the portfolio’s shape is The Smith Center for the Performing Arts; the most unlike its peers is International Rescue Committee Inc. Resemblance is measured on each organization’s own IRS 990 mission text; it reflects how work is described, not its quality or impact.
05the grantee network

14 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. 14 of the 32 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)
2
Early backer (in before they grew)
14/14
Grantees still filing
8/14
Grew since first funded

Where the money sits, by cause and then by grantee

JDRF DESERT WEST CHAPTER: $70,600 · OtherJDRF DESERT WEST CHAPTERJDRF: $50,100 · OtherJDRFIndividual grant recipient: $38,500 · OtherIndividual grant recipientCANCER SUPPORT COMMUNITY: $25,000 · OtherCANCER SUPPORT COMMUNITYLAS VEGAS CATHOLIC WORKER: $20,500 · OtherLAS VEGAS CATHOLIC WORKERSSVM MISSIONS: $20,000 · OtherSSVM MISSIONSJDRF - WEST CHAPTER: $13,500 · OtherAMERICAN SCHOOLS ABROAD INC: $11,214 · Other+12 more: $56,215 · Other+12 moreJUNIOR ACHIEVEMENT OF SOUTHERN NEVADA: $158,710 · InternationalJUNIOR ACHIEVEMENT OF SOUTHE…+1 more: $2,500 · InternationalTHE MOONRIDGE FOUNDATION: $51,084 · PhilanthropyTHE MOONRIDGE F…THE JUST ONE PROJECT: $13,500 · PhilanthropyTHE JUST ONE PR…BORN THIS WAY FOUNDATION: $12,000 · PhilanthropyBORN THIS WAY F…UNITED WAY OF SOUTHERN NEVADA: $10,000 · PhilanthropyUNITED WAY OF S…UNIVERSITY OF NEVADA LAS VEGAS FOUNDATION: $75,000 · EducationUNIVERSITY OF…PHILADELPHIA THEATRE COMPANY: $7,500 · Arts & CultureThe Smith Center for the Performing Arts: $5,000 · Arts & CultureCANDLELIGHTERS FOR CHILDHOOD CANCER: $5,000 · HealthBLOOD CANCER UNITED INC: $3,000 · HealthHIP HOP Public Health Inc: $700 · Human Services
Other$305,629International$161,210Philanthropy$86,584Education$75,000Arts & Culture$12,500Health$8,000Human Services$700

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 budgetJUNIOR ACHIEVEMENT OF SOUTHERN NEVADA: $158,710 over 6y, 3.7% of budgetUNIVERSITY OF NEVADA LAS VEGAS FOUNDATION: $75,000 over 3y, 0.0% of budgetTHE MOONRIDGE FOUNDATION: $51,084 over 5y, 1.4% of budgetCANCER SUPPORT COMMUNITY: $25,000 over 1y, 0.3% of budgetTHE JUST ONE PROJECT: $13,500 over 3y, 0.0% of budgetBORN THIS WAY FOUNDATION: $12,000 over 1y, 0.2% of budgetAMERICAN SCHOOLS ABROAD INC: $11,214 over 1y, 0.1% of budgetUNITED WAY OF SOUTHERN NEVADA: $10,000 over 1y, 0.1% of budgetPHILADELPHIA THEATRE COMPANY: $7,500 over 1y, 0.2% of budgetThe Smith Center for the Performing Arts: $5,000 over 1y, 0.0% of budgetCANDLELIGHTERS FOR CHILDHOOD CANCER: $5,000 over 2y, 0.1% of budgetBLOOD CANCER UNITED INC: $3,000 over 2y, 0.0% of budgetInternational Rescue Committee INC: $2,500 over 1y, 0.0% of budgetHIP HOP Public Health Inc: $700 over 1y, 0.0% 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 JUNIOR ACHIEVEMENT OF SOUTHERN NEVADA ↗
  • Who funds UNIVERSITY OF NEVADA LAS VEGAS FOUNDATION ↗
  • Who funds THE MOONRIDGE FOUNDATION ↗
  • Who funds CANCER SUPPORT COMMUNITY ↗
  • Who funds THE JUST ONE PROJECT ↗
  • Who funds BORN THIS WAY FOUNDATION ↗
  • Who funds AMERICAN SCHOOLS ABROAD INC ↗
  • Who funds UNITED WAY OF SOUTHERN NEVADA ↗
  • Who funds PHILADELPHIA THEATRE COMPANY ↗
  • Who funds The Smith Center for the Performing Arts ↗
  • Who funds CANDLELIGHTERS FOR CHILDHOOD CANCER ↗
  • Who funds BLOOD CANCER UNITED INC ↗
  • Who funds International Rescue Committee INC ↗
  • Who funds HIP HOP Public Health 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.

Wynn Resorts Foundati…Nevada Community Foun…Mgm Resorts FoundationNV Energy Charitable …Tao Jones Charitable …Raiders Foundation NvCanarelli Family Foun…Engelstad Family Foun…Bny Mellon Charitable…The Pfizer Foundation…Gs Donor Advised Phil…The Bank of America C…
Wynn Resorts FoundationNV15.7× affinity5 shared granteesties to 11 of 11Hover any node to trace its alignments.Compare side by side →

Open a dossier: Wynn Resorts Foundation · Nevada Community Foundation Inc · Mgm Resorts Foundation · NV Energy Charitable Foundation · Tao Jones Charitable Foundation Inc · Raiders Foundation Nv · Canarelli Family Foundation · Engelstad Family Foundation · Bny Mellon Charitable Gift Fund · The Pfizer Foundation Inc · Gs Donor Advised Philanthropy Fund for Wealth Management Inc · The Bank of America Charitable 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 Luna Foundation funds: left to right is the share of its income from government, bottom to top the share from Luna Foundation. Bigger dots raise more.

2024
’20’21’22’23’24’25
no gov · 00%0%1%3%5%funder's share of their income ↑0%10%20%30%40%share of the org’s income from government →
    no gov moneyreceives it· size = income
    0get no government money at all
    3report government grants on their 990 we could not trace to a source (not plotted)
    0rely on government for over half their income
    ⤢ axis zoomed · 0–40%
    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 32 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 Luna’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