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Maine Development Foundation at a glanceMostly funded, not a grantmaker: see who funds it →

· Public charity

Maine Development Foundation

The mission of the Maine Development Foundation is to foster sustainable, long-term economic growth for Maine.

$557k
Granted FY2024still arriving
15
Grants FY2024still arriving
1
States reached
$192k
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 2024.

Community Improvement$2.5MArts & Culture$434kEducation$258kHuman Services$10k
02FY2024 · 15 grants

Where the money goes

Grants by size, and the largest recipients.

How this is measured
The 15 grants below total $543,301, the rows itemized in this filing. The $557,301 headline is the total grant expense on the return; the other $14,000 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.

By grant size · FY2024

  • Under $10k8 grants · $63k
  • $10k–50k5 grants · $129k
  • $50k–250k2 grants · $352k
$8,509
Median grant
1
States reached
$970k
Total assets
Largest grants
RecipientAmount
Ellsworth Historical Society$192,063
Colonial Theater Inc$160,189
Our Katahdin$41,048
Sunrise County Economic Council$32,001
60 Lowell Street LLC$24,856
Town of Lincoln$20,479
Augusta Downtown Alliance$10,146
Town of Houlton$8,509
Main Street Bath$8,423
Porter Memorial Library$8,193
Rockland Main Street Inc$8,000
Discover Downtown Westbrook$8,000
Heart of Biddeford$8,000
Gardiner Main Street$8,000
Our Town Belfast$5,394
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 (FY23–24, $117k) land where the poverty rate runs at 12%, against an area that typically sits at 11%. 100% of those dollars go to grantees based in above-average-need neighborhoods. Most of its grants land in higher-need ZIPs.

area typical 11%Rockland Main Street Inc: $55k → 11%Our Town Belfast: $49k → 13%Rockland Main Street Inc: $8k → 11%Our Town Belfast: $5k → 13%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.

83%of every dollar goes to organizations it has funded before.
$2.7M · 20 repeat orgs$548k to everyone else

Grantees it renews have grown median revenue +14% since the first grant, against -23% for those funded once.

20 repeat relationships: 13 still active in FY2024, 7 since wound down; 2 grantees were first funded in FY2024 (too recent to call).

How the two cohorts compare

Re-uppedFunded once

Organizations

20
8

Total granted

$2.7M
$196k

Median revenue growth · since first grant

+14%
-23%

Still filing today

55%
88%

New vs renewed · share of each year

In FY2024, 35% of grant dollars renewed an existing relationship; $352k went to new ones.

50%100%’17’18’20’21’22’23’24
RenewedFirst-time

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

’17’18’20’21’22’23’24
Community ImprovementArts & CultureHuman ServicesEducationOther
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

  • EP
    Eastport Public Library Association
    3× · 2020–2022 · $248k · revenue +0% · 50% of their budget
  • OK
    Our Katahdin
    3× · 2022–2024 · $236k · revenue +223%
  • Sunrise County Economic Council
    2× · 2023–2024 · $64k · revenue +102%

Funded once

  • HO
    Heart of Ellsworthgraduated
    one grant, 2023 · $63k · revenue +35% · 33% of their budget
  • NO
    Norway Opera House Corporation
    one grant, 2022 · $50k · revenue -35% · 46% of their budget
  • TC
    The Chocolate Church Arts Center
    one grant, 2022 · $42k · revenue +11%
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
Gardiner Chamber of Commerce

The Gardiner Chamber of Commerce serves to promote business and tourism in the community.

—
2
Protect Maine's Fishing Heritage Foundation
Environment
3
Lewiston-Auburn Economic Growth Council

To promote business and economic development in the cities of lewiston and auburn

—
4
Boothbay Harbor Region Chamber of Commerce

Promotion of the boothbay harbor area of maine for tourism and industry and maintenance of a regional information center for the general public.

—
5
Prineville Downtown Association

Economic development of rural Oregon towns

Community Improvement
6
Maine State Chamber of Commerce

Enhance the business climate, the quality of life, and economic wellbeing of the businesses and people of maine

—
7
Brunswick Downtown Association

The mission is to enhance the vitality and appeal of downtown Brunswick, Maine as a center of business activity, to increase the general physical and psychological appeal of the downtown, and to promote the cultural, retail, service, and…

Environment
8
Bangor Center Management Corporation

Promotion of downtown bangor, maine

—
9
Bangor Historical Society

Bangor Historical Society's Mission is to share the region's rich history with the community and its visitors through research, education and programs.

—
10
Hancock County Auditorium Associates

The Grand is an iconic Art Deco theater in Downeast, Maine that fosters social interaction and growth in artists and audiences through the arts, entertainment and education.

Arts & Culture
11
Skowhegan Economic Development Corp

To foster, encourage and assist in the location, settlement or resettlement of industry and recreational, agricultural,and other business enterprises in the Town of Skowhegan and in the County of Somerset.

Community Improvement
12
Bath-Brunswick Regional Chamber

Our mission is to be a catalyst for growth and development of our region through collaborative policymaking, eliminating barriers, connecting leaders, promoting prosperity, and welcoming diversity.

Community Improvement
How this is measured
The grantee most central to the portfolio’s shape is Heart of Ellsworth; the most unlike its peers is Ellsworth Historical Society. 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

21 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. 21 of the 31 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.

11
Load-bearing (≥25% of a budget)
6
Early backer (in before they grew)
21/21
Grantees still filing
12/21
Grew since first funded

Where the money sits, by cause and then by grantee

Town of Madison Maine: $430,000 · OtherTown of Madison Maine60 Lowell Street LLC: $248,560 · Other60 Lowell Street LLCJohnson Hall Inc: $243,753 · OtherJohnson Hall IncTown of East Millinocket Maine: $240,000 · OtherTown of East Millinocket MaineTown of Lincoln Maine: $204,790 · OtherTown of Lincoln MaineEllsworth Historical Society: $192,063 · OtherEllsworth Historical SocietyTown of Ashland Maine: $150,000 · OtherTown of Ashland Maine+7 more: $225,222 · Other+7 moreOur Katahdin: $236,089 · Community ImprovementOur KatahdinSunrise County Economic Council: $64,002 · Community ImprovementSunrise County Econo…Discover Downtown Westbrook: $63,000 · Community ImprovementDiscover Downtown We…Gardiner Main Street: $63,000 · Community ImprovementGardiner Main StreetHeart of Ellsworth: $62,936 · Community ImprovementHeart of EllsworthHeart of Biddeford: $61,550 · Community ImprovementHeart of Biddeford+3 more: $23,000 · Community ImprovementColonial Theater Inc: $160,189 · Arts & CultureColonial Th…Main Street Bath: $65,759 · Arts & CultureMain Street…Norway Opera House Corporation: $49,620 · Arts & CultureNorway Oper…The Chocolate Church Arts Center: $42,038 · Arts & CultureThe Chocola…Center Theatre for Performing Arts: $19,400 · Arts & CultureCenter Thea…Eastport Public Library Association: $248,266 · EducationRockland Main Street Inc: $63,000 · Human ServicesOur Town Belfast: $54,260 · Human Services
Other$1,934,388Community Improvement$573,577Arts & Culture$337,006Education$248,266Human Services$117,260

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 budgetEastport Public Library Association: $248,266 over 3y, 50% of budgetOur Katahdin: $236,089 over 3y, 7.9% of budgetEllsworth Historical Society: $192,063 over 1y, 79% of budgetColonial Theater Inc: $160,189 over 1y, 52% of budgetMain Street Bath: $65,759 over 2y, 31% of budgetSunrise County Economic Council: $64,002 over 2y, 0.8% of budgetDiscover Downtown Westbrook: $63,000 over 2y, 80% of budgetRockland Main Street Inc: $63,000 over 2y, 59% of budgetGardiner Main Street: $63,000 over 2y, 40% of budgetHeart of Ellsworth: $62,936 over 1y, 33% of budgetHeart of Biddeford: $61,550 over 2y, 15% of budgetAugusta Downtown Alliance: $60,000 over 2y, 34% of budgetOur Town Belfast: $54,260 over 2y, 30% of budgetNorway Opera House Corporation: $49,620 over 1y, 46% of budgetThe Chocolate Church Arts Center: $42,038 over 1y, 9.8% of budgetCenter Theatre for Performing Arts: $19,400 over 2y, 2.7% of budgetKennebec Valley Community College Foundation: $10,000 over 1y, 1.0% of budgetNorthern Maine Development Commission: $8,500 over 1y, 0.3% of budgetLewiston Auburn Metropolitan Chamber Of Commerce: $7,000 over 1y, 1.3% of budgetLewiston Auburn Metropolitan Chamber of Commerce: $5,500 over 1y, 0.3% 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.

Maine Community Found…Davis Family Foundati…Morton-Kelly Charitab…Center for Technology…Bill and Joan Alfond …Onion FoundationBangor Savings Bank F…Fidelity Investments …Amazonsmile Foundation
Maine Community Foundation IncME31× affinity14 shared granteesties to 8 of 8Hover any node to trace its alignments.Compare side by side →

Open a dossier: Maine Community Foundation Inc · Davis Family Foundation · Morton-Kelly Charitable Trust · Center for Technology and Civic Life · Bill and Joan Alfond Family Foundation · Onion Foundation · Bangor Savings Bank Foundation · Fidelity Investments Charitable Gift Fund · Amazonsmile 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 Maine Development Foundation funds: left to right is the share of its income from government, bottom to top the share from Maine Development Foundation. Bigger dots raise more.

2024
’20’21’22’23’24’25
no gov · 00%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
    0get no government money at all
    4report 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 31 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 2024, released 2024. Filings run roughly 12 to 24 months behind; figures are dated accordingly.

    Source object · view filing

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    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