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Mars Hq Regional Foundation at a glance

· Private foundation

Mars Hq Regional Foundation

Its FY2024 filing reports that it funds preselected organizations and did not take unsolicited requests; check the foundation's own site before ruling it out.

$1.7M
Granted FY2024still arriving
105
Grants FY2024still arriving
14
States reached
$300k
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, FY2020 to 2024.

Arts & Culture$2.0MFood & Nutrition$1.8MEnvironment$1.2MEducation$908kHealth$501kAnimals$497kHuman Services$351kHousing & Shelter$246kOther$0
02FY2024 · 105 grants

Where the money goes

Grants by size, and the largest recipients.

By grant size · FY2024

  • Under $10k1 grant · $10k
  • $10k–50k100 grants · $1.2M
  • $50k–250k3 grants · $250k
  • $250k+1 grant · $300k
$10,000
Median grant
14
States reached
$48M
Total assets
Largest grants
RecipientAmount
CAPITAL AREA FOOD BANK$300,000
PRETEND CITY THE CHILDREN'S MUSEUM OF ORANGE COUNTY$100,000
CLAREMONT MCKENNA COLLEGE$100,000
ELON UNIVERSITY$50,000
THE STUDENT CONSERVATION ASSOCIATION INC$31,000
CHESAPEAKE BAY FOUNDATION$31,000
MCLEAN PROJECT FOR THE ARTS$25,000
ARCS FOUNDATION - METRO WASHINGTON CHAPTER$21,000
WASHINGTON NATIONAL OPERA$21,000
VIRGINIA FOUNDATION FOR INDEPENDENT COLLEGES$21,000
BOYS AND GIRLS CLUB OF FAUQUIER$20,000
EARTH FORCE INC$20,000
ST MARY'S HEALTH WAGON INC$20,000
COMMONWEALTH ALLIANCE FOR RURAL COLLEGES$16,000
WORLD WILDLIFE FUND$16,000
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 (FY20–24, $436k) land where the poverty rate runs at 9%, against an area that typically sits at 9%. 37% of those dollars go to grantees based in above-average-need neighborhoods. Its grants skew toward lower-need ZIPs.

area typical 9%DREAM STREET FOUNDATION: $10k → 14%LEARNING ALLY: $10k → 11%DREAM STREET FOUNDATION: $9k → 14%LEARNING ALLY INC DBA RECORDING FOR THE BLIND AND DYSLEXIC INC: $10k → 11%DREAM STREET FOUNDATION: $8k → 14%LEARNING ALLY INC: $9k → 11%DREAM STREET FOUNDATION: $8k → 14%LEARNING ALLY: $8k → 11%THE ARC OF LOUDOUN: $10k → 4%THE FENWICK FOUNDATION: $10k → 7%LEARNING ALLY: $8k → 11%FENWICK FOUNDATION: $6k → 7%LANGLEY RESIDENTIAL SUPPORT SERVICES: $10k → 6%LANGLEY RESIDENTIAL SURT SERVICES: $10k → 6%LANGLEY RESIDENTIAL SUPPORT SERVICES: $5k → 6%HOPKINS HOUSE: $10k → 6%AMERICAN RED CROSS NATIONAL CAPITAL AND GREATER CHESAPEAKE REGION: $16k → 6%FACETS: $10k → 6%PEOPLE ANIMALS LOVE: $8k → 14%BETHANY HOUSE OF NORTHERN VIRGINIA: $8k → 6%HOPKINS HOUSE: $8k → 6%HOPKINS HOUSE: $8k → 6%PEOPLE ANIMALS LOVE: $8k → 14%THE FENWICK FOUNDATION: $10k → 6%HOPKINS HOUSE: $10k → 6%HOPKINS HOUSE: $9k → 6%CAPITAL CARING: $60k → 6%CAPITAL CARING: $50k → 6%CAPITAL CARING: $9k → 6%CAPITAL CARING: $8k → 6%CAPITAL CARING: $8k → 6%PEOPLE ANIMALS LOVE: $10k → 14%PEOPLE ANIMALS LOVE: $10k → 14%IONA SENIOR SERVICES: $10k → 14%IONA SENIOR SERVICES: $10k → 14%IONA SENIOR SERVICES: $9k → 14%IONA SENIOR SERVICES: $8k → 14%IONA SENIOR SERVICES: $8k → 14%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

WA
MT
IL
NY
MA
WY
PA
NJ
CA
CO
KY
WV
VA
MD
NC
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.
03Its grantees
repeat funding

Who it funds again

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

86%of every dollar goes to organizations it has funded before.
$7.2M · 114 repeat orgs$1.1M to everyone else

Grantees it renews have grown median revenue +40% since the first grant, against +24% for those funded once.

114 repeat relationships: 70 still active in FY2024, 44 since wound down; 32 grantees were first funded in FY2024 (too recent to call).

How the two cohorts compare

Re-uppedFunded once

Organizations

114
41

Total granted

$7.2M
$694k

Median revenue growth · since first grant

+40%
+24%

Still filing today

85%
37%

New vs renewed · share of each year

In FY2024, 74% of grant dollars renewed an existing relationship; $445k went to new ones.

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

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

’20’21’22’23’24
Arts & CultureHuman ServicesAnimalsEnvironmentEducationHealthOther
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

  • CA
    CAPITAL AREA FOOD BANK INC
    5× · 2020–2024 · $1.7M · revenue +39%
  • PC
    PRETEND CITY THE CHILDREN'S MUSEUM OF ORANGE COUNTY
    5× · 2020–2024 · $445k · revenue +56%
  • TN
    THE NEW MUSEUM AT THE BRADFORD BRINTON RANCH
    5× · 2020–2024 · $153k · revenue +40%

Funded once

  • PC
    PRETEND CITY CHILDREN'S MUSEUM (JBMABA)
    one grant, 2022 · $100k
  • HP
    HYACINTH'S PLACE
    one grant, 2023 · $50k
  • HP
    HYACINTH'S PLACE (INSTITUTE OF URBAN LIVING)
    one grant, 2022 · $50k
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
Environmental Investigation Agency

To establish and promote programs to protect the global climate, forests, wildlife and the natural environment, through research, advocacy, and investigation.

International
2
Eastern National

Eastern national promotes the public's understanding and support of america's national parks and other public trust partners by providing quality educational experiences, products and services.

Recreation & Sports
3
Association of Washington Cities

The association of washington cities builds connections between our state's diverse cities and towns, while providing our members with the support needed to thrive through delivery of data-driven education, nationally recognized pooling…

—
4
Boston Architectural College

The bac is committed to provide excellence in design education grounded in practice and accessible to diverse communities.

—
5
Metropolitan Washington Council of Governments

Create a more accessible, sustainable, prosperous and livable national capital region by being a discussion forum, expert resource, issue advocate, and catalyst for action.

Public Benefit
6
The George Washington University

The mission of the george washington university (gw) is to educate individuals in liberal arts, languages, sciences, learned professions, and other courses and subjects of study, and to conduct scholarly research and publish the findings…

Education
7
Amazon Conservation Association

Amazon conservation unites science, people, and innovation to protect the amazon - the greatest wild forest on earth. as guardians of the most iconic forest on the planet, we bring together the power of the latest science and technology…

Environment
8
United States Naval Institute

Provide an independent forum for those who dare to read, think, speak, and write to advance the professional, literary, and scientific understanding of sea power and other issues critical to global security.

—
9
Humanities Washington

Humanities washington (hw) opens minds and bridges divides by creating spaces to explore different perspectives. we envision a state where all people seek a deeper understanding of others, themselves, and the human experience, in order to…

Arts & Culture
10
University of Virginia Investment Management Company

The university of virginia investment management company (uvimco) is organized to invest funds on behalf of the rector and visitors of the university of virginia (the university or uva) and university-associated organizations (uaos).

Education
11
Wilson College

Wilson college empowers students to be confident and critical thinkers, creative visionaries, effective communicators, honorable leaders, and agents of justice.

Education
12
The Cultural Landscape Foundation

A non-profit established in 1998, the cultural landscape foundation (tclf) connects people to places. tclf educates and engages the public to make our shared landscape heritage more visible, identify its value, and empower its stewards.…

Arts & Culture
How this is measured
The grantee most central to the portfolio’s shape is The Mount Vernon Ladies' Association of the Union; the most unlike its peers is The Washington Home 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

126 grantees tracked through their own filings, 2017–2026.

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 2026, not grant rows in a single year, so this will not match the grant count on the cover. 126 of the 189 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)
30
Early backer (in before they grew)
126/126
Grantees still filing
95/126
Grew since first funded

Where the money sits, by cause and then by grantee

THE STUDENT CONSERVATION ASSOCIATION INC: $123,000 · OtherTHE BOYS AND GIRLS CLUB OF FAUQUIER INC: $105,000 · OtherClaremont McKenna College: $100,000 · OtherPRETEND CITY CHILDREN'S MUSEUM (JBMABA): $100,000 · Other+103 more: $2,536,000 · Other+103 moreCAPITAL AREA FOOD BANK INC: $1,700,000 · Food & NutritionCAPITAL AREA FOOD BANK …+4 more: $74,000 · Food & NutritionPRETEND CITY THE CHILDREN'S MUSEUM OF ORANGE COUNTY: $445,000 · Arts & CulturePRETEND CITY THE CHIL…THE NEW MUSEUM AT THE BRADFORD BRINTON RANCH: $153,000 · Arts & CultureTHE NEW MUSEUM AT THE…WOLF TRAP FOUNDATION FOR THE PERFORMING ARTS: $118,000 · Arts & CultureWOLF TRAP FOUNDATION …WASHINGTON NATIONAL OPERA: $103,000 · Arts & CultureWASHINGTON NATIONAL O…+23 more: $791,600 · Arts & Culture+23 moreCHESAPEAKE BAY FOUNDATION INC: $153,000 · EnvironmentWORLD WILDLIFE FUND INC: $78,000 · EnvironmentEQUINE LAND CONSERVATION RESOURCE: $53,000 · EnvironmentSCENIC RIVERS LAND TRUST INC: $45,000 · EnvironmentFriends of the National Arboretum: $45,000 · EnvironmentTHE POTOMAC CONSERVANCY INC: $45,000 · EnvironmentCOAL RIVER MOUNTAIN WATCH INC: $42,000 · EnvironmentAMERICAN RIVERS INC: $42,000 · EnvironmentFRIENDS OF THE BLUE RIDGE PARKWAY INC: $42,000 · EnvironmentC&O CANAL TRUST INC: $35,000 · EnvironmentGOOSE CREEK ASSOCIATION: $26,000 · Environment+1 more: $16,000 · EnvironmentVA FOUNDATION FOR INDEPENDENT COLLEGES: $103,000 · EducationElon University: $100,000 · EducationTHE VIRGINIA COLLEGE FUND: $46,000 · EducationGALLAUDET UNIVERSITY: $45,000 · EducationFRONTIER NURSING UNIVERSITY INC: $45,000 · EducationUNIVERSITY OF THE CUMBERLANDS INC: $45,000 · EducationALICE LLOYD COLLEGE: $45,000 · EducationTHE LITERACY LAB: $45,000 · EducationDISTRICT OF COLUMBIA COLLEGE ACCESS PROGRAM: $37,000 · EducationProject Horse Inc: $35,000 · EducationCOLLEGE BOUND INC: $35,000 · Education+1 more: $11,000 · EducationCapital Hospice: $135,000 · Human ServicesLearning Ally Inc: $45,000 · Human ServicesHOPKINS HOUSE A CENTER FOR CHILDREN AND THEIR FAMILIES: $45,000 · Human ServicesIona Senior Services: $45,000 · Human ServicesPEOPLE ANIMALS LOVE INC: $36,000 · Human ServicesDREAM STREET FOUNDATION: $35,000 · Human ServicesFENWICK FOUNDATION: $26,000 · Human ServicesLANGLEY RESIDENTIAL SUPPORT SERVICES INC: $25,000 · Human ServicesEarth Force Inc: $20,000 · Human ServicesAmerican National Red Cross & Its Constituent Chapters and Branches: $16,000 · Human Services+3 more: $28,000 · Human ServicesVIRGINIA HUNTERS WHO CARE INC: $53,000 · AnimalsINTERNATIONAL BIRD RESCUE: $47,000 · AnimalsWASHINGTON HUMANE SOCIETY: $45,000 · AnimalsDefenders of Wildlife: $45,000 · AnimalsAmerican Bird Conservancy: $45,000 · AnimalsTHE WILDLIFE CENTER OF VIRGINIA: $42,000 · AnimalsEcoHealth Alliance Inc: $42,000 · AnimalsDAYS END FARM HORSE RESCUE INC: $35,000 · AnimalsNATIONAL AQUARIUM INC: $35,000 · AnimalsAFRICAN WILDLIFE FOUNDATION INC: $22,000 · AnimalsOHANA PRESERVATION FOUNDATION: $20,000 · Animals+2 more: $18,000 · Animals
Other$2,964,000Food & Nutrition$1,774,000Arts & Culture$1,610,600Environment$622,000Education$592,000Human Services$456,000Animals$449,000

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 budgetCAPITAL AREA FOOD BANK INC: $1,700,000 over 5y, 0.5% of budgetPRETEND CITY THE CHILDREN'S MUSEUM OF ORANGE COUNTY: $445,000 over 5y, 3.4% of budgetTHE NEW MUSEUM AT THE BRADFORD BRINTON RANCH: $153,000 over 5y, 4.9% of budgetCHESAPEAKE BAY FOUNDATION INC: $153,000 over 5y, 0.1% of budgetCapital Hospice: $135,000 over 4y, 0.1% of budgetTHE STUDENT CONSERVATION ASSOCIATION INC: $123,000 over 4y, 0.1% of budgetWOLF TRAP FOUNDATION FOR THE PERFORMING ARTS: $118,000 over 5y, 0.1% of budgetTHE BOYS AND GIRLS CLUB OF FAUQUIER INC: $105,000 over 5y, 12% of budgetVA FOUNDATION FOR INDEPENDENT COLLEGES: $103,000 over 5y, 1.4% of budgetWASHINGTON NATIONAL OPERA: $103,000 over 5y, 5.5% of budgetElon University: $100,000 over 2y, 0.0% of budgetClaremont McKenna College: $100,000 over 1y, 0.0% of budgetTHE AMAZON BIODIVERSITY CENTER: $85,000 over 4y, 3.6% of budgetWORLD WILDLIFE FUND INC: $78,000 over 5y, 0.0% of budgetST MARYS HEALTH WAGON INC: $60,000 over 3y, 0.3% of budgetHancock Shaker Village Inc: $55,000 over 5y, 0.8% of budgetRebuilding Together DC Alexandria: $53,000 over 5y, 2.4% of budgetGALAPAGOS CONSERVANCY INC: $53,000 over 5y, 0.3% of budgetTHE CORPORATION FOR THOMAS JEFFERSON'S POPLAR FOREST: $53,000 over 5y, 0.6% of budgetJAMESTOWN REDISCOVERY FOUNDATION: $53,000 over 5y, 0.8% of budgetTHE PHILLIPS COLLECTION: $53,000 over 5y, 0.1% of budgetVIRGINIA HUNTERS WHO CARE INC: $53,000 over 5y, 1.7% of budgetBLACK STUDENT FUND: $53,000 over 5y, 5.1% of budgetCHORAL ARTS SOCIETY OF WASHINGTON: $53,000 over 5y, 0.7% of budgetFRIENDS OF CONSERVATION - FRIENDS OF THE MASAI MARA: $53,000 over 5y, 6.5% of budgetEQUINE LAND CONSERVATION RESOURCE: $53,000 over 5y, 4.0% of budgetHIGHER ACHIEVEMENT PROGRAM INC: $53,000 over 5y, 0.2% of budgetTHE MOUNT VERNON LADIES' ASSOCIATION OF THE UNION: $52,000 over 4y, 0.0% of budgetThe Chicago Community Trust: $50,000 over 1y, 0.0% of budgetINTERNATIONAL BIRD RESCUE: $47,000 over 3y, 0.7% of budgetTHE VIRGINIA COLLEGE FUND: $46,000 over 3y, 2.8% of budgetTHE SHAKESPEARE THEATRE: $45,000 over 5y, 0.1% of budgetINOVA HEALTH SYSTEM FOUNDATION: $45,000 over 5y, 0.0% of budgetSCENIC RIVERS LAND TRUST INC: $45,000 over 5y, 2.7% of budgetFORD'S THEATRE SOCIETY: $45,000 over 5y, 0.1% of budgetWASHINGTON HUMANE SOCIETY: $45,000 over 5y, 0.0% of budgetFAIRFAX CHORAL SOCIETY INC: $45,000 over 5y, 15% of budgetDefenders of Wildlife: $45,000 over 5y, 0.0% of budgetWASHINGTON DRAMA SOCIETY INC: $45,000 over 5y, 0.1% of budgetGALLAUDET UNIVERSITY: $45,000 over 5y, 0.0% of budgetJUBILEE JOBS INC: $45,000 over 5y, 0.8% of budgetCASTING FOR RECOVERY: $45,000 over 5y, 0.6% of budgetAmerican Bird Conservancy: $45,000 over 5y, 0.1% of budgetLearning Ally Inc: $45,000 over 5y, 0.1% of budgetGETTYSBURG FOUNDATION: $45,000 over 5y, 0.1% of budgetFRONTIER NURSING UNIVERSITY INC: $45,000 over 5y, 0.0% of budgetHOPKINS HOUSE A CENTER FOR CHILDREN AND THEIR FAMILIES: $45,000 over 5y, 0.3% of budgetFriends of the National Arboretum: $45,000 over 5y, 0.5% 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.

Clark-Winchcole Found…Greater Washington Co…United Way of the Nat…The Morris and Gwendo…Philip L Graham Fund …The Community Foundat…Dimick Foundation Joh…John Edward Fowler Me…Ada L and Albert M Wi…World Bank Community …Dominion Energy Chari…William S Abell Found…
Clark-Winchcole FoundationMD47.3× affinity21 shared granteesties to 11 of 11Hover any node to trace its alignments.Compare side by side →

Open a dossier: Clark-Winchcole Foundation · Greater Washington Community Foundation · United Way of the National Capital Area · The Morris and Gwendolyn Cafritz Foundation · Philip L Graham Fund co Graham Holdings Company · The Community Foundation for Northern Virginia Inc · Dimick Foundation John M Lynham Jr Trustee · John Edward Fowler Memorial Foundation · Ada L and Albert M Wibel Foundation · World Bank Community Connections Fund · Dominion Energy Charitable Foundation · William S Abell 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 Mars Hq Regional Foundation funds: left to right is the share of its income from government, bottom to top the share from Mars Hq Regional Foundation. Bigger dots raise more.

2024
’20’21’22’23’24’25
no gov · 30%3%10%23%40%funder's share of their income ↑0%25%50%75%100%share of the org’s income from government →median 2%
  • EcoHealth Alliance Inc: 24% of income from government
  • Imagination Stage Inc: 13% of income from government
  • Learning Ally Inc: 4% of income from government
  • Chesapeake Bay Foundation Inc: 2% of income from government
  • Hancock Shaker Village Inc: 1% of income from government
  • National Aquarium Inc: 1% of income from government
  • Amherst College Trustees: 0% of income from government
  • Capital Hospice: 0% of income from government
no gov moneyreceives it· size = income
3get no government money at all
38report 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 Mars Hq Regional Foundation?

Find your warmest path to Mars Hq Regional 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 189 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 Mars Hq Regional’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