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Mesa Foundation at a glance

· Private foundation

Mesa Foundation

Its FY2025 filing reports that it funds preselected organizations and did not take unsolicited requests; check the foundation's own site before ruling it out.

$180k
Granted FY2025still arriving
11
Grants FY2025still arriving
2
States reached
$40k
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 2025.

Human Services$241kEducation$200kHousing & Shelter$85kHealth$45kRecreation & Sports$35kArts & Culture$29kPhilanthropy$18kYouth Development$15kOther$0
02FY2025 · 11 grants

Where the money goes

Grants by size, and the largest recipients.

By grant size · FY2025

  • Under $10k2 grants · $10k
  • $10k–50k9 grants · $170k
$15,000
Median grant
2
States reached
$3.1M
Total assets
Largest grants
RecipientAmount
READING POWER$40,000
THE HARBOUR$30,000
HEART OF THE CITY SPORTS$20,000
NORTH SHORE SENIOR CENTER$20,000
BEACON PLACE$15,000
COLLEGE BOUND OPPORTUNITIES$15,000
THE JOSSELYN CENTER$10,000
LITTLE SISTERS OF THE POOR CHICAGO$10,000
NAVY SEAL FOUNDATION$10,000
MOTHERS TRUST FOUNDATION$5,000
NORTHERN IL FOOD BANK$4,600
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 (FY19–25, $231k) land where the poverty rate runs at 11%, against an area that typically sits at 10%. 57% of those dollars go to grantees based in above-average-need neighborhoods. Most of its grants land in higher-need ZIPs.

area typical 10%NORTH SHORE SENIOR CENTER: $20k → 14%NORTH SHORE SENIOR CENTER: $20k → 14%BEACON PLACE: $15k → 8%NORTH SHORE SENIOR CENTER: $20k → 14%BEACON PLACE: $15k → 8%NORTH SHORE SENIOR CENTER: $15k → 14%BEACON PLACE: $15k → 8%NORTH SHORE SENIOR CENTER: $8k → 14%BEACON PLACE: $15k → 8%BEACON PLACE: $15k → 8%BEACON PLACE: $10k → 8%THE HARBOUR: $30k → 14%THE HARBOUR: $20k → 14%MOTHERS TRUST FOUNDATION: $8k → 8%MOTHERS TRUST FOUNDATION: $5k → 8%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.

82%of every dollar goes to organizations it has funded before.
$561k · 11 repeat orgs$124k to everyone else

11 repeat relationships: 11 still active in FY2025, 0 since wound down.

How the two cohorts compare

Re-uppedFunded once

Organizations

11
12

Total granted

$561k
$124k

Median revenue growth · since first grant

+29%
+52%

Still filing today

91%
58%

New vs renewed · share of each year

In FY2025, 100% of grant dollars renewed an existing relationship; $0 went to new ones.

50%100%’19’20’21’22’23’24’25
RenewedFirst-time

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

’19’20’21’22’23’24’25
Human ServicesYouth DevelopmentHealthEducationArts & CultureReligionOther
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

  • RP
    READING POWER INC
    6× · 2019–2025 · $170k · revenue +100%
  • NS
    NORTH SHORE SENIOR CENTER
    5× · 2021–2025 · $83k · revenue +35%
  • LS
    LITTLE SISTERS OF THE POOR CHICAGO ST MARY'S HOME
    4× · 2022–2025 · $34k · revenue +10%

Funded once

  • PL
    PADS - LIBERTYVILLE
    one grant, 2023 · $20k
  • PO
    PADS OF ELGIN INCgraduated
    one grant, 2022 · $20k · revenue +104%
  • NC
    NAPLES CHILDREN FOUNDATION INCgraduated
    one grant, 2023 · $18k · revenue +52%
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
Lakeside Community Committee

To enhance the quality of life for children and families by inspiring hope and empowerment and growth within all whom we serve.

Human Services
2
Child Link Inc

Child Link provides foster care, family counseling, and therapy services to Chicago area adolescents who are at risk of homelessness. Child Link also refers adolescents to other agencies that are able to provide additional resources and…

Human Services
3
Lakeshore Legal Aid

Standing with our neighbors, Lakeshore Legal Aid fights poverty and injustice through advocacy and by providing meaningful and dignified access to the legal system.

Crime & Legal
4
North Shore Health Care Foundation

To expand equitable health care and healthy living in Cook County and champion solutions through funding, education and advocacy.

Health
5
Lad Lake Inc

The mission of lad lake, inc. is to guide the growth of at-risk youth so that they reach their potential and live responsibly.

—
6
Thrive Chicago Nfp

Thrive chicago's mission is to prepare chicago's youth for a vibrant future by aligning efforts and outcomes from cradle to career.

Human Services
7
Youth Service Bureau

The Youth Service Bureau provides services to at-risk youth who are, or are at risk of becoming, runaway, abused, neglected and/or homeless. Services are also available for their family members.

—
8
Shelter Inc

Shelter's mission is to end the cycle of child abuse by providing a comprehensive network of support to children, their families, and our community to create safe, health, and nurturing homes.

Housing & Shelter
9
Children's Home & Aid Society of Ill

Founded in 1883, brightpoint (formerly known as children's home & aid) is a leading statewide organization supporting families so children can thrive.

Human Services
10
Nourishing Hope

Nourishing hope provides food, mental health support, and social services to help all our neighbors thrive.

—
11
Illinois Presbyterian Home

Operate homes for the aged and to conduct charitable and benevolent enterprises

Human Services
12
Family Service of Lake County

Family service of lake county provides counseling, education, and support services to strenghten individuals and families in need to succeed in school, at work, in relationships, and within our community.

—
How this is measured
The grantee most central to the portfolio’s shape is North Shore Senior Center; the most unlike its peers is Lake County Crisis Center. 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

17 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. 17 of the 23 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)
4
Early backer (in before they grew)
17/17
Grantees still filing
15/17
Grew since first funded

Where the money sits, by cause and then by grantee

The Beacon Place NFP: $85,000 · Human ServicesThe Beacon Place NFPNORTH SHORE SENIOR CENTER: $82,500 · Human ServicesNORTH SHORE SENIOR CENTERTHE HARBOUR INC: $50,000 · Human ServicesTHE HARBOUR INCMothers Trust Foundation: $13,000 · Human ServicesMothers Trust FoundationREADING POWER INC: $170,000 · Youth DevelopmentREADING POWER INCYOUNG LIFE: $7,000 · Youth DevelopmentHEART OF THE CITY SPORTS: $35,000 · OtherHEART OF THE CITY SPORTSLITTLE SISTERS OF THE POOR CHICAGO ST MARY'S HOME: $34,000 · OtherLITTLE SISTERS OF THE POO…PADS - LIBERTYVILLE: $20,000 · OtherPADS - LIBERTYVILLELAKE COUNTY CRISIS CENTER: $15,000 · OtherLAKE COUNTY CRISIS CENTERFAMILY SERVICES OF LC: $10,000 · OtherFAMILY SERVICES OF LCNAPLES CHILDREN FOUNDATION INC: $17,500 · OtherNAPLES CHILDREN FOUNDATIO…NORTHERN ILLINOIS FOOD BANK: $8,600 · OtherNORTHERN ILLINOIS FOOD BA…+4 more: $12,000 · Other+4 moreTHE JOSSELYN CENTER NFP: $25,000 · HealthPADS Lake County Inc: $15,000 · HealthCOLLEGE BOUND OPPORTUNITIES: $30,000 · EducationYoung Mens Educational Network: $7,500 · EducationNAVY SEAL FOUNDATION INC: $27,500 · Arts & CulturePADS OF ELGIN INC: $20,000 · Housing & Shelter
Human Services$230,500Youth Development$177,000Other$152,100Health$40,000Education$37,500Arts & Culture$27,500Housing & Shelter$20,000

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 budgetREADING POWER INC: $170,000 over 6y, 2.9% of budgetThe Beacon Place NFP: $85,000 over 6y, 2.0% of budgetNORTH SHORE SENIOR CENTER: $82,500 over 5y, 0.2% of budgetTHE HARBOUR INC: $50,000 over 2y, 0.9% of budgetLITTLE SISTERS OF THE POOR CHICAGO ST MARY'S HOME: $34,000 over 4y, 0.1% of budgetCOLLEGE BOUND OPPORTUNITIES: $30,000 over 2y, 1.5% of budgetNAVY SEAL FOUNDATION INC: $27,500 over 3y, 0.0% of budgetTHE JOSSELYN CENTER NFP: $25,000 over 3y, 0.0% of budgetPADS OF ELGIN INC: $20,000 over 1y, 2.6% of budgetNAPLES CHILDREN FOUNDATION INC: $17,500 over 1y, 0.1% of budgetPADS Lake County Inc: $15,000 over 1y, 0.4% of budgetLAKE COUNTY CRISIS CENTER: $15,000 over 1y, 0.3% of budgetMothers Trust Foundation: $13,000 over 2y, 1.6% of budgetNORTHERN ILLINOIS FOOD BANK: $8,600 over 2y, 0.0% of budgetYoung Mens Educational Network: $7,500 over 1y, 0.4% of budgetYOUNG LIFE: $7,000 over 1y, 0.0% of budgetKINDRED LIFE MINISTRIES INC: $5,000 over 1y, 2.1% 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.

George M Eisenberg Fo…AbbVie FoundationThe Chicago Community…First Bank Chicago Fo…Circle of Service Fou…United Way of Metropo…The Northside Communi…The Gorter Family Fou…The Grainger Foundati…The Lake County Commu…John and Kathleen Sch…Helen V Brach Foundat…
George M Eisenberg Foundation for CharitiesIL17.8× affinity6 shared granteesties to 11 of 11Hover any node to trace its alignments.Compare side by side →

Open a dossier: George M Eisenberg Foundation for Charities · AbbVie Foundation · The Chicago Community Trust · First Bank Chicago Foundation · Circle of Service Foundation · United Way of Metropolitan Chicago Inc · The Northside Community Bank Charitable Foundation · The Gorter Family Foundation · The Grainger Foundation Inc · The Lake County Community Foundation · John and Kathleen Schreiber Foundation D/B/A Schreiber Philanthropy · Helen V Brach 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 Mesa Foundation funds: left to right is the share of its income from government, bottom to top the share from Mesa Foundation. Bigger dots raise more.

2024
’20’21’22’23’24’25
no gov · 10%0%1%3%5%funder's share of their income ↑0%23%45%68%90%share of the org’s income from government →
    no gov moneyreceives it· size = income
    1get no government money at all
    7report government grants on their 990 we could not trace to a source (not plotted)
    0rely on government for over half their income
    ⤢ axis zoomed · 0–90%
    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 23 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 2025, released 2025. Filings run roughly 12 to 24 months behind; figures are dated accordingly.

    Source object · view filing

    Play a game based on Mesa’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