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Michael J Femino Foundation at a glance

· Private foundation

Michael J Femino 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.

$400k
Granted FY2025still arriving
33
Grants FY2025still arriving
6
States reached
$50k
Largest
01What it fundsRead
02The needRead
03Its granteesRead
04Its fieldRead
05Through PlinthRead
01What it funds
0191% classified

What it funded, over time

Every grant placed by its stated purpose and the recipient’s mission, by year, FY2020 to 2025.

Education$113kHuman Services$105kHealth$98kMembership Benefit$60kRecreation & Sports$29kFood & Nutrition$25kYouth Development$22kCommunity Improvement$20kOther$0
02FY2025 · 33 grants

Where the money goes

Grants by size, and the largest recipients.

By grant size · FY2025

  • Under $10k13 grants · $56k
  • $10k–50k19 grants · $294k
  • $50k–250k1 grant · $50k
$10,000
Median grant
6
States reached
$15M
Total assets
Largest grants
RecipientAmount
Trojan Sig Foundation$50,000
Individual grant recipient$31,500
Polytechnic School$30,000
St Judes Childrens Rsch Hosp$30,000
Newport Beach Public Library Foundation$25,000
Ronald McDonald Family House OC$20,000
CHOC Foundation$20,000
Orangewood Foundation$17,000
Meals on Wheels OC$10,000
Huntington Medical Research Institute$10,000
American Red Cross$10,000
Baby to Baby$10,000
Pasadena Community Foundation$10,000
San Gabriel Cemetery Association$10,000
TGR Foundation$10,000
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 (FY20–25, $15k) land where the poverty rate runs at 14%, 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%American Red Cross: $10k → 14%St Joseph's Center: $2k → 14%St Joseph's Center: $1k → 14%St Josephs Center: $1k → 14%St Joseph's Center: $1k → 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.
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.

53%of every dollar goes to organizations it has funded before.
$294k · 18 repeat orgs$257k to everyone else

Grantees it renews have grown median revenue +18% since the first grant, against +15% for those funded once.

18 repeat relationships: 11 still active in FY2025, 7 since wound down; 21 grantees were first funded in FY2025 (too recent to call).

How the two cohorts compare

Re-uppedFunded once

Organizations

18
7

Total granted

$294k
$26k

Median revenue growth · since first grant

+18%
+15%

Still filing today

50%
14%

New vs renewed · share of each year

In FY2025, 41% of grant dollars renewed an existing relationship; $231k went to new ones.

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

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

’20’21’22’23’24’25
EducationHealthHuman ServicesRecreation & SportsPhilanthropyCrime & LegalOther
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

  • CF
    CHOC FOUNDATION
    5× · 2021–2025 · $50k · revenue +57%
  • PS
    POLYTECHNIC SCHOOL
    5× · 2021–2025 · $39k · revenue +47%
  • CH
    Children's Hospital Los Angeles
    5× · 2020–2025 · $27k · revenue +27%

Funded once

  • LM
    Las Madrinas Foundation
    one grant, 2021 · $5k
  • UB
    USC Business School Entrepreneur Pr
    one grant, 2021 · $5k
  • UM
    USC Marshall School Entrepreneur Pr
    one grant, 2022 · $5k
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
Uc Santa Barbara Foundation

The uc santa barbara foundation actively works to further the goals of the university of california, santa barbara. the foundation seeks to maintain and nurture the university's quality and distinction. on behalf of the campus, the…

Education
2
Ucla Foundation

The ucla foundation is the giving, receiving, and investing arm of the ucla campus. the foundation enables private donors to help build, sustain and advance one of the world's finest academic and research institutions. private philanthropy…

Education
3
Santa Barbara Education Foundation

Santa Barbara Education Foundation (SBEF) provides and supports programs that enrich the academic, artistic, and personal development of all students in the Santa Barbara Unified School District.

Education
4
Naval Postgraduate School Foundation Inc

Our mission is to support the naval postgraduate school by providing funding and programmatic support for education, research, technology development, institutional initiatives, and community programs that advance national security and…

Education
5
Association of California School Administrators

The association serves its members by creating resources that enable california school administrators to develop and apply creative leadership and management skills and in turn, improve the educational process for all students.

—
6
Ucsf Foundation Investment Company

The organization provides professional investment management services for endowed gifts and financial assets entrusted to the ucsf foundation.

Education
7
Pitzer College

Pitzer College produces engaged socially responsible citizens of the world through an academically rigorous, interdisciplinary liberal arts education emphasizing social justice, intercultural understanding and environmental sensitivity.…

Education
8
Silicon Schools Fund Inc

The mission of the silicon schools fund is to improve education through supporting the launch of excellent new schools, improving academic instruction in existing schools, and by funding some of the boldest innovations in education…

Education
9
California State University Long Beach Research Foundation

Serves the mission of the university by supporting and engaging in research, entrepreneurship, community service, sponsored programs and the acquisition of private resources.

Education
10
University of California Irvine Foundation

The mission of the university of california, irvine foundation (uc irvine foundation) is to raise and manage private funds to support uc irvine's broader mission of excellence in teaching, research and public service. to this end, the uc…

Education
11
The San Diego Foundation

The san diego foundation inspires enduring philanthropy and enables community solutions to improve the quality of life in our region.

Philanthropy
12
San Diego State University Foundation Sdsu Research Foundation

To support and further the research, education and community service objectives of san diego state university.

Education
How this is measured
The grantee most central to the portfolio’s shape is Tiger Woods Foundation Inc; the most unlike its peers is San Gabriel Cemetery Association. 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

26 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. 26 of the 47 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)
3
Early backer (in before they grew)
26/26
Grantees still filing
10/26
Grew since first funded

Where the money sits, by cause and then by grantee

Individual grant recipient: $35,500 · OtherIndividual grant recipientSt Judes Childrens Rsch Hosp: $35,000 · OtherSt Judes Childrens Rsch HospRonald McDonald Family House OC: $20,000 · OtherRonald McDonald Family House OCIndividual grant recipient: $11,000 · OtherBABY2BABY: $10,000 · OtherMake A Wish Foundation: $10,000 · OtherSAN GABRIEL CEMETERY ASSOCIATION: $10,000 · OtherMeals on Wheels OC: $10,000 · OtherMake-A-Wish America: $10,000 · OtherCity of Hope: $10,000 · OtherCatholic Charities of OC: $10,000 · OtherAFS-USA INC: $9,000 · Other+17 more: $69,900 · Other+17 morePOLYTECHNIC SCHOOL: $38,721 · EducationPOLYTECHNIC SCHOOLNEWPORT BEACH PUBLIC LIBRARY FOUNDATION: $25,000 · EducationNEWPORT BEACH PUBLIC …SWIM WITH MIKE FOUNDATION: $10,420 · EducationSWIM WITH MIKE FOUNDA…TIGER WOODS FOUNDATION INC: $10,000 · EducationTIGER WOODS FOUNDATIO…Newport Coast Elementary School Foundation: $10,000 · EducationNewport Coast Element…Sigma Chi Foundation: $10,000 · EducationSigma Chi Foundation+1 more: $1,500 · EducationCHOC FOUNDATION: $50,000 · HealthCHOC FOUNDATIONChildren's Hospital Los Angeles: $26,500 · HealthChildren's Hospita…HUNTINGTON MEDICAL RESEARCH INSTITUTES: $12,000 · HealthHUNTINGTON MEDICAL…ALZHEIMER'S DISEASE & RELATED DISORDERS ASSOCIATION INC: $5,000 · HealthALZHEIMER'S DISEAS…Trojan Sig Foundation: $50,000 · PhilanthropyTrojan Sig F…Pasadena Community Foundation: $10,000 · PhilanthropyPasadena Com…CRYSTAL COVE CONSERVANCY: $14,037 · Recreation & SportsNEWPORT BEACH BASEBALL ASSOCIATION: $5,000 · Recreation & SportsORANGEWOOD FOUNDATION: $17,000 · Crime & LegalAmerican National Red Cross & Its Constituent Chapters and Branches: $10,000 · Human ServicesST JOSEPH CENTER: $5,298 · Human Services
Other$250,400Education$105,641Health$93,500Philanthropy$60,000Recreation & Sports$19,037Crime & Legal$17,000Human Services$15,298

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 budgetTrojan Sig Foundation: $50,000 over 1y, 5.3% of budgetCHOC FOUNDATION: $50,000 over 5y, 0.0% of budgetPOLYTECHNIC SCHOOL: $38,721 over 5y, 0.1% of budgetChildren's Hospital Los Angeles: $26,500 over 5y, 0.0% of budgetNEWPORT BEACH PUBLIC LIBRARY FOUNDATION: $25,000 over 1y, 0.6% of budgetORANGEWOOD FOUNDATION: $17,000 over 1y, 0.1% of budgetCRYSTAL COVE CONSERVANCY: $14,037 over 5y, 0.3% of budgetHUNTINGTON MEDICAL RESEARCH INSTITUTES: $12,000 over 2y, 0.1% of budgetSWIM WITH MIKE FOUNDATION: $10,420 over 5y, 0.1% of budgetAmerican National Red Cross & Its Constituent Chapters and Branches: $10,000 over 1y, 0.0% of budgetTIGER WOODS FOUNDATION INC: $10,000 over 1y, 0.1% of budgetNewport Coast Elementary School Foundation: $10,000 over 1y, 8.3% of budgetSigma Chi Foundation: $10,000 over 5y, 0.0% of budgetPasadena Community Foundation: $10,000 over 1y, 0.0% of budgetAFS-USA INC: $9,000 over 4y, 0.0% of budgetST JOSEPH CENTER: $5,298 over 2y, 0.0% of budgetALZHEIMER'S DISEASE & RELATED DISORDERS ASSOCIATION INC: $5,000 over 1y, 0.0% of budgetNewport Beach Fire Department Foundation: $5,000 over 1y, 1.4% of budgetLAGUNA FOOD PANTRY: $5,000 over 1y, 0.1% of budgetNEWPORT BEACH BASEBALL ASSOCIATION: $5,000 over 1y, 0.9% of budgetPTA Newport Coast Elementary: $2,000 over 1y, 1.2% of budgetSAN LUIS OBISPO MUSEUM OF ART: $2,000 over 1y, 0.3% of budgetMARINE CORPS SCHOLARSHIP FOUNDATION INC: $1,500 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.

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.

Pasadena Community Fo…California Community …Orange County Communi…The Confidence Founda…Sempra FoundationAmerican Endowment Fo…Gs Donor Advised Phil…National Philanthropi…Morgan Stanley Global…Jpmorgan Chase Founda…Vanguard Charitable E…The Bank of America C…
Pasadena Community FoundationCA15.5× affinity5 shared granteesties to 11 of 11Hover any node to trace its alignments.Compare side by side →

Open a dossier: Pasadena Community Foundation · California Community Foundation · Orange County Community Foundation · The Confidence Foundation · Sempra Foundation · American Endowment Foundation · Gs Donor Advised Philanthropy Fund for Wealth Management Inc · National Philanthropic Trust · Morgan Stanley Global Impact Funding Trust Inc · Jpmorgan Chase Foundation · Vanguard Charitable Endowment Program · 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 Michael J Femino Foundation funds: left to right is the share of its income from government, bottom to top the share from Michael J Femino Foundation. Bigger dots raise more.

2024
’20’21’22’23’24’25
no gov · 00%1%3%6%10%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.
    05Through Plinth

    Warm introductions · Powered by PlinthPlus

    How do I get to Michael J Femino Foundation?

    Find your warmest path to Michael J Femino 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 47 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 Michael J Femino’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