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Neil Family Fund at a glance

· Private foundation

Neil Family Fund

Its FY2020 filing reports that it funds preselected organizations and did not take unsolicited requests; check the foundation's own site before ruling it out.

$9k
Granted FY2019
11
Grants FY2019
7
States reached
$3k
Largest
01What it fundsRead
02The needRead
03Its granteesRead
04Its fieldRead

Read this first · the figures below need context

96% of Neil Family Fund’s FY2020 grant dollars went to Fidelity Investments Charitable Gift Fund, not to grantees.

Its money now reaches organizations through that sponsor, which does not report who recommended each grant. FY2020 names 8 organizations directly, so a portfolio cannot be read from it. Everything below is therefore FY2019, the last year Neil Family Fund named its own grantees at scale: 11 organizations, $9k. It is dated, not current.

Organizations named directly on the return

13
’17
13
’18
11
’19
8
’20

Amber years are those where most dollars went to a sponsor.

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 2020.

Philanthropy$84kArts & Culture$33kRecreation & Sports$10kInternational$3kHealth$2kEducation$1kHuman Services$700Housing & Shelter$575Other$0
02FY2019 · 11 grants

Where the money goes

Grants by size, and the largest recipients.

$250
Median grant
7
States reached
$0
Total assets
Largest grants
RecipientAmount
NEW YORK ROAD RUNNERS$3,000
THE MAESTRO FOUNDATION$2,400
SEATTLE CHAMBER MUSIC SOCIETY$1,000
COMPASSION & CHOICES$1,000
YMCA OF GREATER SEATTLE$300
NICHOLS SCHOOL$250
ST FRANCIS HOUSE$200
AGAINST MALARIA FOUNDATION$200
THE BROOKLYN RAIL INC$150
SOUTHERN CALIFORNIA PUBLIC RADIO$150
PINE ISLAND CAMP$100
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 (FY17–20, $1k) land where the poverty rate runs at 10%, against an area that typically sits at 11%. 16% of those dollars go to grantees based in above-average-need neighborhoods. Its grants skew toward lower-need ZIPs.

area typical 11%ST FRANCIS HOUSE: $200 → 16%YOUTH CARE: $375 → 9%YMCA OF GREATER SEATTLE: $300 → 9%YMCA OF GREATER SEATTLE: $300 → 9%YMCA OF GREATER SEATTLE: $100 → 9%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
WA
NY
MA
OR
PA
CA
KY
MD
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.

96%of every dollar goes to organizations it has funded before.
$48k · 14 repeat orgs$2k to everyone else

14 repeat relationships: 10 still active in FY2019, 4 since wound down; 3 grantees were first funded in FY2019 (too recent to call). Read against FY2019, the last year this funder named its own grantees directly; its giving has since run through a sponsor, which reports no donor behind each grant.

How the two cohorts compare

Re-uppedFunded once

Organizations

14
4

Total granted

$48k
$950

Median revenue growth · since first grant

+52%
+54%

Still filing today

100%
75%

New vs renewed · share of each year

In FY2020, 81% of grant dollars renewed an existing relationship; $750 went to new ones.

50%100%’17’18’19’20
RenewedFirst-time

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

’17’18’19’20
Arts & CultureHuman ServicesEducationRecreation & SportsHealthCivil RightsOther
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

  • NY
    NEW YORK ROAD RUNNERS INC
    3× · 2017–2019 · $9k · revenue +52%
  • TM
    THE MAESTRO FOUNDATION
    2× · 2017–2019 · $5k · revenue +56%
  • SC
    Seattle Chamber Music Festival
    3× · 2017–2019 · $3k · revenue +570%

Funded once

  • C9
    CLASSICAL 981graduated
    one grant, 2018 · $500 · revenue +54%
  • PS
    PACIFIC SCIENCE CENTER FOUNDATION
    one grant, 2017 · $250 · revenue -24%
  • KP
    KUOW PUGET SOUND PUBLIC RADIOgraduated
    one grant, 2017 · $100 · revenue +67%
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
Siff

Siff is a seattle-based 501(c)(3) arts nonprofit dedicated to the creation of vibrant experiences and spaces that champion film discovery and arts education.

Youth Development
2
Seattle Opera

To thrill, inspire and educate through the shared experience of opera. seattle opera is vital to the dynamic cultural and civic life of our region and to the evolution of opera across the world.

Arts & Culture
3
Kqed Inc

See schedule okqed serves the people of northern california with a community-supported alternative to commercial media, providing the knowledge needed to make informed decisions; convening community dialogue; bringing the arts to everyone;…

Arts & Culture
4
San Francisco Symphony

The san francisco symphony exists to inspire and serve audiences and communities throughout the bay area and the world through the power of musical performance.

Arts & Culture
5
National Public Radio Inc

National public radio, inc. ("npr") works collaboratively with member public radio station licensees ("member stations") to create a more informed public, one that is challenged and invigorated by a deeper understanding and appreciation of…

Arts & Culture
6
Seattle Foundation

Seattle foundation's mission is to ignite powerful and rewarding philanthropy to make greater seattle a stronger, more vibrant community for all.

Philanthropy
7
Spokane Public Radio

The mission of Spokane Public Radio is to provide high-quality, artistic, educational and informational radio programming, which enhances and enlivens the cultural life and civic discourse of its listening communities. Spokane Public Radio…

Arts & Culture
8
Npr Foundation

The npr foundation ("foundation") is organized and operated exclusively for the benefit of its sole supported organization, national public radio, inc. ("npr inc."). the foundation supports npr inc. through various activities such as…

—
9
Aquarium of the Pacific Corporation

The aquarium of the pacific's mission is to instill a sense of wonder, respect, and stewardship for the pacific ocean, its inhabitants, and ecosystems.

Animals
10
Friends of Kexp

Kexp's mission is to enrich your life by championing music and discovery.

Youth Development
11
Chamber Music Northwest

Chamber music northwest creates and shares the beauty, inspiration, intimacy and transformative power of small ensemble music through: unforgettable concerts with the world's greatest musicians in a welcoming environment; (continued on…

Arts & Culture
12
Seattle Public Library Foundation

The seattle public library foundation inspires the community's philanthropic support, advocacy for, and pride in the library.

Education
How this is measured
The grantee most central to the portfolio’s shape is Seattle Symphony Orchestra Inc; the most unlike its peers is Coco Point Fund 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

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 22 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)
7
Early backer (in before they grew)
21/21
Grantees still filing
17/21
Grew since first funded

Where the money sits, by cause and then by grantee

FIDELITY INVESTMENTS CHARITABLE GIFT FUND: $83,908 · Community ImprovementFIDELITY INVESTMENTS CHARITABLE GIFT FUNDSEATTLE SYMPHONY ORCHESTRA INC: $22,300 · Arts & CultureSEATTLE SYMPHONY ORCHESTRA …THE MAESTRO FOUNDATION: $4,800 · Arts & CultureTHE MAESTRO FOUNDATIONSeattle Chamber Music Festival: $3,000 · Arts & CultureSeattle Chamber Music Festi…+5 more: $2,075 · Arts & Culture+5 moreNEW YORK ROAD RUNNERS INC: $9,000 · OtherNEW YORK R…COCO POINT FUND INC: $2,000 · OtherCOCO POINT…+4 more: $1,275 · Other+4 moreCOMPASSION & CHOICES: $2,000 · Civil RightsNICHOLS SCHOOL OF BUFFALO: $1,000 · EducationSEATTLE CHILDREN'S THEATRE ASSOCIATION: $500 · EducationTHE YOUNG MEN'S CHRISTIAN ASSOCIATION OF GREATER SEATTLE (6871): $700 · Human ServicesYOUTHCARE: $375 · Human ServicesSAINT FRANCIS HOUSE INC: $200 · Human ServicesThe Against Malaria Foundation: $1,025 · Health
Community Improvement$83,908Arts & Culture$32,175Other$12,275Civil Rights$2,000Education$1,500Human Services$1,275Health$1,025

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 budgetFIDELITY INVESTMENTS CHARITABLE GIFT FUND: $83,908 over 1y, 0.0% of budgetSEATTLE SYMPHONY ORCHESTRA INC: $22,300 over 2y, 0.0% of budgetNEW YORK ROAD RUNNERS INC: $9,000 over 3y, 0.0% of budgetTHE MAESTRO FOUNDATION: $4,800 over 2y, 0.7% of budgetSeattle Chamber Music Festival: $3,000 over 3y, 0.1% of budgetCOMPASSION & CHOICES: $2,000 over 2y, 0.0% of budgetCOCO POINT FUND INC: $2,000 over 2y, 0.3% of budgetNICHOLS SCHOOL OF BUFFALO: $1,000 over 4y, 0.0% of budgetTHE BROOKLYN RAIL INC: $925 over 4y, 0.0% of budgetTHE YOUNG MEN'S CHRISTIAN ASSOCIATION OF GREATER SEATTLE (6871): $700 over 3y, 0.0% of budgetCLASSICAL 981: $500 over 1y, 0.0% of budgetSEATTLE CHILDREN'S THEATRE ASSOCIATION: $500 over 2y, 0.0% of budgetSEATTLE PARKS FOUNDATION: $400 over 2y, 0.0% of budgetPine Island Camp: $400 over 4y, 0.0% of budgetMaris Place: $375 over 1y, 0.2% of budgetYOUTHCARE: $375 over 1y, 0.0% of budgetSOUTHERN CALIFORNIA PUBLIC RADIO: $300 over 2y, 0.0% of budgetPACIFIC SCIENCE CENTER FOUNDATION: $250 over 1y, 0.0% of budgetSAINT FRANCIS HOUSE INC: $200 over 1y, 0.0% of budgetKUOW PUGET SOUND PUBLIC RADIO: $100 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.

National Philanthropi…ArtsfundPuget Sound Energy Fo…Seattle FoundationThe Blackbaud Giving …Morgan Stanley Global…Mightycause Charitabl…American Endowment Fo…Gs Donor Advised Phil…The Bank of America C…Donor Advised Charita…Vanguard Charitable E…
National Philanthropic TrustPA13.5× affinity9 shared granteesties to 11 of 11Hover any node to trace its alignments.Compare side by side →

Open a dossier: National Philanthropic Trust · Artsfund · Puget Sound Energy Foundation · Seattle Foundation · The Blackbaud Giving Fund · Morgan Stanley Global Impact Funding Trust Inc · Mightycause Charitable Foundation · American Endowment Foundation · Gs Donor Advised Philanthropy Fund for Wealth Management Inc · The Bank of America Charitable Foundation Inc · Donor Advised Charitable Giving Inc · Vanguard Charitable Endowment Program

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 Neil Family Fund funds: left to right is the share of its income from government, bottom to top the share from Neil Family Fund. Bigger dots raise more.

2024
’20’21’22’23’24’25
no gov · 20%0%1%3%5%funder's share of their income ↑0%13%25%38%50%share of the org’s income from government →median 18%
  • Saint Francis House Inc: 18% of income from government
no gov moneyreceives it· size = income
2get 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 · 0–50%
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 22 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 2019, released 2019. Filings run roughly 12 to 24 months behind; figures are dated accordingly.

Source object · view filing

Play a game based on Neil Family’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