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Night Owl Foundation at a glance

· Private foundation

Night Owl 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.

$1.2M
Granted FY2023
27
Grants FY2023
10
States reached
$88k
Largest
01What it fundsRead
02Its granteesRead
03Its fieldRead
04Through PlinthRead
01What it funds
0192% classified

What it funded, over time

Every grant placed by its stated purpose and the recipient’s mission, by year, FY2020 to 2024.

Health$1.1MPhilanthropy$612kPublic Safety & Disaster$515kInternational$505kHuman Services$140kEducation$107kFood & Nutrition$25kScience & Tech$25kOther$0
02FY2023 · 27 grants

Where the money goes

Grants by size, and the largest recipients.

How this is measured
The 27 grants below total $888,000, the rows itemized in this filing. The $1,210,000 headline is the total grant expense on the return; the other $322,000 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 · FY2023

  • Under $10k4 grants · $20k
  • $10k–50k13 grants · $265k
  • $50k–250k10 grants · $603k
$25,000
Median grant
10
States reached
$13M
Total assets
Largest grants
RecipientAmount
Israel Cancer Research Fund$88,000
American Cancer Society$75,000
CureSearch for Children's Cancer$75,000
Jewish Federation of Metropolitan Chicago$60,000
Friends of the IDF$55,000
Ann & Robert Lurie Children's Hospital of Chicago$50,000
American Jewish World Service$50,000
Children's Oncology Group Foundation$50,000
American National Red Cross$50,000
Jewish United Fund of Metropolitan Chicago$50,000
American National Red Cross$40,000
Jewish Federation of Metropolitan Chicago$35,000
Israel Guide Dog Center for the Blind$30,000
American National Red Cross$25,000
The Jewish Federations of North America$25,000
02Its 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.
$2.1M · 13 repeat orgs$415k to everyone else

Grantees it renews have grown median revenue +90% since the first grant, against +32% for those funded once.

13 repeat relationships: 13 still active in FY2023, 0 since wound down; 2 grantees were first funded in FY2023 (too recent to call).

How the two cohorts compare

Re-uppedFunded once

Organizations

13
9

Total granted

$2.1M
$355k

Median revenue growth · since first grant

+90%
+32%

Still filing today

69%
89%

New vs renewed · share of each year

In FY2023, 91% of grant dollars renewed an existing relationship; $60k went to new ones.

50%100%’20’21’22’23
RenewedFirst-time

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

’20’21’22’23
HealthInternationalHuman ServicesFood & NutritionReligionEducationOther
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

  • IC
    ISRAEL CANCER RESEARCH FUND INC
    4× · 2020–2023 · $308k · revenue +92%
  • CF
    CURESEARCH FOR CHILDREN'S CANCER
    4× · 2020–2023 · $265k · revenue +7%
  • Ann & Robert H Lurie Children's Hospital of Chicago
    4× · 2020–2023 · $200k · revenue +28%

Funded once

  • AN
    American National Red Cross & Its Constituent Chapters and Branchesgraduated
    one grant, 2021 · $100k · revenue +27%
  • AC
    AMERICAN CANCER SOCIETY INC
    one grant, 2022 · $75k · revenue -80%
  • FO
    Friends of the IDF
    one grant, 2021 · $60k
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.

03Its 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
Hadassah the Women's Zionist Org of America Inc

Hadassah, the women's zionist organization of america, inc., a new york not-for-profit corporation ("hwzoa") enhances the health and lives of people in israel, the united states and worldwide through education, advocacy, women's…

Community Improvement
2
Jewish Community Relations Council of New York

Jcrc-ny builds relationships to advance the values, interests and security of the new york jewish community and to create a more interconnected new york for all.

Civil Rights
3
New York University

Nyu is a private university with approximately 60,000 matriculating students in 20 schools and institutes. nyu's primary missions are education, research and scholarship, and patient care.

Education
4
New York Genome Center Inc

Operate a state-of-the-art, world-class genomic research center that creates and uses advanced genomics to understand the genetic basis of disease. for more information, see schedule o.

Health
5
Children's Health Care

We champion the health needs of children and families. we are committed to improving children's health by providing the highest-quality, family centered care, advanced through research and education.

Health
6
The United States Holocaust Memorial Museum

Chartered by a unanimous act of congress, the museum is america's national institution for the documentation, study, interpretation, and education of holocaust history and serves as our country's memorial to the victims of the holocaust.…

Arts & Culture
7
Zichron Avrohom Yosef
Philanthropy
8
Bar Ilan University in Israel Inc

Biu produces students who excel in the sciences, humanities, law, engineering, business & the arts.

—
9
Memorial Sloan-Kettering Cancer Center

Leadership in the prevention, treatment, and cure of cancer through excellence, vision and cost effectiveness in patient care, outreach programs, research, and education.

Health
10
Children's Hospital & Research Center At Oakland

The mission of children's hospital & research center at oakland is to protect and advance the health and well-being of children through clinical care, teaching and research.

Health
11
Dana-Farber Cancer Institute Inc

The mission of dfci is to provide expert, compassionate, and equitable care to children, adults, and their families, while advancing the understanding, diagnosis, treatment, cure, and prevention of cancer and related diseases. we train new…

Health
12
Int'l Center for Conciliation Inc

The international center for conciliation fosters dignity and cooperation in conflict ridden communities through reconciliation and community preparedness.

International
How this is measured
The grantee most central to the portfolio’s shape is Moishe House; the most unlike its peers is Heritage Educational Foundation. Resemblance is measured on each organization’s own IRS 990 mission text; it reflects how work is described, not its quality or impact.
03the grantee network

24 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. 24 of the 29 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)
24/24
Grantees still filing
23/24
Grew since first funded

Where the money sits, by cause and then by grantee

American National Red Cross: $480,000 · OtherAmerican National Red CrossISRAEL CANCER RESEARCH FUND INC: $308,000 · OtherISRAEL CANCER RESEARCH FUND INCAmerican Cancer Society: $135,000 · OtherAmerican Cancer SocietyFriends of the IDF: $60,000 · OtherFriends of the IDFAmerican Friends of Bar-Ilan University In Israel: $47,000 · Other+5 more: $80,000 · Other+5 moreCURESEARCH FOR CHILDREN'S CANCER: $265,000 · HealthCURESEARCH FOR CHILDREN…Ann & Robert H Lurie Children's Hospital of Chicago: $200,000 · HealthAnn & Robert H Lurie Ch…THE CHILDREN'S ONCOLOGY GROUP FOUNDATION INC: $120,000 · HealthTHE CHILDREN'S ONCOLOGY…AMERICAN CANCER SOCIETY INC: $75,000 · HealthAMERICAN CANCER SOCIETY…THE CHILDREN'S HOSPITAL OF PHILADELPHIA: $25,000 · HealthJEWISH FEDERATION OF METROPOLITAN CHICAGO: $502,000 · PhilanthropyJEWISH FEDERATION OF …JEWISH UNITED FUND OF METROPOLITAN CHICAGO: $50,000 · PhilanthropyJEWISH UNITED FUND OF…THE JEWISH FEDERATIONS OF NORTH AMERICA INC: $35,000 · PhilanthropyTHE JEWISH FEDERATION…THE VERMONT COMMUNITY FOUNDATION: $25,000 · PhilanthropyAMERICAN JEWISH WORLD SERVICE INC: $205,000 · InternationalAMERICAN JEWISH WO…FRIENDS OF THE ISRAEL DEFENSE FORCES: $175,000 · InternationalFRIENDS OF THE ISR…WORLD CENTRAL KITCHEN INC: $95,000 · InternationalWORLD CENTRAL KITC…JEWISH NATIONAL FUND (KEREN KAYEMETH LEISRAEL) INC: $40,000 · InternationalJEWISH NATIONAL FU…UNITED STATES FUND FOR UNICEF: $25,000 · International+1 more: $10,000 · InternationalISRAEL GUIDE DOG CENTER FOR THE BLIND: $140,000 · Human ServicesAmerican National Red Cross & Its Constituent Chapters and Branches: $100,000 · Human ServicesUNIVERSITY OF WASHINGTON FOUNDATION: $60,000 · EducationGREATER CHICAGO FOOD DEPOSITORY: $25,000 · Food & Nutrition
Other$1,110,000Health$685,000Philanthropy$612,000International$550,000Human Services$240,000Education$60,000Food & Nutrition$25,000

Each grantee by its size and the funder’s share of it; top left is load-bearing

25%50%75%100%$10M$100Mgrantee revenue →↑ funder's share of their budgetJEWISH FEDERATION OF METROPOLITAN CHICAGO: $502,000 over 4y, 0.1% of budgetISRAEL CANCER RESEARCH FUND INC: $308,000 over 4y, 1.5% of budgetCURESEARCH FOR CHILDREN'S CANCER: $265,000 over 4y, 1.6% of budgetAMERICAN JEWISH WORLD SERVICE INC: $205,000 over 4y, 0.1% of budgetAnn & Robert H Lurie Children's Hospital of Chicago: $200,000 over 4y, 0.0% of budgetFRIENDS OF THE ISRAEL DEFENSE FORCES: $175,000 over 3y, 0.1% of budgetISRAEL GUIDE DOG CENTER FOR THE BLIND: $140,000 over 4y, 1.3% of budgetTHE CHILDREN'S ONCOLOGY GROUP FOUNDATION INC: $120,000 over 2y, 0.9% of budgetAmerican National Red Cross & Its Constituent Chapters and Branches: $100,000 over 1y, 0.0% of budgetWORLD CENTRAL KITCHEN INC: $95,000 over 3y, 0.0% of budgetAMERICAN CANCER SOCIETY INC: $75,000 over 1y, 0.0% of budgetUNIVERSITY OF WASHINGTON FOUNDATION: $60,000 over 3y, 0.0% of budgetJEWISH UNITED FUND OF METROPOLITAN CHICAGO: $50,000 over 1y, 0.0% of budgetJEWISH NATIONAL FUND (KEREN KAYEMETH LEISRAEL) INC: $40,000 over 2y, 0.0% of budgetTHE JEWISH FEDERATIONS OF NORTH AMERICA INC: $35,000 over 1y, 0.0% of budgetALEXS LEMONADE STAND FOUNDATION: $25,000 over 1y, 0.1% of budgetTHE CHILDREN'S HOSPITAL OF PHILADELPHIA: $25,000 over 1y, 0.0% of budgetUNITED STATES FUND FOR UNICEF: $25,000 over 1y, 0.0% of budgetGREATER CHICAGO FOOD DEPOSITORY: $25,000 over 1y, 0.0% of budgetTHE VERMONT COMMUNITY FOUNDATION: $25,000 over 1y, 0.1% of budgetMOISHE HOUSE: $20,000 over 4y, 0.1% of budgetGAMERS OUTREACH FOUNDATION INC: $10,000 over 1y, 0.4% of budgetAMERICAN COMMITTEE FOR THE WEIZMANN INSTITUTE OF SCIENCE INC: $10,000 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.

04Through Plinth

Warm introductions · Powered by PlinthPlus

How do I get to Night Owl Foundation?

Find your warmest path to Night Owl 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 29 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 2023, released 2023. Filings run roughly 12 to 24 months behind; figures are dated accordingly.

Possibly out of date. A more recent filing (FY2024) is on record and reports $1.2M of grant expense with no grantee named in the published copy. A private foundation itemizes every grant it makes, so a return carrying none has filed its list as an attachment that the public copy does not include. The figures above are therefore from FY2023, the most recent year this funder’s grantee list reached the public record.

Source object · view filing

Play a game based on Night Owl’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