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Olson Family Foundation at a glance

· Private foundation

Olson Family Foundation

Its FY2018 filing reports that it funds preselected organizations and did not take unsolicited requests; check the foundation's own site before ruling it out.

$358k
Granted FY2018
7
Grants FY2018
2
States reached
$285k
Largest
01What it fundsRead
02The needRead
03Its granteesRead
04Its fieldRead
05Through PlinthRead
01What it funds
0196% classified

What it funded, over time

Every grant placed by its stated purpose and the recipient’s mission, by year, FY2017 to 2018.

Philanthropy$285kRecreation & Sports$85kReligion$50kYouth Development$12kPublic Safety & Disaster$7kMembership Benefit$500Human Services$100Civil Rights$100Other$0
02FY2018 · 7 grants

Where the money goes

Grants by size, and the largest recipients.

By grant size · FY2018

  • Under $10k3 grants · $12k
  • $10k–50k3 grants · $62k
  • $250k+1 grant · $285k
$11,600
Median grant
2
States reached
$0
Total assets
Largest grants
RecipientAmount
NATIONAL CHRISTIAN FOUNDATION$284,519
UNITED STATES OLYMPIC MUSUEM$25,000
FIRST PRESBYTERIAN CHURCH$25,000
YOUNG LIFE$11,600
SHIELD 616$7,300
THE FIRST TEE OF PIKES PEAK$3,750
Individual grant recipient$1,000
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:

Dollar for dollar, its grants (FY17–18) land where the poverty rate runs at 12%, against an area that typically sits at 9%. 78% of its dollars go to grantees based in above-average-need neighborhoods. Most of its grants land in higher-need ZIPs.

area typical 9%UPBRINGORG: $50 → 10%AMERICAN HEART ASSOCIATION: $50 → 14%PAYPAL GIVING FUND: $500 → 14%SUNFLOWER ELEMENTARY SCHOOL: $50 → 5%PI BETA PHI FOUNDATION: $500 → 11%NATIONAL CHRISTIAN FOUNDATION: $285k → 13%COMMUNITY FIRST FOUNDATION: $300 → 7%FIRST PRESBYTERIAN CHURCH: $25k → 9%PAYPAL GIVING FUND: $10 → 14%FIRST PRESBYTERIAN CHURCH: $15k → 9%YOUNG LIFE: $12k → 9%FIRST PRESBYTERIAN CHURCH: $10k → 9%SUSAN KOMEN: $1k → 9%SHIELD 616: $7k → 9%THE FIRST TEE OF PIKES PEAK: $6k → 9%THE FIRST TEE OF PIKES PEAK: $4k → 9%CASA OF THE PIKES PEAK REGION: $100 → 9%SALVATION ARMY: $100 → 9%THE FIRST TEE OF PIKES PEAK: $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.
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.

31%of every dollar goes to organizations it has funded before.
$135k · 3 repeat orgs$305k to everyone else

Grantees it renews have grown median revenue +51% since the first grant, against +16% for those funded once.

3 repeat relationships: 3 still active in FY2018, 0 since wound down; 4 grantees were first funded in FY2018 (too recent to call).

How the two cohorts compare

Re-uppedFunded once

Organizations

3
7

Total granted

$135k
$888

Median revenue growth · since first grant

+51%
+16%

Still filing today

67%
43%

New vs renewed · share of each year

In FY2018, 15% of grant dollars renewed an existing relationship; $304k went to new ones.

50%100%’17’18
RenewedFirst-time

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

’17’18
PhilanthropyYouth DevelopmentCrime & LegalArts & CultureRecreation & SportsCivil 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

  • US
    United States Olympic and Paralympic Museum
    2× · 2017–2018 · $75k · revenue -57%
  • FP
    FIRST PRESBYTERIAN CHURCH
    2× · 2017–2018 · $50k
  • LS
    LIFE SKILLS FORE THE YOUTH OF COLORADO SPRINGS
    2× · 2017–2018 · $10k · revenue +51%

Funded once

  • PB
    PI BETA PHI FOUNDATION
    one grant, 2017 · $500 · revenue -55%
  • SA
    SALVATION ARMY
    one grant, 2017 · $100
  • CO
    CASA of the Pikes Peak Region
    one grant, 2017 · $100 · revenue +10%
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
Christianity Today International

Christianity Today is a global community inspired by evangelical conviction to advance the stories and ideas of the kingdom of God. Our mission is to elevate the storytellers and sages of the global church.

Religion
2
United States Olympic and Paralympic Committee

Empowering the competitive excellence and well-being of team usa athletes, championing the power of sport, and inspiring the nation.

Recreation & Sports
3
American Gas Association

American gas association's (the association) mission is to develop and advocate for informed, innovative, and durable policy that fulfills our nation's energy needs, environmental aspirations and economic potential. we are committed to…

—
4
Youth for Christ International Ministries

As part of the body of Christ, to see that every young person in every people group in every nation has the opportunity to make an informed decision to be a follower of Jesus Christ and become a part of the local church.

Religion
5
National Committee for Quality Assurance

Our mission: to improve the quality of health care.our vision: better health care. better choices. better health.

Health
6
Biglife International Inc

Biglife international inc. empowers believers worldwide to reach and disciple their own people for jesus christ.

Recreation & Sports
7
United States Anti-Doping Agency

Preserve the integrity of competition, inspire true sport, protect the rights of u.s. athletes

Recreation & Sports
8
National Association of Insurance and Financial Advisors

Empowering financial professionals and consumers through world-class advocacy and education.

—
9
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…

—
10
Corus International Inc

TO MANAGE AN INTERNATIONAL DEVELOPMENT, HEALTH, AND RELIEF FOCUSED FAMILY OF ORGANIZATIONS HELPING PEOPLE AND COMMUNITIES LIFT THEMSELVES OUT OF POVERTY, SUPPORT WELL-BEING OF INDIVIDUALS, FAMILIES AND COMMUNITIES, AND PROVIDE…

Human Services
11
Common Impact Inc

Common impact's mission is to strengthen the capacity of social change organizations, enabling them to better run and scale their programs. through its partnership with companies, common impact taps into the business skills and expertise…

Unclassified
12
National Association of Corporate Directors

We empower directors and transform boards to be future ready.

Public Benefit
How this is measured
The grantee most central to the portfolio’s shape is Colorado Gives Foundation; the most unlike its peers is American Heart Association 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

11 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. 11 of the 16 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)
2
Early backer (in before they grew)
10/11
Grantees still filing
8/11
Grew since first funded

Where the money sits, by cause and then by grantee

NATIONAL CHRISTIAN FOUNDATION INC: $284,519 · PhilanthropyNATIONAL CHRISTIAN FOUNDATION INC+2 more: $810 · PhilanthropyUnited States Olympic and Paralympic Museum: $75,000 · Arts & CultureUnited States Olymp…FIRST PRESBYTERIAN CHURCH: $50,000 · OtherFIRST PRESBYT…+7 more: $1,788 · OtherYOUNG LIFE: $11,600 · Youth DevelopmentLIFE SKILLS FORE THE YOUTH OF COLORADO SPRINGS: $9,630 · Recreation & SportsSHIELD 616 INC: $7,300 · Crime & LegalCASA of the Pikes Peak Region: $100 · Civil Rights
Philanthropy$285,329Arts & Culture$75,000Other$51,788Youth Development$11,600Recreation & Sports$9,630Crime & Legal$7,300Civil Rights$100

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 budgetUnited States Olympic and Paralympic Museum: $75,000 over 2y, 0.3% of budgetYOUNG LIFE: $11,600 over 1y, 0.0% of budgetLIFE SKILLS FORE THE YOUTH OF COLORADO SPRINGS: $9,630 over 2y, 1.1% of budgetSHIELD 616 INC: $7,300 over 1y, 0.3% of budgetPAYPAL CHARITABLE GIVING FUND: $510 over 1y, 0.0% of budgetPI BETA PHI FOUNDATION: $500 over 1y, 0.0% of budgetCOLORADO GIVES FOUNDATION: $300 over 1y, 0.0% of budgetCASA of the Pikes Peak Region: $100 over 1y, 0.0% of budgetAmerican Heart Association Inc: $50 over 1y, 0.0% of budgetCompassion International Incorporated: $38 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 set of overlaps that mostly run through this funder rather than between each other.

Natl Christian Charit…
Natl Christian Charitable Fdn IncGA10.2× affinity4 shared granteesties to 0 of 0Hover any node to trace its alignments.Compare side by side →

Open a dossier: Natl Christian Charitable Fdn 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 Olson Family Foundation funds: left to right is the share of its income from government, bottom to top the share from Olson Family Foundation. Bigger dots raise more.

2024
’20’21’22’23’24’25
no gov · 00%0%1%3%5%funder's share of their income ↑0%6%13%19%25%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 · 0–25%
    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 Olson Family Foundation?

    Find your warmest path to Olson Family 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 16 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 2018, released 2018. Filings run roughly 12 to 24 months behind; figures are dated accordingly.

    Source object · view filing

    Play a game based on Olson 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