Skip to content
Ortega Foundation at a glance

· Private foundation

Ortega 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.

$1.8M
Granted FY2017
71
Grants FY2017
9
States reached
$400k
Largest
01What it fundsRead
02The needRead
03Its granteesRead
04Its fieldRead
05Through PlinthRead

Read this first · the figures below need context

100% of Ortega Foundation’s FY2024 grant dollars went to The Miami Foundation Inc, not to grantees.

Its money now reaches organizations through that sponsor, which does not report who recommended each grant. FY2024 names 0 organizations directly, so a portfolio cannot be read from it. Everything below is therefore FY2017, the last year Ortega Foundation named its own grantees at scale: 44 organizations, $2M. It is dated, not current.

Organizations named directly on the return

44
’17
33
’18
0
’19
1
’20
0
’21
0
’22
0
’23
0
’24

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 2024.

Philanthropy$13MHealth$1.1MEducation$638kHousing & Shelter$472kReligion$141kHuman Services$134kArts & Culture$48kInternational$46kOther$0
02FY2017 · 71 grants

Where the money goes

Grants by size, and the largest recipients.

By grant size · FY2017

  • Under $10k36 grants · $110k
  • $10k–50k21 grants · $296k
  • $50k–250k13 grants · $986k
  • $250k+1 grant · $400k
$8,188
Median grant
9
States reached
$39M
Total assets
Largest grants
RecipientAmount
LIGA CONTRA EL CANCER INC LEAGUE AGAINST CANCER IN$400,000
THE MIAMI FOUNDATION INC$200,000
HABITAT FOR HUMANITY INTERNATIONAL INC DBA HABITAT$100,000
CITY YEAR INC - MIAMI$100,000
URBANPROMISE MIAMI INC$85,000
AMERICAN CANCER SOCIETY - FLORIDA DIVISION$75,700
THE MIAMI FOUNDATION INC$75,000
CHURCH OF THE EPIPHANY$50,000
MARIAN CENTER CHARITABLE TRUST$50,000
THE MIAMI FOUNDATION INC$50,000
ST JUDE CHILDRENS RESEARCH HOSPITAL INC$50,000
ST THOMAS UNIVERSITY INC$50,000
JOSE MARTI FOUNDATION INC$50,000
MAKE A WISH FOUNDATION OF SOUTHERN FLORIDA INC$50,000
CAMILLUS HOUSE INC$30,000
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 (FY17–18, $58k) land where the poverty rate runs at 15%, 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%CENTRO MATER FOUNDATION INC: $20k → 15%CENTRO MATER FOUNDATION INC: $16k → 15%CENTER FOR SOCIAL CHANGE INC: $10k → 15%CI FOUNDATION INC: $2k → 15%BIG BROTHERS BIG SISTERS OF MIAMI FOUNDATION INC: $10k → 15%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

NY
MA
PA
NJ
UT
MD
TN
SC
DC
GA
FL
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.

79%of every dollar goes to organizations it has funded before.
$2.2M · 26 repeat orgs$574k to everyone else

Grantees it renews have grown median revenue +55% since the first grant, against +46% for those funded once.

26 repeat relationships: 25 still active in FY2017, 1 since wound down; 53 grantees were first funded in FY2017 (too recent to call). Read against FY2017, 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

26
53

Total granted

$2.2M
$574k

Median revenue growth · since first grant

+55%
+46%

Still filing today

54%
53%

New vs renewed · share of each year

In FY2024, 100% of grant dollars renewed an existing relationship; $0 went to new ones.

50%100%’17’18’19’20’21’22’23’24
RenewedFirst-time

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

’17’18’19’20’21’22’23’24
HealthHuman ServicesAnimalsArts & CultureRecreation & SportsCrime & 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

  • LC
    LIGA CONTRA EL CANCER INC (LEAGUE AGAINST CANCER INC)
    2× · 2017–2018 · $800k · revenue +8%
  • JM
    JOSE MARTI FOUNDATION INC
    3× · 2017–2020 · $150k · revenue +10% · 100% of their budget
  • UM
    URBANPROMISE MIAMI INC
    2× · 2017–2018 · $140k · revenue +7%

Funded once

  • CITY YEAR INC
    one grant, 2017 · $100k · revenue +15%
  • ST JUDE CHILDREN'S RESEARCH HOSPITAL INCgraduated
    one grant, 2017 · $50k · revenue +145%
  • ST
    ST THOMAS UNIVERSITY INCgraduated
    one grant, 2017 · $50k · revenue +80%
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
University of Miami
—
2
University of Miami

See Form 990, Part I, Line 1, Description of Organization Mission.

Education
3
Miami Children's Health System Inc

Nicklaus Children's Health System is the region's only healthcare system exclusively for children. Our mission is to inspire hope and promote lifelong health by providing the best care to every child. TO PERFORM THE FUNCTIONS OF, OR TO…

Health
4
Pediatric Specialty Group Inc

Pediatric specialty group, inc. (d/b/a nicklaus children's pediatric specialists ("ncps")) is a physician-directed, multi-specialty pediatric group with a regional, national, and international presence in providing pediatric-centric care…

—
5
Miami Cancer Institute At Baptist Health Inc

As part of the baptist health network, the mission of miami cancer institute at baptist health, inc is to improve the health and well-being of individuals, and to promote the sanctity and preservation of life, in the communities we serve.…

Health
6
South Miami Childrens Clinic Inc

Pediatric medical clinic for uninsured and underinsured children

Health
7
Doctors Hospital Inc

As part of the baptist health network, the mission of doctors hospital, inc. is to improve the health and well-being of individuals, and to promote the sanctity and preservation of life, in the communities we serve. baptist health is a…

Health
8
Central Miami Intergroup
—
9
South Miami Hospital Inc

As part of the baptist health network, the mission of south miami hospital is to improve the health and well-being of individuals, and to promote the sanctity and preservation of life, in the communities we serve. baptist health is a…

Health
10
Mariners Hospital Inc

As part of the baptist health network, the mission of mariner's hospital is to improve the health and well-being of individuals, and to promote the sanctity and preservation of life, in the communities we serve. baptist health is a…

Health
11
Variety Children's Hospital

To inspire hope and promote lifelong health by providing the best care to every child.

Health
12
Miami Children's Hospital Research Institute Inc

The NCHRI directly supports the NICKLAUS CHILDREN'S HOSPITAL ("NCH") mission to provide hope through advanced care for our children and families. (CONTINUED ON SCHEDULE O)

—
How this is measured
The grantee most central to the portfolio’s shape is South Florida Public Media Group Inc; the most unlike its peers is Dogs in Crisis 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

50 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. 50 of the 80 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.

1
Load-bearing (≥25% of a budget)
12
Early backer (in before they grew)
43/50
Grantees still filing
39/50
Grew since first funded

Where the money sits, by cause and then by grantee

THE MIAMI FOUNDATION INC: $12,989,000 · PhilanthropyTHE MIAMI FOUNDATION INC+1 more: $1,000 · PhilanthropyHABITAT FOR HUMANITY INTERNATIONAL INC DBA HABITAT: $200,000 · OtherHABITAT FO…JOSE MARTI FOUNDATION INC: $150,000 · OtherJOSE MARTI…URBANPROMISE MIAMI INC: $140,000 · OtherURBANPROMI…CHURCH OF THE EPIPHANY: $110,500 · OtherCHURCH OF …CAMILLUS HOUSE INC: $110,000 · OtherCAMILLUS H…MARIAN CENTER CHARITABLE TRUST: $100,000 · OtherMARIAN CEN…CITY YEAR INC: $100,000 · OtherCITY YEAR …J Gonzalez: $56,000 · OtherCLUB AMAZONAS USA: $55,000 · OtherCHRISTOPHER COLUMBUS HIGH SCHOOL: $50,000 · OtherST THOMAS UNIVERSITY INC: $50,000 · Other+43 more: $363,578 · Other+43 moreLIGA CONTRA EL CANCER INC (LEAGUE AGAINST CANCER INC): $800,000 · HealthAMERICAN CANCER SOCIETY INC: $133,700 · HealthMAKE-A-WISH FOUNDATION OF SOUTHERN FLORIDA INC: $65,000 · HealthST JUDE CHILDREN'S RESEARCH HOSPITAL INC: $50,000 · Health+7 more: $40,500 · HealthNU DECO ENSEMBLE INC: $25,000 · Arts & CultureMIAMI CITY BALLET INC: $20,000 · Arts & CultureFRIENDS OF THE MEDAL OF HONOR GROVE: $15,000 · Arts & CultureCENTRO MATER FOUNDATION INC: $36,000 · Human ServicesBIG BROTHERS BIG SISTERS OF MIAMI FOUNDATION INC: $10,000 · Human ServicesCENTER FOR SOCIAL CHANGE INC: $10,000 · Human ServicesCI FOUNDATION INC: $2,000 · Human ServicesTHE AMERICAN SOCIETY FOR THE PREVENTION OF CRUELTY TO ANIMALS: $10,000 · AnimalsHumane World for Animals Inc: $10,000 · AnimalsK9S FOR WARRIORS INC: $10,000 · AnimalsDOGS IN CRISIS INC: $10,000 · AnimalsKRISTI HOUSE INC: $15,000 · Crime & LegalThe Eyes on your Mission Project Inc: $10,000 · Crime & Legal
Philanthropy$12,990,000Other$1,485,078Health$1,089,200Arts & Culture$60,000Human Services$58,000Animals$40,000Crime & Legal$25,000

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

25%50%75%100%$100k$1.0M$10M$100Mgrantee revenue →↑ funder's share of their budgetTHE MIAMI FOUNDATION INC: $12,989,000 over 8y, 2.7% of budgetLIGA CONTRA EL CANCER INC (LEAGUE AGAINST CANCER INC): $800,000 over 2y, 9.6% of budgetJOSE MARTI FOUNDATION INC: $150,000 over 3y, 100% of budgetURBANPROMISE MIAMI INC: $140,000 over 2y, 25% of budgetAMERICAN CANCER SOCIETY INC: $133,700 over 2y, 0.0% of budgetCAMILLUS HOUSE INC: $110,000 over 2y, 0.4% of budgetMARIAN CENTER CHARITABLE TRUST: $100,000 over 2y, 4.4% of budgetCITY YEAR INC: $100,000 over 1y, 0.1% of budgetMAKE-A-WISH FOUNDATION OF SOUTHERN FLORIDA INC: $65,000 over 2y, 0.4% of budgetST JUDE CHILDREN'S RESEARCH HOSPITAL INC: $50,000 over 1y, 0.0% of budgetST THOMAS UNIVERSITY INC: $50,000 over 1y, 0.1% of budgetCENTRO MATER FOUNDATION INC: $36,000 over 2y, 22% of budgetMINDO FUTURES INC: $26,150 over 2y, 2.4% of budgetBaptist Health South Florida Foundation Inc: $20,000 over 2y, 0.0% of budgetLOTUS ENDOWMENT FUND INC: $20,000 over 1y, 0.7% of budgetMiami Children's Health System Foundation Inc: $20,000 over 1y, 0.1% of budgetMIAMI CITY BALLET INC: $20,000 over 2y, 0.1% of budgetFRIENDS OF THE MEDAL OF HONOR GROVE: $15,000 over 1y, 10% of budgetKRISTI HOUSE INC: $15,000 over 2y, 0.3% of budgetBIG BROTHERS BIG SISTERS OF MIAMI FOUNDATION INC: $10,000 over 1y, 0.4% of budgetMANAGEMENT LEADERSHIP FOR TOMORROW: $10,000 over 1y, 0.1% of budgetTHE AMERICAN SOCIETY FOR THE PREVENTION OF CRUELTY TO ANIMALS: $10,000 over 1y, 0.0% of budgetHumane World for Animals Inc: $10,000 over 1y, 0.0% of budgetMISSION INTERNATIONAL RESCUE CHARITIES INC: $10,000 over 1y, 2.9% of budgetWOMEN OF TOMORROW MENTOR AND SCHOLARSHIP PROGRAM INC: $10,000 over 2y, 0.4% of budgetThe Eyes on your Mission Project Inc: $10,000 over 1y, 16% of budgetALZHEIMER'S FOUNDATION OF AMERICA INC: $10,000 over 1y, 0.1% of budgetYEAR UP INC: $10,000 over 1y, 0.0% of budgetCENTER FOR SOCIAL CHANGE INC: $10,000 over 1y, 0.5% of budgetK9S FOR WARRIORS INC: $10,000 over 1y, 0.1% of budgetTHE CHILDREN'S CENTER UTAH: $10,000 over 1y, 0.2% of budgetMEDICAL STUDENTS IN ACTION INC: $10,000 over 1y, 7.0% of budgetSOUTH FLORIDA PROGRESS FOUNDATION INC: $5,000 over 2y, 1.4% of budgetAMIGOS TOGETHER FOR KIDS INC: $5,000 over 1y, 0.3% of budgetJACKSON HEALTH FOUNDATION INC: $3,000 over 2y, 0.0% of budgetDown Syndrome Association of Miami Inc: $2,500 over 1y, 2.9% of budgetUNITED STATES SAILING CENTER INC: $2,000 over 1y, 0.5% of budgetCI FOUNDATION INC: $2,000 over 1y, 1.3% of budgetSOUTH FLORIDA PUBLIC MEDIA GROUP INC: $2,000 over 1y, 0.0% of budgetMiami Youth Baseball Association Inc: $1,595 over 1y, 0.6% of budgetTHE ALLIANCE FOR FLORIDA'S NATIONAL PARKS INC: $1,400 over 1y, 0.1% of budgetBET SHIRA EARLY CHILDHOOD CENTER PTC INC: $1,000 over 1y, 1.7% of budgetDANI GIRL FOUNDATION INC: $1,000 over 1y, 0.8% of budgetLITTLE LEAGUE BASEBALL INC: $800 over 1y, 0.9% of budgetTHE SUNDARI FOUNDATION INC: $300 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.

The Miami Foundation …United Way Miami IncThe Batchelor Foundat…Coral Gables Communit…Mightycause Charitabl…Publix Super Markets …Assurant FoundationJohn S and James L Kn…Gus Machado Family Fo…Padron Family Foundat…Andres Asion Foundati…Jose M Sanchez Family…
The Miami Foundation IncFL43.5× affinity22 shared granteesties to 11 of 11Hover any node to trace its alignments.Compare side by side →

Open a dossier: The Miami Foundation Inc · United Way Miami Inc · The Batchelor Foundation Inc · Coral Gables Community Foundation Inc · Mightycause Charitable Foundation · Publix Super Markets Charities Inc · Assurant Foundation · John S and James L Knight Foundation · Gus Machado Family Foundation Inc · Padron Family Foundation Inc · Andres Asion Foundation Inc · Jose M Sanchez Family 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 Ortega Foundation funds: left to right is the share of its income from government, bottom to top the share from Ortega Foundation. Bigger dots raise more.

2024
’20’21’22’23’24’25
no gov · 190%6%25%56%100%funder's share of their income ↑0%13%25%38%50%share of the org’s income from government →median 1%
  • Kristi House Inc: 49% of income from government
  • City Year Inc: 11% of income from government
  • The Sundari Foundation Inc: 5% of income from government
  • Camillus House Inc: 2% of income from government
  • Nu Deco Ensemble Inc: 1% of income from government
  • Jackson Health Foundation Inc: 1% of income from government
  • Year Up Inc: 0% of income from government
  • St Thomas University Inc: 0% of income from government
  • K9S for Warriors Inc: 0% of income from government
no gov moneyreceives it· size = income
19get 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.
05Through Plinth

Warm introductions · Powered by PlinthPlus

How do I get to Ortega Foundation?

Find your warmest path to Ortega 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 80 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 2017, released 2017. Filings run roughly 12 to 24 months behind; figures are dated accordingly.

Source object · view filing

Play a game based on Ortega’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