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Owen Foundation at a glance

· Private foundation

Owen 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.

$366k
Granted FY2024still arriving
23
Grants FY2024still arriving
6
States reached
$227k
Largest
01What it fundsRead
02The needRead
03Its granteesRead
04Its fieldRead
05Through PlinthRead
01What it funds
01100% classified

What it funded, over time

Every grant placed by its stated purpose and the recipient’s mission, by year, FY2023 to 2024.

Human Services$296kHealth$59kReligion$50kHousing & Shelter$25kEducation$14kArts & Culture$13kCommunity Improvement$12kRecreation & Sports$8kOther$0
02FY2024 · 23 grants

Where the money goes

Grants by size, and the largest recipients.

By grant size · FY2024

  • Under $10k15 grants · $47k
  • $10k–50k7 grants · $91k
  • $50k–250k1 grant · $227k
$6,000
Median grant
6
States reached
$7.8M
Total assets
Largest grants
RecipientAmount
MUSTARD SEED RANCH$227,300
FIRST PRESBYTERIAN CHURCH$30,000
Individual grant recipient$11,000
HEART OF THE CUMBERLAND INC$10,180
TTU FOUNDATION$10,000
LIFE CHURCH$10,000
COOKEVILLE REGIONAL CHARITABLE FOUNDATION$10,000
YELLOWSTON CLUB COMMUNITY FOUNDATION$10,000
CAVALIER FOOTBALL FOUNDATION$7,000
PINSON HOSPITAL HOSPITALITY HOUSE$7,000
JUVENILE DIABETES FOUNDATION$6,000
THE NEXT DOOR RECOVERY$6,000
CYSTIC FIBROSIS FOUNDATION$5,000
HOPE CENTER ADOPTION & FAMILY SERVICES$5,000
NASHVILLE SYMPHONY$3,000
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 (FY23–24, $295k) land where the poverty rate runs at 19%, against an area that typically sits at 8%. 100% of those dollars go to grantees based in above-average-need neighborhoods. Most of its grants land in higher-need ZIPs.

area typical 8%MUSTARD SEED RANCH: $227k → 19%MUSTARD SEED RANCH: $62k → 19%UPPER CUMBERLAND CHILD ADVOCACY: $1k → 19%HOPE CENTER ADOPTION & FAMILY SERVICES: $5k → 19%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.

77%of every dollar goes to organizations it has funded before.
$369k · 7 repeat orgs$113k to everyone else

Grantees it renews have grown median revenue +28% since the first grant, against +17% for those funded once.

7 repeat relationships: 7 still active in FY2024, 0 since wound down; 16 grantees were first funded in FY2024 (too recent to call).

How the two cohorts compare

Re-uppedFunded once

Organizations

7
5

Total granted

$369k
$31k

Median revenue growth · since first grant

+28%
+17%

Still filing today

71%
80%

New vs renewed · share of each year

In FY2024, 78% of grant dollars renewed an existing relationship; $82k went to new ones.

50%100%’23’24
RenewedFirst-time

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

’23’24
HealthHuman ServicesHousing & ShelterArts & CultureCivil RightsEducationOther
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

  • MS
    MUSTARD SEED RANCH
    2× · 2023–2024 · $289k · revenue +4%
  • NS
    Nashville Symphony Association
    2× · 2023–2024 · $13k · revenue +28%
  • HO
    Heart of the Cumberland Inc
    2× · 2023–2024 · $11k · revenue +28%

Funded once

  • HH
    Hope House of Tennessee Incgraduated
    one grant, 2023 · $25k · revenue +26%
  • CU
    CUMBERLAND UNIVERSITY
    one grant, 2023 · $3k · revenue +1%
  • MH
    MENTAL HEALTH ASSOCIATION OF MIDDLE TENNESSEE
    one grant, 2023 · $2k · revenue -9%
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
Cumberland Medical Center

Cumberland Medical Center provides quality healthcare, in alignment with Covenant Health's mission to serve the community by improving the quality of life through better health, regardless of the patient's ability to pay.

Health
2
Children's Foundation of Memphis
Health
3
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
4
East Tennessee Children's Hospital Association Inc

East tennessee children's hospital is a free-standing, independent, not-for-profit pediatric health care system which serves the east tennessee region. children's hospital is certified by the state of tennessee as a comprehensive regional…

Health
5
Casa of the Tennessee Valley

The mission of the organization is to provide a powerful voice for abused and neglected children by advocating for each child, within the court's jurisdiction, in order to ensure safety, permancy and an opportunity to thrive.

Human Services
6
Methodist Healthcare-Memphis Hospitals

Methodist le bonheur healthcare, in partnership with its medical staffs, will collaborate with patients and their families to be the leader in providing high quality, cost-effective patient-and family-centered care. services will be…

Health
7
My Fathers House Nashville

The mission of My Fathers House Nashville (MFHN) is to provide shelter, parenting education, recovery information and life skills for fathers transitioning out of institutional settings or homelessness.

Housing & Shelter
8
Fort Sanders Regional Medical Center

Fort Sanders Regional Medical Center provides quality healthcare, in alignment with Covenant Health's mission to serve the community by improving the quality of life through better health, regardless of a patient's ability to pay.

Health
9
Casa of the Tennessee Heartland Inc

Provide advocacy for abused and neglected children in juvenile court.

Civil Rights
10
Fort Loudoun Medical Center

Fort Loudoun Medical Center provides quality healthcare, in alignment with Covenant Health's mission to serve the community by improving the quality of life through better health, regardless of a patient's ability to pay.

Health
11
Vanderbilt University Medical Center

Vanderbilt University Medical Center (VUMC) is one of the nation's longest serving and most prestigious academic medical centers. Through its historic bond with Vanderbilt University, VUMC cultivates distinguished research and educational…

Health
12
Casa of Robertson County Inc

To provide court-appointed special advocates to child victims of abuse and neglect. The programs vision is a safe, permanent, loving home for every child it serves.

Human Services
How this is measured
The grantee most central to the portfolio’s shape is Cookeville Regional Charitable Foundation Inc; the most unlike its peers is Rains Foundation. 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

16 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. 16 of the 28 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)
15/16
Grantees still filing
11/16
Grew since first funded

Where the money sits, by cause and then by grantee

MUSTARD SEED RANCH: $289,300 · Human ServicesMUSTARD SEED RANCH+2 more: $6,000 · Human ServicesFIRST PRESBYTERIAN CHURCH: $40,000 · OtherFIRST PRESBYTERIAN CHURC…Individual grant recipient: $12,000 · OtherIndividual grant recipie…LIFE CHURCH: $10,000 · OtherLIFE CHURCHTTU FOUNDATION: $10,000 · OtherTTU FOUNDATIONYELLOWSTON CLUB COMMUNITY FOUNDATION: $10,000 · OtherYELLOWSTON CLUB COMMUNIT…CAVALIER FOOTBALL FOUNDATION: $7,000 · OtherCAVALIER FOOTBALL FOUNDA…THE NEXT DOOR RECOVERY: $6,000 · OtherTHE NEXT DOOR RECOVERY+8 more: $9,200 · Other+8 moreHeart of the Cumberland Inc: $11,180 · HealthHeart of …COOKEVILLE REGIONAL CHARITABLE FOUNDATION INC: $10,000 · HealthCOOKEVILL…HOSPITAL HOSPITALITY HOUSE CORPORATION: $7,000 · HealthHOSPITAL …BREAKTHROUGH T1D: $6,000 · HealthBREAKTHRO…CYSTIC FIBROSIS FOUNDATION: $5,000 · HealthCYSTIC FI…MENTAL HEALTH ASSOCIATION OF MIDDLE TENNESSEE: $1,500 · HealthHope House of Tennessee Inc: $25,000 · Housing & ShelterNashville Symphony Association: $13,000 · Arts & CultureCASA INC: $3,000 · Civil RightsYOUNG LIFE: $1,000 · Youth Development
Human Services$295,300Other$104,200Health$40,680Housing & Shelter$25,000Arts & Culture$13,000Civil Rights$3,000Youth Development$1,000

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 budgetMUSTARD SEED RANCH: $289,300 over 2y, 21% of budgetHope House of Tennessee Inc: $25,000 over 1y, 9.6% of budgetNashville Symphony Association: $13,000 over 2y, 0.1% of budgetHeart of the Cumberland Inc: $11,180 over 2y, 2.6% of budgetCOOKEVILLE REGIONAL CHARITABLE FOUNDATION INC: $10,000 over 1y, 0.7% of budgetHOSPITAL HOSPITALITY HOUSE CORPORATION: $7,000 over 1y, 0.5% of budgetBREAKTHROUGH T1D: $6,000 over 1y, 0.0% of budgetCYSTIC FIBROSIS FOUNDATION: $5,000 over 1y, 0.0% of budgetCASA INC: $3,000 over 2y, 0.3% of budgetCUMBERLAND UNIVERSITY: $3,000 over 1y, 0.0% of budgetMENTAL HEALTH ASSOCIATION OF MIDDLE TENNESSEE: $1,500 over 1y, 0.1% of budgetUPPER CUMBERLAND CHILD ADVOCACY CENTER: $1,000 over 1y, 0.2% of budgetYOUNG LIFE: $1,000 over 1y, 0.0% of budgetFOOD TO THE RESCUE: $1,000 over 1y, 0.5% of budgetRAINS FOUNDATION: $500 over 2y, 1.6% 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 Community Foundat…Esme FoundationDorothy Cate and Thom…Vanderbilt University…Baird Foundation IncRenaissance Charitabl…Raymond James Charita…National Philanthropi…Donor Advised Charita…American Online Givin…Fidelity Investments …Amazonsmile Foundation
The Community Foundation of Middle Tennessee IncTN18.1× affinity7 shared granteesties to 11 of 11Hover any node to trace its alignments.Compare side by side →

Open a dossier: The Community Foundation of Middle Tennessee Inc · Esme Foundation · Dorothy Cate and Thomas F Frist Foundation · Vanderbilt University Medical Center · Baird Foundation Inc · Renaissance Charitable Foundation Inc · Raymond James Charitable Endowment Fund · National Philanthropic Trust · Donor Advised Charitable Giving Inc · American Online Giving Foundation Inc · Fidelity Investments Charitable Gift Fund · Amazonsmile Foundation

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

2024
’20’21’22’23’24’25
no gov · 10%2%6%14%25%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
    1get no government money at all
    4report 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 Owen Foundation?

    Find your warmest path to Owen 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 28 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 2024, released 2024. Filings run roughly 12 to 24 months behind; figures are dated accordingly.

    Source object · view filing

    Play a game based on Owen’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