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Peterson Charitable Foundation at a glance

· Private foundation

Peterson Charitable 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.

$24k
Granted FY2024still arriving
15
Grants FY2024still arriving
7
States reached
$12k
Largest
01What it fundsRead
02The needRead
03Its granteesRead
04Its fieldRead
05Through PlinthRead
01What it funds
0198% classified

What it funded, over time

Every grant placed by its stated purpose and the recipient’s mission, by year, FY2017 to 2024.

Education$65kCrime & Legal$43kArts & Culture$25kAnimals$14kPublic Benefit$14kPhilanthropy$13kYouth Development$10kReligion$7kOther$0
02FY2024 · 15 grants

Where the money goes

Grants by size, and the largest recipients.

By grant size · FY2024

  • Under $10k14 grants · $12k
  • $10k–50k1 grant · $12k
$784
Median grant
7
States reached
$0
Total assets
Largest grants
RecipientAmount
WAYNE W DYER FAMILY FOUNDATION$12,000
ZOZU PROJECT$2,668
TURNING POINT USA NFP$1,250
JUDICIAL WATCH INC$1,050
SAN DIEGO POLICE FOUNDATION$1,000
SAN DIEGO COUNTY DEPUTY SHERIFFS FOUNDATION$1,000
CONSERVATIVE PARTNERSHIP INSTITUTE$1,000
THE NRA FOUNDATION$784
WHALE TRUST MAUI$500
LEADERSHIP INSTITUTE$500
ALICE'S HOUSE$500
SAN DIEGO MUSEUM OF ART$500
FALLEN OFFICERS FUND$400
SAN DIEGO ZOO WILDLIFE ALLIANCE$325
PACIFIC RESEARCH INSTITUTE$250
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 (FY17–24, $15k) land where the poverty rate runs at 11%, against an area that typically sits at 10%. 100% of those dollars go to grantees based in above-average-need neighborhoods. Most of its grants land in higher-need ZIPs.

area typical 10%ZOZU PROJECT: $3k → 12%SAN DIEGO YOUTH SERVICES: $10k → 11%SAN DIEGO COUNTY DEPUTY SHERIFFS FOUNDATION: $1k → 11%SAN DIEGO COUNTY DEPUTY SHERIFFS FOUNDATION: $1k → 11%SAN DIEGO COUNTY DEPUTY SHERIFFS FOUNDATION: $500 → 11%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

WA
NY
MA
CA
MO
VA
AZ
DC
HI
MS
GA
TX
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.

67%of every dollar goes to organizations it has funded before.
$149k · 23 repeat orgs$74k to everyone else

23 repeat relationships: 9 still active in FY2024, 14 since wound down; 5 grantees were first funded in FY2024 (too recent to call).

How the two cohorts compare

Re-uppedFunded once

Organizations

23
24

Total granted

$149k
$57k

Median revenue growth · since first grant

+43%
+54%

Still filing today

74%
58%

New vs renewed · share of each year

In FY2024, 30% of grant dollars renewed an existing relationship; $16k 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
EducationArts & CultureHuman ServicesPublic BenefitAnimalsHealthOther
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

  • BU
    BIOLA UNIVERSITY INC
    3× · 2017–2019 · $57k · revenue +15%
  • SD
    SAN DIEGO MUSEUM OF ART
    8× · 2017–2024 · $11k · revenue +99%
  • US
    UC SAN DIEGO FOUNDATION
    2× · 2017–2018 · $6k · revenue +78%

Funded once

  • IG
    Individual grant recipient
    one grant, 2021 · $20k
  • SD
    SAN DIEGO YOUTH SERVICESgraduated
    one grant, 2017 · $10k · revenue +76%
  • RT
    REFORMED THEOLOGICAL SEMINARYgraduated
    one grant, 2017 · $7k · revenue +54%
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
United States Naval Institute

Provide an independent forum for those who dare to read, think, speak, and write to advance the professional, literary, and scientific understanding of sea power and other issues critical to global security.

—
2
The San Diego Foundation

The san diego foundation inspires enduring philanthropy and enables community solutions to improve the quality of life in our region.

Philanthropy
3
San Diego State University Foundation Sdsu Research Foundation

To support and further the research, education and community service objectives of san diego state university.

Education
4
Witte Museum

The witte museum inspires people to shape the future of texas through transformative and relevant experiences in nature, science and culture.

Arts & Culture
5
Museum of Contemporary Art San Diego

The museum of contemporary art san diego invites all audiences to experience our world, our region, and ourselves through the prism of contemporary art.

Arts & Culture
6
Balboa Park Conservancy

Balboa Park Conservancy (the Conservancy) was organized on November 3, 1923. The Conservancy is the City of San Diegos (the City) partner and advocated for the greater good of Balboa Park (the Park). The Conservancy collaborated with and…

—
7
Society of Photo Optical Instrumentation Engineers

SPIE is an international nonprofit technical society dedicated to advancing scientific research and engineering applications of optical, photonic, imaging and optoelectronic technologies through its meetings, education programs and…

—
8
San Diego Municipal Employees Assn

The san diego municipal employees association (sdmea) is dedicated to being a strong and effective advocate for san diego city employees. sdmea is united to improve employees' standard of living and promote their fair treatment by…

—
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
San Diego Opera Association

Mission: the mission of san diego opera is to deliver exceptional performances and exciting, accessible programs to diverse audiences, focusing on community partnerships, and the transformative and expressive power of the human voice. as…

Arts & Culture
11
La Jolla Institute for Immunology

At la jolla institute for immunology, our scientists focus on understanding how the immune system works in order to promote human health and prevent disease. our discoveries apply to many diseases, ranging from diabetes to heart disease,…

—
12
California Institute for Immunology and Immunotherapy

To harness the power of the human immune system and advanced computing technologies to create and translate scientific discoveries into next generation vaccines and therapies for prevention, control and cure of chronic diseases, enabling…

Health
How this is measured
The grantee most central to the portfolio’s shape is Uc San Diego Foundation; the most unlike its peers is Wayne W Dyer 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

39 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. 39 of the 54 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)
37/39
Grantees still filing
29/39
Grew since first funded

Where the money sits, by cause and then by grantee

CHILDREN'S ADVOCACY INSTITUTE: $40,000 · OtherCHILDREN'S ADVOCACY INSTITUTEIndividual grant recipient: $20,000 · OtherIndividual grant recipientMUSEUM OF MAN: $5,000 · OtherMUSEUM OF MANWHALE TRUST MAUI: $4,000 · OtherSAN DIEGO POLICE FOUNDATION: $5,100 · OtherSAN DIEGO POLICE FOUNDATION+24 more: $15,672 · Other+24 moreBIOLA UNIVERSITY INC: $57,000 · EducationBIOLA UNIVERSITY INCREFORMED THEOLOGICAL SEMINARY: $6,544 · EducationREFORMED THEOLOGICAL SEMINARYUC SAN DIEGO FOUNDATION: $5,664 · EducationUC SAN DIEGO FOUNDATIONConservative Partnership Institute: $2,500 · Education+2 more: $1,740 · EducationSAN DIEGO MUSEUM OF ART: $11,260 · Arts & CultureSAN DIEGO MUSEUM OF MAN DBA MUSEUM OF US: $3,419 · Arts & CultureSAN DIEGO MODEL RAILROAD MUSEUM INC: $1,000 · Arts & CultureSAN DIEGO SOCIETY OF NATURAL HISTORY: $976 · Arts & Culture+2 more: $800 · Arts & CultureSAN DIEGO YOUTH SERVICES: $10,149 · Human ServicesEDUCHRIST: $2,668 · Human ServicesSAN DIEGO COUNTY DEPUTY SHERIFFS FOUNDAT: $2,500 · Human ServicesWayne W Dyer Foundation: $12,000 · PhilanthropyHAWAII COMMUNITY FOUNDATION: $1,000 · PhilanthropyPacific Research Institute For Public Policy: $750 · PhilanthropySEA SHEPHERD CONSERVATION SOCIETY: $4,750 · AnimalsZOOLOGICAL SOCIETY OF SAN DIEGO: $1,744 · AnimalsSAN DIEGO HUMANE SOCIETY AND SPCA: $1,100 · AnimalsJUDICIAL WATCH INC: $5,500 · Public BenefitLeadership Institute: $500 · Public Benefit#WALKAWAY FOUNDATION: $500 · Public BenefitYOUNG AMERICANS FOR LIBERTY FOUNDATION: $500 · Public Benefit
Other$89,772Education$73,448Arts & Culture$17,455Human Services$15,317Philanthropy$13,750Animals$7,594Public Benefit$7,000

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 budgetBIOLA UNIVERSITY INC: $57,000 over 3y, 0.0% of budgetWayne W Dyer Foundation: $12,000 over 1y, 2.7% of budgetSAN DIEGO MUSEUM OF ART: $11,260 over 8y, 0.1% of budgetSAN DIEGO YOUTH SERVICES: $10,149 over 1y, 0.1% of budgetREFORMED THEOLOGICAL SEMINARY: $6,544 over 1y, 0.0% of budgetUC SAN DIEGO FOUNDATION: $5,664 over 2y, 0.0% of budgetJUDICIAL WATCH INC: $5,500 over 7y, 0.0% of budgetSAN DIEGO POLICE FOUNDATION: $5,100 over 4y, 0.2% of budgetSEA SHEPHERD CONSERVATION SOCIETY: $4,750 over 1y, 0.0% of budgetSAN DIEGO MUSEUM OF MAN DBA MUSEUM OF US: $3,419 over 1y, 0.1% of budgetTURNING POINT USA INC: $2,850 over 3y, 0.0% of budgetEDUCHRIST: $2,668 over 1y, 0.4% of budgetConservative Partnership Institute: $2,500 over 4y, 0.0% of budgetSAN DIEGO COUNTY DEPUTY SHERIFFS FOUNDAT: $2,500 over 3y, 1.1% of budgetREUBEN H FLEET SCIENCE CENTER: $1,800 over 4y, 0.0% of budgetZOOLOGICAL SOCIETY OF SAN DIEGO: $1,744 over 5y, 0.0% of budgetCROHN'S & COLITIS FOUNDATION INC: $1,500 over 2y, 0.0% of budgetPROJECT VERITAS: $1,250 over 2y, 0.0% of budgetALLIANT EDUCATIONAL FOUNDATION: $1,240 over 1y, 0.1% of budgetSAN DIEGO HUMANE SOCIETY AND SPCA: $1,100 over 1y, 0.0% of budgetSAN DIEGO MODEL RAILROAD MUSEUM INC: $1,000 over 1y, 0.2% of budgetHAWAII COMMUNITY FOUNDATION: $1,000 over 1y, 0.0% of budgetYOSEMITE FOUNDATION: $980 over 4y, 0.0% of budgetSAN DIEGO SOCIETY OF NATURAL HISTORY: $976 over 4y, 0.0% of budgetNRA FOUNDATION INC: $784 over 1y, 0.0% of budgetPacific Research Institute For Public Policy: $750 over 2y, 0.0% of budgetLeadership Institute: $500 over 1y, 0.0% of budget#WALKAWAY FOUNDATION: $500 over 1y, 0.1% of budgetWOMENS CHORUS OF DALLAS: $500 over 1y, 0.3% of budgetYOUNG AMERICANS FOR LIBERTY FOUNDATION: $500 over 2y, 0.0% of budgetALICE'S HOUSE INC: $500 over 1y, 0.3% of budgetMUSEUM OF PHOTOGRAPHIC ARTS: $440 over 5y, 0.0% of budgetMOVEMBER FOUNDATION: $300 over 3y, 0.0% of budgetMUSICAL BOX SOCIETY INTERNATIONAL: $300 over 1y, 0.2% of budgetMAUI OCEAN CENTER MARINE INSTITUTE: $255 over 2y, 0.2% of budgetTEAM BLUELINE INC: $250 over 1y, 0.0% of budgetNATIONAL RIFLE ASSOCIATION OF AMERICA: $175 over 1y, 0.0% of budgetSAN DIEGO HISTORICAL SOCIETY: $125 over 1y, 0.0% of budgetPACIFIC WHALE FOUNDATION: $90 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 San Diego Foundat…Jewish Community Foun…Price Philanthropies …The Conrad Prebys Fou…Patrons of the PradoMandell Weiss Charita…Samuel I & John Henry…The Cushman FoundationFarrell Family Founda…Sempra FoundationHeller Foundation of …Paul Bechtner Foundat…
The San Diego FoundationCA22.1× affinity9 shared granteesties to 11 of 11Hover any node to trace its alignments.Compare side by side →

Open a dossier: The San Diego Foundation · Jewish Community Foundation of San Diego · Price Philanthropies Foundation · The Conrad Prebys Foundation · Patrons of the Prado · Mandell Weiss Charitable Trust · Samuel I & John Henry Fox Foundation · The Cushman Foundation · Farrell Family Foundation · Sempra Foundation · Heller Foundation of San Diego · Paul Bechtner 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 Peterson Charitable Foundation funds: left to right is the share of its income from government, bottom to top the share from Peterson Charitable Foundation. 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%10%20%30%40%share of the org’s 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 · 0–40%
    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 Peterson Charitable Foundation?

    Find your warmest path to Peterson Charitable 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 54 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 Peterson’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