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Smiles for Life Foundation at a glanceAlso receives grants: funding profile →

· Public charity

Smiles for Life Foundation

To support medical & dental treatment, prevention of childhood diseases and promote health education for poor children in the inner cities of this nation.

$642k
Granted FY2025still arriving
15
Grants FY2025still arriving
12
States reached
$160k
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, FY2017 to 2025.

Health$2.7MInternational$1.2MHuman Services$265kFood & Nutrition$88kYouth Development$70kEducation$37kReligion$33kRecreation & Sports$19kOther$0
02FY2025 · 15 grants

Where the money goes

Grants by size, and the largest recipients.

How this is measured
The 15 grants below total $506,919, the rows itemized in this filing. The $642,447 headline is the total grant expense on the return; the other $135,528 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 · FY2025

  • Under $10k8 grants · $52k
  • $10k–50k3 grants · $64k
  • $50k–250k4 grants · $391k
$9,581
Median grant
12
States reached
$722k
Total assets
Largest grants
RecipientAmount
MORTENSON CHARITABLE FOUNDATION$160,241
BOXES OF BASICS$84,100
ESPERANZA INTERNATIONAL$79,919
KOLTAEL INC$66,276
EAGLE UNIVERSITY$35,985
CHRIST'S HAVEN FOR CHILDREN$16,685
CANDLELIGHTERS CHILDHOOD CANCER FAM$11,302
ELIZABETHTOWN AREA EDUCATION$9,581
TRI-COUNTY YMCA$7,854
BOYS & GIRLS CLUB OF NEW ALBANY$6,500
FAMILY ROOM$6,440
HOLY PURSUIT DREAM FOUNDATION$6,131
OKLAHOMA DENTAL FOUNDATION$5,899
MACOMB FOSTER CLOSET$5,005
CHILDREN'S FLIGHT OF HOPE$5,001
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 (FY17–25, $507k) land where the poverty rate runs at 10%, against an area that typically sits at 10%. 50% of those dollars go to grantees based in above-average-need neighborhoods. Its grants spread fairly evenly across need levels.

area typical 10%ASA NOW: $8k → 11%CASA VOICES FOR CHILDREN: $8k → 9%LAURA'S HOUSE: $8k → 10%WARRIOR FOUNDATION: $20k → 11%PATRIOT PAWS SERVICE DOGS: $6k → 5%GUADALUPE LEARNING CENTER: $9k → 16%CAMP COURAGEOUS: $5k → 11%MACOMB FOSTER CLOSET: $5k → 10%EIGHT CAP OPTIMIST CLUB: $6k → 15%TRI COUNTY YMCA OF THE OZARKS: $30k → 13%BACKPACK BEGINNINGS: $15k → 16%USHER'S NEW LOOK: $14k → 9%HALEY'S HOPE DYSLEXIA LEARNING CENT: $6k → 12%BOXES OF BASICS: $84k → 7%VIRGINIA DENTAL HEALTH FOUNDATION: $22k → 9%COMFORT CASES: $13k → 8%CASA: $7k → 9%LAURA'S HOUSE: $7k → 10%WARRIOR FOUNDATION: $16k → 11%PATRIOT PAWS SERVICE DOGS: $6k → 5%CAMP COURAGEOUS: $5k → 11%EIGHT CAP OPTIMIST CLUB: $5k → 15%TRI-COUNTY YMCA: $8k → 13%WOMENS RESOURCE CENTER OF GREENSBOR: $6k → 16%BOXES OF BASICS: $11k → 7%CASA: $6k → 9%WARRIOR FOUNDATION: $15k → 11%HOLLYWOOD WILSHIRE YMCA: $6k → 14%PATRIOT PAWS SERVICE DOGS: $6k → 5%CAMP COURAGEOUS: $5k → 11%TRI-COUNTY YMCA: $7k → 13%WOMEN'S FOUNDATION FOR A GREATER M: $17k → 17%FAMILY ROOM: $6k → 16%POWER PACKS PROJECT: $18k → 9%CASA VOICES FOR CHILDREN: $5k → 9%WARRIOR FOUNDATION: $8k → 11%PATRIOT PAWS SERVICE DOGS: $5k → 5%CAMP COURAGEOUS: $5k → 11%THE TRI COUNTY YMCA OF THE OZARKS: $6k → 13%POWER PACKS PROJECT: $16k → 9%WARRIOR FOUNDATION: $6k → 11%TRI COUNTY YMCA OF THE OZARKS: $5k → 13%SOLUTIONS FOR CHANGE: $6k → 11%POWER PACKS PROJECT: $14k → 9%POWER PACKS PROJECT: $12k → 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.

Which US states its grants reach

AK
WA
ID
ND
MN
IL
WI
MI
NY
MA
NV
IA
IN
PA
CA
UT
CO
MO
KY
WV
VA
MD
AZ
KS
TN
NC
OK
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.

89%of every dollar goes to organizations it has funded before.
$3.9M · 42 repeat orgs$473k to everyone else

42 repeat relationships: 11 still active in FY2025, 31 since wound down; 4 grantees were first funded in FY2025 (too recent to call).

How the two cohorts compare

Re-uppedFunded once

Organizations

42
46

Total granted

$3.9M
$450k

Median revenue growth · since first grant

+22%
+27%

Still filing today

83%
80%

New vs renewed · share of each year

In FY2025, 96% of grant dollars renewed an existing relationship; $23k went to new ones.

50%100%’17’18’19’20’21’22’23’24’25
RenewedFirst-time

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

’17’18’19’20’21’22’23’24’25
Human ServicesHealthPhilanthropyEducationYouth DevelopmentInternationalOther
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

  • BO
    Boxes of Basics
    2× · 2024–2025 · $95k · revenue +244%
  • CH
    Christ's Haven for Children Inc
    8× · 2017–2025 · $81k · revenue +58%
  • WF
    WARRIOR FOUNDATION FREEDOM STATION
    5× · 2017–2021 · $65k · revenue +41%

Funded once

  • GD
    Game Day Memoriesgraduated
    one grant, 2017 · $25k · revenue +45%
  • VD
    VIRGINIA DENTAL ASSOCIATION FOUNDATION
    one grant, 2017 · $22k · revenue -71%
  • TL
    THE LIFE IS GOOD PLAYMAKER PROJECT INC
    one grant, 2017 · $20k · revenue +3%
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
Oncology and Kids Inc

To help kids and families heal the emotional scars of childhood cancer and learn to thrive.

Human Services
2
Healthier Kids Foundation

Our mission is to ensure that every child in our community receives the family-centered care that he or she needs to thrive. there is no human endeavor that is outside the realm of health.

Health
3
Children's Miracle Network

Children's miracle network (dba "children's miracle network hospitals") works to save kids' lives by bringing people together to raise money for children's healthcare in local communities.

Unclassified
4
CancerFree Kids

CancerFree KIDS exists to raise awareness of the need for more funding for pediatric cancer research and to raise funds that are invested in early stage, potentially game-changing research focused on gentler treatments and cures for…

Health
5
The Curetivity Foundation

Provide monetary or financial aid exclusively for charitable, religious, scientific, literary or educational purposes and to solicit, receive, maintain and disburse funds for these purposes and for the betterment of children.

Health
6
Gamechanger Charity

Gamechanger leverages technology and innovation to help children and their families who encounter life threatening illnesses.

Health
7
Miracles for Kids Inc

Miracles for kids helps families with critically-ill children battle bankruptcy, homelessness, hunger and depression so they concentrate on what is most important - fighting for their child's life.

Recreation & Sports
8
Bounce Children's Foundation

Bounce children's foundation transforms the lives of chronically ill children, and their families, shifting all from surviving to thriving.

Health
9
Wichitas Littlest Heroes

Wichita's littlest heroes (wlh) exists to provide hope, help, and happiness to families of children ages 0-18 in the kansas area who are battling life-threatening medical conditions. wlh strives to accomplish this be being a physical and…

Human Services
10
Children's Hospital

Organization's mission to improve health outcomes for children; be a leader in creating innovative solutions to pediatric healthcare problems; and excel in care, advocacy, research. as the nation's children's hospital, the mission of…

Health
11
Beat Childhood Cancer Foundation Inc

Beat childhood cancer drives childhood cancer research and raises awareness, making a difference in kids' survival today. our vision is to change the story for the next family by finding viable treatments and ultimately, cures for…

Health
12
Childrens Oncology Services Inc

Camp one step by children's oncology services is a leader in providing empowering, supportive, educational, and fun experiences for children (ages birth-19) who have been diagnosed with cancer and their families. we are the only local…

Health
How this is measured
The grantee most central to the portfolio’s shape is Family Room Foster Care Resource Center; the most unlike its peers is The Dustin J Wells 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

79 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. 79 of the 92 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.

4
Load-bearing (≥25% of a budget)
26
Early backer (in before they grew)
76/79
Grantees still filing
53/79
Grew since first funded

Where the money sits, by cause and then by grantee

THE O WAYNE AND GLENDA SUE MORTENSON CHARITABLE FOUNDATION INC: $1,219,928 · HealthTHE O WAYNE AND GLENDA SUE MORTENSON CH…+21 more: $308,500 · Health+21 moreESPERANZA INTERNATIONAL: $482,681 · OtherESPERANZA INTERNATIONALESPERANZA INTERNATIONAL FOUNDATION: $206,456 · OtherESPERANZA INTERNATIONAL FOUNDAT…UNIVERSITY OF UTAH: $87,001 · OtherUNIVERSITY OF UTAHChrist's Haven for Children Inc: $80,583 · OtherChrist's Haven for Children Inc+28 more: $372,075 · Other+28 moreBoxes of Basics: $95,177 · Human ServicesBoxes of Basi…WARRIOR FOUNDATION FREEDOM STATION: $65,196 · Human ServicesWARRIOR FOUND…POWER PACKS PROJECT: $59,594 · Human ServicesPOWER PACKS P…TRI COUNTY YMCA OF THE OZARKS: $56,930 · Human ServicesTRI COUNTY YM…CASA A VOICE FOR CHILDREN: $26,462 · Human ServicesPATRIOT PAWS SERVICE DOGS: $23,703 · Human ServicesVIRGINIA DENTAL ASSOCIATION FOUNDATION: $22,362 · Human ServicesChildren's Home Society of North Carolina Inc: $21,771 · Human ServicesCAMP COURAGEOUS OF IOWA: $20,513 · Human Services+14 more: $136,706 · Human Services+14 moreSMILES FOR HOPE FOUNDATION: $361,809 · InternationalSMILES FOR H…CENTER FOR HUMANITARIAN OUTREACH AND INTERCULTURAL EXCHANGE: $92,485 · InternationalCENTER FOR H…+1 more: $15,000 · InternationalTHE DUSTIN J WELLS FOUNDATION: $235,184 · PhilanthropyDONUM DEI THE RIDING THERAPY CENTER: $31,556 · PhilanthropyTHE LIFE IS GOOD PLAYMAKER PROJECT INC: $20,000 · Philanthropy+1 more: $7,054 · PhilanthropyEAGLE U INC: $153,209 · Youth DevelopmentFELLOWSHIP OF CHRISTIAN ATHLETES: $37,086 · Youth DevelopmentBOYS & GIRLS CLUBS OF ALBANY INC: $21,951 · Youth DevelopmentLIFE ATLAS FOUNDATION INC: $10,694 · Youth DevelopmentKOLTAEL INC: $108,618 · EducationUNIVERSITY OF CALIFORNIA SAN FRANCISCO FOUNDATION: $18,011 · EducationSPECIAL OPERATIONS WARRIOR FOUNDATION: $8,655 · EducationTeen Closet: $5,141 · Education
Health$1,528,428Other$1,228,796Human Services$528,414International$469,294Philanthropy$293,794Youth Development$222,940Education$140,425

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 O WAYNE AND GLENDA SUE MORTENSON CHARITABLE FOUNDATION INC: $1,219,928 over 7y, 56% of budgetSMILES FOR HOPE FOUNDATION: $361,809 over 3y, 100% of budgetTHE DUSTIN J WELLS FOUNDATION: $235,184 over 4y, 100% of budgetESPERANZA INTERNATIONAL FOUNDATION: $206,456 over 3y, 6.9% of budgetEAGLE U INC: $153,209 over 4y, 22% of budgetKOLTAEL INC: $108,618 over 2y, 19% of budgetBoxes of Basics: $95,177 over 2y, 7.0% of budgetCENTER FOR HUMANITARIAN OUTREACH AND INTERCULTURAL EXCHANGE: $92,485 over 3y, 1.3% of budgetChrist's Haven for Children Inc: $80,583 over 8y, 0.4% of budgetWARRIOR FOUNDATION FREEDOM STATION: $65,196 over 5y, 0.8% of budgetPOWER PACKS PROJECT: $59,594 over 4y, 1.6% of budgetTRI COUNTY YMCA OF THE OZARKS: $56,930 over 5y, 3.9% of budgetFIGHTING DUCHENNE FOUNDATION: $49,763 over 3y, 34% of budgetFELLOWSHIP OF CHRISTIAN ATHLETES: $37,086 over 2y, 0.0% of budgetHendrick Medical Center: $34,109 over 3y, 0.0% of budgetOUR FATHER'S CHILDREN INC: $32,542 over 2y, 1.7% of budgetDONUM DEI THE RIDING THERAPY CENTER: $31,556 over 4y, 12% of budgetELIZABETHTOWN AREA EDUCATION FOUNDATION: $31,448 over 3y, 12% of budgetProject Ride Inc: $27,973 over 5y, 1.5% of budgetCASA A VOICE FOR CHILDREN: $26,462 over 4y, 2.4% of budgetGame Day Memories: $25,000 over 1y, 5.4% of budgetPATRIOT PAWS SERVICE DOGS: $23,703 over 4y, 0.3% of budgetOKLAHOMA DENTAL FOUNDATION: $23,387 over 4y, 0.5% of budgetVIRGINIA DENTAL ASSOCIATION FOUNDATION: $22,362 over 1y, 0.9% of budgetBOYS & GIRLS CLUBS OF ALBANY INC: $21,951 over 3y, 0.6% of budgetChildren's Home Society of North Carolina Inc: $21,771 over 2y, 0.1% of budgetCAMP COURAGEOUS OF IOWA: $20,513 over 4y, 0.1% of budgetWORLD HEALTH DENTAL ORGANIZATION: $20,000 over 2y, 6.9% of budgetTHE LIFE IS GOOD PLAYMAKER PROJECT INC: $20,000 over 1y, 1.4% of budgetUNIVERSITY OF CALIFORNIA SAN FRANCISCO FOUNDATION: $18,011 over 3y, 0.0% of budgetWOMEN'S FOUNDATION FOR A GREATER MEMPHIS: $16,785 over 1y, 1.4% of budgetAGAPE THERAPEUTIC RIDING RESOURCES: $15,374 over 3y, 0.6% of budgetBACKPACK BEGINNINGS: $15,260 over 1y, 0.5% of budgetMID-SOUTH FOOD BANK: $15,212 over 2y, 0.0% of budgetHEALING WATERS INTERNATIONAL INC: $15,000 over 1y, 0.7% of budgetLAURA'S HOUSE: $14,750 over 2y, 0.1% of budgetUSHER'S NEW LOOK INC: $14,400 over 1y, 1.1% of budgetZELIENOPLE AREA PUBLIC LIBRARY: $14,256 over 2y, 2.8% of budgetRonald McDonald House Charities - Upper Midwest: $14,125 over 2y, 0.1% of budgetThe Isabella Santos Foundation: $13,763 over 1y, 0.6% of budgetCOMFORT CASES INC: $13,131 over 1y, 0.6% of budgetFUTURE SMILES: $12,744 over 1y, 0.9% of budgetCAMP GOOD DAYS AND SPECIAL TIMES INC: $12,675 over 2y, 0.3% of budgetHUNTSMAN CANCER FOUNDATION: $12,000 over 2y, 0.0% of budgetEllie's Hats: $11,207 over 1y, 7.0% of budgetEIGHTCAP INC: $11,061 over 2y, 0.0% of budgetLIFE ATLAS FOUNDATION INC: $10,694 over 2y, 10% of budgetALASKA SPORTS HALL OF FAME INC: $10,649 over 1y, 2.3% 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 Gap FoundationEnterprise Holdings F…Joy In Childhood Foun…Lincoln Financial Fou…International Paper C…Triangle Community Fo…Rochester Area Commun…Truist Foundation IncThe Blackbaud Giving …Equitable Foundation …Charities Aid Foundat…Global Impact
The Gap FoundationCA21× affinity11 shared granteesties to 11 of 11Hover any node to trace its alignments.Compare side by side →

Open a dossier: The Gap Foundation · Enterprise Holdings Foundation · Joy In Childhood Foundation Inc · Lincoln Financial Foundation Inc · International Paper Company Foundation · Triangle Community Foundation Inc · Rochester Area Community Foundation · Truist Foundation Inc · The Blackbaud Giving Fund · Equitable Foundation Inc · Charities Aid Foundation America · Global Impact

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

2024
’20’21’22’23’24’25
no gov · 40%5%19%42%75%funder's share of their income ↑0%25%50%75%100%share of the org’s income from government →median 0%
  • Comfort Cases Inc: 0% of income from government
no gov moneyreceives it· size = income
4get no government money at all
25report government grants on their 990 we could not trace to a source (not plotted)
0rely on government for over half their income
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 Smiles for Life Foundation?

Find your warmest path to Smiles for Life 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 92 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 e-file return for fiscal year 2025, released 2025. Filings run roughly 12 to 24 months behind; figures are dated accordingly.

Source object · view filing

Play a game based on Smiles for Life’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