Skip to content

Wisconsin · Private foundation

Sms Foundation Inc

Its FY2025 filing reports that it funds preselected organizations and did not take unsolicited requests; check the foundation's own site before ruling it out.

$481k
Granted FY2025(still arriving)
61
Grants FY2025
59
Organizations funded FY2024
3%
First-time grantees FY2024
Read the full brief
Median grant, FY2025
$5,000
Largest grant, FY2025
$40,000
Organizations funded a year
50 to 59
FY2019 to FY2024
States reached, FY2025
12
Total assets, FY2025
$13M
Applications
Preselected organizations only
Per its most recent filing; check its own site

How open it is to new grantees

In FY2024, 3% of the organizations Sms Foundation Inc funded were first-time grantees, receiving 1% of its grant dollars.

New vs renewed · share of each year

In FY2024, 99% of grant dollars renewed an existing relationship; $6k went to new ones.

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

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

’20’21’22’23’24
Arts & CultureFood & NutritionCommunity ImprovementHealthOther
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.
The numbers by year
Fiscal yearOrganizations fundedTo those organizationsFirst-time grantees
FY2025still arriving59$461k29%
FY202459$451k3%
FY202358$450k2%
FY202257$445k9%
FY202155$440k4%
FY202055$447k15%
FY201950$432kn/a
100% classified

What it funded, over time

Every grant placed by its stated purpose and the recipient’s mission, by year, FY2019 to 2025.

Arts & Culture$779kEducation$675kHealth$274kAnimals$255kFood & Nutrition$230kHuman Services$230kInternational$195kEnvironment$175kOther$0

Where its grants go

Grant dollars by states, across the years we hold.

Which US states its grants reach

MN
WI
NY
MA
NJ
CA
CO
MO
VA
MD
KS
DC
FL

Top grantees

Largest recipients by total granted, FY2019 to FY2025, and the share of each one’s budget the grants supplied at peak.

Show all 49 grantees
All grantees of Sms Foundation Inc by total granted
GranteeTotal grantedYearsShare of their budget
Hodan Community Services Inc$310,00072%
Second Harvest Foodbank of Southern Wi$80,00070%
Madison Public Schools Foundation Inc$75,00071%
Medecins Sans Frontieres USA Inc$75,00070%
Samuel's House Inc$70,00071%
Fine Arts Work Center in Provincetown Inc$70,00071%
Arts Horizons Inc$70,00072%
Florida Keys Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals Inc$70,00070%
American Indian College Fund$70,00070%
Dane County Humane Society$70,00070%
Wisconsin Humanities Council Inc$70,00071%
Domestic Abuse Intervention Services Inc$70,00070%
The American Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals$70,00070%
Kansas City Art Institute$68,00070%
Planned Parenthood of Wisconsin Inc$68,00070%
Urban League of Greater Madison Inc$68,00070%
Young Men's Christian Association of Dane County Inc$60,00060%
God's Love We Deliver Inc$60,00060%
Arts for Art Inc$56,00071%
Recovery Foundation Inc$49,000715%
Catherine Marian Housing Inc Dba Bethany Apartments$40,00045%
Madison Museum of Contemporary Art Inc$40,00070%
Natural Resources Defense Council Inc$35,00070%
Wisconsin Public Radio Association Inc$35,00070%
World Wildlife Fund Inc$35,00070%
The Studios of Key West$35,00070%
Smile Train Inc$35,00070%
Clean Lakes Alliance Inc$35,00071%
United States Fund for Unicef$35,00070%
Arts & Literature Laboratory Inc$35,00072%
New Music USA Inc$30,00060%
Food Bank for New York City$30,00060%
Wisconsin Academy of Sciences Arts and Letters$30,00061%
Hazelden Betty Ford Foundation$30,00060%
St Coletta of Wisconsin Inc$30,00060%
American Friends of the Ocean Cleanup Foundation$30,00060%
End Domestic Abuse Wisconsin the Wi Coalition Against Domestic Violence$30,00030%
The Rabbit Hole Kc$26,00050%
Hips Road Inc$23,00041%
Ragtag Film Society$15,00030%
Willa Brown Aviation Academy Inc$15,0003n/a
Red Hook Initiative$10,00010%
YWCA Madison Inc$10,0001n/a
Musicares Foundation Inc$10,00020%
Dane County Parent Council Inc$10,0001n/a
Back Porch Radio Broadcasting Inc$5,00010%
Wisconsin Foundation for School Music Inc$5,00016%
Treehouse Inc$1,50010%
Band of Angels Corp$1,00010%

What it could do for these grantees

Plus 36 recipients with no EIN on record ($825k), not named here.

Where it is load-bearing

Each grantee by its size and the share of its budget Sms Foundation Inc supplied at peak.

25%50%75%100%$100k$1.0M$10M$100Mgrantee revenue →↑ funder's share of their budgetHodan Community Services Inc: $310,000 over 7y, 1.8% of budgetSecond Harvest Foodbank of Southern Wi: $80,000 over 7y, 0.1% of budgetMadison Public Schools Foundation Inc: $75,000 over 7y, 0.9% of budgetMedecins Sans Frontieres USA Inc: $75,000 over 7y, 0.0% of budgetSamuel's House Inc: $70,000 over 7y, 0.9% of budgetFine Arts Work Center in Provincetown Inc: $70,000 over 7y, 0.7% of budgetArts Horizons Inc: $70,000 over 7y, 2.3% of budgetFlorida Keys Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals Inc: $70,000 over 7y, 0.4% of budgetAmerican Indian College Fund: $70,000 over 7y, 0.0% of budgetDane County Humane Society: $70,000 over 7y, 0.2% of budgetWisconsin Humanities Council Inc: $70,000 over 7y, 1.0% of budgetDomestic Abuse Intervention Services Inc: $70,000 over 7y, 0.4% of budgetThe American Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals: $70,000 over 7y, 0.0% of budgetKansas City Art Institute: $68,000 over 7y, 0.0% of budgetPlanned Parenthood of Wisconsin Inc: $68,000 over 7y, 0.0% of budgetUrban League of Greater Madison Inc: $68,000 over 7y, 0.3% of budgetYoung Men's Christian Association of Dane County Inc: $60,000 over 6y, 0.1% of budgetGod's Love We Deliver Inc: $60,000 over 6y, 0.0% of budgetArts for Art Inc: $56,000 over 7y, 1.4% of budgetRecovery Foundation Inc: $49,000 over 7y, 15% of budgetCatherine Marian Housing Inc Dba Bethany Apartments: $40,000 over 4y, 5.3% of budgetMadison Museum of Contemporary Art Inc: $40,000 over 7y, 0.4% of budgetNatural Resources Defense Council Inc: $35,000 over 7y, 0.0% of budgetWisconsin Public Radio Association Inc: $35,000 over 7y, 0.1% of budgetWorld Wildlife Fund Inc: $35,000 over 7y, 0.0% of budgetThe Studios of Key West: $35,000 over 7y, 0.3% of budgetSmile Train Inc: $35,000 over 7y, 0.0% of budgetClean Lakes Alliance Inc: $35,000 over 7y, 0.6% of budgetUnited States Fund for Unicef: $35,000 over 7y, 0.0% of budgetArts & Literature Laboratory Inc: $35,000 over 7y, 2.1% of budgetNew Music USA Inc: $30,000 over 6y, 0.2% of budgetFood Bank for New York City: $30,000 over 6y, 0.0% of budgetWisconsin Academy of Sciences Arts and Letters: $30,000 over 6y, 0.6% of budgetHazelden Betty Ford Foundation: $30,000 over 6y, 0.0% of budgetSt Coletta of Wisconsin Inc: $30,000 over 6y, 0.0% of budgetAmerican Friends of the Ocean Cleanup Foundation: $30,000 over 6y, 0.1% of budgetEnd Domestic Abuse Wisconsin the Wi Coalition Against Domestic Violence: $30,000 over 3y, 0.2% of budgetThe Rabbit Hole Kc: $26,000 over 5y, 0.3% of budgetHips Road Inc: $23,000 over 4y, 0.8% of budgetRagtag Film Society: $15,000 over 3y, 0.3% of budgetRed Hook Initiative: $10,000 over 1y, 0.2% of budgetMusicares Foundation Inc: $10,000 over 2y, 0.0% of budgetBack Porch Radio Broadcasting Inc: $5,000 over 1y, 0.3% of budgetWisconsin Foundation for School Music Inc: $5,000 over 1y, 6.0% of budgetTreehouse Inc: $1,500 over 1y, 0.1% of budgetBand of Angels Corp: $1,000 over 1y, 0.2% of budget

Tap a dot to name the grantee.

How this is measured
Share of budget is the funder’s grant in a year over the grantee’s total revenue that year, at its highest across the years we hold; revenue is from all sources. Only grantees confirmed against their own filings, whose grants do not exceed their revenue, are plotted: the largest 46.

Nonprofits that may fit its grantmaking

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.

Madison Gas and Electric Foundation IncWI32× affinity13 shared granteesties to 11 of 11Hover any node to trace its alignments.Compare side by side →

Open a dossier: Madison Gas and Electric Foundation Inc · Madison Community Foundation · Green Bay Packers Foundation · The Evjue Foundation Inc · Alliant Energy Foundation Inc · Herbert H Kohl Charities Inc · John W Thompson and Jane a Bartell Charitable Foun · Endres Manufacturing Foundation Inc · United Way of Dane County Inc · The Roots and Wings Foundation Inc · Hooper Corp Foundation · The Oscar Rennebohm 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.

Compare Sms Foundation Inc with peer funders

Warm introductions · Powered by PlinthPlus

How do I get to Sms Foundation Inc?

Find your warmest path to Sms Foundation Inc 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.

About Sms Foundation Inc

How much does Sms Foundation Inc give?
Sms Foundation Inc reported 61 grants totaling $481,000 in its FY2025 IRS filing. It funded between 50 and 59 organizations a year over FY2019 to FY2024.
What does Sms Foundation Inc fund?
By grant dollars over FY2019 to FY2025, its largest causes are Arts & Culture (23%), Education (20%), Health (8%).
Who are Sms Foundation Inc's largest grantees?
By total granted over FY2019 to FY2025: Hodan Community Services Inc ($310k), Second Harvest Foodbank of Southern Wi ($80k), Madison Public Schools Foundation Inc ($75k).
Does Sms Foundation Inc fund new organizations?
In FY2024, 3% of the organizations it funded were first-time grantees.
Does Sms Foundation Inc accept unsolicited applications?
Its most recent filing reports that it funds preselected organizations and does not take unsolicited requests. Check the foundation's own site before ruling it out.
Which funders back the same organizations as Sms Foundation Inc?
Its strongest co-funders, measured against what their size predicts, include Madison Gas and Electric Foundation Inc, Madison Community Foundation, Green Bay Packers Foundation.
Where is Sms Foundation Inc based?
Sms Foundation Inc is based in WI.

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 88 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 2025, released 2025. Filings run roughly 12 to 24 months behind; figures are dated accordingly.

Source object · view filing

Play a game based on Sms’ filings →

More from the funding graph