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Sonance Foundation at a glance

· Private foundation

Sonance Foundation

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.

$406k
Granted FY2025still arriving
38
Grants FY2025still arriving
7
States reached
$137k
Largest
01What it fundsRead
02The needRead
03Its granteesRead
04Its fieldRead
05Through PlinthRead
01What it funds
0199% classified

What it funded, over time

Every grant placed by its stated purpose and the recipient’s mission, by year, FY2020 to 2024.

Animals$1.2MYouth Development$849kHuman Services$351kReligion$328kFood & Nutrition$241kPhilanthropy$172kHealth$167kInternational$159kOther$0
02FY2025 · 38 grants

Where the money goes

Grants by size, and the largest recipients.

By grant size · FY2025

  • Under $10k28 grants · $67k
  • $10k–50k8 grants · $106k
  • $50k–250k2 grants · $233k
$3,021
Median grant
7
States reached
$685k
Total assets
Largest grants
RecipientAmount
SISTEMA PARA EL DESAROLLO - DIF$136,831
SONANCE CARES$96,521
CRUZ ROJA MEXICANA IAP$15,274
PIERPRIDE$15,000
MISSION PRESERVATION FOUNDATION$15,000
BOYS & GIRLS CLUB WESTERN NV$14,736
SC HOME TOUR$12,500
SURFRIDER FOUNDATION$12,200
RANGER ROAD$10,996
FAMILY ASSISTANCE MINISTRIES$10,000
AMERICAN RED CROSS$9,862
BOYS & GIRLS CLUB SOUTH COAST$5,521
WELLNESS & PREVENTION CENTER$5,362
FISH FOR LIFE$5,000
PET PROJECT FOUNDATION$5,000
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 (FY20–25, $1.3M) land where the poverty rate runs at 11%, against an area that typically sits at 10%. 95% of those dollars go to grantees based in above-average-need neighborhoods. Most of its grants land in higher-need ZIPs.

area typical 10%ELEPHANT COOPERATION: $1.1M → 11%RANGER ROAD: $11k → 12%ISLAND HARVEST FOOD BANK: $58k → 7%THE DETECTIVE RAFAEL RAMOS FOUNDATION: $3k → 13%JONATHAN'S PLACE: $532 → 14%ONE SIMPLE WISH: $500 → 11%HOOKS FOR HEROES: $3k → 6%GIRLS WHO CODE: $3k → 17%ELEPHANT COOPERATION: $35k → 11%ELEPHANT COOPERATION: $10k → 11%ELEPHANT COOPERATION: $9k → 11%FISH FOR LIFE: $5k → 11%ELEPHANT COOPERATION: $1k → 11%ELEPHANT COOPERATION: $921 → 11%SAN CLEMENTE MILITARY FAMILY OUTREACH: $1k → 10%SAN CLEMENTE MILITARY FAMILY OUTREACH: $1k → 10%SAN CLEMENTE MILITARY FAMILY OUTREACH: $1k → 10%SAN CLEMENTE MILITARY FAMILY OUTREACH: $750 → 10%PROJECT SELF-SUFFICIENCY: $2k → 10%LAURA'S HOUSE: $2k → 10%FALLEN FIREFIGHTER RELIEF FUND: $5k → 10%CALIFORNIA YOUTH SERVICES: $6k → 10%CALIFORNIA YOUTH SERVICES: $4k → 10%CALIFORNIA YOUTH SERVICES: $4k → 10%CALIFORNIA YOUTH SERVICES: $4k → 10%CALIFORNIA YOUTH SERVICES: $460 → 10%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

VT
NH
MN
IL
WI
NY
NV
IN
NJ
CT
CA
CO
VA
MD
AZ
KS
TN
NC
DC
HI
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.
04

Where the work is directed

The same grants placed two ways: where each recipient sits, and where its stated purpose sends the money.

About 14% of Sonance Foundation’s grant dollars are earmarked for a different county than the recipient’s own address. By recipient address, 65% of the giving stays in CA; by stated purpose, 51%.

Sonance Foundationlessmore of its giving
Placed by recipient address · 22% directed abroad (not shown)
How this is measured
Recipient view: each grant at its grantee’s ZIP, mapped to a county. Directed view: each grant at the county its stated purpose names, falling back to the recipient’s county when the purpose names no place; US grants only. A county shows only if it carries the top 95% of that view’s dollars. Purposes are read from the funder’s own 990 grant descriptions.
03Its grantees
repeat funding

Who it funds again

Organizations funded in more than one year, against those funded once.

56%of every dollar goes to organizations it has funded before.
$2.3M · 38 repeat orgs$1.8M to everyone else

Grantees it renews have grown median revenue +30% since the first grant, against +25% for those funded once.

38 repeat relationships: 18 still active in FY2025, 20 since wound down; 20 grantees were first funded in FY2025 (too recent to call).

How the two cohorts compare

Re-uppedFunded once

Organizations

38
91

Total granted

$2.3M
$1.6M

Median revenue growth · since first grant

+30%
+25%

Still filing today

79%
60%

New vs renewed · share of each year

In FY2025, 45% of grant dollars renewed an existing relationship; $224k went to new ones.

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

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

’20’21’22’23’24’25
Human ServicesHealthPhilanthropyYouth DevelopmentEducationArts & CultureOther
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

  • EC
    ELEPHANT COOPERATION
    6× · 2020–2025 · $1.2M · revenue +103% · 42% of their budget
  • BA
    BOYS AND GIRLS CLUB OF THE SOUTH COAST AREA
    4× · 2020–2023 · $536k · revenue +69% · 26% of their budget
  • TS
    THE SURFRIDER FOUNDATION
    6× · 2020–2025 · $86k · revenue +15%

Funded once

  • RT
    ROLLING THUNDER CHARITIES INC
    one grant, 2021 · $178k · revenue +10%
  • IC
    IMMACULATE CONCEPTION CENTER INC
    one grant, 2021 · $176k
  • CB
    CROSSING BOUNDARIES INC
    one grant, 2022 · $100k · revenue -60%
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
League of California Community Foundations

The league of california community foundations promotes and strengthens community foundations in california. through collaboration and shared learning among member foundations and building partnerships with private and public entities, we…

Philanthropy
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
The California Channel

To distribute public affairs and other educational information in order to create an electronic bridge between californians and their public officials, and, in the process educate a new generation of voting citizens and civic leaders who…

—
4
Boys & Girls Club of Laguna Beach

To enable all young people, especially those who need us most, to realize their full potential as healthy, caring, and responsible adults.

Youth Development
5
Community Foundation Santa Cruz County

To promote philanthropy to make santa cruz county a better place to live, now and in the future.we bring together people, ideas, and resources to inspire philanthropy and accomplish great things.

Philanthropy
6
Conservation Society of California

Through management of oakland zoo, the conservation society of california deepens connection with animals, saves wildlife, and inspires champions for the natural world.

Animals
7
Santa Catalina Island Conservancy

The catalina island conservancy protects and stewards 88% of catalina island. more than 42,000 acres of wildlands, coves and coastal habitats. founded to preserve the island's natural resources, the conservancy advances a mission rooted in…

—
8
Association of California School Administrators

The association serves its members by creating resources that enable california school administrators to develop and apply creative leadership and management skills and in turn, improve the educational process for all students.

—
9
Save the Sea Turtles International Dba One Ocean Conservation

We empower communities around the globe to protect sea turtles, corals, sharks, and the vital marine species and ecosystems they call home through hands-on conservation, education, and sustainable solutions. our team leads reef and beach…

Animals
10
For the Children

To transform lives and communities by providing an array of programs, all directed toward changing the lives of children in the foster care system aimed to prevent academic failure, drug abuse, teen pregnancy, sex trafficking,…

Recreation & Sports
11
California Coast Credit Union

California coast credit union (credit union) is a cooperative, organized for the purpose of promoting thrift and savings among its members, creating a source of credit for them at rates of interest set by the board of directors, and…

—
12
Long Beach State Foundation

The foundation seeks, secures and manages private support for california state university, long beach. (see schedule o)as the philanthropic foundation for the university, all donations in support of our students, faculty, programs and…

Education
How this is measured
The grantee most central to the portfolio’s shape is Olive Crest; the most unlike its peers is Aoki Foundation. Resemblance is measured on each organization’s own IRS 990 mission text; it reflects how work is described, not its quality or impact.
05the grantee network

99 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. 99 of the 152 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.

2
Load-bearing (≥25% of a budget)
26
Early backer (in before they grew)
97/99
Grantees still filing
61/99
Grew since first funded

Where the money sits, by cause and then by grantee

BOYS AND GIRLS CLUB OF THE SOUTH COAST AREA: $535,831 · OtherBOYS AND GIRLS CLUB OF THE SOUTH COAST AREAIMMACULATE CONCEPTION CENTER INC: $176,003 · OtherIMMACULATE CONCEPTION CENTER INCSISTEMA PARA EL DESAROLLO - DIF: $136,831 · OtherSISTEMA PARA EL DESAROLLO - DIFFIGHT2FEED-CHICAGO: $64,971 · OtherTHE SURFRIDER FOUNDATION: $85,732 · Other+90 more: $823,137 · Other+90 moreELEPHANT COOPERATION: $1,167,518 · Human ServicesELEPHANT COOPERATIONISLAND HARVEST LTD: $58,160 · Human Services+16 more: $74,006 · Human Services+16 moreSONANCE CARES INC: $121,042 · PhilanthropySONANCE C…THE COMMUNITY FOUNDATION OF OYSTER BAY INC: $117,190 · PhilanthropyTHE COMMU…FAMILY ASSISTANCE MINISTRIES: $59,412 · PhilanthropyFAMILY AS…IN-N-OUT BURGERS FOUNDATION: $20,000 · PhilanthropyIN-N-OUT …+8 more: $42,750 · Philanthropy+8 moreBOYS AND GIRLS CLUB OF BURLINGTON INC: $89,404 · Youth DevelopmentBoys and Girls Club of Bisbee Arizona: $56,412 · Youth DevelopmentBOYS & GIRLS CLUBS OF AMERICA: $50,000 · Youth DevelopmentBOYS & GIRLS CLUBS OF CAPISTRANO VALLEY: $32,553 · Youth DevelopmentBOYS AND GIRLS CLUB OF HAWTHORNE INC: $31,089 · Youth Development+4 more: $9,708 · Youth DevelopmentCROSSING BOUNDARIES INC: $100,000 · InternationalDIRECT RELIEF: $50,000 · InternationalGLOBAL JEWISH ASSISTANCE & RELIEF NETWORK: $31,654 · InternationalWOMEN FOR WOMEN INTERNATIONAL: $12,500 · International+1 more: $5,000 · InternationalROLLING THUNDER CHARITIES INC: $178,388 · Public Benefit+2 more: $5,755 · Public BenefitHOAG HOSPITAL FOUNDATION: $100,000 · HealthWELLNESS AND PREVENTION FOUNDATION: $15,858 · HealthCYSTIC FIBROSIS FOUNDATION: $11,739 · HealthMOMS ORANGE COUNTY: $9,800 · HealthCHOC FOUNDATION: $9,187 · Health+5 more: $9,310 · Health
Other$1,822,505Human Services$1,299,684Philanthropy$360,394Youth Development$269,166International$199,154Public Benefit$184,143Health$155,894

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 budgetELEPHANT COOPERATION: $1,167,518 over 6y, 42% of budgetBOYS AND GIRLS CLUB OF THE SOUTH COAST AREA: $535,831 over 4y, 26% of budgetSONANCE CARES INC: $121,042 over 3y, 1.6% of budgetTHE COMMUNITY FOUNDATION OF OYSTER BAY INC: $117,190 over 1y, 14% of budgetCROSSING BOUNDARIES INC: $100,000 over 1y, 21% of budgetHOAG HOSPITAL FOUNDATION: $100,000 over 1y, 0.2% of budgetBOYS AND GIRLS CLUB OF BURLINGTON INC: $89,404 over 1y, 3.5% of budgetTHE SURFRIDER FOUNDATION: $85,732 over 6y, 0.2% of budgetFAMILY ASSISTANCE MINISTRIES: $59,412 over 6y, 0.1% of budgetISLAND HARVEST LTD: $58,160 over 1y, 0.1% of budgetBoys and Girls Club of Bisbee Arizona: $56,412 over 1y, 6.1% of budgetDIRECT RELIEF: $50,000 over 1y, 0.0% of budgetVICTORY FORMATION FOUNDATION INC: $50,000 over 1y, 21% of budgetBOYS & GIRLS CLUBS OF AMERICA: $50,000 over 1y, 0.0% of budgetPET PROJECT FOUNDATION INC: $35,979 over 5y, 5.9% of budgetBOYS & GIRLS CLUBS OF CAPISTRANO VALLEY: $32,553 over 2y, 0.9% of budgetCITY HARVEST INC: $31,684 over 1y, 0.0% of budgetGLOBAL JEWISH ASSISTANCE & RELIEF NETWORK: $31,654 over 1y, 2.0% of budgetPHIPPS NEIGHBORHOODS INC: $29,190 over 1y, 0.1% of budgetFOOD BANK OF SOUTH JERSEY INC: $28,818 over 1y, 0.1% of budgetFRANKLIN TOWNSHIP FOOD BANK: $28,577 over 1y, 0.5% of budgetFRIENDS OF THE SEA LIONS INC DBA PACIFIC MARINE MAMMAL CENTER: $26,530 over 1y, 0.5% of budgetTILLY'S LIFE CENTER: $25,445 over 4y, 0.6% of budgetMISSION PRESERVATION FOUNDATION: $20,320 over 2y, 0.6% of budgetIN-N-OUT BURGERS FOUNDATION: $20,000 over 1y, 0.4% of budgetLAS PALMAS ELEMENTARY PTA: $20,000 over 2y, 5.1% of budgetCalifornia Youth Services: $18,066 over 5y, 0.9% of budgetWELLNESS AND PREVENTION FOUNDATION: $15,858 over 3y, 0.6% of budgetPIERPRIDE: $15,000 over 1y, 3.4% of budgetSC HOME TOUR: $12,500 over 1y, 13% of budgetWOMEN FOR WOMEN INTERNATIONAL: $12,500 over 2y, 0.0% of budgetCYSTIC FIBROSIS FOUNDATION: $11,739 over 2y, 0.0% of budgetRANGER ROAD: $10,996 over 1y, 2.1% of budgetUNCONDITIONAL INC: $10,100 over 1y, 3.5% of budgetSurf and Turf Therapy: $10,000 over 1y, 2.5% of budgetAmerican National Red Cross & Its Constituent Chapters and Branches: $9,862 over 1y, 0.0% of budgetMOMS ORANGE COUNTY: $9,800 over 4y, 0.1% of budgetCHOC FOUNDATION: $9,187 over 1y, 0.0% of budgetMARINE TOYS FOR TOTS FOUNDATION: $8,470 over 3y, 0.0% of budgetCALIFORNIA COMMUNITY FOUNDATION: $8,450 over 1y, 0.0% of budgetHAWAII COMMUNITY FOUNDATION: $8,300 over 1y, 0.0% of budgetTHE LIFT FOUNDATION: $8,032 over 1y, 3.6% of budgetASSISTANCE LEAGUE OF CAPISTRANO VALLEY INC: $8,000 over 3y, 1.1% of budgetFOR AUTISTIC KIDS FOUNDATION: $6,700 over 2y, 0.3% of budgetKATHYS HOUSE INC: $6,400 over 1y, 1.4% of budgetRAINBOW SANDALS FOUNDATION: $6,278 over 3y, 0.1% of budgetSTALLION BOOSTER CLUB INC: $5,851 over 1y, 0.4% of budgetECOLOGY CENTER: $5,223 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.

Orange County Communi…Farmers & Merchants B…Edwards Lifesciences …Argyros Family Founda…Sonance Cares IncSamueli FoundationO L Halsell FoundationOneocCalifornia Foundation…Boys & Girls Clubs of…McBETH FOUNDATIONHoag Memorial Hospita…
Orange County Community FoundationCA39.2× affinity21 shared granteesties to 11 of 11Hover any node to trace its alignments.Compare side by side →

Open a dossier: Orange County Community Foundation · Farmers & Merchants Bank Foundation · Edwards Lifesciences Foundation · Argyros Family Foundation · Sonance Cares Inc · Samueli Foundation · O L Halsell Foundation · Oneoc · California Foundation for Stronger Communities · Boys & Girls Clubs of America · McBETH FOUNDATION · Hoag Memorial Hospital Presbyterian

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

2024
’20’21’22’23’24’25
no gov · 30%6%25%56%100%funder's share of their income ↑0%23%45%68%90%share of the org’s income from government →median 16%
  • Food Bank of South Jersey Inc: 30% of income from government
  • Boys and Girls Club of Burlington Inc: 16% of income from government
  • Shatterproof a Nonprofit Corporation: 2% of income from government
no gov moneyreceives it· size = income
3get no government money at all
23report government grants on their 990 we could not trace to a source (not plotted)
0rely on government for over half their income
⤢ axis zoomed · 0–90%
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 Sonance Foundation?

Find your warmest path to Sonance 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 152 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 Sonance’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