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The Birkey Family Foundation at a glance

· Private foundation

The Birkey Family 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.

$151k
Granted FY2024still arriving
15
Grants FY2024still arriving
5
States reached
$110k
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$464kPhilanthropy$183kReligion$47kHuman Services$42kArts & Culture$31kEnvironment$5kInternational$3kFood & Nutrition$1kOther$0
02FY2024 · 15 grants

Where the money goes

Grants by size, and the largest recipients.

By grant size · FY2024

  • Under $10k12 grants · $21k
  • $10k–50k2 grants · $20k
  • $50k–250k1 grant · $110k
$1,000
Median grant
5
States reached
$2.0M
Total assets
Largest grants
RecipientAmount
Coe College$110,000
Heartland Symphony Orchestra$10,000
Lakes Area Music Festival$10,000
Itasca Community College Foundation$5,000
United Way 1000$5,000
Grand Rapids Community Foundation$5,000
Community Presbyterian Church$1,000
International Rescue Committee$1,000
Doctors Without Borders$1,000
Questscope$500
Lakes Area Habitat for Humanity$500
Individual grant recipient$500
Alight$500
Southern Poverty Law Center$500
Initiative Foundation$500
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 (FY17–17, $42k) land where the poverty rate runs at 11%, against an area that typically sits at 9%. 100% of those dollars go to grantees based in above-average-need neighborhoods. Most of its grants land in higher-need ZIPs.

area typical 9%Itasca County Family YMCA: $42k → 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

MN
WI
NY
IA
OH
AR
NC
AL
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.

76%of every dollar goes to organizations it has funded before.
$563k · 8 repeat orgs$180k to everyone else

8 repeat relationships: 4 still active in FY2024, 4 since wound down; 10 grantees were first funded in FY2024 (too recent to call).

How the two cohorts compare

Re-uppedFunded once

Organizations

8
8

Total granted

$563k
$150k

Median revenue growth · since first grant

+51%
+59%

Still filing today

50%
38%

New vs renewed · share of each year

In FY2024, 80% of grant dollars renewed an existing relationship; $30k 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
InternationalEducationPhilanthropyArts & CultureHuman ServicesCrime & LegalOther
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

  • CC
    COE COLLEGE
    8× · 2017–2024 · $366k · revenue +19%
  • IC
    Itasca Community College Foundation
    2× · 2023–2024 · $6k · revenue +53%
  • SA
    Swim Across America Inc
    2× · 2017–2018 · $1k · revenue +51%

Funded once

  • I1
    ISD 129
    one grant, 2021 · $90k
  • IC
    ITASCA COUNTY FAMILY YMCA INCgraduated
    one grant, 2017 · $42k · revenue +59%
  • NM
    Northern Minnesota Railroad Heritage Association
    one grant, 2018 · $10k
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
International Aids Vaccine Initiative Inc

A nonprofit scientific research organization that develops vaccines and antibodies for hiv, tuberculosis, and emerging infectious diseases.

International
2
Midwest Dairy Association

Midwest dairy works with others to give consumers an excellent dairy experience increasing sales, fostering innovation, and inspiring consumer confidence of dairy products and practices.

—
3
Union Health System

To serve our communities by provding innovative and compassionate healthcare.

Health
4
Central Indiana Corporate Partnership Inc

Central indiana corporate partnership (cicp) is an alliance of indiana's business and research university leaders coming together to foster long-term prosperity for the region. cicp's mission is to transform the economy of indiana in order…

Community Improvement
5
Community Shares of Minnesota

The mission of community shares of minnesota is to create a fair, just and equitable minnesota. community shares of minnesota accomplishes its mission by: supporting collective action to eliminate root causes of inequality and injustice;…

—
6
Minnesota Medical Association

To be the leading voice of medicine to make minnesota the healthiest state and the best place to practice.

—
7
Minnesota State University Student Association Inc

Led by minnesota state university students, we are the inclusive voice for all future, current, and former students. we actively work to represent and support minnesota state university students and advocate at a campus, state, and federal…

Education
8
The Common Application Inc

The common application is a not-for-profit membership organization of over 1,100 colleges and universities across the globe committed to access, equity, and integrity in the college admission process. every year, over 1.5 million students…

Education
9
African Development Center

Grow businesses, build wealth and increase reinvestement in the african communities of minnesota

Human Services
10
Grand View University

Engages, equips and empowers learners to explore their vocations, fulfill their potential and serve the world.

Education
11
Lake Forest Academy

Lake forest academy strives to embody in its practices - and to cultivate in its students -excellence of character, scholarship, citizenship, and responsibility.

Education
12
United Way of Ne Minnesota

United way of northeastern minnesota invests in nonprofits, programs, and collaborations that equip and empower, creating opportunities for people to thrive in our communities.

—
How this is measured
The grantee most central to the portfolio’s shape is Itasca County Family Ymca Inc; the most unlike its peers is International Rescue Committee Inc. 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

17 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. 17 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)
3
Early backer (in before they grew)
17/17
Grantees still filing
11/17
Grew since first funded

Where the money sits, by cause and then by grantee

COE COLLEGE: $366,000 · EducationCOE COLLEGE+2 more: $7,000 · EducationItasca Community Foundation: $102,000 · OtherItasca Community FoundationISD 129: $90,000 · OtherISD 129Community Presbyterian Church: $47,000 · OtherCommunity Presbyterian ChurchGrand Rapids Community Foundation: $15,000 · OtherHEARTLAND SYMPHONY ORCHESTRA: $10,000 · OtherNorthern Minnesota Railroad Heritage Association: $10,000 · Other+8 more: $14,038 · OtherITASCA COUNTY FAMILY YMCA INC: $42,000 · Human ServicesGRAND RAPIDS AREA COMMUNITY FOUNDATION: $35,000 · Community Improvement+1 more: $500 · Community ImprovementUNITED WAY OF 1000 LAKES: $25,020 · PhilanthropySwim Across America Inc: $1,000 · PhilanthropyLAKES AREA MUSIC FESTIVAL: $10,000 · Arts & CultureFILMNORTH: $1,000 · Arts & CultureMEDECINS SANS FRONTIERES USA INC: $1,000 · InternationalInternational Rescue Committee INC: $1,000 · InternationalALIGHT: $500 · InternationalQUESTSCOPE LTD: $500 · International
Education$373,000Other$288,038Human Services$42,000Community Improvement$35,500Philanthropy$26,020Arts & Culture$11,000International$3,000

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 budgetCOE COLLEGE: $366,000 over 8y, 0.1% of budgetITASCA COUNTY FAMILY YMCA INC: $42,000 over 1y, 1.5% of budgetGRAND RAPIDS AREA COMMUNITY FOUNDATION: $35,000 over 1y, 0.8% of budgetUNITED WAY OF 1000 LAKES: $25,020 over 3y, 2.9% of budgetHEARTLAND SYMPHONY ORCHESTRA: $10,000 over 1y, 15% of budgetLAKES AREA MUSIC FESTIVAL: $10,000 over 1y, 0.9% of budgetItasca Community College Foundation: $6,000 over 2y, 0.7% of budgetMEDECINS SANS FRONTIERES USA INC: $1,000 over 1y, 0.0% of budgetInternational Rescue Committee INC: $1,000 over 1y, 0.0% of budgetVALLEY CHRISTIAN SCHOOL INC THOMPSON: $1,000 over 1y, 0.1% of budgetFILMNORTH: $1,000 over 1y, 0.2% of budgetSwim Across America Inc: $1,000 over 2y, 0.0% of budgetALIGHT: $500 over 1y, 0.0% of budgetSOUTHERN POVERTY LAW CENTER INC: $500 over 1y, 0.0% of budgetQUESTSCOPE LTD: $500 over 1y, 0.1% of budgetINITIATIVE FOUNDATION: $500 over 1y, 0.0% of budgetLAKES AREA HABITAT FOR HUMANITY: $500 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.

C K Blandin FoundationSaint Paul & Minnesot…CommunitygivingMinnesota Power Found…Minnesota Community F…The Minneapolis Found…National Philanthropi…Natl Christian Charit…Fidelity Investments …American Online Givin…Donor Advised Charita…Amazonsmile Foundation
C K Blandin FoundationMN19.8× affinity7 shared granteesties to 11 of 11Hover any node to trace its alignments.Compare side by side →

Open a dossier: C K Blandin Foundation · Saint Paul & Minnesota Foundation · Communitygiving · Minnesota Power Foundation · Minnesota Community Foundation · The Minneapolis Foundation · National Philanthropic Trust · Natl Christian Charitable Fdn Inc · Fidelity Investments Charitable Gift Fund · American Online Giving Foundation Inc · Donor Advised Charitable Giving Inc · 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 The Birkey Family Foundation funds: left to right is the share of its income from government, bottom to top the share from The Birkey Family Foundation. Bigger dots raise more.

2024
’20’21’22’23’24’25
no gov · 00%1%4%8%15%funder's share of their income ↑0%13%25%38%50%share of the org’s income from government →
    no gov moneyreceives it· size = income
    0get no government money at all
    1report government grants on their 990 we could not trace to a source (not plotted)
    0rely on government for over half their income
    ⤢ axis zoomed · 0–50%
    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 The Birkey Family Foundation?

    Find your warmest path to The Birkey Family 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 Birkey Family’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