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The Brooke Foundation at a glance

· Private foundation

The Brooke 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.

$26k
Granted FY2023
7
Grants FY2023
4
States reached
$12k
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 2023.

Environment$276kPhilanthropy$268kEducation$31kArts & Culture$23kHuman Services$23kReligion$12kAnimals$2kYouth Development$1kOther$0
02FY2023 · 7 grants

Where the money goes

Grants by size, and the largest recipients.

By grant size · FY2023

  • Under $10k6 grants · $14k
  • $10k–50k1 grant · $12k
$2,500
Median grant
4
States reached
$1.8M
Total assets
Largest grants
RecipientAmount
ALYS STEPHENS CENTER$12,250
FRIENDS OF HURRICANE CREEK$5,000
WHITBY SCHOOL INC$2,500
ALABAMA WALDORF SCHOOL$2,500
CHURCH TONIGHT MINISTRIES$1,500
MISSION WOLF$1,250
GIRLSPRING INC$1,000
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:

Dollar for dollar, its grants (FY17–23) land where the poverty rate runs at 14%, against an area that typically sits at 12%. 72% of its dollars go to grantees based in above-average-need neighborhoods. Most of its grants land in higher-need ZIPs.

area typical 12%NORTHEASTERN MINNESOTANS FOR WILDLIFE: $1k → 8%TEACH FOR AMERICA - ALABAMA: $5k → 17%COOSA RIVERKEEPER: $10k → 7%ALABAMA OUTDOOR EDUCATION UNITED APPEAL FUND: $3k → 12%UNITED WAY OF CENTRAL ALABAMA: $81k → 16%FRIENDS OF HURRICANE CREEK: $10k → 17%WHITBY SCHOOL INC: $3k → 9%CHURCH TONIGHT MINISTRIES: $3k → 12%MISSION WOLF: $1k → 11%RENAISSANCE CHARITABLE FOUNDATION INC: $188k → 16%SOUTHERN ENVIRONMENTAL LAW CENTER: $151k → 8%HEART OF AFRICA: $250 → 12%TEACH FOR AMERICA - ALABAMA: $5k → 17%ALABAMA SYMPHONY ORCHESTRA: $4k → 7%BLACK WARRIOR RIVERKEEPER: $81k → 16%FRIENDS OF HURRICANE CREEK: $10k → 17%CHURCH TONIGHT MINISTRIES: $2k → 12%HEART OF AFRICA: $250 → 12%ALABAMA SYMPHONIC ASSOCIATION: $18k → 16%THE ALTAMONT SCHOOL: $5k → 16%THE ALTAMONT SCHOOL: $5k → 16%FRIENDS OF HURRICANE CREEK: $5k → 16%ALABAMA SYMPHONIC ASSOCIATION: $1k → 16%THE ALTAMONT SCHOOL: $500 → 16%GREATER BIRMINGHAM MINISTRIES: $5k → 16%MARANATHAN ACADEMY: $5k → 16%ALABAMA WALDORF SCHOOL: $3k → 16%JEWISH FAMILY SERVICES: $10k → 16%GASP: $5k → 16%ALYS STEPHENS CENTER: $12k → 16%ALABAMA RIVERS ALLIANCE: $5k → 16%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
NY
IN
CT
CO
KY
VA
TN
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.

16%of every dollar goes to organizations it has funded before.
$70k · 6 repeat orgs$379k to everyone else

6 repeat relationships: 2 still active in FY2023, 4 since wound down; 5 grantees were first funded in FY2023 (too recent to call).

How the two cohorts compare

Re-uppedFunded once

Organizations

6
12

Total granted

$70k
$360k

Median revenue growth · since first grant

+25%
+46%

Still filing today

50%
58%

New vs renewed · share of each year

In FY2023, 25% of grant dollars renewed an existing relationship; $20k went to new ones.

50%100%’17’18’19’20’23
RenewedFirst-time

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

’17’18’19’20’23
EnvironmentEducationPhilanthropyArts & CultureInternationalAnimalsOther
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

  • FO
    FRIENDS OF HURRICANE CREEK INC
    3× · 2017–2023 · $25k
  • AS
    ALABAMA SYMPHONIC ASSOCIATION INC
    2× · 2017–2018 · $19k · revenue -8%
  • TA
    THE ALTAMONT SCHOOL
    3× · 2017–2019 · $11k · revenue +25%

Funded once

  • SOUTHERN ENVIRONMENTAL LAW CENTERgraduated
    one grant, 2020 · $151k · revenue +46%
  • UNITED WAY OF CENTRAL ALABAMA INC
    one grant, 2020 · $81k · revenue +21%
  • BW
    BLACK WARRIOR RIVERKEEPER INCgraduated
    one grant, 2020 · $81k · revenue +41%
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
Rivanna Conservation Alliance

Working with the community to conserve the rivanna river and its watershed through water quality monitoring, education, restoration, and stewardship.

Environment
2
Alabama Rural Electric Association of Cooperatives

A statewide trade association which serves as a resource through which its electric cooperative members are provided services for the continuation and advancement of the rural electrification program in Alabama.

—
3
Cahaba River Society Inc

Our mission to restore and protect the Cahaba River watershed and its rich diversity of life. The diverse lives depending on the river include the Cahaba's exceptional freshwater biodiversity and also the diverse residents of Birmingham,…

Community Improvement
4
Alabama Alliance Network

The alabama alliance netowrk works to strengthen and enhance alabama's civic society through research, education, and grantmaking

Public Benefit
5
Mobile Baykeeper Inc

Provide citizens a means to protect the beauty, health and heritage of the Mobile Bay Watershed, Alabamas waterways and coastal communities.

Environment
6
Alabama Bankers Association Inc

To promote the preservation and continued development of commercial banking in alabama.

—
7
American Water Works Association Alabama-Mississippi Section

Advancement and dissemination of knowledge concerning the water works industry.

Public Benefit
8
America's Watershed Initiative

America's watershed initiative serves as a trusted voice that brings partners together and champions sound science to secure a future in which the rivers and people of the mississippi river watershed thrive.

Human Services
9
Waterstep Inc

Waterstep focuses on providing safe water, sanitation, and hygiene solutions to communities in need around the world. its mission is rooted in the belief that safe water is a basic human right and a critical foundation for health,…

Youth Development
10
Aqua-Africa Inc

Transform east african communities by providing access to clean well water and water systems.

International
11
American River Conservancy

To conduct land conservation, stewardship and education in the upper american river and upper cosumnes river watersheds

Environment
12
Amazon Conservation Association

Amazon conservation unites science, people, and innovation to protect the amazon - the greatest wild forest on earth. as guardians of the most iconic forest on the planet, we bring together the power of the latest science and technology…

Environment
How this is measured
The grantee most central to the portfolio’s shape is Black Warrior Riverkeeper Inc; the most unlike its peers is Mission Wolf. 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

14 grantees tracked through their own filings, 2017–2026.

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 2026, not grant rows in a single year, so this will not match the grant count on the cover. 14 of the 24 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)
4
Early backer (in before they grew)
14/14
Grantees still filing
12/14
Grew since first funded

Where the money sits, by cause and then by grantee

Renaissance Charitable Foundation Inc: $187,886 · PhilanthropyRenaissance Charitable Foundation IncUNITED WAY OF CENTRAL ALABAMA INC: $80,521 · PhilanthropyUNITED WAY OF CENTRAL ALABAMA INCSOUTHERN ENVIRONMENTAL LAW CENTER: $150,880 · OtherSOUTHERN ENVIRONMENTAL LAW CENTERFRIENDS OF HURRICANE CREEK INC: $25,000 · OtherFRIENDS OF HURRICANE CREEK INCALYS STEPHENS CENTER: $12,250 · OtherJEWISH FAMILY SERVICES: $10,384 · OtherTEACH FOR AMERICA - ALABAMA: $10,278 · Other+7 more: $24,973 · Other+7 moreBLACK WARRIOR RIVERKEEPER INC: $80,521 · EnvironmentBLACK WARRIOR RIV…COOSA RIVERKEEPER INC: $10,000 · EnvironmentCOOSA RIVERKEEPER…Gasp: $5,000 · EnvironmentAlabama Rivers Alliance Inc: $4,500 · EnvironmentALABAMA SYMPHONIC ASSOCIATION INC: $19,000 · Arts & CultureTHE ALTAMONT SCHOOL: $10,500 · EducationTHE WHITBY SCHOOL INCORPORATED: $2,500 · EducationMISSION WOLF: $1,250 · AnimalsGIRLSPRING INC: $1,000 · Youth DevelopmentHEART OF AFRICIA INC: $500 · International
Philanthropy$268,407Other$233,765Environment$100,021Arts & Culture$19,000Education$13,000Animals$1,250Youth Development$1,000International$500

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 budgetRenaissance Charitable Foundation Inc: $187,886 over 1y, 0.0% of budgetSOUTHERN ENVIRONMENTAL LAW CENTER: $150,880 over 1y, 0.4% of budgetUNITED WAY OF CENTRAL ALABAMA INC: $80,521 over 1y, 0.1% of budgetBLACK WARRIOR RIVERKEEPER INC: $80,521 over 1y, 17% of budgetALABAMA SYMPHONIC ASSOCIATION INC: $19,000 over 2y, 0.2% of budgetTHE ALTAMONT SCHOOL: $10,500 over 3y, 0.1% of budgetCOOSA RIVERKEEPER INC: $10,000 over 1y, 5.9% of budgetGasp: $5,000 over 1y, 2.7% of budgetAlabama Rivers Alliance Inc: $4,500 over 1y, 1.4% of budgetTHE WHITBY SCHOOL INCORPORATED: $2,500 over 1y, 0.0% of budgetMISSION WOLF: $1,250 over 1y, 0.2% of budgetGIRLSPRING INC: $1,000 over 1y, 0.5% of budgetHEART OF AFRICIA INC: $500 over 2y, 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.

Stephens FoundationThe Community Foundat…Arlington Partners Ch…The Daniel Foundation…Renaissance Charitabl…Natl Christian Charit…Vanguard Charitable E…American Endowment Fo…Morgan Stanley Global…National Philanthropi…Fidelity Investments …American Online Givin…
Stephens FoundationAL26.3× affinity10 shared granteesties to 11 of 11Hover any node to trace its alignments.Compare side by side →

Open a dossier: Stephens Foundation · The Community Foundation of Greater Birmingham · Arlington Partners Charitable Foundation Inc · The Daniel Foundation of Alabama · Renaissance Charitable Foundation Inc · Natl Christian Charitable Fdn Inc · Vanguard Charitable Endowment Program · American Endowment Foundation · Morgan Stanley Global Impact Funding Trust Inc · National Philanthropic Trust · Fidelity Investments Charitable Gift Fund · American Online Giving 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.

How much its grantees rely on government

Each dot is one organization The Brooke Foundation funds: left to right is the share of its income from government, bottom to top the share from The Brooke Foundation. Bigger dots raise more.

2024
’20’21’22’23’24’25
no gov · 00%1%5%11%20%funder's share of their income ↑0%3%5%8%10%share of the org’s income from government →
    no gov moneyreceives it· size = income
    0get no government money at all
    2report government grants on their 990 we could not trace to a source (not plotted)
    0rely on government for over half their income
    ⤢ axis zoomed · 0–10%
    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 Brooke Foundation?

    Find your warmest path to The Brooke 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 24 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 2023, released 2023. Filings run roughly 12 to 24 months behind; figures are dated accordingly.

    Possibly out of date. A more recent filing (FY2025) is on record and reports no grant expense, so the figures above are from FY2023, the most recent year this funder made grants.

    Source object · view filing

    Play a game based on Brooke’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