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The Champions Fund Inc at a glanceAlso receives grants: funding profile →

· Public charity

The Champions Fund Inc

Our mission is to simplify charitable giving amoung pro athletes and sport related charities for the benefit of their communities.

$92k
Granted FY2024still arriving
9
Grants FY2024still arriving
5
States reached
$13k
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, FY2021 to 2024.

Animals$241kPublic Benefit$15kEducation$10k
02FY2024 · 9 grants

Where the money goes

Grants by size, and the largest recipients.

How this is measured
The 9 grants below total $62,500, the rows itemized in this filing. The $92,020 headline is the total grant expense on the return; the other $29,520 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 · FY2024

  • Under $10k6 grants · $30k
  • $10k–50k3 grants · $33k
$5,000
Median grant
5
States reached
$140k
Total assets
Largest grants
RecipientAmount
PSPCA$12,500
SPCA WESTCHESTER$10,000
SURULUNA$10,000
PETS ALIVE$5,000
BELLA RUN EQUINE$5,000
EMANCIPET$5,000
BESS THE BOOK BUS$5,000
PROJECT MEOW$5,000
ANIMALS R FAMILY$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:

Dollar for dollar, its grants (FY21–24) land where the poverty rate runs at 11%, against an area that typically sits at 10%. 33% of its dollars go to grantees based in above-average-need neighborhoods. Its grants skew toward lower-need ZIPs.

area typical 10%WASECA COUNTY ANIMAL HUMANE SOCIETY: $5k → 8%Captain Erick Foster Memorial Ride: $8k → 7%PSPCA: $13k → 22%BELLA RUN EQUINE: $35k → 9%PETS ALIVE: $5k → 14%SURULUNA: $10k → 16%EMANCIPET: $5k → 10%BESS THE BOOK BUS: $5k → 13%Southern Souls Rescue: $7k → 7%Save Ohio Pets: $10k → 15%CAPTAIN ERICK FOSTER MEMORIAL RIDE: $8k → 7%PROJECT MEOW: $5k → 22%Bella Run Equine: $35k → 9%PETS ALIVE: $5k → 14%Suruluna: $6k → 16%EMANCIPET: $5k → 10%BESS THE BOOK BUS: $5k → 13%SOUTHERN SOULS RESCUE: $7k → 7%SAVE OHIO PETS: $6k → 15%SPCA Westchester: $20k → 9%SURULUNA: $6k → 16%Save Ohio Pets: $6k → 15%SPCA WESTCHESTER: $10k → 9%Suruluna: $5k → 16%SPCA WESTCHESTER: $10k → 9%SPCA Westchester: $10k → 9%Bella Run Equine: $7k → 9%BELLA RUN EQUINE: $5k → 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

MN
NY
OH
PA
CT
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.

90%of every dollar goes to organizations it has funded before.
$239k · 8 repeat orgs$28k to everyone else

8 repeat relationships: 6 still active in FY2024, 2 since wound down; 3 grantees were first funded in FY2024 (too recent to call).

How the two cohorts compare

Re-uppedFunded once

Organizations

8
1

Total granted

$239k
$5k

Still filing today

88%
0%

New vs renewed · share of each year

In FY2024, 64% of grant dollars renewed an existing relationship; $23k went to new ones.

50%100%’21’22’23’24
RenewedFirst-time

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

’21’22’23’24
AnimalsPublic BenefitEducationOther
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

  • BR
    Bella Run Equine
    4× · 2021–2024 · $82k · revenue +48%
  • SO
    SPCA OF WESTCHESTER INC
    4× · 2021–2024 · $50k · revenue +14%
  • CE
    CAPTAIN ERICK FOSTER MEMORIAL RIDE
    2× · 2022–2023 · $15k · revenue +36%

Funded once

  • WC
    WASECA COUNTY ANIMAL HUMANE SOCIETY
    one grant, 2023 · $5k
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
Shelters and Shelves Rescue Inc

foster based dog rescue working with shelters to save dogs

Animals
2
Boardwalk Pet Rescue

Pet rescue

Animals
3
Peppy Pet Rescue

rescue, rehabilitate, and rehome animals in need

Animals
4
4 Paws 4 Rescue

4 Paws 4 Rescue is an all foster home rescue. We are dedicated to saving animals that are in need, whether they be from high kill shelters, strays, abandoned animals, or owner surrenders. We strive to find suitable permanent homes for our…

Animals
5
Angies Dog House

We are dedicated to rescuig animals left homeless for whatever reason, animals in public shelters where they are at high risk of euthanasia, animals given up by their owners because of difficult circumstances, and those in danger of abuse…

Animals
6
Pets Without Partners

Find homes for homeless/abandoned dogs. Provide full vet car and housing while awaiting adoption,

Animals
7
Love & Paws Rescue Inc

Animal Rescue

Animals
8
Hope Fur Paws Rescue

To help injured, abandoned and unwanted animals. We provide food, vet care that includes heartworm prevention and spay or neuter services, shelter and anything else needed.

Animals
9
Apet Spca

APET SPCA operates a no-kill shelter for abandoned and surrendered animals. We hold adoption events and provide public education on spay & neuter and animal welfare.

Animals
10
Save a Pet Animal Rescue Inc

Save-A-Pet Animal Rescue believes it is their moral responsibility to protect and improve the lives of abused, abandoned and homeless animals and to place them in loving, permanent homes. They provide spay and neuter services and any…

Animals
11
Survivors Paws Animal Rescue Inc

Survivors Paws Animal Rescue Inc rescues dogs and cats from southern state kill shelters and off the streets to save them being euthanized. We also help contract by the pet population by spaying and neutering and educating the public on…

Animals
12
K911

To rescue abandoned and displaced cats and dogs, bring them back to health, provide all medical and prepare them for their new home

Animals
How this is measured
The grantee most central to the portfolio’s shape is Spca of Westchester Inc; the most unlike its peers is Bess the Book Bus 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

10 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. 10 of the 12 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)
1
Early backer (in before they grew)
9/10
Grantees still filing
7/10
Grew since first funded

Where the money sits, by cause and then by grantee

Bella Run Equine: $82,000 · AnimalsBella Run EquineSPCA OF WESTCHESTER INC: $50,000 · AnimalsSPCA OF WESTCHESTER INCSAVE OHIO PETS: $47,700 · AnimalsSAVE OHIO PETSSOUTHERN SOULS RESCUE: $14,000 · AnimalsSOUTHERN SOULS RESCUEPennsylvania Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals: $12,500 · AnimalsPennsylvania Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to AnimalsPETS ALIVE INC: $10,000 · AnimalsEMANCIPET INC: $10,000 · Animals+1 more: $5,000 · AnimalsCAPTAIN ERICK FOSTER MEMORIAL RIDE: $15,000 · Public BenefitBESS THE BOOK BUS INC: $10,000 · EducationWASECA COUNTY ANIMAL HUMANE SOCIETY: $5,000 · OtherANIMALSRFAMILY INC: $5,000 · Other
Animals$231,200Public Benefit$15,000Education$10,000Other$10,000

Each grantee by its size and the funder’s share of it; top left is load-bearing

25%50%75%100%$100k$1.0M$10Mgrantee revenue →↑ funder's share of their budgetBella Run Equine: $82,000 over 4y, 16% of budgetSPCA OF WESTCHESTER INC: $50,000 over 4y, 0.4% of budgetSAVE OHIO PETS: $47,700 over 4y, 20% of budgetCAPTAIN ERICK FOSTER MEMORIAL RIDE: $15,000 over 2y, 1.9% of budgetSOUTHERN SOULS RESCUE: $14,000 over 2y, 12% of budgetPennsylvania Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals: $12,500 over 1y, 0.1% of budgetBESS THE BOOK BUS INC: $10,000 over 2y, 1.2% of budgetPETS ALIVE INC: $10,000 over 2y, 0.7% of budgetEMANCIPET INC: $10,000 over 2y, 0.0% of budgetPROJECT MEOW: $5,000 over 1y, 1.8% 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.

Paypal Charitable Giv…Network for GoodThe Bank of America C…American Online Givin…Fidelity Investments …Amazonsmile Foundation
Paypal Charitable Giving FundDC10.5× affinity6 shared granteesties to 5 of 5Hover any node to trace its alignments.Compare side by side →

Open a dossier: Paypal Charitable Giving Fund · Network for Good · The Bank of America Charitable Foundation Inc · American Online Giving Foundation Inc · Fidelity Investments Charitable Gift Fund · 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 Champions Fund Inc funds: left to right is the share of its income from government, bottom to top the share from The Champions Fund Inc. 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%1%3%4%5%share of the org’s income from government →median 0%
  • Bess the Book Bus Inc: 0% of 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 · 0–5%
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 Champions Fund Inc?

Find your warmest path to The Champions Fund 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.

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 12 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 2024, released 2024. Filings run roughly 12 to 24 months behind; figures are dated accordingly.

Source object · view filing

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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