Skip to content
The Cole Family Foundation at a glance

· Private foundation

The Cole Family Foundation

Its FY2021 filing reports that it funds preselected organizations and did not take unsolicited requests; check the foundation's own site before ruling it out.

$5k
Granted FY2021
15
Grants FY2021
1
States reached
$1k
Largest
01What it fundsRead
02The needRead
03Its granteesRead
04Its fieldRead
05Through PlinthRead
01What it funds
0194% classified

What it funded, over time

Every grant placed by its stated purpose and the recipient’s mission, by year, FY2020 to 2021.

Human Services$4kEducation$2kAnimals$1kFood & Nutrition$1kEnvironment$650Housing & Shelter$600Other$0
02FY2021 · 15 grants

Where the money goes

Grants by size, and the largest recipients.

$250
Median grant
1
States reached
$0
Total assets
Largest grants
RecipientAmount
OKLAHOMA METHODIST MANOR$1,000
THE UNIVERSITY OF TULSA$500
THE UNIVERSITY OF OKLAHOMA FOUNDATION$500
LIFE SENIOR SERVICES$350
TULSA DAY CENTER FOR THE HOMELESS$350
COMMUNITY FOOD BANK OF NE OKLAHOMA$350
HUMANE SOCIETY OF TULSA$250
MEALS ON WHEELS OF METRO TULSA$250
ANIMAL AID OF TULSA$250
TULSA SPCA$200
CLAREHOUSE$100
Individual grant recipient$100
UP WITH TREES$100
JOHN 316 MISSION$100
NATURE CONSERVANCY$100
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 (FY20–21, $3k) land where the poverty rate runs at 15%, against an area that typically sits at 12%. 100% of those dollars go to grantees based in above-average-need neighborhoods. Most of its grants land in higher-need ZIPs.

area typical 12%CLAREHOUSE: $100 → 15%CLAREHOUSE: $100 → 15%OKLAHOMA METHODIST MANOR: $2k → 15%OKLAHOMA METHODIST MANOR: $1k → 15%LIFE SENIOR SERVICES: $350 → 15%LIFE SENIOR SERVICES: $250 → 15%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.
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.

97%of every dollar goes to organizations it has funded before.
$9k · 14 repeat orgs$250 to everyone else

14 repeat relationships: 14 still active in FY2021, 0 since wound down.

How the two cohorts compare

Re-uppedFunded once

Organizations

14
1

Total granted

$9k
$250

Still filing today

86%
0%

New vs renewed · share of each year

In FY2021, 100% of grant dollars renewed an existing relationship; $0 went to new ones.

50%100%’20’21
RenewedFirst-time

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

’20’21
Human ServicesAnimalsEducationHousing & ShelterFood & NutritionOther
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

  • TW
    TRINITY WOODS INC
    2× · 2020–2021 · $3k · revenue +27%
  • The University of Tulsa
    2× · 2020–2021 · $1k · revenue +16%
  • LIFE SENIOR SERVICES INC
    2× · 2020–2021 · $600 · revenue +10%

Funded once

  • TB
    TULSA BOTANIC GARDENS
    one grant, 2020 · $250
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
Tulsa Area United Way

The tulsa area united way unites people and resources to improve lives and strengthen our communities.

—
2
Animal Rescue Foundation Inc

Animal rescue foundation inc (arf) rescues homeless dogs and cats in the tulsa area and helps them find loving homes. we do this by rescuing homelss animals out of area shelters, accepting owner surrendered pets, placing them in foster…

Animals
3
Tulsa Zoo Management Inc

Connecting, caring, advocating for wildlife, people, and wild places.

Animals
4
Tulsa Volunteers of America Senior Housing Inc

Provides housing to elderly persons under section 202 of the national housing act under agreement with the department of hud.

—
5
Goodwill Industries of Tulsa Inc

Goodwill empowers people to reach their full potential through work opportunities, training, and support services.

Employment
6
Tulsa Advocates for the Protection of Children

To improve the lives of children and youth in oklahoma's child welfare system by providing resources and building community.

Crime & Legal
7
Oklahoma City Beautiful Inc

OKC Beautiful's mission is to lead beautification and environmental stewardship through collaboration, education and advocacy. We have been doing this for over 50 years through volunteers and contributing donors. This directly impacts the…

Environment
8
Tulsa Neighborhood Networks Inc

Provide the poor of the city of tulsa, oklahoma an opportunity to improve their quality of life through guidance and training in the areas of education, employment, family skills, healthcare, housing, socialization and spirituality.

Community Improvement
9
Tulsa Regional Chamber (Fka Metropolitan Tulsa Chamber of Commerce)

The tulsa regional chamber transforms the tulsa region by attracting and retaining employers, talent and tourism for long-term prosperity.

—
10
Tulsa Garden Center

To serve as horticultural headquarters with diverse educational opportunities for our community, and to provide exceptional and unique guest experiences in Woodward Park

Environment
11
Ronald McDonald House Charities of Tulsa

Ronald McDonald House Charities of Tulsa provides essential services that remove barriers, strengthen families, and promote healing when children need healthcare.

—
12
Okmulgee County Humane Society

The Mission Statement for the Okmulgee County Humane Society is to enrich the lives of dogs and cats and provide support to the people who love them when in need - strengthen the overall human-animal bond.

Unclassified
How this is measured
The grantee most central to the portfolio’s shape is Tulsa Day Center Inc; the most unlike its peers is The Nature Conservancy. 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

13 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. 13 of the 16 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)
2
Early backer (in before they grew)
13/13
Grantees still filing
7/13
Grew since first funded

Where the money sits, by cause and then by grantee

TRINITY WOODS INC: $2,500 · Human ServicesTRINITY WOODS INCLIFE SENIOR SERVICES INC: $600 · Human ServicesLIFE SENIOR SERVICES INCJOHN 316 MISSION: $350 · Human ServicesJOHN 316 MISSIONClarehouse Inc: $200 · Human ServicesClarehouse IncThe University of Tulsa: $1,000 · EducationThe University of TulsaUNIVERSITY OF OKLAHOMA FOUNDATION INC: $1,000 · EducationUNIVERSITY OF OKLAHOMA …COMMUNITY FOOD BANK OF NE OKLAHOMA: $600 · OtherCOMMUNITY FOOD BA…TULSA BOTANIC GARDENS: $250 · OtherTULSA BOTANIC GAR…THE NATURE CONSERVANCY: $200 · OtherTHE NATURE CONSER…UP WITH TREES INC: $200 · OtherUP WITH TREES INCIndividual grant recipient: $200 · OtherIndividual grant …ANIMAL AID OF TULSA INC: $500 · AnimalsANIMAL AID OF T…THE HUMANE SOCIETY OF TULSA: $500 · AnimalsTHE HUMANE SOCI…Tulsa SPCA: $300 · AnimalsTulsa SPCATULSA DAY CENTER INC: $600 · Housing & ShelterMeals on Wheels of Metro Tulsa Inc: $500 · Food & Nutrition
Human Services$3,650Education$2,000Other$1,450Animals$1,300Housing & Shelter$600Food & Nutrition$500

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

25%50%75%100%$10M$100Mgrantee revenue →↑ funder's share of their budgetTRINITY WOODS INC: $2,500 over 2y, 0.0% of budgetThe University of Tulsa: $1,000 over 2y, 0.0% of budgetUNIVERSITY OF OKLAHOMA FOUNDATION INC: $1,000 over 2y, 0.0% of budgetTULSA DAY CENTER INC: $600 over 2y, 0.0% of budgetLIFE SENIOR SERVICES INC: $600 over 2y, 0.0% of budgetANIMAL AID OF TULSA INC: $500 over 2y, 0.1% of budgetMeals on Wheels of Metro Tulsa Inc: $500 over 2y, 0.0% of budgetTulsa SPCA: $300 over 2y, 0.0% of budgetTHE NATURE CONSERVANCY: $200 over 2y, 0.0% of budgetUP WITH TREES INC: $200 over 2y, 0.0% of budgetClarehouse Inc: $200 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.

Tulsa Community Found…Waters Charitable Fou…Zarrow Families Found…The Hardesty Family F…Paul L Sisk and Helen…Sanford P & Irene F B…The Gelvin FoundationOne Gas Foundation IncGeorge Kaiser Family …The Anne and Henry Za…Flint Family Foundati…Grace & Franklin Bern…
Tulsa Community FoundationOK18.9× affinity7 shared granteesties to 11 of 11Hover any node to trace its alignments.Compare side by side →

Open a dossier: Tulsa Community Foundation · Waters Charitable Foundation · Zarrow Families Foundation · The Hardesty Family Foundation Inc · Paul L Sisk and Helen I Sisk Charitable Trust · Sanford P & Irene F Burnstein Foundation Irene F Burnstein Co-Trustee · The Gelvin Foundation · One Gas Foundation Inc · George Kaiser Family Foundation · The Anne and Henry Zarrow Foundation · Flint Family Foundation · Grace & Franklin Bernsen 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 Cole Family Foundation funds: left to right is the share of its income from government, bottom to top the share from The Cole Family Foundation. Bigger dots raise more.

2024
’20’21’22’23’24’25
no gov · 70%0%1%3%5%funder's share of their income ↑0%25%50%75%100%share of the org’s income from government →median 9%
  • Up With Trees Inc: 100% of income from government
  • Tulsa Day Center Inc: 9% of income from government
  • The University of Tulsa: 5% of income from government
no gov moneyreceives it· size = income
7get no government money at all
2report government grants on their 990 we could not trace to a source (not plotted)
1rely on government for over half their income
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 Cole Family Foundation?

Find your warmest path to The Cole 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 16 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 2021, released 2021. Filings run roughly 12 to 24 months behind; figures are dated accordingly.

Source object · view filing

Play a game based on Cole 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