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The Comfort Family Foundation at a glance

· Private foundation

The Comfort 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.

$174k
Granted FY2024still arriving
16
Grants FY2024still arriving
3
States reached
$77k
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, FY2022 to 2024.

Education$131kPhilanthropy$83kArts & Culture$34kCommunity Improvement$25kHousing & Shelter$2kYouth Development$108International$100Human Services$81Other$0
02FY2024 · 16 grants

Where the money goes

Grants by size, and the largest recipients.

By grant size · FY2024

  • Under $10k12 grants · $18k
  • $10k–50k3 grants · $78k
  • $50k–250k1 grant · $77k
$207
Median grant
3
States reached
$323k
Total assets
Largest grants
RecipientAmount
CORNERSTONE CRAFTSMAN INC$76,945
ALEXANDRIA COUNTRY DAY SCHOOL INC$35,750
COMMUNITIES IN SCHOOLS OF NOVA INC$22,500
ACT FOR ALEXANDRIA$20,000
SPITFIRE CLUB$7,000
ALEXANDRIA SYMPHONY ORCHESTRA INC$5,750
VOLUNTEER ALEXANDRIA INC$5,000
GRAPEVINE GIVING FOUNDATION$207
CARPENTERS SHELTER INC$126
THE ROTARY FOUNDATION OF ROTARY INTERNATIONAL$100
ALIVE INC$81
ANIMAL WELFARE LEAGUE OF ALEXANDRIA VIRGINIA INCORPORATED$54
SPACE OF HER OWN INCORPORATED$54
WILDERNESS KIDS ALEXANDRIA INC$27
ARCADIA FOOD INC$27
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 (FY24–24, $81) land where the poverty rate runs at 9%, against an area that typically sits at 7%. 100% of those dollars go to grantees based in above-average-need neighborhoods. Most of its grants land in higher-need ZIPs.

area typical 7%ALIVE INC: $81 → 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.
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.

58%of every dollar goes to organizations it has funded before.
$143k · 4 repeat orgs$105k to everyone else

Grantees it renews have grown median revenue -3% since the first grant, against -18% for those funded once.

4 repeat relationships: 4 still active in FY2024, 0 since wound down; 9 grantees were first funded in FY2024 (too recent to call).

How the two cohorts compare

Re-uppedFunded once

Organizations

4
2

Total granted

$143k
$750

Median revenue growth · since first grant

-3%
-18%

Still filing today

100%
50%

New vs renewed · share of each year

In FY2024, 32% of grant dollars renewed an existing relationship; $105k went to new ones.

50%100%’22’23’24
RenewedFirst-time

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

’22’23’24
EducationArts & CulturePhilanthropyHousing & ShelterHuman ServicesAnimalsOther
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

  • AC
    ALEXANDRIA COUNTRY DAY SCHOOL INC
    3× · 2022–2024 · $107k · revenue -3%
  • SC
    SPITFIRE CLUB
    3× · 2022–2024 · $18k · revenue -21%
  • AS
    Alexandria Symphony Orchestra
    2× · 2023–2024 · $16k · revenue -57%

Funded once

  • ES
    Emerging Scholars Program Inc
    one grant, 2022 · $600 · revenue -18%
  • SO
    SYMPHONY ORCHESTRA LEAGUE OF ALEXANDRIA
    one grant, 2023 · $150 · revenue -63%
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
Alexandria Singers

The Alexandria Singers is a non-profit education and mixed voice choral group that performs predominately American popular music, including pop tunes, show tunes, golden oldies, country and jazz - the only one of its kind in the Washington…

Arts & Culture
2
Alexandria Chamber of Commerce

See Schedule O.Providing a forum for individuals, businesses and associations engaged in and concerned with the interest and welfare of the Alexandria area, formulating and advocating business positions on critical issues, representing its…

—
3
Alexandria Families for Safe Streets
—
4
Kids First Years

Our mission is to align, strengthen and sustain early childhood systems through collective leadership, equity, and innovation. to ensure every child in the City of Alexandria has a strong start in life.

Human Services
5
Alexandria Education Foundation

The Alexandria Education Foundation is comitted to support excellence in education and expanding learning opportunities in Alexandria Public Schools.

Education
6
Arlington Food Assistance Center

To provide dignified access to free groceries for qualified families in Arlington, VA and surrounding counties.

Food & Nutrition
7
Rebuilding Together Dc Alexandria

Rebuilding Together DC Alexandria is dedicated to repairing homes and strengthening communities, bringing together volunteers, community partners, and skilled professionals to ensure that low-income homeowners can live safely and with…

—
8
At Home in Alexandria

Be an advocate for older Alexandrians to live safe, active and connected lives.

Health
9
Alexandria Seaport Foundation

Through woodworking and boat building, the Alexandria Seaport Foundation builds workforce skills, self-worth, and community for disconnected youths. See Schedule O for additional information.

Arts & Culture
10
Alexandria Choral Society

The Alexandria Choral Society is a community choral ensemble. We perform several concerts each year, and also participate in community outreach events throughout the City of Alexandria and surrounding area.

Arts & Culture
11
Alexandria Tutoring Consortium Inc

To help Alexandria City Public Schools students read on or above grade level by the end of kindergarten, first, and second grade.

Education
12
Aia Virginia

AIA Virginia is the voice of the architecture profession in the Commonwealth of Virginia dedicated to serving its members, advancing their value, and improving the quality of the built environment.

—
How this is measured
The grantee most central to the portfolio’s shape is Cornerstone Craftsman Inc; the most unlike its peers is Arcadia Food 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

18 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.

Each grantee is resolved to its own IRS returns. Association, dated; never a causal claim.

1
Load-bearing (≥25% of a budget)
2
Early backer (in before they grew)
17/18
Grantees still filing
5/18
Grew since first funded

Where the money sits, by cause and then by grantee

ALEXANDRIA COUNTRY DAY SCHOOL INC: $107,431 · EducationALEXANDRIA COUNTRY DAY SCHOOL INC+2 more: $654 · EducationCORNERSTONE CRAFTSMAN INC: $76,945 · PhilanthropyCORNERSTONE CRAFTSMAN INCVolunteer Alexandria: $5,000 · PhilanthropyVolunteer Alexandria+1 more: $619 · PhilanthropyCOMMUNITIES IN SCHOOLS OF NOVA INC: $22,500 · OtherCOMMUNITIES IN S…Alexandria Symphony Orchestra: $16,250 · OtherAlexandria Symph…+5 more: $216 · OtherACT FOR ALEXANDRIA: $25,000 · Community ImprovementACT FOR AL…SPITFIRE CLUB: $17,822 · Arts & Culture+1 more: $150 · Arts & CultureCARPENTER'S SHELTER INC: $1,750 · Housing & ShelterTHE ROTARY FOUNDATION OF ROTARY INTERNATIONAL: $100 · International
Education$108,085Philanthropy$82,564Other$38,966Community Improvement$25,000Arts & Culture$17,972Housing & Shelter$1,750International$100

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 budgetALEXANDRIA COUNTRY DAY SCHOOL INC: $107,431 over 3y, 0.4% of budgetCORNERSTONE CRAFTSMAN INC: $76,945 over 1y, 63% of budgetACT FOR ALEXANDRIA: $25,000 over 2y, 0.4% of budgetCOMMUNITIES IN SCHOOLS OF NOVA INC: $22,500 over 1y, 0.8% of budgetSPITFIRE CLUB: $17,822 over 3y, 5.9% of budgetAlexandria Symphony Orchestra: $16,250 over 2y, 0.5% of budgetVolunteer Alexandria: $5,000 over 1y, 1.5% of budgetCARPENTER'S SHELTER INC: $1,750 over 3y, 0.0% of budgetGrapevine giving foundation: $619 over 2y, 0.0% of budgetEmerging Scholars Program Inc: $600 over 1y, 0.2% of budgetTHE ROTARY FOUNDATION OF ROTARY INTERNATIONAL: $100 over 1y, 0.0% of budgetALIVE Inc: $81 over 1y, 0.0% of budgetSPACE OF HER OWN INC: $54 over 1y, 0.0% of budgetAnimal Welfare League of Alexandria: $54 over 1y, 0.0% of budgetARCADIA FOOD INC: $27 over 1y, 0.0% of budgetAlexandria Police Boys Camp Inc: $27 over 1y, 0.0% of budgetWILDERNESS KIDS ALEXANDRIA INC: $27 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.

The Community Foundat…Act for AlexandriaDominion Energy Chari…Calvert and Sally Sim…Bruhn-Morris Family F…Kiwanis Foundation of…American Water Charit…Mightycause Charitabl…The Maple Tree FundWashington Forrest Fo…Philip L Graham Fund …Greater Washington Co…
The Community Foundation for Northern Virginia IncVA30× affinity12 shared granteesties to 11 of 11Hover any node to trace its alignments.Compare side by side →

Open a dossier: The Community Foundation for Northern Virginia Inc · Act for Alexandria · Dominion Energy Charitable Foundation · Calvert and Sally Simmons Foundation · Bruhn-Morris Family Foundation Inc · Kiwanis Foundation of Alexandria VA Inc · American Water Charitable Foundationinc · Mightycause Charitable Foundation · The Maple Tree Fund · Washington Forrest Foundation · Philip L Graham Fund co Graham Holdings Company · Greater Washington Community 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 Comfort Family Foundation funds: left to right is the share of its income from government, bottom to top the share from The Comfort Family Foundation. Bigger dots raise more.

2024
’20’21’22’23’24’25
no gov · 00%5%19%42%75%funder's share of their income ↑0%23%45%68%90%share of the org’s income from government →
    no gov moneyreceives it· size = income
    0get no government money at all
    8report 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 The Comfort Family Foundation?

    Find your warmest path to The Comfort 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 18 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 Comfort 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