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The Edward & Elizabeth Gardner Foundation at a glance

· Private foundation

The Edward & Elizabeth Gardner 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.

$225k
Granted FY2024still arriving
25
Grants FY2024still arriving
10
States reached
$26k
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, FY2020 to 2024.

Arts & Culture$231kEducation$167kHousing & Shelter$151kFood & Nutrition$94kHuman Services$62kInternational$55kHealth$50kEnvironment$20kOther$0
02FY2024 · 25 grants

Where the money goes

Grants by size, and the largest recipients.

By grant size · FY2024

  • Under $10k14 grants · $70k
  • $10k–50k11 grants · $155k
$8,000
Median grant
10
States reached
$1.9M
Total assets
Largest grants
RecipientAmount
HABITAT FOR HUMANITY OF GEORGETOWN SC$25,895
HERITAGE UNIVERSITY CHILD CARE SCHOLARSHIPS TO NEEDY STUDENTS$25,105
ASOLO REPERTORY THEATRE$15,000
THE RUBIN MUSEUM OF ART FOR HIMALAYAN ART$15,000
MEALS ON WHEELS PLUS OF MANATEE$12,000
TURNING POINTS$12,000
UW FOUNDATION ATTN JENNIFER AYDELOTT$10,000
RINGLING COLLEGE OF ART & DESIGN$10,000
COOPER UNION SCHOLARSHIP FUND$10,000
YWCA SEATTLE (KING) SNOHOMISH$10,000
PLANNED PARENTHOOD FEDERATION OF AMERICA INC$10,000
RUTGERS UNIVERSITY FOUNDATION$8,000
HOLT INTERNATIONAL CHILDREN'S SERVICES$8,000
ST JAMES ELEMENTARY PTA$8,000
BERKSHIRE SCHOOL CO PETER MULDER$6,000
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:

Its human-services grants (FY20–24, $35k) land where the poverty rate runs at 14%, against an area that typically sits at 10%. 100% of those dollars go to grantees based in above-average-need neighborhoods. Most of its grants land in higher-need ZIPs.

area typical 10%HOLT INTERNATIONAL CHILDREN'S SERVICES: $5k → 15%ABILITIES FIRST FOUNDATION INC: $7k → 12%HOLT INTERNATIONAL CHILDREN'S SERVICES: $10k → 15%HOLT INTERNATIONAL CHILDREN'S SERVICES: $8k → 15%HOLT INTERNATIONAL CHILDREN'S SERVICES: $5k → 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.

Which US states its grants reach

WA
IL
NY
MA
OR
OH
NJ
CA
MD
SC
DC
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.

80%of every dollar goes to organizations it has funded before.
$693k · 21 repeat orgs$177k to everyone else

Grantees it renews have grown median revenue +27% since the first grant, against +16% for those funded once.

21 repeat relationships: 15 still active in FY2024, 6 since wound down; 10 grantees were first funded in FY2024 (too recent to call).

How the two cohorts compare

Re-uppedFunded once

Organizations

21
10

Total granted

$693k
$98k

Median revenue growth · since first grant

+27%
+16%

Still filing today

71%
40%

New vs renewed · share of each year

In FY2024, 64% of grant dollars renewed an existing relationship; $80k went to new ones.

50%100%’20’21’22’23’24
RenewedFirst-time

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

’20’21’22’23’24
EducationArts & CultureInternationalFood & NutritionHuman ServicesHealthOther
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

  • AT
    ASOLO THEATRE INC
    5× · 2020–2024 · $65k · revenue +46%
  • RM
    RUBIN MUSEUM OF ART AKA THE SHELLEY & DONALD RUBIN CULTURAL TRUST
    5× · 2020–2024 · $60k · revenue +48%
  • RV
    RAINIER VALLEY FOOD BANK
    3× · 2020–2022 · $40k · revenue +29%

Funded once

  • EH
    ELMHURST HOSPITAL AUXILIARY
    one grant, 2020 · $30k
  • FLORIDA STUDIO THEATRE INCgraduated
    one grant, 2020 · $20k · revenue +88%
  • Meals on Wheels of Sarasota Inc
    one grant, 2020 · $10k · revenue -19%
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
The Trustees of Princeton University

Research, education and general - princeton university is a private not-for-profit, non-sectarian institution of higher learning with approximately 5,700 undergraduate and 3,300 graduate students. 2,500 students graduated in the 2024-2025…

Education
2
Boston Architectural College

The bac is committed to provide excellence in design education grounded in practice and accessible to diverse communities.

—
3
University of New Haven

The University of New Haven is a student-centered comprehensive university with an emphasis on excellence in liberal arts and professional education. Our mission is to prepare our students to lead purposeful and fulfilling lives in a…

Education
4
Point Park University

Provides innovative education in a dynamic urban setting. dedicated to academic excellence and community engagement,we prepare students of diverse backgrounds with the knowledge, skill,and experience to lead meaningful lives as informed…

—
5
Manhattanville University

To educate students to be ethical and socially responsible leaders in a global community.

Education
6
President and Fellows of Harvard College

Undergraduate, graduate, and professional education and research across a broad array of academic domains.

Education
7
University Associates in Obstetrics and Gynecology University Faculty Pract ice Corporation

Provide clinical instruction to and supervision of medical school students, interns and residents and, incident thereto, rendering professional services.

Health
8
Fordham University

Fordham university, the jesuit university of new york, is committed to the discovery of wisdom and the transmission of learning, through research and through education of the highest quality. for more information, see schedule o.

Education
9
Wilson College

Wilson college empowers students to be confident and critical thinkers, creative visionaries, effective communicators, honorable leaders, and agents of justice.

Education
10
Furman University

The primary mission of furman as a liberal arts institution is to provide a distinctive education in fine arts, humanities, social sciences, mathematics and the sciences, as well as selected professional disciplines.

Education
11
Manhattan University

Manhattan university is an independent catholic instituion of higher learning that embraces qualified men and women of all faiths, cultures, and traditions. the mission of manhattan university is to provide a contemporary, person-centered…

Education
12
Westminster College

The mission of westminster college is to help students develop competencies, commitments, and characteristics which have distinguished human beings at their best. see continuation on schedule o.the liberal arts tradition is the foundation…

Education
How this is measured
The grantee most central to the portfolio’s shape is West Side Center for Community Life; the most unlike its peers is John Simon Guggenheim Memorial Foundation. 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

26 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. 26 of the 41 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)
26/26
Grantees still filing
14/26
Grew since first funded

Where the money sits, by cause and then by grantee

HABITAT FOR HUMANITY OF GEORGETOWN: $63,000 · OtherHABITAT FOR HUMANITY OF GEORGETOWNHERITAGE UNIVERSITY CHILD CARE SCHOLARSHIPS TO NEEDY STUDENTS: $55,105 · OtherHERITAGE UNIVERSITY CHILD CARE SCHOLARSHIPS TO NEEDY STUDENTSYWCA SEATTLE (KING) SNOHOMISH: $55,000 · OtherYWCA SEATTLE (KING) SNOHOMISHSEATTLE SYMPHONY: $45,000 · OtherSEATTLE SYMPHONYRAINIER VALLEY FOOD BANK: $40,000 · OtherRAINIER VALLEY FOOD BANKELMHURST HOSPITAL AUXILIARY: $30,000 · OtherELMHURST HOSPITAL AUXILIARYHABITAT FOR HUMANITY OF GEORGETOWN SC: $25,895 · OtherCOOPER UNION SCHOLARSHIP FUND: $22,000 · OtherMEDECINS SANS FRONTIERES USA INC: $25,000 · OtherENVIRONMENTAL DEFENSE FUND INCORPORATED: $20,000 · Other+15 more: $105,500 · Other+15 moreASOLO THEATRE INC: $65,000 · Arts & CultureASOLO THEATRE …FLORIDA STUDIO THEATRE INC: $20,000 · Arts & CultureFLORIDA STUDIO…PRINCETON PRO MUSICA: $14,500 · Arts & CulturePRINCETON PRO …THE BARACK OBAMA FOUNDATION: $8,000 · Arts & CultureTHE BARACK OBA…RINGLING COLLEGE OF ART AND DESIGN INC: $40,000 · EducationRINGLING CO…Oberlin College: $19,000 · EducationOberlin Col…THE COOPER UNION FOR THE ADVANCEMENT OF SCIENCE & ART: $10,000 · EducationTHE COOPER …ST JAMES ELEMENTARY PTA: $8,000 · EducationST JAMES EL…RUTGERS UNIVERSITY FOUNDATION: $8,000 · EducationRUTGERS UNI…MACHIK CORP: $4,000 · EducationRUBIN MUSEUM OF ART AKA THE SHELLEY & DONALD RUBIN CULTURAL TRUST: $60,000 · PhilanthropyCommunity Coalition on Homelessness dba Turning Points: $52,000 · Housing & ShelterMEALS ON WHEELS PLUS OF MANATEE INC: $32,000 · Food & NutritionTASK Inc Trenton Area Soup Kitchen Inc: $8,000 · Food & NutritionHOLT INTERNATIONAL CHILDREN'S SERVICES INC: $28,000 · Human ServicesAbilities First Foundation Inc: $7,000 · Human Services
Other$486,500Arts & Culture$107,500Education$89,000Philanthropy$60,000Housing & Shelter$52,000Food & Nutrition$40,000Human Services$35,000

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 budgetASOLO THEATRE INC: $65,000 over 5y, 0.1% of budgetRUBIN MUSEUM OF ART AKA THE SHELLEY & DONALD RUBIN CULTURAL TRUST: $60,000 over 5y, 0.2% of budgetCommunity Coalition on Homelessness dba Turning Points: $52,000 over 5y, 0.2% of budgetRAINIER VALLEY FOOD BANK: $40,000 over 3y, 0.4% of budgetRINGLING COLLEGE OF ART AND DESIGN INC: $40,000 over 4y, 0.0% of budgetMEALS ON WHEELS PLUS OF MANATEE INC: $32,000 over 4y, 0.1% of budgetHOLT INTERNATIONAL CHILDREN'S SERVICES INC: $28,000 over 4y, 0.0% of budgetMEDECINS SANS FRONTIERES USA INC: $25,000 over 4y, 0.0% of budgetENVIRONMENTAL DEFENSE FUND INCORPORATED: $20,000 over 3y, 0.0% of budgetFLORIDA STUDIO THEATRE INC: $20,000 over 1y, 0.2% of budgetOberlin College: $19,000 over 4y, 0.0% of budgetJOHN SIMON GUGGENHEIM MEMORIAL FOUNDATION: $16,000 over 3y, 0.0% of budgetPRINCETON PRO MUSICA: $14,500 over 4y, 1.8% of budgetMeals on Wheels of Sarasota Inc: $10,000 over 1y, 0.5% of budgetPLANNED PARENTHOOD FEDERATION OF AMERICA INC: $10,000 over 1y, 0.0% of budgetTHE COOPER UNION FOR THE ADVANCEMENT OF SCIENCE & ART: $10,000 over 2y, 0.0% of budgetTHE BARACK OBAMA FOUNDATION: $8,000 over 3y, 0.0% of budgetTASK Inc Trenton Area Soup Kitchen Inc: $8,000 over 4y, 0.1% of budgetST JAMES ELEMENTARY PTA: $8,000 over 1y, 8.0% of budgetRUTGERS UNIVERSITY FOUNDATION: $8,000 over 1y, 0.0% of budgetAbilities First Foundation Inc: $7,000 over 1y, 0.3% of budgetWEST SIDE CENTER FOR COMMUNITY LIFE: $4,000 over 1y, 0.0% of budgetMACHIK CORP: $4,000 over 1y, 1.4% of budgetWORLD CENTRAL KITCHEN INC: $2,000 over 1y, 0.0% of budgetFORCE-FACING OUR RISK OF CANCER EMPOWERED INC: $2,000 over 1y, 0.1% of budgetUnited States Association for UNHCR: $2,000 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.

Shell USA Company Fou…The Pfizer Foundation…Raymond James Charita…National Philanthropi…The Bank of America C…Vanguard Charitable E…Donor Advised Charita…American Online Givin…Fidelity Investments …Amazonsmile Foundation
Shell USA Company FoundationTX11.6× affinity4 shared granteesties to 9 of 9Hover any node to trace its alignments.Compare side by side →

Open a dossier: Shell USA Company Foundation · The Pfizer Foundation Inc · Raymond James Charitable Endowment Fund · National Philanthropic Trust · The Bank of America Charitable Foundation Inc · Vanguard Charitable Endowment Program · Donor Advised Charitable Giving 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 Edward & Elizabeth Gardner Foundation funds: left to right is the share of its income from government, bottom to top the share from The Edward & Elizabeth Gardner Foundation. Bigger dots raise more.

2024
’20’21’22’23’24’25
no gov · 10%1%3%6%10%funder's share of their income ↑0%6%13%19%25%share of the org’s income from government →median 0%
  • Force-Facing Our Risk of Cancer Empowered Inc: 15% of income from government
  • Princeton Pro Musica: 14% of income from government
  • Meals On Wheels Plus of Manatee Inc: 0% of income from government
  • Rutgers University Foundation: 0% of income from government
  • Florida Studio Theatre Inc: 0% of income from government
no gov moneyreceives it· size = income
1get no government money at all
10report government grants on their 990 we could not trace to a source (not plotted)
0rely on government for over half their income
⤢ axis zoomed · 0–25%
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 Edward & Elizabeth Gardner Foundation?

Find your warmest path to The Edward & Elizabeth Gardner 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 41 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 Edward & Elizabeth Gardner’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