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The Edward H Butler Foundation at a glance

· Private foundation

The Edward H Butler Foundation

Its FY2025 filing reports that it accepted unsolicited grant applications.

$270k
Granted FY2025still arriving
16
Grants FY2025still arriving
3
States reached
$50k
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 2025.

Education$400kArts & Culture$293kHealth$129kInternational$116kAnimals$107kYouth Development$105kEnvironment$105kHuman Services$50kOther$0
02FY2025 · 16 grants

Where the money goes

Grants by size, and the largest recipients.

By grant size · FY2025

  • Under $10k5 grants · $25k
  • $10k–50k9 grants · $145k
  • $50k–250k2 grants · $100k
$10,000
Median grant
3
States reached
$2.8M
Total assets
Largest grants
RecipientAmount
ELMWOOD FRANKLIN SCHOOL$50,000
ONE SYMPHONY CIRCLE$50,000
BUFFALO CENTER FOR ARTS & TECHNOLOGY$40,000
WATER COMPASS$30,000
BOYS & GIRLS CLUB OF BUFFALO$15,000
ASSEMBLY HOUSE 150$10,000
THE TOOL LIBRARY$10,000
WEST SIDE COMMUNITY SERVICES$10,000
LEVELING THE PLAYING FIELD$10,000
GRASSROOTS GARDEN WNY$10,000
GIGI'S PLAYHOUSE$10,000
SPCA OF ERIE COUNTY$5,000
716 SQUASH INC$5,000
OLD FORGE FIRE DEPARTMENT$5,000
THE ZOOLOGICAL SOCIETY OF BUFFALO FOUNDATION INC$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:

Its human-services grants (FY24–24, $5k) land where the poverty rate runs at 13%, 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%BUFFALO CITY MISSION: $5k → 13%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.

89%of every dollar goes to organizations it has funded before.
$1.3M · 32 repeat orgs$157k to everyone else

32 repeat relationships: 13 still active in FY2025, 19 since wound down; 3 grantees were first funded in FY2025 (too recent to call).

How the two cohorts compare

Re-uppedFunded once

Organizations

32
11

Total granted

$1.3M
$97k

Median revenue growth · since first grant

+28%
+37%

Still filing today

72%
73%

New vs renewed · share of each year

In FY2025, 78% of grant dollars renewed an existing relationship; $60k went to new ones.

50%100%’20’21’22’23’24’25
RenewedFirst-time

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

’20’21’22’23’24’25
Arts & CultureEducationHealthCommunity ImprovementPublic Safety & DisasterRecreation & SportsOther
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

  • ES
    ELMWOOD-FRANKLIN SCHOOL INC
    6× · 2020–2025 · $266k · revenue +28%
  • WS
    WEST SIDE COMMUNITY SERVICES INC
    4× · 2022–2025 · $47k · revenue +128%
  • BT
    BUFFALO THERAPEUTIC RIDING CENTER INC
    2× · 2023–2024 · $31k · revenue +21%

Funded once

  • EM
    EXPLORE & MORE A CHILDREN'S MUSEUMgraduated
    one grant, 2020 · $34k · revenue +37%
  • BA
    BUFFALO ACADEMY OF SCIENCE CHARTER SCHOOLgraduated
    one grant, 2020 · $11k · revenue +128%
  • TL
    THE LIBRARY OF AMERICAN LANDSCAPE HISTORY INC
    one grant, 2022 · $10k · revenue -33%
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
Rochester Academy of Science Charter School

Rochester academy of science charter school (the school) is a not-for-profit education corporation that operates kindergarten through 12th grades and is dedicated to providing quality education to a diverse body of students in the…

Education
2
Zoological Society of Buffalo Inc

Building community; creating connections; saving wildlife through a collaboration for change: the buffalo zoo will be a center of conservation excellence, providing leadership to secure a future where wildlife thrives. we embody our…

Animals
3
Ralph Wilson Park Conservancy Inc

The organization was formed for the specific purpose of operating, maintaining and protecting parks and public spaces in the city of buffalo, new york, including but not limited to parks and public spaces owned or operated by the city of…

Recreation & Sports
4
Richardson Architecture Center Inc

The lipsey architecture center buffalo (the center) explores excellence in architecture and city planning as demonstrated by buffalo's outstanding architectural heritage. located in the richardson olmstead complex, the center will provide…

Arts & Culture
5
Buffalo Collegiate Charter School

With unrelenting determination and a commitment to excellence, buffalo collegiate charter school educated students in grades 4 through 12 to graduate from the college of their choice and serve as our next generation of leaders. the…

—
6
Buffalo Maritime Center Inc

The buffalo maritime center's mission is to provide everyone the opportunity to experience the hoy of being on the water, to learn maritime history, and to achieve higher levels of craftmanship.

Recreation & Sports
7
Buffalo Commons Charter School

Establish and operate a charter school to prepare our diverse community of students to succeed academically and professionally regardless of background and circumstance.

Education
8
Better Parks Buffalo Inc

Create new public golf and recreation amenities in the city of buffalo; assist in the restoration of frederick law olmsted's south park arboretum; and construct a new education center for underserved, minority youth.

—
9
Buffalo Lighthouse Association Inc

Preservation, protection and restoration of the buffalo new york lighthouses and to maintain and develop the area surrounding them in accordance with their historical significance.

—
10
Buffalo Niagara River Land Trust Inc

To acquire, remediate, and steward lands along wny's waterfronts prioritizing public access.

Environment
11
State University College At Buffalo Child Day Care Development Facility Inc

To provide quality, affordable child care for the families of students, faculty and staff of the college, as well as families of other new york state employees and community members.

—
12
Buffalo Institute for Contemporary Art

The Buffalo Institiute for Contemporary Art (Bica) is a art and educational project for Buffalo, NY. Through Innovative exhibitions, cross-discipplinary skills-based programming, and arts ecology development, bica mission is to break down…

Arts & Culture
How this is measured
The grantee most central to the portfolio’s shape is Richardson Center Corporation; the most unlike its peers is Water Compass 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

33 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. 33 of the 46 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.

1
Load-bearing (≥25% of a budget)
9
Early backer (in before they grew)
33/33
Grantees still filing
23/33
Grew since first funded

Where the money sits, by cause and then by grantee

BUFFALO AND ERIE COUNTY BOTANICAL GARDENS: $100,000 · OtherBUFFALO AND ERIE COUNTY BOTANICAL GARDENSNARDIN ACADEMY - MONTESSORI EARLY CHILDHOOD PROGRAM: $70,000 · OtherNARDIN ACADEMY - MONTESSORI EARLY CHILDHOOD P…BUFFALO ZOOLOGICAL GARDENS: $57,000 · OtherBUFFALO ZOOLOGICAL GARDENSBUFFALO ARTS AND TECHNOLOGY CENTER INC: $40,000 · OtherBUFFALO ARTS AND TECHNOLOGY CENTER INCGRASSROOTS GARDEN WNY: $32,500 · OtherGRASSROOTS GARDEN WNYOLD FORGE FIRE DEPARTMENT: $20,000 · OtherBUFFALO STATE COLLEGE BUTLER LIBRARY: $20,000 · OtherSPCA OF ERIE COUNTY: $20,000 · OtherHAUPTMAN-WOODWARD MEDICAL RESEARCH INSTITUTE INC: $20,000 · Other716 Squash Inc: $30,000 · OtherZOOLOGICAL SOCIETY OF BUFFALO FOUNDATION INC: $30,000 · OtherOLD FORGE VOLUNTEER AMBULANCE CORPS INC: $20,000 · OtherROSWELL PARK ALLIANCE FOUNDATION: $20,000 · Other+13 more: $99,000 · Other+13 moreELMWOOD-FRANKLIN SCHOOL INC: $266,000 · EducationELMWOOD-FRANKLIN SCHOOL…BUFFALO ACADEMY OF SCIENCE CHARTER SCHOOL: $11,000 · EducationTHE SUMMIT CENTER INC: $10,000 · Education+2 more: $13,000 · EducationOne Symphony Circle Inc: $150,000 · Arts & CultureOne Symphony Circle I…EXPLORE & MORE A CHILDREN'S MUSEUM: $34,000 · Arts & CultureEXPLORE & MORE A CHIL…ADIRONDACK HISTORICAL ASSOCIATION: $25,000 · Arts & CultureADIRONDACK HISTORICAL…ASSEMBLY HOUSE 150 INC: $20,000 · Arts & CultureASSEMBLY HOUSE 150 IN…BUFFALO SOCIETY OF NATURAL SCIENCES: $16,000 · Arts & CultureBUFFALO SOCIETY OF NA…THE LIBRARY OF AMERICAN LANDSCAPE HISTORY INC: $10,000 · Arts & Culture+2 more: $12,500 · Arts & CultureWATER COMPASS INC: $116,000 · InternationalWATER COM…WEST SIDE COMMUNITY SERVICES INC: $47,000 · Community ImprovementThe Tool Library Inc: $20,000 · Community ImprovementRICHARDSON CENTER CORPORATION: $15,000 · Community ImprovementBOYS & GIRLS CLUBS OF BUFFALO INC: $55,000 · Youth DevelopmentBUFFALO THERAPEUTIC RIDING CENTER INC: $31,000 · Recreation & SportsLEVELING THE PLAYING FIELD INC: $10,000 · Recreation & Sports
Other$578,500Education$300,000Arts & Culture$267,500International$116,000Community Improvement$82,000Youth Development$55,000Recreation & Sports$41,000

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 budgetELMWOOD-FRANKLIN SCHOOL INC: $266,000 over 6y, 0.6% of budgetOne Symphony Circle Inc: $150,000 over 3y, 82% of budgetWATER COMPASS INC: $116,000 over 5y, 15% of budgetBOYS & GIRLS CLUBS OF BUFFALO INC: $55,000 over 4y, 0.5% of budgetWEST SIDE COMMUNITY SERVICES INC: $47,000 over 4y, 3.1% of budgetBUFFALO ARTS AND TECHNOLOGY CENTER INC: $40,000 over 1y, 1.7% of budgetEXPLORE & MORE A CHILDREN'S MUSEUM: $34,000 over 1y, 1.8% of budgetBUFFALO THERAPEUTIC RIDING CENTER INC: $31,000 over 2y, 1.6% of budget716 Squash Inc: $30,000 over 6y, 1.6% of budgetZOOLOGICAL SOCIETY OF BUFFALO FOUNDATION INC: $30,000 over 6y, 2.8% of budgetADIRONDACK HISTORICAL ASSOCIATION: $25,000 over 5y, 0.1% of budgetOLD FORGE VOLUNTEER AMBULANCE CORPS INC: $20,000 over 4y, 0.9% of budgetROSWELL PARK ALLIANCE FOUNDATION: $20,000 over 4y, 0.0% of budgetHAUPTMAN-WOODWARD MEDICAL RESEARCH INSTITUTE INC: $20,000 over 4y, 0.1% of budgetASSEMBLY HOUSE 150 INC: $20,000 over 2y, 1.3% of budgetThe Tool Library Inc: $20,000 over 2y, 1.3% of budgetBUFFALO SOCIETY OF NATURAL SCIENCES: $16,000 over 4y, 0.1% of budgetRICHARDSON CENTER CORPORATION: $15,000 over 3y, 1.0% of budgetBUFFALO & ERIE COUNTY HISTORICAL SOCIETY: $15,000 over 3y, 0.3% of budgetLUPUS FOUNDATION OF AMERICA INC: $15,000 over 3y, 0.0% of budgetTOWN OF WEBB HEALTH CENTER FUND INC: $12,000 over 3y, 19% of budgetBUFFALO ACADEMY OF SCIENCE CHARTER SCHOOL: $11,000 over 1y, 0.1% of budgetTHE LIBRARY OF AMERICAN LANDSCAPE HISTORY INC: $10,000 over 1y, 1.4% of budgetTHE SUMMIT CENTER INC: $10,000 over 2y, 0.0% of budgetCARDIGAN MOUNTAIN SCHOOL: $8,000 over 2y, 0.0% of budgetDANCEABILITY INC: $8,000 over 1y, 2.8% of budgetWEST SIDE ROWING CLUB INCORPORATED OF THE CITY OF BUFFALO: $5,000 over 1y, 0.5% of budgetNICHOLS SCHOOL OF BUFFALO: $5,000 over 1y, 0.0% of budgetBERTRAND CHAFFEE HOSPITAL: $5,000 over 1y, 0.0% of budgetCITY MISSION SOCIETY INC: $5,000 over 1y, 0.1% of budgetNATURAL HISTORY MUSEUM OF THE ADIRONDACKS: $4,500 over 2y, 0.1% of budgetOLD FORGE VOLUNTEER FIRE DEPARTMENT INC: $4,000 over 2y, 0.6% 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.

Community Foundation …The Baird FoundationThe John R Oishei Fou…Cullen FoundationChildren's Foundation…First Niagara Foundat…Foundation for Jewish…The Osc Charitable Fo…The Frank G Raichle F…James H Cummings Foun…Rich Family FoundationMulroy Family Foundat…
Community Foundation for Greater Buffalo IncNY40.8× affinity18 shared granteesties to 11 of 11Hover any node to trace its alignments.Compare side by side →

Open a dossier: Community Foundation for Greater Buffalo Inc · The Baird Foundation · The John R Oishei Foundation · Cullen Foundation · Children's Foundation of Erie County Inc · First Niagara Foundation · Foundation for Jewish Philanthropies Inc · The Osc Charitable Foundation · The Frank G Raichle Foundation · James H Cummings Foundation Inc · Rich Family Foundation · Mulroy Family 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 H Butler Foundation funds: left to right is the share of its income from government, bottom to top the share from The Edward H Butler Foundation. Bigger dots raise more.

2024
’20’21’22’23’24’25
no gov · 20%6%23%51%90%funder's share of their income ↑0%25%50%75%100%share of the org’s income from government →
    no gov moneyreceives it· size = income
    2get no government money at all
    16report government grants on their 990 we could not trace to a source (not plotted)
    0rely 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 Edward H Butler Foundation?

    Find your warmest path to The Edward H Butler 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 46 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 2025, released 2025. Filings run roughly 12 to 24 months behind; figures are dated accordingly.

    Source object · view filing

    Play a game based on Edward H Butler’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