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The Elena Melius Foundation Inc at a glanceAlso receives grants: funding profile →

· Private foundation

The Elena Melius Foundation Inc

Its FY2025 filing reports that it funds preselected organizations and did not take unsolicited requests; check the foundation's own site before ruling it out.

$45k
Granted FY2025still arriving
15
Grants FY2025still arriving
6
States reached
$16k
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, FY2019 to 2025.

Health$100kAnimals$30kInternational$9kScience & Tech$8kEducation$7kHuman Services$3kPublic Benefit$3kCrime & Legal$2kOther$0
02FY2025 · 15 grants

Where the money goes

Grants by size, and the largest recipients.

By grant size · FY2025

  • Under $10k13 grants · $13k
  • $10k–50k2 grants · $32k
$500
Median grant
6
States reached
$9k
Total assets
Largest grants
RecipientAmount
ST FRANCIS HOSPITAL FOUNDATION$16,000
PAT CAIRO FAMILY FOUNDATION INC$15,500
COLD SPRING HARBOR LABORATORY$5,000
THOMAS REYNOLDS FOUNDATION$2,000
THE HAGEDORN LITTLE VILLAGE SCHOOL$1,000
SAVE THE CHILDREN$1,000
MEMORIAL SLOAN-KETTERING CANCER CENTER$750
NATIONAL RIGHT TO WORK LEGAL DEFENSE FOUNDATION$500
LEUKEMIA & LYMPHOMA SOCIETY$500
ST MARY'S FOUNDATION FOR CHILDREN INC$500
JUDICIAL WATCH$500
GUIDE DOGS FOR BLIND INC$500
SORRENTINO FAMILY FOUNDATION CORP$500
JEWISH NATIONAL FUND$500
GIRL SCOUTS OF NASSAU COUNTY INC$70
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 (FY20–23, $2k) land where the poverty rate runs at 6%, against an area that typically sits at 9%. 0% of those dollars go to grantees based in above-average-need neighborhoods. Its grants skew toward lower-need ZIPs.

area typical 9%HUNTINGTON HUMAN SERVICES INSTITUTE LLC: $1k → 7%NORTH SHORE CHILD & FAMILY GUIDANCE: $500 → 6%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
IL
NY
MA
OR
IA
PA
NJ
CT
CA
WV
VA
MD
AZ
TN
NC
DC
TX
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.

66%of every dollar goes to organizations it has funded before.
$109k · 21 repeat orgs$56k to everyone else

21 repeat relationships: 8 still active in FY2025, 13 since wound down; 6 grantees were first funded in FY2025 (too recent to call).

How the two cohorts compare

Re-uppedFunded once

Organizations

21
49

Total granted

$109k
$53k

Median revenue growth · since first grant

+16%
+18%

Still filing today

62%
43%

New vs renewed · share of each year

In FY2025, 93% of grant dollars renewed an existing relationship; $3k went to new ones.

50%100%’19’20’21’22’23’24’25
RenewedFirst-time

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

’19’20’21’22’23’24’25
HealthInternationalPublic BenefitAnimalsHuman ServicesEducationOther
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

  • TP
    The Pat Cairo Family Foundation Inc
    7× · 2019–2025 · $31k · revenue +120%
  • SF
    ST FRANCIS HOSPITAL FOUNDATION INC
    3× · 2022–2025 · $19k · revenue +171%
  • CS
    COLD SPRING HARBOR LABORATORY
    3× · 2022–2025 · $8k · revenue +12%

Funded once

  • ST JUDE CHILDREN'S RESEARCH HOSPITAL INCgraduated
    one grant, 2022 · $10k · revenue +59%
  • MEMORIAL SLOAN-KETTERING CANCER CENTERgraduated
    one grant, 2020 · $5k · revenue +64%
  • NH
    NORTHWELL HEALTH FOUNDATION
    one grant, 2022 · $5k · revenue +6%
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 Susan G Komen Breast Cancer Fdn Group

Susan g. komen 's mission is to save lives by meeting the most critical needs in our communities & investing in breakthrough research to prevent & cure breast cancer.

—
2
Memorial Sloan-Kettering Cancer Center

Leadership in the prevention, treatment, and cure of cancer through excellence, vision and cost effectiveness in patient care, outreach programs, research, and education.

Health
3
New York Genome Center Inc

Operate a state-of-the-art, world-class genomic research center that creates and uses advanced genomics to understand the genetic basis of disease. for more information, see schedule o.

Health
4
Dana-Farber Cancer Institute Inc

The mission of dfci is to provide expert, compassionate, and equitable care to children, adults, and their families, while advancing the understanding, diagnosis, treatment, cure, and prevention of cancer and related diseases. we train new…

Health
5
Sanford Burnham Prebys Medical Discovery Institute

Sanford burnham prebys medical discovery institute's mission is to advance the biomedical sciences by cultivating the next generation of scientific leaders, providing meaningful opportunities for researchers of all backgrounds to learn,…

Health
6
New York University

Nyu is a private university with approximately 60,000 matriculating students in 20 schools and institutes. nyu's primary missions are education, research and scholarship, and patient care.

Education
7
Target Als Foundation Inc

Our mission is to break down barriers to als research to find effective treatments. by uniting academia, the pharma and biotech industry, government, venture capital, related nonprofits, and the als community, we aim to overcome the…

Education
8
The Johns Hopkins Hospital

For more than 125 years, the mission of the johns hopkins hospital has been to lead the world in the diagnosis and treatment of disease and to train tomorrow's great physicians, nurses and scientists. above all, we aim to provide the…

Health
9
Marc Lustgarten Pancreatic Cancer Foundation

The lustgarten foundation is the largest private funder of pancreatic cancer research in the world. see schedule o.the lustgarten foundation is boldly leading the way through hope and innovation, turning fear into action through education…

Human Services
10
Hugo W Moser Research Institute At Kennedy Krieger Inc

The hugo w. moser research institute at kennedy krieger, inc. (the "research institute") is an internationally recognized research facility finding answers to problems and injuries that affect a child's developing brain. researchers have…

Science & Tech
11
Mila's Miracle Foundation

The mission of mila's miracle foundation is to find and fund paths to a cure for batten and other life-threatening neurological disorders. families in this community have been pivotal in raising the necessary funds and awareness. together,…

Health
12
Cystic Fibrosis Foundation

To cure cf and provide all people with cf the opportunity to lead long, fulfilling lives by funding research and drug development, partnering with the cf community, and advancing high-quality, specialized care.

Health
How this is measured
The grantee most central to the portfolio’s shape is The Seeing Eye Inc; the most unlike its peers is Sorrentino Family Foundation Corp. 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

43 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. 43 of the 77 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)
4
Early backer (in before they grew)
41/43
Grantees still filing
26/43
Grew since first funded

Where the money sits, by cause and then by grantee

The Pat Cairo Family Foundation Inc: $30,800 · OtherThe Pat Cairo Family Foundation IncMAYO CLINIC: $12,000 · OtherMAYO CLINICTHOMAS REYNOLDS FOUNDATION: $5,500 · OtherTHOMAS REYNOLDS FOUNDATIONMEMORIAL SLOAN-KETTERING CANCER CENTER: $4,000 · Other+46 more: $37,725 · Other+46 moreST FRANCIS HOSPITAL FOUNDATION INC: $19,000 · HealthST FRANCIS HOSPITAL FOUNDATION I…ST JUDE CHILDREN'S RESEARCH HOSPITAL INC: $10,000 · HealthST JUDE CHILDREN'S RESEARCH HOSP…MEMORIAL SLOAN-KETTERING CANCER CENTER: $5,000 · HealthMEMORIAL SLOAN-KETTERING CANCER …NORTHWELL HEALTH FOUNDATION: $5,000 · HealthNORTHWELL HEALTH FOUNDATIONSHLOFMITZ HEART FOUNDATION INC ATTNDDK: $2,000 · Health+8 more: $6,300 · Health+8 moreSave The Children Federation Inc: $3,500 · InternationalMercy Ships International: $2,000 · InternationalMercy Corps: $2,000 · InternationalJEWISH NATIONAL FUND (KEREN KAYEMETH LEISRAEL) INC: $500 · International+1 more: $100 · InternationalCOLD SPRING HARBOR LABORATORY: $8,000 · Science & TechSTEPHEN SILLER TUNNEL TO TOWERS FOUNDATION: $6,300 · EducationTHE HAGEDORN LITTLE VILLAGE SCHOOL: $1,000 · EducationPAWS FOR PURPLE HEARTS: $1,500 · Public BenefitAMERICA'S VETDOGS THE VETERANS K-9 CORPS INC: $500 · Public BenefitJUDICIAL WATCH INC: $500 · Public BenefitTHE AMERICAN SOCIETY FOR THE PREVENTION OF CRUELTY TO ANIMALS: $1,300 · AnimalsHumane World for Animals Inc: $700 · AnimalsGIVE A DOG A DREAM INC: $500 · Animals
Other$90,025Health$47,300International$8,100Science & Tech$8,000Education$7,300Public Benefit$2,500Animals$2,500

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

25%50%75%100%$100k$1.0M$10M$100Mgrantee revenue →↑ funder's share of their budgetThe Pat Cairo Family Foundation Inc: $30,800 over 7y, 1.5% of budgetST FRANCIS HOSPITAL FOUNDATION INC: $19,000 over 3y, 0.0% of budgetST JUDE CHILDREN'S RESEARCH HOSPITAL INC: $10,000 over 1y, 0.0% of budgetCOLD SPRING HARBOR LABORATORY: $8,000 over 3y, 0.0% of budgetSTEPHEN SILLER TUNNEL TO TOWERS FOUNDATION: $6,300 over 3y, 0.0% of budgetMEMORIAL SLOAN-KETTERING CANCER CENTER: $5,000 over 1y, 0.0% of budgetNORTHWELL HEALTH FOUNDATION: $5,000 over 1y, 0.0% of budgetSave The Children Federation Inc: $3,500 over 5y, 0.0% of budgetAMERICAN KIDNEY FUND INC: $3,000 over 3y, 0.0% of budgetMercy Ships International: $2,000 over 2y, 0.0% of budgetSHLOFMITZ HEART FOUNDATION INC ATTNDDK: $2,000 over 1y, 0.8% of budgetMercy Corps: $2,000 over 3y, 0.0% of budgetPAWS FOR PURPLE HEARTS: $1,500 over 2y, 0.0% of budgetLONG ISLAND TEEN CHALLENGE INC: $1,500 over 2y, 0.0% of budgetBLOOD CANCER UNITED INC: $1,350 over 2y, 0.0% of budgetTHE AMERICAN SOCIETY FOR THE PREVENTION OF CRUELTY TO ANIMALS: $1,300 over 1y, 0.0% of budgetLONG ISLAND PINE BARRENS SOCIETY: $1,000 over 2y, 0.3% of budgetHARMONY HEIGHTS INC: $1,000 over 1y, 0.1% of budgetTHE HAGEDORN LITTLE VILLAGE SCHOOL: $1,000 over 1y, 0.0% of budgetSPECIAL OLYMPICS INC: $1,000 over 1y, 0.0% of budgetHUNTINGTON HUMAN SERVICES INSTITUTE INC: $1,000 over 1y, 0.9% of budgetCHILD ABUSE PREVENTION SERVICES INC: $1,000 over 1y, 0.4% of budgetALZHEIMER'S FOUNDATION OF AMERICA INC: $1,000 over 1y, 0.0% of budgetSAMARITAN'S PURSE: $1,000 over 1y, 0.0% of budgetAmerican Heart Association Inc: $700 over 2y, 0.0% of budgetHumane World for Animals Inc: $700 over 2y, 0.0% of budgetAUTISM SPEAKS INC: $500 over 1y, 0.0% of budgetNORTH SHORE CHILD & FAMILY GUIDANCE ASSOCIATION INC: $500 over 1y, 0.0% of budgetTHE JOHN THEISSEN CHILDREN'S FOUNDATION INC: $500 over 1y, 0.0% of budgetAMERICA'S VETDOGS THE VETERANS K-9 CORPS INC: $500 over 1y, 0.0% of budgetTHE INTERFAITH NUTRITION NETWORK INC: $500 over 1y, 0.0% of budgetGIVE A DOG A DREAM INC: $500 over 1y, 1.9% of budgetJEWISH NATIONAL FUND (KEREN KAYEMETH LEISRAEL) INC: $500 over 1y, 0.0% of budgetEACH MOMENT WERE ALIVE INC: $500 over 1y, 1.1% of budgetTHE SEEING EYE INC: $500 over 1y, 0.0% of budgetNATIONAL RIGHT TO WORK LEGAL DEFENSE AND EDUCATION FOUNDATION INC: $500 over 1y, 0.0% of budgetThe Susan G Komen Breast Cancer Foundation Inc: $250 over 1y, 0.0% of budgetTECHNOSERVE INC: $100 over 1y, 0.0% of budgetNATIONAL POLICE DEFENSE FOUNDATION INC: $100 over 1y, 0.0% of budgetGIRL SCOUTS OF NASSAU COUNTY INC: $70 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.

Peter & Jeri Dejana F…Jpmorgan Chase Founda…The Pfizer Foundation…Vanguard Charitable E…Network for GoodNational Philanthropi…The Bank of America C…American Online Givin…Donor Advised Charita…Fidelity Investments …Amazonsmile Foundation
Peter & Jeri Dejana FoundationNY13.6× affinity4 shared granteesties to 10 of 10Hover any node to trace its alignments.Compare side by side →

Open a dossier: Peter & Jeri Dejana Foundation · Jpmorgan Chase Foundation · The Pfizer Foundation Inc · Vanguard Charitable Endowment Program · Network for Good · National Philanthropic Trust · The Bank of America Charitable Foundation Inc · American Online Giving Foundation Inc · Donor Advised Charitable Giving 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 Elena Melius Foundation Inc funds: left to right is the share of its income from government, bottom to top the share from The Elena Melius Foundation Inc. Bigger dots raise more.

2024
’20’21’22’23’24’25
no gov · 40%0%1%3%5%funder's share of their income ↑0%19%38%56%75%share of the org’s income from government →median 47%
  • Mercy Corps: 47% of income from government
  • Save the Children Federation Inc: 30% of income from government
no gov moneyreceives it· size = income
4get no government money at all
6report government grants on their 990 we could not trace to a source (not plotted)
0rely on government for over half their income
⤢ axis zoomed · 0–75%
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 Elena Melius Foundation Inc?

Find your warmest path to The Elena Melius Foundation 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 77 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 Elena Melius’ 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