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The Frank L Ciminelli Family Foundation at a glance

· Private foundation

The Frank L Ciminelli Family Foundation

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.

$199k
Granted FY2025still arriving
13
Grants FY2025still arriving
2
States reached
$75k
Largest
01What it fundsRead
02The needRead
03Its granteesRead
04Its fieldRead
05Through PlinthRead
01What it funds
0192% classified

What it funded, over time

Every grant placed by its stated purpose and the recipient’s mission, by year, FY2017 to 2025.

Arts & Culture$317kHealth$295kPhilanthropy$250kHousing & Shelter$250kEducation$248kHuman Services$185kReligion$165kRecreation & Sports$32kOther$0
02FY2025 · 13 grants

Where the money goes

Grants by size, and the largest recipients.

By grant size · FY2025

  • Under $10k8 grants · $14k
  • $10k–50k3 grants · $60k
  • $50k–250k2 grants · $125k
$3,000
Median grant
2
States reached
$1.7M
Total assets
Largest grants
RecipientAmount
BUILD PROMISE INC$75,000
VILLA MARIA COLLEGE$50,000
CATHOLIC CHARITIES OF BUFFALO$25,000
MADONNA OF THE STREETS$25,000
HILBERT COLLEGE$10,000
MOUNTAIN TOWN MUSIC$3,000
MOUNTAIN TRAILS FOUNDATION$3,000
SUMMIT LAND CONSERVANCY$3,000
BOMBSQUAD ACADEMY CENTER$1,000
THE WAY CHURCH OF GOD$1,000
KEVIN GUEST HOUSE$1,000
ALZHEIMER'S ASSOCIATION$1,000
PARK CITY PERFORMANCES$1,000
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 (FY19–25, $257k) land where the poverty rate runs at 13%, against an area that typically sits at 11%. 100% of those dollars go to grantees based in above-average-need neighborhoods. Most of its grants land in higher-need ZIPs.

area typical 11%INTERNATIONAL INSTITUTE OF BUFFALO: $3k → 13%INTERNATIONAL INSTITUTE OF BUFFALO: $3k → 13%INTERNATIONAL INSTITUTE OF BUFFALO: $2k → 13%BUILD PROMISE INC: $100k → 13%BUILD PROMISE INC: $75k → 13%BUILD PROMISE INC: $75k → 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.

85%of every dollar goes to organizations it has funded before.
$1.6M · 18 repeat orgs$268k to everyone else

Grantees it renews have grown median revenue +50% since the first grant, against +22% for those funded once.

18 repeat relationships: 8 still active in FY2025, 10 since wound down; 5 grantees were first funded in FY2025 (too recent to call).

How the two cohorts compare

Re-uppedFunded once

Organizations

18
7

Total granted

$1.6M
$239k

Median revenue growth · since first grant

+50%
+22%

Still filing today

72%
29%

New vs renewed · share of each year

In FY2025, 85% of grant dollars renewed an existing relationship; $29k went to new ones.

50%100%’17’18’19’20’21’22’23’24’25
RenewedFirst-time

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

’17’18’19’20’21’22’23’24’25
EducationHealthHuman ServicesPhilanthropyEnvironmentArts & CultureOther
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

  • TJ
    THE JACOBS INSTITUTE INC
    3× · 2017–2019 · $150k · revenue +113%
  • VILLA MARIA COLLEGE OF BUFFALO
    3× · 2023–2025 · $110k · revenue +15%
  • HILBERT COLLEGE
    7× · 2018–2025 · $70k · revenue +92%

Funded once

  • OC
    OLV CHARITIES
    one grant, 2023 · $100k
  • CC
    CENTRO CULTURALE
    one grant, 2020 · $50k
  • SO
    SISTERS OF MERCY
    one grant, 2022 · $50k
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
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
2
Manhattanville University

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

Education
3
Niagara University

Niagara university educates its students and enriches their lives through programs in the liberal arts and through career preparation, informed by the catholic and vincentian traditions.

Education
4
Marist University

Marist university is dedicated to helping students develop the intellect, character and skills required for enlightened, ethical, and productive lives in the global community of the 21st century.

Education
5
President and Trustees of Bates College

Bates is a college of the liberal arts and sciences, and is a coeducational, nonsectarian, residential college with special commitments to academic rigor, and to assuring in all of its efforts the dignity of each individual, and access to…

Education
6
Stony Brook Internists University Faculty Practice Corporation

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

Health
7
Molloy University

Molloy university, an independent catholic university, rooted in the dominican tradition of study, spirituality, service, and community, is committed to academic excellence with respect for each person. through transformative education,…

Education
8
University of Mount Saint Vincent

Founded by the sisters of charity of new york, the university of mount saint vincent is an academically excellent, authentically inclusive, catholic and ecumenical liberal arts university. (cont. in sch.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
St Francis College

St. francis college is an independent, coeducational institution of higher education chartered by an act of the regents of the university of the state of new york on april 10, 1957.

Education
11
Daemen University

Private, independent university providing higher education to students. The mission of Daemen University is to prepare creative, ethically-minded leaders for a diverse and interconnected world by integrating the intellectual strengths…

Education
12
New York School of Interior Design

New york school of interior design provides the most innovative, immersive, and transformative interior design education in the world, demonstrating the impact of professionally designed interiors on the health, happiness, and well-being…

Education
How this is measured
The grantee most central to the portfolio’s shape is Aspire of Western New York Inc; the most unlike its peers is Mountain Town Stages. 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

17 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. 17 of the 30 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)
3
Early backer (in before they grew)
17/17
Grantees still filing
12/17
Grew since first funded

Where the money sits, by cause and then by grantee

UPON THIS ROCK: $250,000 · OtherUPON THIS ROCKUB FOUNDATION: $150,000 · OtherUB FOUNDATIONST LUKES MISSION OF MERCY: $114,000 · OtherST LUKES MISSION OF MERCYVILLA MARIA COLLEGE OF BUFFALO: $110,000 · OtherVILLA MARIA COLLEGE OF BUFFALOHOSPICE FOUNDATION: $107,500 · OtherHOSPICE FOUNDATIONOLV CHARITIES: $100,000 · OtherOLV CHARITIESSYDA FOUNDATION: $70,000 · OtherSYDA FOUNDATIONCENTRO CULTURALE: $50,000 · OtherSISTERS OF MERCY: $50,000 · Other+5 more: $24,500 · OtherBUILD PROMISE INC: $250,000 · Human ServicesBUILD PROMISE I…+1 more: $6,500 · Human ServicesCATHOLIC CHARITIES OF BUFFALO: $185,000 · PhilanthropyCATHOLIC CHA…THE BISON CHILDREN'S SCHOLARSHIP FUND INC: $14,000 · PhilanthropyTHE BISON CH…THE JACOBS INSTITUTE INC: $150,000 · HealthTHE JACOBS…MADONNA OF THE STREETS INC: $25,000 · HealthMADONNA OF…+1 more: $1,000 · HealthHILBERT COLLEGE: $70,000 · EducationUNIVERSITY OF OREGON FOUNDATION: $20,000 · EducationPAUL SMITHS COLLEGE: $7,500 · EducationCANISIUS UNIVERSITY: $5,000 · EducationMOUNTAIN TRAILS FOUNDATION: $32,000 · EnvironmentSummit Land Conservancy: $11,000 · EnvironmentMountain Town Stages: $13,000 · Arts & CulturePark City Performances: $4,000 · Arts & CultureASPIRE OF WESTERN NEW YORK INC: $10,000 · Housing & Shelter
Other$1,026,000Human Services$256,500Philanthropy$199,000Health$176,000Education$102,500Environment$43,000Arts & Culture$17,000Housing & Shelter$10,000

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 budgetBUILD PROMISE INC: $250,000 over 3y, 7.7% of budgetCATHOLIC CHARITIES OF BUFFALO: $185,000 over 6y, 0.2% of budgetTHE JACOBS INSTITUTE INC: $150,000 over 3y, 0.9% of budgetVILLA MARIA COLLEGE OF BUFFALO: $110,000 over 3y, 0.3% of budgetHILBERT COLLEGE: $70,000 over 7y, 0.1% of budgetMOUNTAIN TRAILS FOUNDATION: $32,000 over 6y, 0.8% of budgetMADONNA OF THE STREETS INC: $25,000 over 1y, 0.8% of budgetUNIVERSITY OF OREGON FOUNDATION: $20,000 over 2y, 0.0% of budgetTHE BISON CHILDREN'S SCHOLARSHIP FUND INC: $14,000 over 3y, 0.1% of budgetMountain Town Stages: $13,000 over 4y, 0.4% of budgetSummit Land Conservancy: $11,000 over 4y, 0.1% of budgetASPIRE OF WESTERN NEW YORK INC: $10,000 over 1y, 0.0% of budgetPAUL SMITHS COLLEGE: $7,500 over 1y, 0.0% of budgetTHE INTERNATIONAL INSTITUTE OF BUFFALO: $6,500 over 3y, 0.1% of budgetCANISIUS UNIVERSITY: $5,000 over 5y, 0.0% of budgetPark City Performances: $4,000 over 4y, 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.

  • Who funds BUILD PROMISE INC ↗
  • Who funds CATHOLIC CHARITIES OF BUFFALO ↗
  • Who funds THE JACOBS INSTITUTE INC ↗
  • Who funds VILLA MARIA COLLEGE OF BUFFALO ↗
  • Who funds HILBERT COLLEGE ↗
  • Who funds MOUNTAIN TRAILS FOUNDATION ↗
  • Who funds MADONNA OF THE STREETS INC ↗
  • Who funds UNIVERSITY OF OREGON FOUNDATION ↗
  • Who funds THE BISON CHILDREN'S SCHOLARSHIP FUND INC ↗
  • Who funds Mountain Town Stages ↗
  • Who funds Summit Land Conservancy ↗
  • Who funds ASPIRE OF WESTERN NEW YORK INC ↗
  • Who funds PAUL SMITHS COLLEGE ↗
  • Who funds THE INTERNATIONAL INSTITUTE OF BUFFALO ↗
  • Who funds CANISIUS UNIVERSITY ↗
  • Who funds Park City Performances ↗
  • Who funds KEVIN GUEST HOUSE INC ↗

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 …Mother Cabrini Health…The John R Oishei Fou…Scott Bieler Foundati…James H Cummings Foun…The Western New York …Msgr Richard S Amico …Hodgman Family Founda…Wh Greene FoundationThe Margaret L Wendt …Ssir Cares IncThe Peter and Elizabe…
Community Foundation for Greater Buffalo IncNY25.5× affinity10 shared granteesties to 9 of 11Hover any node to trace its alignments.Compare side by side →

Open a dossier: Community Foundation for Greater Buffalo Inc · Mother Cabrini Health Foundation Inc · The John R Oishei Foundation · Scott Bieler Foundation Inc · James H Cummings Foundation Inc · The Western New York Foundation · Msgr Richard S Amico Memorial Charitable Trust · Hodgman Family Foundation · Wh Greene Foundation · The Margaret L Wendt Foundation · Ssir Cares Inc · The Peter and Elizabeth C Tower 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 Frank L Ciminelli Family Foundation funds: left to right is the share of its income from government, bottom to top the share from The Frank L Ciminelli Family 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%13%25%38%50%share of the org’s income from government →
    no gov moneyreceives it· size = income
    1get no government money at all
    7report government grants on their 990 we could not trace to a source (not plotted)
    0rely on government for over half their income
    ⤢ axis zoomed · 0–50%
    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 Frank L Ciminelli Family Foundation?

    Find your warmest path to The Frank L Ciminelli 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 30 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 Frank L Ciminelli 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