Skip to content
The Harold & Mary Louise Shaw Foundation at a glance

· Private foundation

The Harold & Mary Louise Shaw 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.

$2.9M
Granted FY2024still arriving
29
Grants FY2024still arriving
5
States reached
$860k
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 2024.

Animals$5.8MEducation$4.7MArts & Culture$1.2MYouth Development$820kFood & Nutrition$760kRecreation & Sports$713kHealth$689kHuman Services$405kOther$0
02FY2024 · 29 grants

Where the money goes

Grants by size, and the largest recipients.

By grant size · FY2024

  • Under $10k3 grants · $10k
  • $10k–50k11 grants · $260k
  • $50k–250k13 grants · $1.2M
  • $250k+2 grants · $1.4M
$50,000
Median grant
5
States reached
$32M
Total assets
Largest grants
RecipientAmount
CHEYENNE MOUNTAIN ZOO$860,000
Colby Sawyer College$500,000
WOLFE'S NECK FARM$175,000
Vail Christian High School$150,000
VAIL VALLEY MOUNTAIN TRAILS ALLIANCE$150,000
Cycle Effect$125,000
VAIL HEALTH FOUNDATION$101,856
Mountain Valley Horse Rescue$100,000
317 MAIN ST COMMUNITY CENTER$100,000
ROUND UP RIVER RANCH$70,000
FULL PLATES FULL POTENTIAL$60,000
Dayton Art Institute$50,000
Good Shepard Food Bank$50,000
Planned Parenthood of Northern Colorado$50,000
EQUALITY MAINE$50,000
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 (FY17–24, $245k) land where the poverty rate runs at 7%, against an area that typically sits at 11%. 0% of those dollars go to grantees based in above-average-need neighborhoods. Its grants skew toward lower-need ZIPs.

area typical 11%CHILDREN'S GLOBAL ALLIANCE: $30k → 7%CHILDREN'S GLOBAL ALLIANCE: $25k → 7%CHILDREN'S GLOBAL ALLIANCE: $25k → 7%CHILDREN'S GLOBAL ALLIANCE: $10k → 7%Children's Global Alliance: $5k → 7%Vail Valley Charitable Fund: $50k → 7%Preble Street: $30k → 7%Preble Street: $20k → 7%Preble Street: $20k → 7%Preble Street: $15k → 7%Preble Street: $10k → 7%MAINE NEEDS: $5k → 7%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

ME
NH
MN
IL
WI
NY
MA
OR
IA
OH
CA
CO
VA
MD
DC
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.

96%of every dollar goes to organizations it has funded before.
$15M · 30 repeat orgs$695k to everyone else

Grantees it renews have grown median revenue +74% since the first grant, against +50% for those funded once.

30 repeat relationships: 19 still active in FY2024, 11 since wound down; 9 grantees were first funded in FY2024 (too recent to call).

How the two cohorts compare

Re-uppedFunded once

Organizations

30
28

Total granted

$15M
$345k

Median revenue growth · since first grant

+74%
+50%

Still filing today

77%
57%

New vs renewed · share of each year

In FY2024, 88% of grant dollars renewed an existing relationship; $350k went to new ones.

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

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

’17’18’20’21’22’23’24
EnvironmentArts & CultureEducationAnimalsRecreation & SportsHuman ServicesOther
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

  • MV
    MOUNTAIN VALLEY HORSE RESCUE
    7× · 2017–2024 · $1.1M · revenue +98% · 47% of their budget
  • 3M
    317 Main St Community Center Inc
    7× · 2017–2024 · $770k · revenue +130% · 29% of their budget
  • TC
    The Cycle Effect
    7× · 2017–2024 · $680k · revenue +191%

Funded once

  • YO
    YMCA of Colorado Springs
    one grant, 2017 · $50k
  • VV
    Vail Valley Charitable Fund Incgraduated
    one grant, 2017 · $50k · revenue +97%
  • VC
    VAIL CLINIC INC % VHH ACCOUNTING DEPARTMENTgraduated
    one grant, 2018 · $30k · revenue +50%
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
Midcoast Conservancy

The mission of Midcoast Conservancy is to protect vital lands and waters on a scale that matters and to inspire wonder and action on behalf of all species and the Earth.

Environment
2
Maine GearShare

To provide access to outdoor gear and know-how through a collaborative, equity-centered approach.

Recreation & Sports
3
Maine Appalachian Trail Land Trust

To preserve and protect land surrounding the appalachian trail in maine for public benefit.

Environment
4
Coastal Mountains Land Trust

We conserve land permanently to benefit the natural and human communities of western the Penobscot Bay region.

Environment
5
Islesboro Islands Trust

The mission of Islesboro Islands Trust is to enhance the quality of residents' lives through the preservation of open space, educate all residents as to the value of the island's natural ecosystems, and act as an environmental advocate on…

Philanthropy
6
Maine Farmland Trust

Maine Farmland Trust protects farmland, supports farmers, and advances the future of farming.

Food & Nutrition
7
Maine Media College

Maine Media Workshops & College educates and inspires visual artists and storytellers to achieve their creative potential. We provide lifelong learning opportunities for those pursuing the fine arts and media-related professions. We are…

—
8
Maine Climate Action Now

MCAN catalyzes transformative education and action in response to the climate crisis. We seek to honor, unite and amplify the voices of youth, frontline communities, and others historically excluded from the climate conversation and…

Environment
9
Mount Desert Land and Garden Preserve

The mission of the mount desert land & garden preserve is to conserve and share the beauty of our historic lands and gardens.

—
10
Maine Tree Foundation

Our Mission is to educate and advocate for the sustainable use of the forest and the ecological, economic, and social health of Maines forest community

Environment
11
Kennebunk Land Trust

Kennebunk Land Trust's mission is to permanently conserve and steward land to benefit natural and human communities.

Environment
12
Maine Rivers

Maine Rivers is a statewide advocacy organization. Our mission is to protect, restore and enhance the ecological health of Maine's river systems. We support and direct efforts to conserve and improve the health of Maine's rivers and…

Environment
How this is measured
The grantee most central to the portfolio’s shape is Vail Health Services Foundation; the most unlike its peers is World Bicycle Relief Nfp. 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

48 grantees tracked through their own filings, 2017–2026.

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 2026, not grant rows in a single year, so this will not match the grant count on the cover. 48 of the 71 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.

4
Load-bearing (≥25% of a budget)
15
Early backer (in before they grew)
48/48
Grantees still filing
33/48
Grew since first funded

Where the money sits, by cause and then by grantee

CHEYENNE MOUNTAIN ZOO: $4,530,000 · OtherCHEYENNE MOUNTAIN ZOOMaine Coast Waldorf School: $1,075,000 · OtherMaine Coast Waldorf SchoolVAIL CHRISTIAN HIGH SCHOOL: $475,000 · OtherVAIL CHRISTIAN HIGH SCHOOLZealous Schools: $325,000 · OtherWOLFE'S NECK CENTER: $300,000 · OtherAUGUSTANA CARE: $300,000 · OtherVAIL HEALTH SERVICES FOUNDATION: $304,112 · Other+38 more: $1,468,706 · Other+38 moreColby-Sawyer College: $2,550,000 · EducationColby-Sawyer Colleg…NORTH YARMOUTH ACADEMY: $95,000 · Education+2 more: $55,000 · EducationMOUNTAIN VALLEY HORSE RESCUE: $1,125,000 · AnimalsTHE WILD ANIMAL SANCTUARY: $65,000 · Animals+2 more: $15,000 · Animals317 Main St Community Center Inc: $770,000 · Arts & CulturePortland Museum of Art: $365,000 · Arts & CultureTHE DAYTON ART INSTITUTE: $50,000 · Arts & Culture+2 more: $15,000 · Arts & CultureThe Cycle Effect: $680,000 · Recreation & SportsFIRST DESCENTS: $175,000 · Recreation & SportsSOS OUTREACH: $100,000 · Recreation & SportsROUNDUP RIVER RANCH: $95,000 · Recreation & SportsFULL PLATES FULL POTENTIAL: $330,000 · Food & NutritionGood Shepherd Food Bank: $255,000 · Food & NutritionVail Valley Mountain Bike Association: $410,000 · EnvironmentForest Society of Maine: $40,000 · Environment+5 more: $35,745 · Environment
Other$8,777,818Education$2,700,000Animals$1,205,000Arts & Culture$1,200,000Recreation & Sports$1,050,000Food & Nutrition$585,000Environment$485,745

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 budgetColby-Sawyer College: $2,550,000 over 7y, 1.0% of budgetMOUNTAIN VALLEY HORSE RESCUE: $1,125,000 over 7y, 47% of budget317 Main St Community Center Inc: $770,000 over 7y, 29% of budgetThe Cycle Effect: $680,000 over 7y, 10% of budgetVail Valley Mountain Bike Association: $410,000 over 4y, 16% of budgetPortland Museum of Art: $365,000 over 7y, 0.5% of budgetFULL PLATES FULL POTENTIAL: $330,000 over 5y, 5.4% of budgetZealous Schools: $325,000 over 3y, 22% of budgetVAIL HEALTH SERVICES FOUNDATION: $304,112 over 4y, 0.7% of budgetAUGUSTANA CARE: $300,000 over 2y, 0.5% of budgetGood Shepherd Food Bank: $255,000 over 6y, 0.1% of budgetFIRST DESCENTS: $175,000 over 3y, 2.2% of budgetTHE NATURE CONSERVANCY: $102,440 over 3y, 0.0% of budgetSOS OUTREACH: $100,000 over 3y, 3.1% of budgetEqualityMaine: $95,000 over 3y, 90% of budgetNORTH YARMOUTH ACADEMY: $95,000 over 3y, 0.2% of budgetPREBLE STREET: $95,000 over 5y, 0.1% of budgetCHILDRENS GLOBAL ALLIANCE: $95,000 over 5y, 26% of budgetROUNDUP RIVER RANCH: $95,000 over 2y, 1.0% of budgetTHE WILD ANIMAL SANCTUARY: $65,000 over 3y, 0.2% of budgetTHE DAYTON ART INSTITUTE: $50,000 over 1y, 0.9% of budgetVail Valley Charitable Fund Inc: $50,000 over 1y, 12% of budgetForest Society of Maine: $40,000 over 1y, 0.7% of budgetGCSEN FOUNDATION: $35,000 over 2y, 2.1% of budgetMIDCOAST SYMPHONY ORCHESTRA: $32,500 over 5y, 17% of budgetVAIL CLINIC INC % VHH ACCOUNTING DEPARTMENT: $30,000 over 1y, 0.0% of budgetThe Telling Room: $25,000 over 1y, 3.5% of budgetMaine Huts & Trails: $20,000 over 2y, 1.3% of budgetOUT Maine: $15,000 over 1y, 1.1% of budgetVAIL VALLEY FOUNDATION: $10,000 over 1y, 0.1% of budgetMAINE BOYS TO MEN: $10,000 over 1y, 2.6% of budgetFRIENDS OF CASCO BAY: $10,000 over 1y, 0.9% of budgetROYAL RIVER CONSERVATION TRUST: $10,000 over 2y, 0.7% of budgetWORLD BICYCLE RELIEF NFP: $10,000 over 1y, 0.1% of budgetSAIL MAINE: $10,000 over 1y, 1.4% of budgetMaine Island Trail Association: $10,000 over 1y, 0.9% of budgetNETWORK FOR GOOD: $5,000 over 1y, 0.0% of budgetAppalachian Mountain Club: $5,000 over 1y, 0.0% of budgetCareers in Construction Colorado: $5,000 over 1y, 0.3% of budgetINTERNATIONAL COMMUNITY FOUNDATION: $5,000 over 1y, 0.0% of budgetSPACE Gallery: $5,000 over 1y, 0.7% of budgetANIMAL REFUGE LEAGUE OF GREATER PORTLAND: $5,000 over 1y, 0.1% of budgetMaine Needs Inc: $5,000 over 1y, 0.6% of budgetSUICIDE PREVENTION COALITION OF EAGLE VALLEY: $5,000 over 1y, 1.1% of budgetAFRICA YOGA PROJECT INC: $2,000 over 1y, 0.2% of budgetWORLD WILDLIFE FUND INC: $745 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.

  • Who funds Colby-Sawyer College ↗
  • Who funds MOUNTAIN VALLEY HORSE RESCUE ↗
  • Who funds 317 Main St Community Center Inc ↗
  • Who funds The Cycle Effect ↗
  • Who funds Vail Valley Mountain Bike Association ↗
  • Who funds Portland Museum of Art ↗
  • Who funds FULL PLATES FULL POTENTIAL ↗
  • Who funds Zealous Schools ↗
  • Who funds VAIL HEALTH SERVICES FOUNDATION ↗
  • Who funds AUGUSTANA CARE ↗
  • Who funds Good Shepherd Food Bank ↗
  • Who funds FIRST DESCENTS ↗
  • Who funds THE NATURE CONSERVANCY ↗
  • Who funds SOS OUTREACH ↗
  • Who funds EqualityMaine ↗
  • Who funds NORTH YARMOUTH ACADEMY ↗
  • Who funds PREBLE STREET ↗
  • Who funds CHILDRENS GLOBAL ALLIANCE ↗
  • Who funds ROUNDUP RIVER RANCH ↗
  • Who funds THE WILD ANIMAL SANCTUARY ↗
  • Who funds THE DAYTON ART INSTITUTE ↗
  • Who funds Vail Valley Charitable Fund Inc ↗
  • Who funds Forest Society of Maine ↗
  • Who funds GCSEN FOUNDATION ↗
  • Who funds MIDCOAST SYMPHONY ORCHESTRA ↗
  • Who funds VAIL CLINIC INC % VHH ACCOUNTING DEPARTMENT ↗
  • Who funds The Telling Room ↗
  • Who funds Maine Huts & Trails ↗

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.

Maine Community Found…Onion FoundationColorado Gives Founda…Horizon Foundation IncElmina B Sewall Found…The Bob Crewe Foundat…Morse Hill TrustThe Widgeon Point Cha…Sam L Cohen FoundationTexas Instruments Fou…The Skerryvore Founda…Algar Foundation
Maine Community Foundation IncME30.1× affinity14 shared granteesties to 11 of 11Hover any node to trace its alignments.Compare side by side →

Open a dossier: Maine Community Foundation Inc · Onion Foundation · Colorado Gives Foundation · Horizon Foundation Inc · Elmina B Sewall Foundation · The Bob Crewe Foundation A/K/A Crewe Foundation · Morse Hill Trust · The Widgeon Point Charitable Foundation · Sam L Cohen Foundation · Texas Instruments Foundation · The Skerryvore Foundation Inc · Algar 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 Harold & Mary Louise Shaw Foundation funds: left to right is the share of its income from government, bottom to top the share from The Harold & Mary Louise Shaw Foundation. Bigger dots raise more.

2024
’20’21’22’23’24’25
no gov · 00%6%23%51%90%funder's share of their income ↑0%25%50%75%100%share of the org’s income from government →median 1%
  • Appalachian Mountain Club: 1% of income from government
no gov moneyreceives it· size = income
0get no government money at all
14report 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 Harold & Mary Louise Shaw Foundation?

Find your warmest path to The Harold & Mary Louise Shaw 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 71 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 Harold & Mary Louise Shaw’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