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The Hobson Family Foundation at a glance

· Private foundation

The Hobson Family Foundation

Its FY2023 filing reports that it funds preselected organizations and did not take unsolicited requests; check the foundation's own site before ruling it out.

$12k
Granted FY2023
3
Grants FY2023
1
States reached
$10k
Largest
01What it fundsRead
02The needRead
03Its granteesRead
04Its fieldRead
01What it funds
0196% classified

What it funded, over time

Every grant placed by its stated purpose and the recipient’s mission, by year, FY2017 to 2023.

Arts & Culture$307kEnvironment$82kHealth$66kEducation$47kScience & Tech$40kFood & Nutrition$18kHousing & Shelter$18kHuman Services$18kOther$0
02FY2023 · 3 grants

Where the money goes

Grants by size, and the largest recipients.

By grant size · FY2023

  • Under $10k2 grants · $2k
  • $10k–50k1 grant · $10k
$1,000
Median grant
1
States reached
$0
Total assets
Largest grants
RecipientAmount
WEST MARIN FUND$10,000
NEPAL YOUTH FOUNDATION$1,000
VIVALON HEALTHING AGE CENTER$500
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 (FY18–22, $12k) land where the poverty rate runs at 8%, against an area that typically sits at 12%. 0% of those dollars go to grantees based in above-average-need neighborhoods. Its grants skew toward lower-need ZIPs.

area typical 12%PRESIDIO YMCA: $3k → 10%COMMONWEAL: $4k → 8%COMMONWEAL: $2k → 8%COMMONWEAL: $2k → 8%COMMONWEAL: $1k → 8%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
PA
CA
CO
VA
NM
NC
DC
HI
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.

84%of every dollar goes to organizations it has funded before.
$546k · 44 repeat orgs$106k to everyone else

44 repeat relationships: 1 still active in FY2023, 43 since wound down; 2 grantees were first funded in FY2023 (too recent to call).

How the two cohorts compare

Re-uppedFunded once

Organizations

44
42

Total granted

$546k
$96k

Median revenue growth · since first grant

+25%
+34%

Still filing today

73%
67%

New vs renewed · share of each year

In FY2023, 9% of grant dollars renewed an existing relationship; $11k went to new ones.

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

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

’17’18’19’20’21’22’23
Arts & CultureEducationEnvironmentHealthAnimalsPhilanthropyOther
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

  • SF
    San Francisco Center for the Book
    6× · 2017–2022 · $65k · revenue +53%
  • GI
    GRABHORN INSTITUTE
    4× · 2019–2022 · $50k · revenue +265%
  • SF
    Society for Shamanic Practitioners
    4× · 2017–2022 · $23k · revenue +107%

Funded once

  • BC
    BOLINAS COMMUNITY LAND TRUST
    one grant, 2020 · $15k · revenue -23%
  • RS
    Ross School Foundation
    one grant, 2022 · $10k · revenue -9%
  • MR
    McKenzie River Trustgraduated
    one grant, 2021 · $10k · revenue +40%
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
California College of the Arts

California college of the arts educates students to shape culture and society through the practice and critical study of art, architecture, design, and writing. benefitting from its san francisco bay area location, the college prepares…

Education
2
Aquarium of the Pacific Corporation

The aquarium of the pacific's mission is to instill a sense of wonder, respect, and stewardship for the pacific ocean, its inhabitants, and ecosystems.

Animals
3
Marin Open Studios

Marin open studios is a non-profit visual arts organization dedicated to engaging and supporting marin county artists and their audiences through events, programs and services. marin open studios champions a diverse and inclusive community…

Arts & Culture
4
Ucsf Foundation Investment Company

The organization provides professional investment management services for endowed gifts and financial assets entrusted to the ucsf foundation.

Education
5
Monterey Museum of Art

The monterey museum of art cultivates curiosity in the visual arts and engages community with the diversity of california art - past, present, and future.

Arts & Culture
6
California Film Institute

The california film institute celebrates film and videos as art and education. its goal is to present and support emerging and established independent filmakers whose works address issues relevant to contemporary society. this is…

Arts & Culture
7
San Francisco Zoological Society

To connect all people with wildlife, inspire caring for nature, and advance conservation action.

Animals
8
The Union of Concerned Scientists Inc

The union of concerned scientists puts rigorous, independent science into action, developing solutions and advocating for a healthy, safe, and just future.

International
9
Community Foundation Santa Cruz County

To promote philanthropy to make santa cruz county a better place to live, now and in the future.we bring together people, ideas, and resources to inspire philanthropy and accomplish great things.

Philanthropy
10
Uc Santa Barbara Foundation

The uc santa barbara foundation actively works to further the goals of the university of california, santa barbara. the foundation seeks to maintain and nurture the university's quality and distinction. on behalf of the campus, the…

Education
11
Marin Academy

Marin academy asks every individual to think, question, and create in an environment of encouragement and compassion, and challenges each person to accept the responsibilities posed by education in a democratic society.

Education
12
San Francisco Public Press

The mission of the San Francisco Public Press is to enrich civic life by publishing investigative and solutions journalism that engages diverse audiences and promotes public accountability. The San Francisco Public Press…

Education
How this is measured
The grantee most central to the portfolio’s shape is The Exploratorium; the most unlike its peers is Society for Shamanic Practitioners. 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

65 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. 65 of the 90 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)
16
Early backer (in before they grew)
64/65
Grantees still filing
49/65
Grew since first funded

Where the money sits, by cause and then by grantee

SAN FRANCISCO ART INSTITUTE: $71,000 · OtherSAN FRANCISCO ART INSTITUTESAN FRANCISCO MUSEUM OF MODERN: $41,000 · OtherSAN FRANCISCO MUSEUM OF MODERNCA PACIFIC MEDICAL CENTER: $13,000 · OtherSAN FRANCISCO FOOD BANK: $9,000 · OtherCOMMONWEAL: $8,500 · OtherINSTITUTE OF NOETIC SCIENCES: $10,000 · Other+35 more: $93,340 · Other+35 moreSan Francisco Center for the Book: $65,000 · EducationSan Francisco Center f…MARIN COUNTRY DAY SCHOOL: $18,500 · EducationMARIN COUNTRY DAY SCHO…SUN VALLEY WRITERS' CONFERENCE INC: $14,300 · EducationSUN VALLEY WRITERS' CO…Ross School Foundation: $10,000 · EducationRoss School FoundationGOLDEN STATE SALMON ASSOCIATION INC: $9,500 · EducationGOLDEN STATE SALMON AS…MARIN MONTESSORI SCHOOL: $6,000 · Education+5 more: $9,500 · Education+5 moreGRABHORN INSTITUTE: $50,000 · Arts & CultureGRABHORN INSTITUTETHE EXPLORATORIUM: $30,000 · Arts & CultureTHE EXPLORATORIUMCORPORATION OF THE FINE ARTS MUSEUMS: $14,000 · Arts & CultureCORPORATION OF THE FIN…BOLINAS MUSEUM: $6,500 · Arts & CulturePHOTO ALLIANCE: $6,050 · Arts & CultureKQED INC: $6,000 · Arts & Culture+9 more: $16,400 · Arts & Culture+9 moreThe Pachamama Alliance: $20,000 · EnvironmentThe Pachama…THE ORION SOCIETY INC: $12,000 · EnvironmentTHE ORION S…McKenzie River Trust: $10,000 · EnvironmentMcKenzie Ri…SLIDE RANCH: $9,000 · EnvironmentSLIDE RANCHTHE SURFRIDER FOUNDATION: $5,000 · EnvironmentTHE SURFRID…CLEAN AIR TASK FORCE INC: $5,000 · EnvironmentCLEAN AIR T…+5 more: $6,000 · Environment+5 moreSociety for Shamanic Practitioners: $23,000 · HealthPLANNED PARENTHOOD FEDERATION OF AMERICA INC: $15,000 · HealthEVERY MOTHER COUNTS: $4,000 · HealthOperation Walk Chicago: $2,500 · HealthMARIN COMMUNITY CLINIC: $2,000 · HealthSide By Side: $2,000 · HealthBOLINAS COMMUNITY LAND TRUST: $15,000 · Housing & ShelterCOMMUNITY HOUSING PARTNERSHIP: $3,000 · Housing & ShelterTHE WEST MARIN FUND: $10,000 · PhilanthropyNORTH VALLEY COMMUNITY FOUNDATION: $2,000 · PhilanthropyTIPPING POINT COMMUNITY: $1,000 · PhilanthropyFOCUSING PHILANTHROPY INC: $1,000 · Philanthropy
Other$245,840Education$132,800Arts & Culture$128,950Environment$67,000Health$48,500Housing & Shelter$18,000Philanthropy$14,000

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

25%50%75%100%$100k$1.0M$10M$100Mgrantee revenue →↑ funder's share of their budgetSAN FRANCISCO ART INSTITUTE: $71,000 over 4y, 0.1% of budgetSan Francisco Center for the Book: $65,000 over 6y, 1.5% of budgetGRABHORN INSTITUTE: $50,000 over 4y, 3.1% of budgetTHE EXPLORATORIUM: $30,000 over 6y, 0.0% of budgetSociety for Shamanic Practitioners: $23,000 over 4y, 11% of budgetThe Pachamama Alliance: $20,000 over 4y, 0.1% of budgetMARIN COUNTRY DAY SCHOOL: $18,500 over 6y, 0.0% of budgetPLANNED PARENTHOOD FEDERATION OF AMERICA INC: $15,000 over 6y, 0.0% of budgetBOLINAS COMMUNITY LAND TRUST: $15,000 over 1y, 0.5% of budgetSUN VALLEY WRITERS' CONFERENCE INC: $14,300 over 4y, 0.2% of budgetCORPORATION OF THE FINE ARTS MUSEUMS: $14,000 over 6y, 0.0% of budgetTHE ORION SOCIETY INC: $12,000 over 4y, 0.3% of budgetRoss School Foundation: $10,000 over 1y, 0.5% of budgetMcKenzie River Trust: $10,000 over 1y, 0.2% of budgetTHE WEST MARIN FUND: $10,000 over 1y, 0.4% of budgetINSTITUTE OF NOETIC SCIENCES: $10,000 over 2y, 0.1% of budgetGOLDEN STATE SALMON ASSOCIATION INC: $9,500 over 6y, 0.6% of budgetSLIDE RANCH: $9,000 over 6y, 0.1% of budgetSAN FRANCISCO FOOD BANK: $9,000 over 2y, 0.0% of budgetCOMMONWEAL: $8,500 over 4y, 0.1% of budgetThe Houston Food Bank: $7,000 over 1y, 0.0% of budgetBOLINAS MUSEUM: $6,500 over 6y, 0.3% of budgetPHOTO ALLIANCE: $6,050 over 4y, 2.6% of budgetKQED INC: $6,000 over 5y, 0.0% of budgetMARIN MONTESSORI SCHOOL: $6,000 over 3y, 0.0% of budgetTHE SURFRIDER FOUNDATION: $5,000 over 4y, 0.0% of budgetWORLD CENTRAL KITCHEN INC: $5,000 over 2y, 0.0% of budgetCLEAN AIR TASK FORCE INC: $5,000 over 3y, 0.0% of budgetEVERY MOTHER COUNTS: $4,000 over 3y, 0.0% of budgetCHOWAN UNIVERSITY: $4,000 over 5y, 0.0% of budgetMuseum of Modern Art: $3,500 over 2y, 0.0% of budgetCENTER FOR PHOTOGRAPHIC ART: $3,500 over 3y, 0.3% of budgetCOMMUNITY HOUSING PARTNERSHIP: $3,000 over 2y, 0.0% of budgetKala Art Institute: $3,000 over 6y, 0.1% of budgetYOUNG MEN'S CHRISTIAN ASSOCIATION OF SAN FRANCISCO: $3,000 over 1y, 0.0% of budgetREPRODUCTIVE FREEDOM FOR ALL FOUNDATION: $2,500 over 1y, 0.0% of budgetOperation Walk Chicago: $2,500 over 1y, 0.4% of budgetMARIN COMMUNITY CLINIC: $2,000 over 1y, 0.0% of budgetTHE SAN FRANCISCO SOCIETY FOR THE PREVENTION OF CRUELTY TO ANIMALS: $2,000 over 1y, 0.0% of budgetNEPAL YOUTH FOUNDATION: $2,000 over 2y, 0.0% of budgetSide By Side: $2,000 over 1y, 0.0% of budgetNORTH VALLEY COMMUNITY FOUNDATION: $2,000 over 2y, 0.0% of budgetWILDCARE: $2,000 over 1y, 0.1% of budgetThe Edible Schoolyard Project dba The Alice Waters Institute: $2,000 over 1y, 0.1% of budgetECO-LOGIC DEVELOPMENT FUND: $2,000 over 3y, 0.3% of budgetFOR-SITE Foundation: $1,900 over 2y, 0.1% of budgetGREATER FARALLONES ASSOCIATION: $1,500 over 1y, 0.1% of budgetTHE BAY SCHOOL OF SAN FRANCISCO: $1,500 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 SAN FRANCISCO ART INSTITUTE ↗
  • Who funds San Francisco Center for the Book ↗
  • Who funds GRABHORN INSTITUTE ↗
  • Who funds THE EXPLORATORIUM ↗
  • Who funds Society for Shamanic Practitioners ↗
  • Who funds The Pachamama Alliance ↗
  • Who funds MARIN COUNTRY DAY SCHOOL ↗
  • Who funds PLANNED PARENTHOOD FEDERATION OF AMERICA INC ↗
  • Who funds BOLINAS COMMUNITY LAND TRUST ↗
  • Who funds SUN VALLEY WRITERS' CONFERENCE INC ↗
  • Who funds CORPORATION OF THE FINE ARTS MUSEUMS ↗
  • Who funds THE ORION SOCIETY INC ↗
  • Who funds Ross School Foundation ↗
  • Who funds McKenzie River Trust ↗
  • Who funds THE WEST MARIN FUND ↗
  • Who funds INSTITUTE OF NOETIC SCIENCES ↗
  • Who funds GOLDEN STATE SALMON ASSOCIATION INC ↗
  • Who funds SLIDE RANCH ↗
  • Who funds SAN FRANCISCO FOOD BANK ↗
  • Who funds COMMONWEAL ↗
  • Who funds The Houston Food Bank ↗
  • Who funds BOLINAS MUSEUM ↗
  • Who funds PHOTO ALLIANCE ↗
  • Who funds KQED INC ↗
  • Who funds MARIN MONTESSORI SCHOOL ↗
  • Who funds THE SURFRIDER FOUNDATION ↗
  • Who funds WORLD CENTRAL KITCHEN INC ↗
  • Who funds CLEAN AIR TASK FORCE INC ↗
  • Who funds EVERY MOTHER COUNTS ↗
  • Who funds CHOWAN UNIVERSITY ↗
  • Who funds Museum of Modern Art ↗
  • Who funds CENTER FOR PHOTOGRAPHIC ART ↗

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.

Marin Community Found…The San Francisco Fou…Jewish Community Fede…Silicon Valley Commun…The Springcreek Found…Leonard & Beryl Buck …Gordon E and Betty I …The Chicago Community…The Fred Gellert Fami…Rsf Social Finance IncMorgan Stanley Global…The West Marin Fund
Marin Community FoundationCA43.6× affinity22 shared granteesties to 11 of 11Hover any node to trace its alignments.Compare side by side →

Open a dossier: Marin Community Foundation · The San Francisco Foundation · Jewish Community Federation of San Francisco the Peninsula Marin & Sonoma · Silicon Valley Community Foundation · The Springcreek Foundation · Leonard & Beryl Buck Foundation · Gordon E and Betty I Moore Foundation · The Chicago Community Trust · The Fred Gellert Family Foundation · Rsf Social Finance Inc · Morgan Stanley Global Impact Funding Trust Inc · The West Marin Fund

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 Hobson Family Foundation funds: left to right is the share of its income from government, bottom to top the share from The Hobson Family Foundation. Bigger dots raise more.

2024
’20’21’22’23’24’25
no gov · 20%0%1%3%5%funder's share of their income ↑0%25%50%75%100%share of the org’s income from government →median 8%
  • McKenzie River Trust: 8% of income from government
  • The Orion Society Inc: 2% of income from government
no gov moneyreceives it· size = income
2get 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.

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 90 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 2023, released 2023. Filings run roughly 12 to 24 months behind; figures are dated accordingly.

Source object · view filing

Play a game based on Hobson 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