Skip to content
The Joseph & Lynn May Foundation at a glance

· Private foundation

The Joseph & Lynn May Foundation

Its FY2018 filing reports that it funds preselected organizations and did not take unsolicited requests; check the foundation's own site before ruling it out.

$49k
Granted FY2018
38
Grants FY2018
10
States reached
$11k
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 2018.

Religion$25kPhilanthropy$23kEducation$16kArts & Culture$16kRecreation & Sports$3kHuman Services$3kHealth$2kSocial Science$2kOther$0
02FY2018 · 38 grants

Where the money goes

Grants by size, and the largest recipients.

By grant size · FY2018

  • Under $10k37 grants · $38k
  • $10k–50k1 grant · $11k
$500
Median grant
10
States reached
$0
Total assets
Largest grants
RecipientAmount
JEWISH FEDERATION$11,000
FIRST PRESBYTERIAN CHURCH$8,500
CONGREGATION MICAH$3,705
MONTGOMERY BELL ACADEMY$3,100
VANDERBILT UNIVERSITY$3,000
TENNESSEE STATE MUSEUM FOUNDATION$2,500
UNIVERSITY SCHOOL OF NASHVILLE$2,400
ANDREW JACKSON FOUNDATION$1,431
YALE UNIVERSITY$1,200
FRIENDS OF WARNER PARKS$1,100
HUDSON INTITUTE$1,000
FRIST CENTER FOR THE VISUAL ARTS$1,000
THE CONSERVANCY PARTHENON CENTENNIAL PARK$1,000
THE BASCOM MUSEUM$1,000
CHRISTIANS UNITED FOR ISRAEL$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 (FY17–18, $400) land where the poverty rate runs at 14%, against an area that typically sits at 10%. 100% of those dollars go to grantees based in above-average-need neighborhoods. Most of its grants land in higher-need ZIPs.

area typical 10%ALIVE HOSPICE: $150 → 14%ALIVE HOSPICE: $150 → 14%FIFTY FORWARD: $100 → 14%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

WI
NY
SD
IN
CT
MD
TN
NC
DC
GA
TX
FL
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.

70%of every dollar goes to organizations it has funded before.
$65k · 18 repeat orgs$28k to everyone else

18 repeat relationships: 18 still active in FY2018, 0 since wound down; 20 grantees were first funded in FY2018 (too recent to call).

How the two cohorts compare

Re-uppedFunded once

Organizations

18
27

Total granted

$65k
$15k

Median revenue growth · since first grant

+40%
+52%

Still filing today

67%
44%

New vs renewed · share of each year

In FY2018, 72% of grant dollars renewed an existing relationship; $14k went to new ones.

50%100%’17’18
RenewedFirst-time

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

’17’18
Arts & CultureEducationHealthHuman ServicesRecreation & SportsEnvironmentOther
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

  • MB
    MONTGOMERY BELL ACADEMY OF THE UNIVERSITY OF NASHVILLE
    2× · 2017–2018 · $5k · revenue +6%
  • US
    UNIVERSITY SCHOOL OF NASHVILLE
    2× · 2017–2018 · $4k · revenue +37%
  • AJ
    ANDREW JACKSON FOUNDATION FKA LADIES' HERMITAGE ASSOCIATION
    2× · 2017–2018 · $2k · revenue +8%

Funded once

  • BS
    BLAIR SCHOOL OF MUSIC VANDERBILT UNIVERSITY
    one grant, 2017 · $3k
  • NS
    Nashville Symphony Associationgraduated
    one grant, 2017 · $3k · revenue +29%
  • CR
    CANBY ROBINSON SOCIETY
    one grant, 2017 · $1k
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
Nashville Public Radio

Nashville public radio's mission is to be the most trusted & independent nashville voice, connecting our communities through non-partisan journalism, compelling storytelling, civil conversation and music discovery.

Arts & Culture
2
American Academy of Neurology

The Academy's mission is to enhance member career fulfillment and promote brain health for all.

Community Improvement
3
Boston Architectural College

The bac is committed to provide excellence in design education grounded in practice and accessible to diverse communities.

—
4
Lehigh University

The university's goal in the coming decade is to advance learning through the integration of teaching, research and service to others. the core of this goal is to prepare graduates to engage with the world and lead lives of meaning. to do…

Education
5
Nashville Zoo Inc

In fulfillment of our mission to inspire a culture of understanding and discovery of our natural world through conservation, innovation and leadership, our goal is to build a first class zoo for middle tennessee and to develop a facility…

Animals
6
United States Naval Institute

Provide an independent forum for those who dare to read, think, speak, and write to advance the professional, literary, and scientific understanding of sea power and other issues critical to global security.

—
7
Union University

Union university provides christ-centered education that promotes excellence and character development in service to church and society.

Education
8
Furman University

The primary mission of furman as a liberal arts institution is to provide a distinctive education in fine arts, humanities, social sciences, mathematics and the sciences, as well as selected professional disciplines.

Education
9
North Carolina Symphony Society Inc

To be north carolina's state orchestra, an orchestra achieving the highest level of artistic quality and performance standards, and embracing its dual legacies of statewide service and music education.

Arts & Culture
10
Museum of Arts and Design

To collect, display and interpret objects in craft art and design.

Arts & Culture
11
Methodist Medical Center

Methodist Medical Center provides quality healthcare, in alignment with Covenant Health's mission to serve the community by improving the quality of life through better health regardless of a patient's ability to pay.

Health
12
Northeast College of Health Sciences

Northeast college of health sciences (the college) is committed to academic excellence, leadership, and professional best practices in the health sciences.

Education
How this is measured
The grantee most central to the portfolio’s shape is Centennial Park Conservancy; the most unlike its peers is Cystic Fibrosis Foundation. 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

34 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. 34 of the 65 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)
9
Early backer (in before they grew)
32/34
Grantees still filing
30/34
Grew since first funded

Where the money sits, by cause and then by grantee

JEWISH FEDERATION: $22,200 · OtherJEWISH FEDERATIONFIRST PRESBYTERIAN CHURCH: $15,600 · OtherFIRST PRESBYTERIAN CHURCHCONGREGATION MICAH: $7,510 · OtherCONGREGATION MICAHBLAIR SCHOOL OF MUSIC VANDERBILT UNIVERSITY: $2,600 · Other+35 more: $19,020 · Other+35 moreMONTGOMERY BELL ACADEMY OF THE UNIVERSITY OF NASHVILLE: $4,800 · EducationMONTGOMERY BELL …UNIVERSITY SCHOOL OF NASHVILLE: $3,500 · EducationUNIVERSITY SCHOO…Vanderbilt University: $3,000 · EducationVanderbilt Unive…MEHARRY MEDICAL COLLEGE: $1,000 · EducationMEHARRY MEDICAL …+4 more: $970 · Education+4 moreTENNESSEE STATE MUSEUM FOUNDATION INC: $2,500 · Arts & CultureTENNESSEE STA…Nashville Symphony Association: $2,500 · Arts & CultureNashville Sym…ANDREW JACKSON FOUNDATION FKA LADIES' HERMITAGE ASSOCIATION: $2,181 · Arts & CultureANDREW JACKSO…FRIST ART MUSEUM: $2,000 · Arts & CultureFRIST ART MUS…CENTENNIAL PARK CONSERVANCY: $1,000 · Arts & CultureCENTENNIAL PA…NASHVILLE BALLET: $500 · Arts & Culture+3 more: $250 · Arts & CultureFRIENDS OF THE WARNER PARKS INC: $1,100 · Recreation & SportsTENNGREEN LAND CONSERVANCY: $100 · Recreation & SportsEASTER SEALS TENNESSEE INC: $500 · HealthCYSTIC FIBROSIS FOUNDATION: $250 · HealthAMERICAN PARKINSON DISEASE ASSOC: $50 · HealthALIVE HOSPICE INC: $300 · Human ServicesSENIOR CITIZENS INC: $100 · Human ServicesTHE NEXT DOOR INC: $100 · Housing & ShelterWILDFLOWER DONOR INC: $60 · Environment
Other$66,930Education$13,270Arts & Culture$10,931Recreation & Sports$1,200Health$800Human Services$400Housing & Shelter$100Environment$60

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 budgetMONTGOMERY BELL ACADEMY OF THE UNIVERSITY OF NASHVILLE: $4,800 over 2y, 0.0% of budgetUNIVERSITY SCHOOL OF NASHVILLE: $3,500 over 2y, 0.0% of budgetVanderbilt University: $3,000 over 1y, 0.0% of budgetTENNESSEE STATE MUSEUM FOUNDATION INC: $2,500 over 1y, 0.0% of budgetNashville Symphony Association: $2,500 over 1y, 0.0% of budgetANDREW JACKSON FOUNDATION FKA LADIES' HERMITAGE ASSOCIATION: $2,181 over 2y, 0.0% of budgetHudson Institute Inc: $2,000 over 2y, 0.0% of budgetFRIST ART MUSEUM: $2,000 over 2y, 0.0% of budgetOAK HILL SCHOOL: $1,550 over 2y, 0.0% of budgetFRIENDS OF THE WARNER PARKS INC: $1,100 over 1y, 0.1% of budgetMEHARRY MEDICAL COLLEGE: $1,000 over 2y, 0.0% of budgetTHE LUKE SOCIETY INC: $1,000 over 1y, 0.0% of budgetCENTENNIAL PARK CONSERVANCY: $1,000 over 1y, 0.1% of budgetNASHVILLE BALLET: $500 over 1y, 0.0% of budgetEASTER SEALS TENNESSEE INC: $500 over 1y, 0.0% of budgetTENNESSEE HISTORICAL SOCIETY: $470 over 2y, 0.1% of budgetEmory University: $350 over 2y, 0.0% of budgetALIVE HOSPICE INC: $300 over 2y, 0.0% of budgetROTARY CLUB OF NASHVILLE: $300 over 1y, 0.1% of budgetKAPPA ALPHA THETA FOUNDATION INC: $270 over 2y, 0.0% of budgetEPISCOPAL SCHOOL OF NASHVILLE: $250 over 1y, 0.0% of budgetCYSTIC FIBROSIS FOUNDATION: $250 over 1y, 0.0% of budgetSENIOR CITIZENS INC: $100 over 1y, 0.0% of budgetNASHVILLE OPERA ASSOCIATION: $100 over 1y, 0.0% of budgetAMYOTROPHIC LATERAL SCLEROSIS ASSOC TENNESSEE CHAPTER: $100 over 1y, 0.0% of budgetCENTER FOR LIVING AND LEARNING INC: $100 over 1y, 0.0% of budgetTENNGREEN LAND CONSERVANCY: $100 over 1y, 0.0% of budgetCOLGATE UNIVERSITY: $100 over 1y, 0.0% of budgetThe Bascom Corporation: $100 over 1y, 0.0% of budgetTHE NEXT DOOR INC: $100 over 1y, 0.0% of budgetWILDFLOWER DONOR INC: $60 over 1y, 0.3% of budgetCHEEKWOOD BOTANICAL GARDEN AND MUSEUM OF ART: $50 over 1y, 0.0% of budgetAMERICAN PARKINSON DISEASE ASSOC: $50 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.

The Community Foundat…The Wade-Buntin Famil…Memorial Foundation I…The Steven & Laurie E…Enchiridion FoundationThe Frist FoundationDettwiller FoundationEbs FoundationCommunity Foundation …Doochin Family Charit…Hca Healthcare Founda…Raymond James Charita…
The Community Foundation of Middle Tennessee IncTN36.3× affinity18 shared granteesties to 11 of 11Hover any node to trace its alignments.Compare side by side →

Open a dossier: The Community Foundation of Middle Tennessee Inc · The Wade-Buntin Family Foundation · Memorial Foundation Inc · The Steven & Laurie Eskind Family Foundation · Enchiridion Foundation · The Frist Foundation · Dettwiller Foundation · Ebs Foundation · Community Foundation of Greater Memphis Inc · Doochin Family Charitable Foundation · Hca Healthcare Foundation · Raymond James Charitable Endowment 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 Joseph & Lynn May Foundation funds: left to right is the share of its income from government, bottom to top the share from The Joseph & Lynn May Foundation. Bigger dots raise more.

2024
’20’21’22’23’24’25
no gov · 10%0%1%3%5%funder's share of their income ↑0%10%20%30%40%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 · 0–40%
    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 65 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 2018, released 2018. Filings run roughly 12 to 24 months behind; figures are dated accordingly.

    Source object · view filing

    Play a game based on Joseph & Lynn May’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