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The Lee Foundation at a glance

· Private foundation

The Lee Foundation

Its FY2025 filing reports that it accepted unsolicited grant applications.

$108k
Granted FY2025still arriving
55
Grants FY2025still arriving
4
States reached
$5k
Largest
01What it fundsRead
02The needRead
03Its granteesRead
04Its fieldRead
01What it funds
0192% classified

What it funded, over time

Every grant placed by its stated purpose and the recipient’s mission, by year, FY2019 to 2025.

Health$126kHuman Services$101kYouth Development$66kArts & Culture$56kHousing & Shelter$43kAnimals$43kFood & Nutrition$34kEducation$31kOther$0
02FY2025 · 55 grants

Where the money goes

Grants by size, and the largest recipients.

$2,000
Median grant
4
States reached
$3.1M
Total assets
Largest grants
RecipientAmount
Orlando Health Foundation$5,000
Lighthouse Central Florida$5,000
IDignity$4,000
Boys & Girls Club Central Florida Inc$3,500
Seniors First Inc$3,000
Winter Park Day Nursery$3,000
Orlando Day Nursery$3,000
Camaraderie Foundation Inc$3,000
Orlando Union Rescue Mission$3,000
The Salvation Army$3,000
Alzheimer Resource Center Inc$3,000
Orlando Family Stage$3,000
Pathlight Home$3,000
Christian Service Center for Homeless$3,000
Christian Help$3,000
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, $102k) land where the poverty rate runs at 12%, 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%Talias Legacy: $1k → 11%IDignity: $4k → 13%Talias Legacy: $500 → 11%Wounded Veterans Refief Fund: $1k → 11%IDignity: $4k → 13%Paws for Liberty: $2k → 11%Paws for Liberty: $2k → 11%Paws for Liberty: $2k → 11%Paws for Liberty: $2k → 11%Paws for Liberty: $1k → 11%Talias Legacy: $500 → 11%Children's Home Society: $1k → 11%Christian Help: $3k → 11%Christian Help: $3k → 11%Christian Help: $2k → 11%Christian Help: $2k → 11%Christian Help: $2k → 11%Lighthouse Central Florida: $5k → 13%Lighthouse Central Florida: $3k → 13%Lighthouse Central Florida: $3k → 13%Lighthouse Central Florida: $3k → 13%Lighthouse Central Florida: $3k → 13%Lighthouse Central Florida: $2k → 13%Lighthouse Central Florida: $2k → 13%Freedom Ride: $3k → 13%Winter Park Day Nursery: $3k → 13%Winter Park Day Nursery: $3k → 13%Winter Park Day Nursery: $3k → 13%Winter Park Day Nursery: $2k → 13%Winter Park Day Nursery: $2k → 13%Winter Park Day Nursery: $2k → 13%Winter Park Day Nursery: $2k → 13%Impower: $2k → 13%Impower: $2k → 13%Impower: $2k → 13%Impower: $2k → 13%Impower: $2k → 13%Impower: $2k → 13%Impower: $1k → 13%Christian Service Center: $2k → 13%Christian Service Center: $1k → 13%Christian Service Center: $1k → 13%Seniors First Inc: $3k → 13%Christian Service Center: $1k → 13%Seniors First: $3k → 13%Seniors First: $2k → 13%Seniors First: $1k → 13%Seniors First: $1k → 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.

Which US states its grants reach

NY
PA
CA
VA
MD
KS
TN
NC
DC
GA
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.

90%of every dollar goes to organizations it has funded before.
$554k · 85 repeat orgs$64k to everyone else

Grantees it renews have grown median revenue +27% since the first grant, against +25% for those funded once.

85 repeat relationships: 45 still active in FY2025, 40 since wound down; 10 grantees were first funded in FY2025 (too recent to call).

How the two cohorts compare

Re-uppedFunded once

Organizations

85
62

Total granted

$554k
$45k

Median revenue growth · since first grant

+27%
+25%

Still filing today

52%
39%

New vs renewed · share of each year

In FY2025, 82% of grant dollars renewed an existing relationship; $19k 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
Human ServicesHealthArts & CultureAnimalsEducationYouth DevelopmentOther
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

  • LC
    LIGHTHOUSE CENTRAL FLORIDA INC
    7× · 2019–2025 · $20k · revenue +31%
  • MP
    MICHELEE PUPPETS INC
    6× · 2019–2024 · $19k · revenue +38%
  • OD
    ORLANDO DAY NURSERY ASSOCIATIONINC
    7× · 2019–2025 · $18k · revenue +21%

Funded once

  • FR
    FREEDOM RIDE INC
    one grant, 2020 · $3k · revenue -16%
  • 4F
    4ROOTS FOUNDATION INC
    one grant, 2021 · $3k · revenue +25%
  • CF
    Center for Indep Living
    one grant, 2022 · $3k
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
Florida Community Health Centers Inc

Florida community health centers, inc. (fchc) is a federally qualified health center serving medically needy populations in south florida, with an emphasis on serving rural and farm worker communities.

—
2
Central Florida Kidney Centers Inc

Our mission is to provide exceptional dialysis care and services to individuals with end-stage kidney disease throughout central florida. we are dedicated to expanding access to treatment and ensuring all those in need receive quality…

Health
3
Easter Seals Florida Inc

See schedule o for a complete description of the organization's mission

Health
4
The Hospice of the Florida Suncoast Inc

Suncoast hospice's mission is to be the center to improve life for those touched by advanced illness, death, dying, grief, bereavement and other end-of-life issues.

Human Services
5
Disability Rights Florida Inc

Disability rights florida advocates, educates, investigates, and litigates to protect and advance the rights, dignity, equal opportunities, self-determination and choices for all people with disabilities.

Civil Rights
6
Lutheran Services Florida Inc

Lutheran services florida brings god's healing, hope, and help to people in need in the name of jesus christ.

Human Services
7
Heart of Florida United Way Inc

The mission of heart of florida united way is to improve lives by mobilizing the caring power of our communities. this is accomplished by standing up for the health, education, and financial stability of every person in central florida.

Philanthropy
8
Central Florida Commission On Homelessness Inc

The corporation is organized for the purpose of permanently reducing the number of homeless individuals and families in the central florida region.

—
9
University of Florida Health Corporation

UF Health's mission is to promote health through outstanding and high-quality patient care, innovative and rigorous education in the health professions and biomedical sciences, and high-impact research across the spectrum of basic,…

—
10
Feeding South Florida Inc

Feeding south florida's mission is to end hunger in south florida by providing immediate access to nutritious food, leading hunger and poverty advocacy efforts, and transforming lives through innovative programming and education.

Food & Nutrition
11
The Hospice Foundation of the Florida Suncoast Inc

The mission of suncoast hospice foundation is to advance the understanding, participation, and support of the mission and programs of suncoast hospice and its affilated organizations, honoring the community's sacred trust through sound…

—
12
Orlando Center for Justice

Orlando Center for Justice, Inc.s mission is to bridge the access to justice gap in Florida for newcomers by helping these underserved communities navigate the legal system through education and innovation. We also walk alongside them,…

Crime & Legal
How this is measured
The grantee most central to the portfolio’s shape is Health Care Center for the Homeless Inc; the most unlike its peers is American Diabetes Association. 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

73 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. 73 of the 157 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)
15
Early backer (in before they grew)
72/73
Grantees still filing
51/73
Grew since first funded

Where the money sits, by cause and then by grantee

Boys & Girls Club Central Florida Inc: $22,000 · OtherBoys & Girls Club Central Florida IncAlzheimer Resource Center: $21,700 · OtherAlzheimer Resource CenterMICHELEE PUPPETS INC: $19,250 · OtherORLANDO DAY NURSERY ASSOCIATIONINC: $18,000 · OtherThe Salvation Army: $16,500 · OtherJunior Achievement: $14,000 · OtherAlzheimer Association Central FL: $13,000 · OtherQuest: $13,000 · OtherSoutheastern Food Bank Inc: $14,500 · OtherGrand Avenue Economic Community Dev: $14,000 · Other+99 more: $214,740 · Other+99 moreLIGHTHOUSE CENTRAL FLORIDA INC: $19,500 · Human ServicesLIGHTHOUSE CENTRAL…WINTER PARK DAY NURSERY INC: $17,340 · Human ServicesWINTER PARK DAY NU…IMPOWER INC: $13,000 · Human ServicesIMPOWER INCCHRISTIAN HELP FOUNDATION INC: $12,000 · Human ServicesCHRISTIAN HELP FOU…Seniors First Inc: $10,000 · Human ServicesSeniors First IncPAWS 4 LIBERTY INC: $9,000 · Human ServicesPAWS 4 LIBERTY INCIDIGNITY INC: $8,000 · Human ServicesIDIGNITY INCCHRISTIAN SERVICE CENTER INC: $5,600 · Human ServicesCHRISTIAN SERVICE …+6 more: $7,700 · Human Services+6 moreUNITED CEREBRAL PALSY OF CENTRAL FLORIDA INC: $12,700 · HealthUNITED CER…SHEPHERD'S HOPE INC: $10,800 · HealthSHEPHERD'S…CAMARADERIE FOUNDATION INC: $8,000 · HealthCAMARADERI…NAMI GREATER ORLANDO INC: $7,000 · HealthNAMI GREAT…EDGEWOOD CHILDREN'S RANCH INC: $6,200 · HealthEDGEWOOD C…Orlando Health Foundation Inc: $5,100 · HealthOrlando He…Health Care Center For The Homeless Inc: $3,000 · HealthGrace Medical Home Inc: $2,100 · HealthNEXTSTEP ORLANDO INC: $2,000 · Health+4 more: $700 · HealthFLORIDA LEADERSHIP VENTURE: $16,000 · Youth DevelopmentZEBRA YOUTH INC: $4,500 · Youth DevelopmentLOVE OUR YOUTH INC: $1,000 · Youth Development+1 more: $500 · Youth DevelopmentORLANDO UNION RESCUE MISSION INC: $12,500 · Housing & ShelterSAMARITAN VILLAGE INC: $7,500 · Housing & ShelterINTERNATIONAL FRINGE FESTIVAL OF CENTRAL FLORIDA INC: $7,500 · Arts & CultureCOMMUNITY COMMUNICATIONS INC: $3,200 · Arts & CultureORLANDO FAMILY STAGE INC: $3,000 · Arts & CultureBACH FESTIVAL SOCIETY OF WINTER PARK: $2,500 · Arts & CultureENZIAN THEATER INC: $1,500 · Arts & CultureHISTORICAL SOCIETY OF CENTRAL FLORIDA INC: $1,000 · Arts & Culture+2 more: $350 · Arts & CultureGolden Retriever Rescue of Mid Florida Inc: $12,000 · AnimalsPET ALLIANCE OF GREATER ORLANDO INC: $1,000 · AnimalsMUTTS WITH A MISSION: $1,000 · AnimalsSuncoast Basset Rescue Inc: $1,000 · Animals+3 more: $800 · Animals
Other$380,690Human Services$102,140Health$57,600Youth Development$22,000Housing & Shelter$20,000Arts & Culture$19,050Animals$15,800

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 budgetLIGHTHOUSE CENTRAL FLORIDA INC: $19,500 over 7y, 0.1% of budgetMICHELEE PUPPETS INC: $19,250 over 6y, 2.0% of budgetORLANDO DAY NURSERY ASSOCIATIONINC: $18,000 over 7y, 0.2% of budgetWINTER PARK DAY NURSERY INC: $17,340 over 7y, 0.2% of budgetFLORIDA LEADERSHIP VENTURE: $16,000 over 7y, 0.2% of budgetSoutheastern Food Bank Inc: $14,500 over 7y, 0.1% of budgetGrand Avenue Economic Community Dev: $14,000 over 6y, 0.0% of budgetIMPOWER INC: $13,000 over 7y, 0.0% of budgetUNITED CEREBRAL PALSY OF CENTRAL FLORIDA INC: $12,700 over 6y, 0.0% of budgetORLANDO UNION RESCUE MISSION INC: $12,500 over 7y, 0.0% of budgetCHRISTIAN HELP FOUNDATION INC: $12,000 over 5y, 0.1% of budgetGolden Retriever Rescue of Mid Florida Inc: $12,000 over 7y, 0.8% of budgetSHEPHERD'S HOPE INC: $10,800 over 6y, 0.1% of budgetSeniors First Inc: $10,000 over 5y, 0.0% of budgetPAWS 4 LIBERTY INC: $9,000 over 5y, 0.5% of budgetIDIGNITY INC: $8,000 over 2y, 0.1% of budgetCAMARADERIE FOUNDATION INC: $8,000 over 3y, 0.4% of budgetINTERNATIONAL FRINGE FESTIVAL OF CENTRAL FLORIDA INC: $7,500 over 6y, 0.2% of budgetSAMARITAN VILLAGE INC: $7,500 over 3y, 0.6% of budgetNAMI GREATER ORLANDO INC: $7,000 over 5y, 0.6% of budgetFOOD FOR THE POOR INC: $7,000 over 5y, 0.0% of budgetEDGEWOOD CHILDREN'S RANCH INC: $6,200 over 6y, 0.1% of budgetCHRISTIAN SERVICE CENTER INC: $5,600 over 6y, 0.3% of budgetOrlando Health Foundation Inc: $5,100 over 2y, 0.0% of budgetA GIFT FOR TEACHING INC: $5,000 over 6y, 0.0% of budgetNathaniel's Hope Inc: $5,000 over 5y, 0.1% of budgetZEBRA YOUTH INC: $4,500 over 5y, 0.1% of budgetACHIEVEMENT ACADEMY INC: $4,500 over 6y, 0.0% of budgetCOMMUNITY COMMUNICATIONS INC: $3,200 over 4y, 0.0% of budgetHealth Care Center For The Homeless Inc: $3,000 over 2y, 0.0% of budgetAMYOTROPHIC LATERAL SCLEROSIS ASSOCIATION: $3,000 over 3y, 1.8% of budgetORLANDO FAMILY STAGE INC: $3,000 over 1y, 0.1% of budgetFREEDOM RIDE INC: $3,000 over 1y, 0.3% of budget4ROOTS FOUNDATION INC: $3,000 over 1y, 0.1% of budgetBACH FESTIVAL SOCIETY OF WINTER PARK: $2,500 over 1y, 0.2% of budgetAMERICAN FRIENDS OF DVI: $2,500 over 4y, 0.4% of budgetGrace Medical Home Inc: $2,100 over 3y, 0.0% of budgetTalias Legacy Inc: $2,000 over 3y, 0.1% of budgetSECOND HARVEST FOOD BANK OF CENTRAL FLORIDA INC: $2,000 over 2y, 0.0% of budgetNEXTSTEP ORLANDO INC: $2,000 over 1y, 0.4% of budgetCELEBRATION FOUNDATION INC: $1,500 over 2y, 0.1% of budgetENZIAN THEATER INC: $1,500 over 2y, 0.0% of budgetAMNESTY INTERNATIONAL OF THE USA INC: $1,300 over 3y, 0.0% of budgetPAWS FOR PURPLE HEARTS: $1,200 over 2y, 0.0% of budgetTHE CHRIST SCHOOL: $1,000 over 1y, 0.0% of budgetTHE CHILDREN'S HOME SOCIETY OF FLORIDA: $1,000 over 1y, 0.0% of budgetFeeding America: $1,000 over 2y, 0.0% of budgetFLORIDA SYMPHONY YOUTH ORCHESTRA INC: $1,000 over 2y, 0.1% 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 LIGHTHOUSE CENTRAL FLORIDA INC ↗
  • Who funds MICHELEE PUPPETS INC ↗
  • Who funds ORLANDO DAY NURSERY ASSOCIATIONINC ↗
  • Who funds WINTER PARK DAY NURSERY INC ↗
  • Who funds FLORIDA LEADERSHIP VENTURE ↗
  • Who funds Southeastern Food Bank Inc ↗
  • Who funds Grand Avenue Economic Community Dev ↗
  • Who funds IMPOWER INC ↗
  • Who funds UNITED CEREBRAL PALSY OF CENTRAL FLORIDA INC ↗
  • Who funds ORLANDO UNION RESCUE MISSION INC ↗
  • Who funds CHRISTIAN HELP FOUNDATION INC ↗
  • Who funds Golden Retriever Rescue of Mid Florida Inc ↗
  • Who funds SHEPHERD'S HOPE INC ↗
  • Who funds Seniors First Inc ↗
  • Who funds PAWS 4 LIBERTY INC ↗
  • Who funds IDIGNITY INC ↗
  • Who funds CAMARADERIE FOUNDATION INC ↗
  • Who funds INTERNATIONAL FRINGE FESTIVAL OF CENTRAL FLORIDA INC ↗
  • Who funds SAMARITAN VILLAGE INC ↗
  • Who funds NAMI GREATER ORLANDO INC ↗
  • Who funds FOOD FOR THE POOR INC ↗
  • Who funds EDGEWOOD CHILDREN'S RANCH INC ↗
  • Who funds CHRISTIAN SERVICE CENTER 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.

Central Florida Found…The Dr P Phillips Fou…Magruder Chesley G Fd…Universal Orlando Fou…Heart of Florida Unit…Orlando Health IncThe Galloway Foundati…The Chatlos Foundatio…Williams M M & R P Fd…Adventist Health Syst…Elizabeth Morse Geniu…Central Florida Women…
Central Florida FoundationFL60.1× affinity27 shared granteesties to 11 of 11Hover any node to trace its alignments.Compare side by side →

Open a dossier: Central Florida Foundation · The Dr P Phillips Foundation · Magruder Chesley G Fdn Im · Universal Orlando Foundation Inc · Heart of Florida United Way Inc · Orlando Health Inc · The Galloway Foundation · The Chatlos Foundation Inc · Williams M M & R P Fdn Ta · Adventist Health SystemSunbelt Inc · Elizabeth Morse Genius Foundation · Central Florida Womens League 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 Lee Foundation funds: left to right is the share of its income from government, bottom to top the share from The Lee Foundation. Bigger dots raise more.

2024
’20’21’22’23’24’25
no gov · 280%0%1%3%5%funder's share of their income ↑0%23%45%68%90%share of the org’s income from government →median 1%
  • Health Care Center for the Homeless Inc: 34% of income from government
  • United Cerebral Palsy of Central Florida Inc: 13% of income from government
  • The Shriners' Hospital for Children: 6% of income from government
  • Idignity Inc: 6% of income from government
  • The Children's Home Society of Florida: 6% of income from government
  • Impower Inc: 5% of income from government
  • Flagler Humane Society Inc: 1% of income from government
  • Enzian Theater Inc: 1% of income from government
  • Spca Inc: 0% of income from government
  • Nami Greater Orlando Inc: 0% of income from government
  • Second Harvest Food Bank of Central Florida Inc: 0% of income from government
  • Orlando Museum of Art Inc: 0% of income from government
  • Pet Alliance of Greater Orlando Inc: 0% of income from government
  • Food for the Poor Inc: 0% of income from government
no gov moneyreceives it· size = income
28get no government money at all
15report government grants on their 990 we could not trace to a source (not plotted)
0rely on government for over half their income
⤢ axis zoomed · 0–90%
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 157 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 Lee’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