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· Private foundation

The Michael M Wiseman and Helen a Garten Charitable 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.

$20k
Granted FY2025still arriving
1
Grants FY2025still arriving
1
States reached
$20k
Largest
01What you fund
0162% classified

What you funded, over time

Every grant clustered by its grantee’s IRS cause code (NTEE), by year — across FY20182025.

Animals$176kRecreation & Sports$135kArts & Culture$127kEnvironment$36kEmployment$10kEducation$5kCommunity Improvement$3kHealth$2kHuman Services$500Other$297k
02FY2025 · 1 grant

Where the money goes

Your grants by size, and where they go.

$20,000
Median grant
1
States reached
$724k
Total assets
Largest grants
RecipientAmount
NEW ENGLAND SCIENCE AND SAILING FOUNDATION$20,000
02The need
03

Do your dollars go where the need is?

Each grant placed by the hardship in its grantee’s ZIP, then read against the area’s typical level.

show:

Your human-services grants (FY18–18, $500) land where the poverty rate runs at 9%, against an area that typically sits at 12%. 0% of those dollars go to grantees based in above-average-need neighborhoods. Your grants skew toward lower-need ZIPs.

area typical 12%FIDELCO GUIDE DOG FOUNDATION: $500 → 9%0%20%40%50%more need →
grant to an above-average-need area below average· circle size = grant amount

Matched: human-services grants are those whose grantee’s IRS cause code is Human Services. Placed by people below the poverty linein the grantee’s ZIP, averaged from the tracts in that ZIP; grantee ZIP can differ from where services are delivered.

Which US states your grants reach

NY
MA
IA
CT
RI
MD
DC
TX

US grants placed by each grantee’s ZIP, which can differ from where services are actually delivered. Need from public data — U.S. Census/ACS, CDC PLACES, Eviction Lab, USDA — shown as context about the area, never attributed to your giving.

03Your edge
repeat funding

Who you back again

Which organizations you funded more than once, and which you funded a single time. Each grantee is matched to its own filings.

95%of every dollar goes to organizations you’ve funded before.
$751k · 11 repeat orgs$40k to everyone else

And the relationships you keep tend to grow: grantees you re-up on have seen median revenue of +61% since the first grant, against +44% for the ones you funded once.

11 repeat relationships — 1 still active in FY2025, 10 since wound down.

How the two cohorts compare

Re-uppedFunded once

Organizations

11
10

Total granted

$751k
$40k

Median revenue growth · since first grant

+61%
+44%

Still filing today

91%
70%

New vs renewed · share of each year

In FY2025, 100% of grant dollars renewed an existing relationship; $0 went to new ones.

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

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

’18’19’20’21’22’23’24’25
Arts & CultureAnimalsEnvironmentCommunity ImprovementRecreation & SportsHealthOther

First-time = a grantee’s first year in your filing window; renewed = funded in an earlier year too. As a portfolio matures the renewed share naturally climbs — once funded, an org stays “renewable” — so the signal is the years that buck it (a new-grantee intake wave). 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

  • HW
    Humane World for Animals Inc
    3× · 2018–2020 · $175k · revenue +61%
  • NE
    NEW ENGLAND SCIENCE & SAILING FOUNDATION INC
    8× · 2018–2025 · $135k · revenue +28%
  • MYSTIC SEAPORT MUSEUM INC
    4× · 2019–2023 · $96k · revenue +2%

Funded once

  • WC
    WEILL CORNELL MEDICINE (DR JIM HU RESEARCH)
    one grant, 2020 · $20k
  • WB
    WESTPORT BOOK SALE VENTURES INCgraduated
    one grant, 2020 · $10k · revenue +51%
  • PF
    PEO Foundationgraduated
    one grant, 2021 · $5k · revenue +60%

Repeat = funded in two or more distinct years; growth and survival are read from each grantee’s own subsequent IRS filings.

04Your field

The map has a center of gravity: the average direction from the rest of the sector toward the organizations the foundation funds — the shape of its giving. Scoring every nonprofit along that direction surfaces the ones that look most like the portfolio. These are the closest matchesthat aren’t grantees — a resemblance in what they say they do, not a recommendation.

1
Norwalk Seaport Association Inc

The norwalk seaport association, inc. offers a cultural, environmental, and historical journey to the norwalk islands. the sheffield island lighthouse and the light keeper's cottage provide a unique historical and educational venue which…

Arts & Culture
2
Westport South Beach Historical Society

Our mission is to educate and interpret the maritime history of our coastal community and to advocate for the preservation of our local historic structures. We own and operate the Grays Harbor Lighthouse and own the collections of and…

3
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.

4
The North Shore Land Alliance Inc

To conserve and steward long island's natural and historic lands, waters and environmental resources. through education, outreach and volunteerism, we connect people to nature and inspire a community conservation ethic.

Environment
5
Cow Neck Peninsula Historical Society

Cow Neck Peninsula Historical Societys purpose is to 1 educate the public about this geographical area and 2 to preserve this area for future generations

6
Norwalk Harbor Keeper
7
Nantucket Historical Association

The nantucket historical association preserves and interprets the history of nantucket through its programs, collections, and properties, in order to promote the island's significance and foster an appreciation of it among all audiences.

Arts & Culture
8
Montauk Historical Society

The purpose of the montauk historical society is to collect, restore, preserve and display historically significant buildings, objects and writings and to preserve and share the history and cultures of montauk and the east end for this and…

Arts & Culture
9
Newburyport Maritime Society Inc

To protect, preserve and interpret the martime heritage of the lower Merrimack Valley region and how it relates to American History

Arts & Culture
10
Northeastern Regional Association of Coastal Ocean Observing Systems

The northeastern regional association of coastal and ocean observing systems' (neracoos) mission is to produce, integrate and communicate high- quality information that helps ensure safety, economic and environmental resilience, and…

Science & Tech
11
The Connecticut River Foundation At Steamboat Dock Inc

The connecticut river museum's mission is to deepen appreciation of the river's history and to inspire its stewardship by providing unique educational and recreational experiences to diverse audiences.

Arts & Culture
12
Cuttyhunk Historical Society Inc
Arts & Culture

For reference, the grantee most central to the portfolio’s shape is The Naval Institute Foundation Inc and the most unlike its peers is Ragnot Amateur Sailing Association of Texas. 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 one resolved to its own IRS returns and tracked year by year — your grant beside their revenue from every source. Association, dated; never a causal claim.

Counted here: distinct organizations you funded across 20172025, not grant rows in a single year — so this will not match the grant count on the cover. 17 of the 21 grantees resolved in that span have returns of their own we could reconcile; the rest are funded organizations whose filings we could not track year by year.

0
Load-bearing (≥25% of a budget)
6
Early backer (in before they grew)
17/17
Grantees still filing
11/17
Grew since you first funded

Where your money sits — by cause, then by grantee

THE NAVAL INSTITUTE FOUNDATION INC — $260,000 · OtherTHE NAVAL INSTITUTE FOUNDATION INCWEILL CORNELL MEDICINE (DR JIM HU RESEARCH) — $20,000 · OtherWEILL CORNELL MEDICINE (DR JIM HU RESEARCH)JALBCA — $14,000 · Other+8 more — $8,350 · OtherHumane World for Animals Inc — $175,000 · AnimalsHumane World for Animals …+1 more — $1,000 · AnimalsNEW ENGLAND SCIENCE & SAILING FOUNDATION INC — $135,000 · Recreation & SportsNEW ENGLAND SCIENCE…MYSTIC SEAPORT MUSEUM INC — $96,000 · Arts & CultureMYSTIC SEAPORT MUS…ARCHAEOLOGICAL INSTITUTE OF AMERICA — $30,000 · Arts & CultureARCHAEOLOGICAL INS…+1 more — $1,000 · Arts & CultureEARTHPLACE INC — $35,000 · Environment+1 more — $1,000 · EnvironmentWESTPORT BOOK SALE VENTURES INC — $10,000 · EmploymentPEO Foundation — $5,000 · Education
Other$302,350Animals$176,000Recreation & Sports$135,000Arts & Culture$127,000Environment$36,000Employment$10,000Education$5,000

Each org by its size and your share of it — top-left is where you’re load-bearing

25%50%75%100%$1.0M$10M$100Mgrantee revenue →↑ your share of their budgetTHE NAVAL INSTITUTE FOUNDATION INC — $260,000 over 6y, 1.0% of budgetHumane World for Animals Inc — $175,000 over 3y, 0.1% of budgetNEW ENGLAND SCIENCE & SAILING FOUNDATION INC — $135,000 over 8y, 0.7% of budgetMYSTIC SEAPORT MUSEUM INC — $96,000 over 4y, 0.2% of budgetEARTHPLACE INC — $35,000 over 4y, 0.4% of budgetARCHAEOLOGICAL INSTITUTE OF AMERICA — $30,000 over 2y, 0.2% of budgetPEO Foundation — $5,000 over 1y, 0.0% of budgetNEW YORK YACHT CLUB FOUNDATION — $2,000 over 3y, 0.1% of budgetPOSITIVE DIRECTIONS-THE CENTER FOR PREVENTION & COUNSELING INC — $2,000 over 2y, 0.2% of budgetRAGNOT AMATEUR SAILING ASSOCIATION OF TEXAS — $1,000 over 1y, 0.3% of budgetJudges and Lawyers Breast Cancer Alert Inc — $1,000 over 1y, 0.1% of budgetStonington Village Improvement Assoc Inc — $1,000 over 2y, 0.2% of budgetASPETUCK LAND TRUST — $1,000 over 2y, 0.1% of budgetSTONINGTON HISTORICAL SOCIETY INC — $1,000 over 1y, 0.1% of budgetWESTPORT ANIMAL SHELTER ADVOCATES — $1,000 over 1y, 1.5% of budgetFIDELCO GUIDE DOG FOUNDATION INC — $500 over 1y, 0.0% of budget
Go grantee by grantee — a decade per org, and how each moved after you funded them

A decade per grantee — revenue shaded, your grants as bars, all rows on one timeline.

The grantmakers whose grantees overlap with yours far more than size alone predicts. Each orbits closer the stronger the alignment; the arcs between them show where they also fund each other. Here it reads as a tightly interlocked camp — most of these funders back each other's grantees too.

The Pfizer Foundation IncNY13.4× affinity7 shared granteesties to 8 of 8Hover any node to trace its alignments.Compare side by side →

Open a dossier: The Pfizer Foundation Inc · Fairfield County's Community Foundation Inc · National Philanthropic Trust · Morgan Stanley Global Impact Funding Trust Inc · Vanguard Charitable Endowment Program · Fidelity Investments Charitable Gift Fund · Donor Advised Charitable Giving Inc · American Online Giving Foundation Inc · Amazonsmile Foundation

Affinity is a Gamma-Poisson posterior co-funding rate, re-centered on the typical rate, so thin evidence shrinks toward no signal. A research starting point: overlap is association, not proof of shared intent.

Government reliance of your grantees

Every dot is one organization The Michael M Wiseman and Helen a Garten Charitable Foundation funds. Left–right is the share of its income from government; up–down is the share from you. Bigger dots raise more. Filter to federal, a single department, or state — and drag the year to watch it move.

2024
202122232425
no gov · 40%0%1%3%5%your share of their income ↑0%8%15%22%30%share of the org’s income from governmentmedian 5%
  • Aspetuck Land Trust28% of income from government
  • Positive Directions-the Center for Prevention & Counseling Inc11% of income from government
  • Mystic Seaport Museum Inc5% of income from government
  • Stonington Village Improvement Assoc Inc2% of income from government
  • Archaeological Institute of America1% of income from government
no gov moneyreceives it· size = income
4get no government money at all
2report government grants on their 990 we could not trace to a source (not plotted)
0rely on government for over half their income
⤢ axis zoomed · 0–30%
typical government reliance, FY2025

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 your grant caused the public funding. Coverage is precision-first — a floor, not 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 12–24 months.

05Through Plinth

Warm introductions · Powered by PlinthPlus

How do I get to The Michael M Wiseman and Helen a Garten Charitable Foundation?

Find your warmest path to The Michael M Wiseman and Helen a Garten Charitable 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 directly from IRS e-file XML — your own 990/990-PF and the multi-year returns of the 21 grantees we resolved across every year we hold, several hundred filings in all (a different count from the grant rows on the cover, which are one fiscal year)— each linked to its source. Grantee achievements and outcomes are each organization’s own program-service reporting (Form 990, Part III); we read these as association with sustained funding — the foundation is one of several forces — suppress low-confidence name matches rather than guess, and say so where a figure rests on a single grant or filing. Not everything on this page is a filed figure, and the difference matters. Filed is what you reported on your 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. How we build these →

Generated from your IRS Form 990-PF e-file return for fiscal year 2025, released 2025. Filings run roughly 12–24 months behind; figures are dated accordingly.

Source object · view filing

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