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The Runyon Family Foundation at a glance

· Private foundation

The Runyon 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.

$5.3M
Granted FY2023
7
Grants FY2023
2
States reached
$5.3M
Largest
01What it fundsRead
02The needRead
03Its granteesRead
04Its fieldRead
05Through PlinthRead
01What it funds
01100% classified

What it funded, over time

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

Philanthropy$6.2MEducation$1.1MPublic Safety & Disaster$500kCommunity Improvement$167kCivil Rights$54kHousing & Shelter$50kRecreation & Sports$20kArts & Culture$16kOther$0
02FY2023 · 7 grants

Where the money goes

Grants by size, and the largest recipients.

By grant size · FY2023

  • Under $10k6 grants · $6k
  • $250k+1 grant · $5.3M
$1,000
Median grant
2
States reached
$0
Total assets
Largest grants
RecipientAmount
ROOTED PHILANTHROPIC$5,335,680
EAST SIDE NEIGHBORHOOD DEVELOPMENT COMPANY$1,000
LATINO ECONOMIC DEVELOPMENT CENTER$1,000
FIGHT FOR YOUR DREAMS$1,000
HILL-MURRAY FOUNDATION$1,000
TINY NEWS COLLECTIVE$1,000
THE ESABA CHARITABLE FOUNDATION$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 (FY22–22, $600) land where the poverty rate runs at 11%, against an area that typically sits at 8%. 100% of those dollars go to grantees based in above-average-need neighborhoods. Most of its grants land in higher-need ZIPs.

area typical 8%OPEN ARMS OF MINNESOTA: $600 → 11%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.
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.

23%of every dollar goes to organizations it has funded before.
$1.9M · 9 repeat orgs$6.1M to everyone else

9 repeat relationships: 5 still active in FY2023, 4 since wound down; 2 grantees were first funded in FY2023 (too recent to call).

How the two cohorts compare

Re-uppedFunded once

Organizations

9
11

Total granted

$1.9M
$792k

Median revenue growth · since first grant

+8%
+14%

Still filing today

33%
82%

New vs renewed · share of each year

In FY2023, 0% of grant dollars renewed an existing relationship; $5.3M 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
PhilanthropyArts & CultureHousing & ShelterEmploymentRecreation & SportsCivil RightsOther
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

  • HS
    HILL-MURRAY SCHOOL
    3× · 2019–2021 · $1.0M
  • HF
    HILL-MURRAY FOUNDATION
    2× · 2022–2023 · $454k
  • HM
    HILL MURRY FOUNDATION
    2× · 2017–2018 · $120k

Funded once

  • AC
    AMERICA'S CHARITIES
    one grant, 2020 · $500k · revenue +14%
  • AC
    AMERICA'S CHARITY
    one grant, 2022 · $200k
  • TL
    THERESA LIVING CENTER
    one grant, 2022 · $50k · revenue -22%
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
Outfront Minnesota Community Services

Outfront's mission is to create a state where lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender and queer (lgbtq) people are free to be who they are, love who they love, and live without fear of violence, harassment or discrimination. in our effort to…

—
2
Minnesota Council on Foundations

MCF is a vibrant philanthropic community connecting, strengthening and mobilizing the power of philanthropy to advance prosperity and equity.

—
3
African Development Center

Grow businesses, build wealth and increase reinvestement in the african communities of minnesota

Human Services
4
Minnesota Chamber of Commerce and Industry

The minnesota chamber of commerce proactively leads the business community statewide to: advance pro-business, responsible minnesota public policy that creates jobs and grows the econony; provde member services to address evolving business…

—
5
Minnesota Business Partnership

The minnesota business partnership's mission is to maintain a high quality of life for all minnesotans by ensuring that the state's economy remains strong, globally competitive and its prospects for growth bright by working with elected…

—
6
Minneapolis Regional Chamber of Commerce

Creating powerful advocacy to enhance economic vitality in the minneapolis-st. paul region.

—
7
St Paul Transportation Management Organization

Move minnesota leads the movement for an equitable and sustainable transportation system that puts people first. we are passionate about connecting communities, ending the climate crisis, expanding access to jobs and resources, and…

Environment
8
Minnesota Medical Association

To be the leading voice of medicine to make minnesota the healthiest state and the best place to practice.

—
9
The Minneapolis Foundation

The foundation cultivates generosity by taking action on the greatest civic, social, and economic needs partnering with nonprofits, facilitating grantmaking, driving research and advocacy, and providing services to donors seeking to make a…

Philanthropy
10
Growth & Justice

To develop and advocate for public policy that makes Minnesota's economy more prosperous and fair for all Minnesotans.

—
11
Twin Cities Diversity in Practice

To attract, recruit, advance, and retain attorneys of color in the twin cities through education and collaboration with member organizations.

Community Improvement
12
Women Winning

To encourage, promote, support, and elect pro-choice women of all political parties to all levels of public office in minnesota.

Public Benefit
How this is measured
The grantee most central to the portfolio’s shape is Saint Paul & Minnesota Foundation; the most unlike its peers is Rooted Philanthropic. 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

15 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. 15 of the 23 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.

2
Load-bearing (≥25% of a budget)
2
Early backer (in before they grew)
15/15
Grantees still filing
10/15
Grew since first funded

Where the money sits, by cause and then by grantee

ROOTED PHILANTHROPIC: $5,335,680 · PhilanthropyROOTED PHILANTHROPIC+2 more: $35,000 · PhilanthropyHILL-MURRAY SCHOOL: $1,045,350 · OtherHILL-MURRAY SCHOOLAMERICA'S CHARITIES: $500,000 · OtherAMERICA'S CHARITIESHILL-MURRAY FOUNDATION: $453,790 · OtherHILL-MURRAY FOUNDATIONAMERICA'S CHARITY: $200,000 · OtherAMERICA'S CHARITYHILL MURRY FOUNDATION: $120,350 · Other+8 more: $154,873 · Other+8 moreLatino Economic Development Center: $101,000 · Housing & ShelterEAST SIDE NEIGHBORHOOD DEVELOPMENT COMPANY INC: $66,000 · Housing & ShelterCENTER FOR BROADCAST JOURNALISM: $15,000 · Arts & CultureThe Tiny News Collective Inc: $1,000 · Arts & CultureMERRICK INC: $2,500 · EmploymentOUTFRONT MINNESOTA: $2,500 · Civil RightsTREEHOUSE INC: $1,000 · Health
Philanthropy$5,370,680Other$2,474,363Housing & Shelter$167,000Arts & Culture$16,000Employment$2,500Civil Rights$2,500Health$1,000

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 budgetROOTED PHILANTHROPIC: $5,335,680 over 1y, 64% of budgetAMERICA'S CHARITIES: $500,000 over 1y, 1.0% of budgetLatino Economic Development Center: $101,000 over 2y, 2.1% of budgetEAST SIDE NEIGHBORHOOD DEVELOPMENT COMPANY INC: $66,000 over 2y, 6.6% of budgetTHERESA LIVING CENTER: $50,000 over 1y, 5.5% of budgetTHE ESABA CHARITABLE FOUNDATION: $36,773 over 2y, 64% of budgetSAINT PAUL & MINNESOTA FOUNDATION: $25,000 over 1y, 0.0% of budget3M OPEN FUND: $10,000 over 1y, 0.1% of budgetMERRICK INC: $2,500 over 1y, 0.0% of budgetOUTFRONT MINNESOTA: $2,500 over 1y, 0.9% of budgetThe Tiny News Collective Inc: $1,000 over 1y, 0.1% of budgetTREEHOUSE INC: $1,000 over 1y, 0.0% of budgetOPEN ARMS OF MINNESOTA: $600 over 1y, 0.0% of budgetYOUTH ADVANTAGE INC: $250 over 1y, 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.

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.

Saint Paul & Minnesot…Rooted PhilanthropicFr Bigelow FoundationThe Minneapolis Found…Fred C and Katherine …Catholic Community Fo…Otto Bremer TrustThe Blackbaud Giving …Charities Aid Foundat…Donor Advised Charita…American Online Givin…Fidelity Investments …
Saint Paul & Minnesota FoundationMN22.3× affinity9 shared granteesties to 11 of 11Hover any node to trace its alignments.Compare side by side →

Open a dossier: Saint Paul & Minnesota Foundation · Rooted Philanthropic · Fr Bigelow Foundation · The Minneapolis Foundation · Fred C and Katherine B Andersen Foundation · Catholic Community Foundation of Minnesota · Otto Bremer Trust · The Blackbaud Giving Fund · Charities Aid Foundation America · Donor Advised Charitable Giving Inc · American Online Giving Foundation Inc · Fidelity Investments Charitable Gift 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 Runyon Family Foundation funds: left to right is the share of its income from government, bottom to top the share from The Runyon Family Foundation. Bigger dots raise more.

2024
’20’21’22’23’24’25
no gov · 00%5%19%42%75%funder's share of their income ↑0%19%38%56%75%share of the org’s income from government →
    no gov moneyreceives it· size = income
    0get no government money at all
    3report government grants on their 990 we could not trace to a source (not plotted)
    0rely on government for over half their income
    ⤢ axis zoomed · 0–75%
    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 Runyon Family Foundation?

    Find your warmest path to The Runyon Family 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 23 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 Runyon 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