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The Step Forward Trust at a glance

· Private foundation

The Step Forward Trust

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.

$369k
Granted FY2025still arriving
11
Grants FY2025still arriving
2
States reached
$250k
Largest
01What it fundsRead
02The needRead
03Its granteesRead
04Its fieldRead
01What it funds
01100% classified

What it funded, over time

Every grant placed by its stated purpose and the recipient’s mission, by year, FY2018 to 2025.

Human Services$1.6MRecreation & Sports$411kHealth$295kEducation$277kFood & Nutrition$71kHousing & Shelter$28kYouth Development$11kPhilanthropy$8kOther$0
02FY2025 · 11 grants

Where the money goes

Grants by size, and the largest recipients.

By grant size · FY2025

  • Under $10k6 grants · $20k
  • $10k–50k3 grants · $49k
  • $50k–250k1 grant · $50k
  • $250k+1 grant · $250k
$7,500
Median grant
2
States reached
$8.0M
Total assets
Largest grants
RecipientAmount
YMCA$250,000
COLLEGE OF WESTERN IDAHO$50,000
LEARNING LAB$22,000
ST JOSEPH'S CATHOLIC SCHOOL$17,219
IDAHO FOODBANK$10,000
BOISE RESCUE MISSION$7,500
BRONCO ATHLETIC ASSOCIATION$5,000
TERRY REILLY HEALTH SERVICES$3,000
BISHOP KELLY HIGH SCHOOL$2,000
ST AL'S FOUNDATION$1,500
FEED THE GAP INC$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 (FY24–24, $5k) land where the poverty rate runs at 8%, against an area that typically sits at 8%. 0% of those dollars go to grantees based in above-average-need neighborhoods. Its grants skew toward lower-need ZIPs.

area typical 8%IDAHO YOUTH RANCH: $5k → 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.
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.

97%of every dollar goes to organizations it has funded before.
$2.6M · 20 repeat orgs$93k to everyone else

20 repeat relationships: 9 still active in FY2025, 11 since wound down; 2 grantees were first funded in FY2025 (too recent to call).

How the two cohorts compare

Re-uppedFunded once

Organizations

20
17

Total granted

$2.6M
$41k

Median revenue growth · since first grant

+30%
+36%

Still filing today

45%
47%

New vs renewed · share of each year

In FY2025, 86% of grant dollars renewed an existing relationship; $52k 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
HealthFood & NutritionEducationEnvironmentRecreation & SportsYouth 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

  • TY
    THE YOUNG MENS CHRISTIAN ASSOCIATION OF BOISE CITY IDAHO
    4× · 2019–2022 · $1.5M · revenue +27%
  • LL
    LEARNING LAB INC
    8× · 2018–2025 · $90k · revenue +39%
  • IF
    IDAHO FOODBANK WAREHOUSE
    6× · 2020–2025 · $65k · revenue +4%

Funded once

  • TC
    The College of Idaho Incgraduated
    one grant, 2018 · $9k · revenue +76%
  • FO
    FACES OF HOPE
    one grant, 2019 · $6k
  • TR
    TERRY RILEY HEALTH SER
    one grant, 2019 · $5k
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
Rural Idaho & Mountain West Primary Care
Health
2
Underdogs Boise
Arts & Culture
3
Idaho Forest Restoration Partnership
Environment
4
Brave Hearts Idaho
Arts & Culture
5
Indigenous Idaho Alliance Inc
Civil Rights
6
Idaho School Psychologist Assoc

Provide traing that assists school psych

Philanthropy
7
Children's Museum of Idaho Inc

Inspire and nurture future explorers, innovators, and critical thinkers through interactive play in a safe, engaging environment with hands-on exhibits and programs designed specifically for children ages two to eight years old.

Arts & Culture
8
Blue Cross of Idaho Foundation for Health Inc
Health
9
Idaho Technology Council Inc

To help technology companies in Idaho start, grow, and thrive.

—
10
Building Hope Idaho Inc
Philanthropy
11
Idaho Educational Services for the Deaf and the Blind Foundation Inc

To promote, ensure & maintain excellent & comprehensive educational opportunities for the children and youth served by Idaho Educational Services for the Deaf and Blind from birth to 26 years of age across the state of Idaho.

Unclassified
12
Idaho Medical Association Foundation Inc
Health
How this is measured
The grantee most central to the portfolio’s shape is Children's Home Society of Idaho Inc; the most unlike its peers is First Interstate BancSystem Foundation Inc. 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

19 grantees tracked through their own filings, 2017–2026.

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 2026, not grant rows in a single year, so this will not match the grant count on the cover. 19 of the 40 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)
3
Early backer (in before they grew)
18/19
Grantees still filing
16/19
Grew since first funded

Where the money sits, by cause and then by grantee

THE YOUNG MENS CHRISTIAN ASSOCIATION OF BOISE CITY IDAHO: $1,530,072 · OtherTHE YOUNG MENS CHRISTIAN ASSOCIATION OF BOISE CITY IDAHOYMCA: $626,500 · OtherYMCAST JOSEPH'S CATHOLIC SCHOOL: $108,169 · OtherLEARNING LAB INC: $90,000 · Other+25 more: $226,700 · Other+25 moreIDAHO FOODBANK WAREHOUSE: $65,000 · Food & NutritionFEED THE GAP INC: $6,000 · Food & NutritionCOMMUNITY HEALTH CLINICS INC: $38,000 · Health+2 more: $800 · HealthINTERFAITH SANCTUARY HOUSING SERVICES INC: $25,000 · Housing & ShelterBronco Athletic Association Inc: $10,000 · Recreation & SportsBOGUS BASIN SPORT EDUCATION FOUNDATION INC: $5,000 · Recreation & SportsThe College of Idaho Inc: $8,800 · EducationLEE PESKY LEARNING CENTER INC: $500 · EducationIDAHO WOMENS CHARITABLE FOUNDATION: $7,825 · Philanthropy
Other$2,581,441Food & Nutrition$71,000Health$38,800Housing & Shelter$25,000Recreation & Sports$15,000Education$9,300Philanthropy$7,825

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

25%50%75%100%$100k$1.0M$10Mgrantee revenue →↑ funder's share of their budgetTHE YOUNG MENS CHRISTIAN ASSOCIATION OF BOISE CITY IDAHO: $1,530,072 over 4y, 2.9% of budgetLEARNING LAB INC: $90,000 over 8y, 2.0% of budgetIDAHO FOODBANK WAREHOUSE: $65,000 over 6y, 0.0% of budgetCOMMUNITY HEALTH CLINICS INC: $38,000 over 5y, 0.0% of budgetINTERFAITH SANCTUARY HOUSING SERVICES INC: $25,000 over 2y, 0.8% of budgetBronco Athletic Association Inc: $10,000 over 2y, 0.1% of budgetThe College of Idaho Inc: $8,800 over 1y, 0.0% of budgetIDAHO WOMENS CHARITABLE FOUNDATION: $7,825 over 7y, 0.3% of budgetFEED THE GAP INC: $6,000 over 6y, 3.0% of budgetTHE BOYS & GIRLS CLUBS OF CANYON COUNTY INC: $5,200 over 2y, 0.6% of budgetBOGUS BASIN SPORT EDUCATION FOUNDATION INC: $5,000 over 1y, 0.8% of budgetIDAHO YOUTH RANCH INC: $5,000 over 1y, 0.0% of budgetBoise Urban Garden School: $2,400 over 4y, 0.8% of budgetIDAHO BOTANICAL GARDEN INC: $1,500 over 3y, 0.0% of budgetBASQUE FOUNDATION INC: $1,000 over 1y, 0.2% of budgetRonald McDonald House Charities Of Idaho Inc: $500 over 1y, 0.0% of budgetLEE PESKY LEARNING CENTER INC: $500 over 1y, 0.0% of budgetCHILDREN'S HOME SOCIETY OF IDAHO INC: $300 over 1y, 0.0% of budgetFirst Interstate BancSystem Foundation Inc: $100 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 THE YOUNG MENS CHRISTIAN ASSOCIATION OF BOISE CITY IDAHO ↗
  • Who funds LEARNING LAB INC ↗
  • Who funds IDAHO FOODBANK WAREHOUSE ↗
  • Who funds COMMUNITY HEALTH CLINICS INC ↗
  • Who funds INTERFAITH SANCTUARY HOUSING SERVICES INC ↗
  • Who funds Bronco Athletic Association Inc ↗
  • Who funds The College of Idaho Inc ↗
  • Who funds IDAHO WOMENS CHARITABLE FOUNDATION ↗
  • Who funds FEED THE GAP INC ↗
  • Who funds THE BOYS & GIRLS CLUBS OF CANYON COUNTY INC ↗
  • Who funds BOGUS BASIN SPORT EDUCATION FOUNDATION INC ↗
  • Who funds IDAHO YOUTH RANCH INC ↗
  • Who funds Boise Urban Garden School ↗
  • Who funds IDAHO BOTANICAL GARDEN INC ↗
  • Who funds BASQUE FOUNDATION INC ↗
  • Who funds Ronald McDonald House Charities Of Idaho Inc ↗
  • Who funds LEE PESKY LEARNING CENTER INC ↗
  • Who funds CHILDREN'S HOME SOCIETY OF IDAHO INC ↗
  • Who funds First Interstate BancSystem Foundation 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.

Idaho Community Found…Laura Moore Cunningha…The Bews FoundationThe Julius C Jeker Fo…St Luke's Health Syst…M J Murdock Charitabl…Claude R & Ethel B Wh…Simplot Company Found…Idaho Power Foundatio…Hansberger FoundationFour J FoundationHarad Family Foundati…
Idaho Community Foundation IncID33.7× affinity14 shared granteesties to 11 of 11Hover any node to trace its alignments.Compare side by side →

Open a dossier: Idaho Community Foundation Inc · Laura Moore Cunningham Foundation Inc · The Bews Foundation · The Julius C Jeker Foundation Inc · St Luke's Health System Ltd · M J Murdock Charitable Trust · Claude R & Ethel B Whittenberger Foundation · Simplot Company Foundation Inc · Idaho Power Foundation Inc · Hansberger Foundation · Four J Foundation · Harad Family 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 Step Forward Trust funds: left to right is the share of its income from government, bottom to top the share from The Step Forward Trust. Bigger dots raise more.

2024
’20’21’22’23’24’25
no gov · 00%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
    0get no government money at all
    6report 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 40 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 Step Forward’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