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The Tweten Foundation at a glance

· Private foundation

The Tweten Foundation

Its FY2024 filing reports that it funds preselected organizations and did not take unsolicited requests; check the foundation's own site before ruling it out.

$108k
Granted FY2024still arriving
7
Grants FY2024still arriving
2
States reached
$50k
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 2024.

Health$311kAnimals$117kEnvironment$74kEducation$20kHuman Services$15kReligion$10kRecreation & Sports$7kFood & Nutrition$5kOther$0
02FY2024 · 7 grants

Where the money goes

Grants by size, and the largest recipients.

By grant size · FY2024

  • Under $10k4 grants · $13k
  • $10k–50k2 grants · $45k
  • $50k–250k1 grant · $50k
$6,000
Median grant
2
States reached
$2.2M
Total assets
Largest grants
RecipientAmount
SANTA LUCIA CONSERVANCY$50,000
EISENHOWER HEALTH FOUNDATION$25,000
WHALE SANCTUARY PROJECT$20,000
SPCA OF MONTEREY COUNTY$6,000
ALZHEIMER DRUG DISCOVERY FOUNDATION$5,000
SEEING SPOTS FARM$1,000
CANCER HELP DESK$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 (FY19–23, $11k) land where the poverty rate runs at 8%, against an area that typically sits at 11%. 9% of those dollars go to grantees based in above-average-need neighborhoods. Its grants skew toward lower-need ZIPs.

area typical 11%Bald Mountain Resue Fund Incorporated: $10k → 7%LANGE FOUNDATION: $1k → 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.
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.
04

Where the work is directed

The same grants placed two ways: where each recipient sits, and where its stated purpose sends the money.

About 6% of The Tweten Foundation’s grant dollars are earmarked for a different county than the recipient’s own address. By recipient address, 92% of the giving stays in CA; by stated purpose, 87%.

The Tweten Foundationlessmore of its giving
Placed by recipient address · 3.6% directed abroad (not shown)
How this is measured
Recipient view: each grant at its grantee’s ZIP, mapped to a county. Directed view: each grant at the county its stated purpose names, falling back to the recipient’s county when the purpose names no place; US grants only. A county shows only if it carries the top 95% of that view’s dollars. Purposes are read from the funder’s own 990 grant descriptions.
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.
$394k · 6 repeat orgs$167k to everyone else

6 repeat relationships: 2 still active in FY2024, 4 since wound down; 5 grantees were first funded in FY2024 (too recent to call).

How the two cohorts compare

Re-uppedFunded once

Organizations

6
13

Total granted

$394k
$90k

Median revenue growth · since first grant

+63%
+65%

Still filing today

83%
46%

New vs renewed · share of each year

In FY2024, 29% of grant dollars renewed an existing relationship; $77k went to new ones.

50%100%’17’18’19’20’21’22’23’24
RenewedFirst-time

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

’17’18’19’20’21’22’23’24
HealthAnimalsHuman ServicesEnvironmentSocial ScienceArts & CultureOther
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

  • DC
    DESERT CANCER FOUNDATION
    7× · 2017–2023 · $155k · revenue +71%
  • SF
    Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals for Monterey County
    6× · 2018–2024 · $56k · revenue +44%
  • EM
    Eisenhower Medical Center
    2× · 2023–2024 · $34k · revenue +23%

Funded once

  • IG
    Individual grant recipient
    one grant, 2017 · $25k
  • SH
    SACRED HEART CHURCH
    one grant, 2021 · $10k
  • BM
    Bald Mountain Rescue Fund
    one grant, 2019 · $10k · revenue -69%
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
The California Wildlife Center

The california wildlife center (cwc) takes responsibility for the protection of all native wildlife through rehabilitiation, education and conservation. as the los angeles area's premier wildlife medical care and rehabilitation facility,…

Health
2
Rancho Coastal Humane Society

See schedule orancho coastal is dedicated to the rescue and shelter of abandoned companion animals. it encourages adoptions into loving homes and provides educational and community outreach programs designed to enhance the human-animal…

Animals
3
Marin Humane Society

Marin humane transforms lives through exceptional animal care, humane education, and advocacy. every day, marin humane inspires compassion and positive relationships between people and animals.

Animals
4
Animal Care Sanctuary

Animal care sanctuary's lifesaving mission as a no kill organization envisions a community that promotes turning compassion into action for companion animals by: 1.) adopting healthy pet companions into loving homes. 2.) promoting the…

Animals
5
Ucsf Foundation Investment Company

The organization provides professional investment management services for endowed gifts and financial assets entrusted to the ucsf foundation.

Education
6
California Coastkeeper dba California Coastkeeper Alliance

California Coastkeeper Alliance unites Waterkeeper programs statewide to fight for swimmable, fishable, and drinkable waters for all Californians.

Environment
7
Donate Life California

Donate Life Californa is a nonprofit organ and tissue donor registry dedicated to saving the lives of thousands of Californians awaiting life-saving transplants. The registry is used by the states organ and tissue recovery organizations.

Health
8
The Sierra Fund

The Sierra Fund (TSF) is a non-profit organization with a mission to restore ecosystem and community resiliency in the Sierra Nevada.

Environment
9
California Life Sciences Association

Clsa advances californias world-leading life sciences innovation ecosystem by advocating for effective national, state and local public policies and supporting entrepreneurs and life sciences businesses.

Community Improvement
10
Los Padres Forestwatch Inc

Los padres forestwatch protects the los padres national forest and the carrizo plain national monument through education, advocacy, and when necessary, legal action for the benefit of our communities, climate and future generations.

Environment
11
Ralph Lauren Center for Cancer Care and Prevention

The Ralph Lauren Center for Cancer Care and Prevention was incorporated in 2002 in the State of New York as a non-for-profit organization to provide individuals, many of whom are medically underserved - with access to the highest quality…

—
12
Cuenca Los Ojos

Cuenca los ojos works to preserve and restore the biodiversity of the us/mexican borderlands through land protection, habitat restoration and wildlife reintroduction.

Environment
How this is measured
The grantee most central to the portfolio’s shape is Santa Lucia Conservancy; the most unlike its peers is Food in Need of Distribution Inc. Resemblance is measured on each organization’s own IRS 990 mission text; it reflects how work is described, not its quality or impact.
05the grantee network

14 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. 14 of the 24 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)
4
Early backer (in before they grew)
14/14
Grantees still filing
9/14
Grew since first funded

Where the money sits, by cause and then by grantee

Bighorn BAM & Golf Club Charities: $116,000 · OtherBighorn BAM & Golf Club CharitiesIndividual grant recipient: $25,000 · OtherIndividual grant recipientGANNA WALSKA LOTUSLAND: $23,400 · OtherGANNA WALSKA LOTUSLANDWHALE SANCTUARY PROJECT: $20,000 · OtherWHALE SANCTUARY PROJECTSACRED HEART CHURCH: $10,000 · Other+7 more: $29,500 · Other+7 moreDESERT CANCER FOUNDATION: $155,000 · HealthDESERT CANCER FOUNDATIONEisenhower Medical Center: $33,700 · HealthEisenhower Medical Center+1 more: $1,000 · HealthSociety for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals for Monterey County: $55,850 · AnimalsSociety for t…Animal Samaritans: $5,000 · AnimalsAnimal Samari…Cheetah Conservation Fund: $5,000 · AnimalsCheetah Conse…SANTA LUCIA CONSERVANCY: $50,000 · EnvironmentSANTA LUCI…Bald Mountain Rescue Fund: $10,000 · Human ServicesLANGE FOUNDATION: $1,000 · Human ServicesJUNIPERO SERRA CATHOLIC HIGH SCHOOL: $10,000 · Arts & CultureALZHEIMER'S DRUG DISCOVERY FOUNDATION: $5,000 · Social ScienceFOOD IN NEED OF DISTRIBUTION INC: $5,000 · Food & Nutrition
Other$223,900Health$189,700Animals$65,850Environment$50,000Human Services$11,000Arts & Culture$10,000Social Science$5,000Food & Nutrition$5,000

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 budgetDESERT CANCER FOUNDATION: $155,000 over 7y, 3.5% of budgetSociety for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals for Monterey County: $55,850 over 6y, 0.1% of budgetSANTA LUCIA CONSERVANCY: $50,000 over 1y, 1.6% of budgetEisenhower Medical Center: $33,700 over 2y, 0.0% of budgetGANNA WALSKA LOTUSLAND: $23,400 over 2y, 0.2% of budgetBald Mountain Rescue Fund: $10,000 over 1y, 2.9% of budgetJUNIPERO SERRA CATHOLIC HIGH SCHOOL: $10,000 over 2y, 0.0% of budgetALZHEIMER'S DRUG DISCOVERY FOUNDATION: $5,000 over 1y, 0.0% of budgetAnimal Samaritans: $5,000 over 1y, 0.1% of budgetFOOD IN NEED OF DISTRIBUTION INC: $5,000 over 1y, 0.0% of budgetCheetah Conservation Fund: $5,000 over 1y, 0.1% of budgetThe Eisenhower Foundation: $2,000 over 1y, 0.1% of budgetCancer Help Desk: $1,000 over 1y, 1.3% of budgetLANGE FOUNDATION: $1,000 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.

Morgan Stanley Global…National Philanthropi…Donor Advised Charita…Fidelity Investments …Amazonsmile Foundation
Morgan Stanley Global Impact Funding Trust IncIN9.2× affinity4 shared granteesties to 4 of 4Hover any node to trace its alignments.Compare side by side →

Open a dossier: Morgan Stanley Global Impact Funding Trust Inc · National Philanthropic Trust · Donor Advised Charitable Giving Inc · Fidelity Investments Charitable Gift Fund · Amazonsmile 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 Tweten Foundation funds: left to right is the share of its income from government, bottom to top the share from The Tweten Foundation. 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%3%5%8%10%share of the org’s income from government →
    no gov moneyreceives it· size = income
    0get no government money at all
    1report government grants on their 990 we could not trace to a source (not plotted)
    0rely on government for over half their income
    ⤢ axis zoomed · 0–10%
    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 Tweten Foundation?

    Find your warmest path to The Tweten 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 24 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 2024, released 2024. Filings run roughly 12 to 24 months behind; figures are dated accordingly.

    Source object · view filing

    Play a game based on Tweten’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