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The William Gerald Willett Charitable Foundation at a glance

· Private foundation

The William Gerald Willett 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.

$665k
Granted FY2025still arriving
18
Grants FY2025still arriving
8
States reached
$100k
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$1.2MEducation$876kAnimals$474kFood & Nutrition$140kHuman Services$120kInternational$75kCrime & Legal$34kReligion$10kOther$0
02FY2025 · 18 grants

Where the money goes

Grants by size, and the largest recipients.

By grant size · FY2025

  • $10k–50k13 grants · $305k
  • $50k–250k5 grants · $360k
$25,000
Median grant
8
States reached
$3.9M
Total assets
Largest grants
RecipientAmount
LEWY BODY DEMENTIA ASSOCIATION INC$100,000
OVARIAN CANCER RESEARCH ALLIANCE$100,000
ST LOUIS CHILDREN'S HOSPITAL FOUNDATION$60,000
CHRISTINE WILLETT MEMORIAL SCHOLARSHIP PROGRAM SAINT JEROME CHURCH$50,000
MAKE-A-WISH FOUNDATION OF MISSOURI AND KANSAS$50,000
HUMANE SOCIETY OF MISSOURI$45,000
NO KID HUNGRY - SHARE OUR STRENGTH$30,000
THE MICHAEL J FOX FOUNDATION$25,000
RONALD MCDONALD HOUSE CHARITIES OF ST LOUIS$25,000
STRAY RESCUE OF ST LOUIS$25,000
CHILDREN'S NATIONAL MEDICAL CENTER$25,000
THE CHILDREN'S HEART FOUNDATION$20,010
SAINT LOUIS ZOO$20,000
ALZHEIMER'S DRUG DISCOVERY FOUNDATION$20,000
COVENANT HOUSE MISSOURI$20,000
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, $218k) land where the poverty rate runs at 12%, against an area that typically sits at 10%. 100% of those dollars go to grantees based in above-average-need neighborhoods. Most of its grants land in higher-need ZIPs.

area typical 10%SECOND CHANCE: $50 → 11%MAKE-A-WISH FOUNDATION OF MISSOURI AND KANSAS: $50k → 11%MAKE-A-WISH FOUNDATION OF MISSOURI AND KANSAS: $42k → 11%COVENANT HOUSE MISSOURI: $20k → 21%MAKE-A-WISH FOUNDATION OF MISSOURI AND KANSAS: $35k → 11%COVENANT HOUSE MISSOURI: $15k → 21%MAKE-A-WISH FOUNDATION OF MISSOURI AND KANSAS: $25k → 11%COVENANT HOUSE MISSOURI: $5k → 21%MAKE-A-WISH FOUNDATION OF MISSOURI AND KANSAS: $15k → 11%MAKE-A-WISH FOUNDATION OF MISSOURI AND KANSAS: $11k → 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.

Which US states its grants reach

IL
NY
MO
KY
VA
MD
AZ
TN
DC
GA
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.

91%of every dollar goes to organizations it has funded before.
$3.3M · 18 repeat orgs$337k to everyone else

Grantees it renews have grown median revenue +43% since the first grant, against +3% for those funded once.

18 repeat relationships: 12 still active in FY2025, 6 since wound down; 6 grantees were first funded in FY2025 (too recent to call).

How the two cohorts compare

Re-uppedFunded once

Organizations

18
15

Total granted

$3.3M
$202k

Median revenue growth · since first grant

+43%
+3%

Still filing today

89%
60%

New vs renewed · share of each year

In FY2025, 80% of grant dollars renewed an existing relationship; $135k went to new ones.

50%100%’17’18’19’20’21’22’23’24’25
RenewedFirst-time

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

’17’18’19’20’21’22’23’24’25
AnimalsHealthHuman ServicesPhilanthropyCrime & LegalHousing & ShelterOther
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

  • TO
    THE OVARIAN CANCER RESEARCH FUND INC
    7× · 2019–2025 · $362k · revenue +20%
  • Lewy Body Dementia Association Inc
    7× · 2019–2025 · $360k · revenue +36%
  • HS
    HUMANE SOCIETY OF MISSOURI
    7× · 2019–2025 · $268k · revenue +41%

Funded once

  • GLOBALGIVING FOUNDATION INC
    one grant, 2021 · $50k · revenue -7%
  • CN
    CHILDREN'S NATIONAL HOSPITAL FOUNDATION
    one grant, 2024 · $50k
  • TM
    THE MISSION CONTINUES
    one grant, 2024 · $25k · revenue -14%
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
Washington Humane Society

The washington humane society protects animals, supports families, and advocates for positive change to create a world where all animals can thrive. we enrich the humanity of our communities by promoting compassion and encouraging people…

Animals
2
Noah's Animal House Foundation

To remove the "no pets allowed" sign on the doors of domestic violence shelters. women should not have to choose between leaving their abuser and leaving their pets behind to be abused.

Animals
3
Michigan Humane Society

To improve and save lives through compassionate care, community engagement and advocacy for animals.

Animals
4
Chicago Canine Rescue Foundation

Chicago canine rescue foundation finds permanent homes for homeless dogs in our community with a specific emphasis on assisting the most vulnerable animals, who without our help, would have no other options. while in our care, they are…

Animals
5
Open Door Animal Sanctuary

The mission of Open Door Animal Sanctuary is to provide homeless cats and dogs with highest quality of life and a second chance to find a forever family. Open door is currently one of the largest no-kill shelters in the Greater St. Louis…

—
6
St Clouds Rescue
Animals
7
Animal Humane Society

Animal Humane Society (AHS) established in 1878 and incorporated as a nonprofit charitable organization in 1891 works to engage the hearts, hands, and minds of the community to help animals. AHS's vision is to compassionately and…

Animals
8
Take Paws Rescue

The mission of take paws rescue is to meet the moral obligation to protect and save the lives of pets in need of rescue in louisiana. take paws rescue enacts this mission by pulling pets from rural and high kill shelters and preparing them…

Animals
9
Second Chance Pet Adoptions Inc

To champion homeless cats and dogs who are healthy or treatable in the quest to find their forever homes and engage with our community to provide responsible pet ownership reducing future generations of homeless animals.

Animals
10
Santa Barbara Humane Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals

Santa barbara humane operates two campuses located in santa barbara and santa maria providing care for community-owned and homeless animals. both campuses offer affordable high quality veterinary care, compassionate behavior training…

Animals
11
The American Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals

The aspca's mission, as stated by founder henry bergh in 1866, is "to provide effective means for the prevention of cruelty to animals throughout the united states." the aspca was founded on the belief that animals are entitled to kind and…

Animals
12
Petconnect Rescue Inc

Petconnect rescue is a foster-based animal welfare organization dedicated to saving at-risk dogs and cats, providing them with high quality care, and adopting them to loving homes. we are committed to ensuring a highly positive rescue…

Animals
How this is measured
The grantee most central to the portfolio’s shape is Make-a-Wish Foundation of Missouri and Kansas; the most unlike its peers is Columbia Second Chance. 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

31 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. 31 of the 39 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)
9
Early backer (in before they grew)
29/31
Grantees still filing
21/31
Grew since first funded

Where the money sits, by cause and then by grantee

CRISTINE WILLETT MEMORIAL SCHOLARSHIP PROGRAM SAINT JEROME CHURCH: $501,200 · OtherCRISTINE WILLETT MEMORIAL SCHOLARSHIP PROGRAM…CHRISTINE WILLETT MEMORIAL SCHOLARSHIP PROGRAM SAINT JEROME CHURCH: $425,000 · OtherCHRISTINE WILLETT MEMORIAL SCHOLARSHIP PROGRA…SHARE OUR STRENGTH: $130,000 · OtherSHARE OUR STRENGTHRONALD MCDONALD HOUSE CHARITIES OF ST LOUIS: $50,000 · OtherCHILDREN'S NATIONAL HOSPITAL FOUNDATION: $50,000 · OtherGLOBALGIVING FOUNDATION INC: $50,000 · Other+12 more: $219,050 · Other+12 moreLewy Body Dementia Association Inc: $360,075 · HealthLewy Body Dementia Associatio…ST LOUIS CHILDREN'S HOSPITAL FOUNDATION: $185,270 · HealthST LOUIS CHILDREN'S HOSPITAL …CHILDREN'S NATIONAL: $175,000 · HealthCHILDREN'S NATIONALST JUDE CHILDREN'S RESEARCH HOSPITAL INC: $145,000 · HealthST JUDE CHILDREN'S RESEARCH H…TREE HOUSE OF GREATER ST LOUIS: $47,500 · Health+1 more: $25,000 · HealthHUMANE SOCIETY OF MISSOURI: $267,526 · AnimalsHUMANE SOCIETY…Stray Rescue of St Louis: $190,071 · AnimalsStray Rescue o…+6 more: $16,840 · AnimalsTHE OVARIAN CANCER RESEARCH FUND INC: $362,100 · PhilanthropyTHE OVARIAN …CHILDREN'S HEART FOUNDATION: $20,010 · PhilanthropyMAKE-A-WISH FOUNDATION OF MISSOURI AND KANSAS: $177,630 · Human ServicesCOVENANT HOUSE MISSOURI: $40,000 · Human Services+1 more: $50 · Human ServicesLydia's House Inc: $95,000 · Housing & ShelterDogs For Our Brave Inc: $55,000 · Public Benefit
Other$1,425,250Health$937,845Animals$474,437Philanthropy$382,110Human Services$217,680Housing & Shelter$95,000Public Benefit$55,000

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 budgetTHE OVARIAN CANCER RESEARCH FUND INC: $362,100 over 7y, 0.7% of budgetLewy Body Dementia Association Inc: $360,075 over 7y, 2.0% of budgetHUMANE SOCIETY OF MISSOURI: $267,526 over 7y, 0.2% of budgetStray Rescue of St Louis: $190,071 over 7y, 0.6% of budgetST LOUIS CHILDREN'S HOSPITAL FOUNDATION: $185,270 over 5y, 0.2% of budgetMAKE-A-WISH FOUNDATION OF MISSOURI AND KANSAS: $177,630 over 6y, 0.6% of budgetCHILDREN'S NATIONAL: $175,000 over 4y, 7.0% of budgetST JUDE CHILDREN'S RESEARCH HOSPITAL INC: $145,000 over 5y, 0.0% of budgetSHARE OUR STRENGTH: $130,000 over 6y, 0.0% of budgetLydia's House Inc: $95,000 over 5y, 1.2% of budgetDogs For Our Brave Inc: $55,000 over 3y, 2.6% of budgetRONALD MCDONALD HOUSE CHARITIES OF ST LOUIS: $50,000 over 2y, 0.3% of budgetGLOBALGIVING FOUNDATION INC: $50,000 over 1y, 0.1% of budgetTREE HOUSE OF GREATER ST LOUIS: $47,500 over 3y, 2.5% of budgetCOVENANT HOUSE MISSOURI: $40,000 over 3y, 0.5% of budgetTHE CHILD ADVOCACY CENTER OF NORTHEAST MISSOURI INC: $33,800 over 2y, 1.6% of budgetTHE MICHAEL J FOX FOUNDATION FOR PARKINSON'S RESEARCH: $25,000 over 1y, 0.0% of budgetTHE MISSION CONTINUES: $25,000 over 1y, 0.6% of budgetMAKE-A-WISH FOUNDATION OF AMERICA: $25,000 over 1y, 0.0% of budgetDUO DOGS INC: $20,000 over 1y, 0.8% of budgetTHE FALLEN SPARROW FOUNDATION INC: $10,000 over 1y, 7.7% of budgetEVEN CHANCE ST LOUIS: $10,000 over 2y, 11% of budgetMISSOURI FORGET-ME-NOT HORSE RESCUE SANCTUARY: $5,000 over 1y, 0.2% of budgetFancy Cats Rescue Team Inc: $665 over 1y, 0.1% of budgetHOMEWARD TRAILS ANIMAL RESCUE INC: $500 over 1y, 0.0% of budgetALBANY HUMANE SOCIETY INC: $475 over 1y, 0.1% of budgetLOST DOG RESCUE FOUNDATION: $200 over 1y, 0.0% of budgetCOLUMBIA SECOND CHANCE: $50 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.

St Louis Community Fo…St Louis Community Fo…Employees Community F…Greater Good CharitiesSandberg Phoenix & Vo…Pott FoundationThe Blackbaud Giving …World Wide Technology…Commerce Bancshares F…The Pfizer Foundation…Enterprise Holdings F…Mightycause Charitabl…
St Louis Community FoundationMO19.7× affinity7 shared granteesties to 11 of 11Hover any node to trace its alignments.Compare side by side →

Open a dossier: St Louis Community Foundation · St Louis Community Foundation Inc · Employees Community Fund of the Boeing Company · Greater Good Charities · Sandberg Phoenix & Von Gontard Charitable Foundation Inc · Pott Foundation · The Blackbaud Giving Fund · World Wide Technology Foundation · Commerce Bancshares Foundation · The Pfizer Foundation Inc · Enterprise Holdings Foundation · Mightycause Charitable 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 William Gerald Willett Charitable Foundation funds: left to right is the share of its income from government, bottom to top the share from The William Gerald Willett Charitable Foundation. Bigger dots raise more.

2024
’20’21’22’23’24’25
no gov · 00%1%4%8%15%funder's share of their income ↑0%25%50%75%100%share of the org’s income from government →
    no gov moneyreceives it· size = income
    0get no government money at all
    5report government grants on their 990 we could not trace to a source (not plotted)
    0rely on government for over half their income
    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 William Gerald Willett Charitable Foundation?

    Find your warmest path to The William Gerald Willett 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 from IRS e-file XML, the funder’s own 990/990-PF, and from the multi-year returns of the 39 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 William Gerald Willett’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