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Trager Family Foundation Inc at a glance

· Private foundation

Trager Family Foundation Inc

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.

$5.3M
Granted FY2021
18
Grants FY2021
2
States reached
$4.8M
Largest
01What it fundsRead
02The needRead
03Its granteesRead
04Its fieldRead
05Through PlinthRead

Read this first · the figures below need context

96% of Trager Family Foundation Inc’s FY2021 grant dollars went to The Community Foundation Of Louisville Inc, not to grantees.

Its money now reaches organizations through that sponsor, which does not report who recommended each grant. FY2021 names 13 organizations directly, so a portfolio cannot be read from it.

Organizations named directly on the return

13
’20
13
’21

Amber years are those where most dollars went to a sponsor.

01What it funds
01100% classified

What it funded, over time

Every grant placed by its stated purpose and the recipient’s mission, by year, FY2020 to 2021.

Philanthropy$5.9MEducation$419kRecreation & Sports$129kArts & Culture$68kCivil Rights$59kHealth$37kEnvironment$20kFood & Nutrition$14kOther$0
02FY2021 · 18 grants

Where the money goes

Grants by size, and the largest recipients.

By grant size · FY2021

  • Under $10k8 grants · $32k
  • $10k–50k7 grants · $119k
  • $50k–250k1 grant · $50k
  • $250k+2 grants · $5.1M
$10,000
Median grant
2
States reached
$0
Total assets
Largest grants
RecipientAmount
COMMUNITY FOUNDATION OF LOUISVILLE$4,752,900
JEWISH COMMUNITY OF LOUISVILLE$375,000
UNIVERSITY OF LOUISVILLE ATHLETIC ASSOCIATION$50,000
UNITED JEWISH CAMPAIGN$26,173
SPALDING UNIVERSITY$20,000
BELLARMINE UNIVERSITY$20,000
SPEED ART MUSEUM$17,500
LOUISVILLE ORCHESTRA ENDOWMENT$15,000
UNIVERSITY OF LOUISVILLE FOUNDATION$10,000
THE LEUKEMIA AND LYMPHOMA SOCIETY$10,000
WATERFRONT BOTANICAL GARDENS$7,500
KIDS CANCER ALLIANCE$5,320
PILLAR$5,000
KENTUCKY WATERWAY ALLIANCE$5,000
LOUISVILLE PUBLIC MEDIA$5,000
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 (FY20–21, $12k) land where the poverty rate runs at 6%, against an area that typically sits at 12%. 13% of those dollars go to grantees based in above-average-need neighborhoods. Its grants skew toward lower-need ZIPs.

area typical 12%PILLAR: $5k → 4%PILLAR: $5k → 4%BLESSINGS IN A BACKPACK: $2k → 15%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.

86%of every dollar goes to organizations it has funded before.
$643k · 10 repeat orgs$105k to everyone else

10 repeat relationships: 10 still active in FY2021, 0 since wound down; 5 grantees were first funded in FY2021 (too recent to call).

How the two cohorts compare

Re-uppedFunded once

Organizations

10
7

Total granted

$643k
$52k

Median revenue growth · since first grant

+13%
+39%

Still filing today

90%
57%

New vs renewed · share of each year

In FY2021, 73% of grant dollars renewed an existing relationship; $54k went to new ones.

50%100%’20’21
RenewedFirst-time

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

’20’21
Arts & CultureEducationEnvironmentHuman ServicesRecreation & SportsPublic BenefitOther
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

  • UO
    University of Louisville Athletic Association
    2× · 2020–2021 · $100k · revenue +13%
  • SU
    SPALDING UNIVERSITY INC
    2× · 2020–2021 · $40k · revenue +4%
  • LO
    LOUISVILLE ORCHESTRA ENDOWMENT INC
    2× · 2020–2021 · $30k · revenue +114%

Funded once

  • LO
    LOUISVILLE OLMSTED PARKS CONSERVANCY IN
    one grant, 2020 · $25k · revenue -19%
  • NH
    NORTON HOSPITAL FOUNDATION
    one grant, 2020 · $7k
  • WI
    WELLSPRING INCgraduated
    one grant, 2020 · $6k · revenue +39%
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
Kentucky Center for Economic Policy Inc

To improve the quality of life for all kentuckians through research, education and advocacy on important policy issues facing the commonwealth.

Public Benefit
2
Kentucky Bankers Association

To provide effective advocacy for the financial services industry both in kentucky and on a national level; to serve as a reliable and responsive source of information and education about areas of interest to the industry; and to provide a…

—
3
Parks Alliance of Louisville Inc

Drive equitable investment in our public parks to improve the health and wellbeing of the entire community.

Environment
4
Louisville Collegiate School

Louisville collegiate school inspires academic excellence, extraordinary character and global citizenship.

Education
5
Kentucky Coalition Inc

To support grassroots organizing, leadership development & public education around important public policy. ky coalition seeks to promote active citizen participation in the democratic process.

Public Benefit
6
The Louisville Urban League Inc

As an active partner, leader and catalyst, we will assist african americans, other minority groups and the disadvantaged attain social and economic equality and stability through direct services and advocacy.

Human Services
7
Jefferson National Parks Association

Jefferson national parks association provides quality educational products and related services that enhance public understanding and appreciation of america's national parks, public lands and historic places.

Arts & Culture
8
Greater Louisville Sports Commission Inc

To attract, create, and host quality sporting events in the louisville area that increase economic vitality, enhance the quality of life, promote healthy lifestyles, and brand louisville as a great place to live, work, and play.

Recreation & Sports
9
Wilson College

Wilson college empowers students to be confident and critical thinkers, creative visionaries, effective communicators, honorable leaders, and agents of justice.

Education
10
University of Louisville Real Estate Foundation Inc

To acquire, maintain, improve, leverage, manage, lease, and convey real and personal property for the benefit of the university of louisville.

Philanthropy
11
Leadership Kentucky Foundation Inc

Broadens the perspectives of current and emerging leaders through experiential education that inspires them to advance kentucky.

Public Benefit
12
Kentucky College of Art Design

The kentucky college of art and design opens the door to a creative and productive life through an undergraduate education in the contemporary arts.

Education
How this is measured
The grantee most central to the portfolio’s shape is The Community Foundation of Louisville Inc; the most unlike its peers is Kentucky Waterways Alliance 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

20 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. 20 of the 25 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)
20/20
Grantees still filing
13/20
Grew since first funded

Where the money sits, by cause and then by grantee

THE COMMUNITY FOUNDATION OF LOUISVILLE INC: $4,752,900 · PhilanthropyTHE COMMUNITY FOUNDATION OF LOUISVILLE INCJEWISH COMMUNITY OF LOUISVILLE INC: $1,125,000 · PhilanthropyJEWISH COMMUNITY OF LOUISVILLE INCUNIVERSITY OF LOUISVILLE FOUNDATION INC: $359,283 · EducationSPALDING UNIVERSITY INC: $40,000 · EducationBELLARMINE UNIVERSITY INCORPORATED: $20,000 · EducationUNITED JEWISH CAMPAIGN: $54,646 · OtherLOUISVILLE OLMSTED PARKS CONSERVANCY IN: $25,000 · OtherTHE LEUKEMIA AND LYMPHOMA SOCIETY: $10,000 · OtherNORTON HOSPITAL FOUNDATION: $6,925 · OtherWELLSPRING INC: $6,250 · OtherBAPTIST HEALTH FOUNDATION: $6,000 · OtherKIDS CANCER ALLIANCE INC: $10,360 · Other+4 more: $10,009 · OtherUniversity of Louisville Athletic Association: $100,000 · Recreation & SportsLOUISVILLE ORCHESTRA ENDOWMENT INC: $30,000 · Arts & CultureKENTUCKY PUBLIC RADIO INC: $20,000 · Arts & CultureSPEED ART MUSEUM: $17,500 · Arts & CultureWorld Affairs Council of Kentucky S: $2,500 · Arts & CultureWATERFRONT BOTANICAL GARDENS INC: $15,000 · EnvironmentKENTUCKY WATERWAYS ALLIANCE INC: $5,000 · EnvironmentAPPLE PATCH COMMUNITY INC: $10,000 · Human ServicesBLESSINGS IN A BACKPACK INC: $1,500 · Human Services
Philanthropy$5,877,900Education$419,283Other$129,190Recreation & Sports$100,000Arts & Culture$70,000Environment$20,000Human Services$11,500

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 budgetTHE COMMUNITY FOUNDATION OF LOUISVILLE INC: $4,752,900 over 1y, 6.7% of budgetJEWISH COMMUNITY OF LOUISVILLE INC: $1,125,000 over 2y, 4.3% of budgetUNIVERSITY OF LOUISVILLE FOUNDATION INC: $359,283 over 2y, 0.5% of budgetUniversity of Louisville Athletic Association: $100,000 over 2y, 0.1% of budgetSPALDING UNIVERSITY INC: $40,000 over 2y, 0.1% of budgetLOUISVILLE ORCHESTRA ENDOWMENT INC: $30,000 over 2y, 3.7% of budgetLOUISVILLE OLMSTED PARKS CONSERVANCY IN: $25,000 over 1y, 0.9% of budgetBELLARMINE UNIVERSITY INCORPORATED: $20,000 over 1y, 0.0% of budgetKENTUCKY PUBLIC RADIO INC: $20,000 over 2y, 0.2% of budgetSPEED ART MUSEUM: $17,500 over 1y, 0.1% of budgetWATERFRONT BOTANICAL GARDENS INC: $15,000 over 2y, 0.3% of budgetKIDS CANCER ALLIANCE INC: $10,360 over 2y, 0.5% of budgetAPPLE PATCH COMMUNITY INC: $10,000 over 2y, 0.1% of budgetWELLSPRING INC: $6,250 over 1y, 0.1% of budgetKENTUCKY WATERWAYS ALLIANCE INC: $5,000 over 1y, 0.2% of budgetNATIONAL COUNCIL OF JEWISH WOMEN LOUISVILLE SECTION: $4,000 over 2y, 0.7% of budgetWorld Affairs Council of Kentucky S: $2,500 over 1y, 1.0% of budgetBLESSINGS IN A BACKPACK INC: $1,500 over 1y, 0.0% of budgetBIRMINGHAM JEWISH FOUNDATION INC: $1,500 over 1y, 0.0% of budgetKENTUCKY HUMANE SOCIETY - ANIMAL RESCUE: $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.

The Community Foundat…Snowy Owl Foundation …Republic Bank Foundat…The Gheens Foundation…Honorable Order of Ke…LG&E and Ku Foundatio…The Community Foundat…The Community Foundat…V V Cooke Foundation …Blue Grass Community …Mightycause Charitabl…Baird Foundation Inc
The Community Foundation of Louisville IncKY25.4× affinity10 shared granteesties to 11 of 11Hover any node to trace its alignments.Compare side by side →

Open a dossier: The Community Foundation of Louisville Inc · Snowy Owl Foundation Inc · Republic Bank Foundation Inc · The Gheens Foundation Inc · Honorable Order of Kentucky Colonels Inc · LG&E and Ku Foundation Inc · The Community Foundation of Louisville Corporate Depository Inc · The Community Foundation of Louisville Depository Inc · V V Cooke Foundation Corporation · Blue Grass Community Foundation Inc · Mightycause Charitable Foundation · Baird Foundation Inc

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 Trager Family Foundation Inc funds: left to right is the share of its income from government, bottom to top the share from Trager Family Foundation Inc. Bigger dots raise more.

2024
’20’21’22’23’24’25
no gov · 00%1%3%6%10%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 Trager Family Foundation Inc?

    Find your warmest path to Trager Family Foundation Inc 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 25 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 2021, released 2021. Filings run roughly 12 to 24 months behind; figures are dated accordingly.

    Possibly out of date. A more recent filing (FY2024) is on record and reports no grant expense, so the figures above are from FY2021, the most recent year this funder made grants.

    Source object · view filing

    Play a game based on Trager 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