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Wheeler Foundation at a glance

· Private foundation

Wheeler Foundation

Its FY2024 filing reports that it accepted unsolicited grant applications.

$4.9M
Granted FY2023
99
Grants FY2023
17
States reached
$403k
Largest
01What it fundsRead
02The needRead
03Its granteesRead
04Its fieldRead
05Through PlinthRead
01What it funds
0197% classified

What it funded, over time

Every grant placed by its stated purpose and the recipient’s mission, by year, FY2020 to 2024.

Education$2.1MArts & Culture$1.3MInternational$1.2MFood & Nutrition$870kHealth$837kHuman Services$558kPublic Safety & Disaster$495kEnvironment$470kOther$0
02FY2023 · 99 grants

Where the money goes

Grants by size, and the largest recipients.

By grant size · FY2023

  • Under $10k4 grants · $12k
  • $10k–50k60 grants · $1.3M
  • $50k–250k32 grants · $2.7M
  • $250k+3 grants · $913k
$25,000
Median grant
17
States reached
$81M
Total assets
Largest grants
RecipientAmount
UNIVERSITY OF UTAH$402,500
AMERICAN NATIONAL RED CROSS$260,000
INTERNATIONAL RESCUE COMMITTEE INC$250,000
BRIGHAM YOUNG UNIVERSITY$160,000
FARM ALLIANCE OF BALTIMORE INC$150,000
NATIONAL AUDUBON SOCIETY INC$135,000
CATHOLIC CHARITIES$125,000
THE PRODUCERS CLUB OF MARYLAND INC$120,000
THE GOOD SAMARITAN FOUNDATION$120,000
MOVEABLE FEAST INC$100,000
MARYLAND FOOD BANK INC$100,000
YELLOWSTONE FOREVER$100,000
UTAH CHAMBER ARTISTS$95,000
SHELTER THE HOMELESS COMMITTEE INC$90,000
OPERATION UNDERGROUND RAILROAD INC$90,000
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 (FY22–23, $866k) land where the poverty rate runs at 11%, against an area that typically sits at 8%. 57% of those dollars go to grantees based in above-average-need neighborhoods. Most of its grants land in higher-need ZIPs.

area typical 8%STAND WITH UKRAINE: $70k → 11%BACKROADS FOUNDATION: $70k → 8%HOPING HEARTS FOUNDATION INC: $25k → 6%BACKROADS FOUNDATION: $15k → 8%HOPING HEARTS FOUNDATION INC: $25k → 6%AMERICAN NATIONAL RED CROSS: $260k → 14%AMERICAN INDIAN SERVICES: $20k → 8%AMERICAN NATIONAL RED CROSS: $160k → 14%AMERICAN INDIAN SERVICES: $20k → 8%FAMILY PROMISE OF BEAVERTON: $11k → 8%CROSSROADS URBAN CENTER: $10k → 8%CROSSROADS URBAN CENTER: $5k → 8%IMMIGRANT LEGAL SERVICES: $50k → 8%IMMIGRANT LEGAL SERVICES: $50k → 8%WARD FOUNDATION: $10k → 8%THE INN BETWEEN: $45k → 8%THE INN BETWEEN: $20k → 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.

Which US states its grants reach

WA
ID
MT
MI
NY
OR
OH
PA
CT
UT
VA
MD
AZ
TN
NC
DC
HI
OK
GA
TX
FL
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.

85%of every dollar goes to organizations it has funded before.
$8.2M · 75 repeat orgs$1.5M to everyone else

Grantees it renews have grown median revenue +8% since the first grant, against +5% for those funded once.

75 repeat relationships: 75 still active in FY2023, 0 since wound down; 24 grantees were first funded in FY2023 (too recent to call).

How the two cohorts compare

Re-uppedFunded once

Organizations

75
22

Total granted

$8.2M
$687k

Median revenue growth · since first grant

+8%
+5%

Still filing today

85%
59%

New vs renewed · share of each year

In FY2023, 83% of grant dollars renewed an existing relationship; $821k went to new ones.

50%100%’22’23
RenewedFirst-time

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

’22’23
Human ServicesHealthArts & CultureInternationalEducationYouth 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

  • AN
    American National Red Cross & Its Constituent Chapters and Branches
    2× · 2022–2023 · $420k · revenue +23%
  • TG
    THE GOOD SAMARITAN FOUNDATION
    2× · 2022–2023 · $258k · revenue +39%
  • FA
    FARM ALLIANCE OF BALTIMORE INC
    2× · 2022–2023 · $250k · revenue +539%

Funded once

  • IG
    Individual grant recipient
    one grant, 2022 · $100k
  • OH
    OREGON HEALTH AND SCIENCE UNIVERSITY
    one grant, 2022 · $100k
  • GQ
    Global QRF
    one grant, 2022 · $60k · revenue -62% · 44% of their budget
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
Utah's Promise

Utah's promise (up) is committed to 100% of kids and families thriving. we unify leaders, partners, communities and systems to achieve that promise.

Philanthropy
2
Utah Foundation

Utah foundation's mission is to produce objective, thorough and well- reasoned research and analysis that promotes the effective use of public resources, a thriving economy, a well-prepared workforce and a high quality of life for utahns.…

Public Benefit
3
The Community Foundation of Utah

We are utah's partner in philanthropy, pioneering innovation and collaboration to invest in our community today for a brighter tomorrow.

Philanthropy
4
Healthy Environment Alliance of Utah

Heal utah's mission is to protect utah's environment and its people by promoting clean air, clean energy, and comprehensive solutions to radioactive and toxic waste.

Environment
5
Actionaid Usa

Actionaid is an international network building a just, equitable, and sustainable world in solidarity with communities on the frontlines of poverty and injustice. actionaid usa is the u.s. branch of actionaid international, which works in…

Social Science
6
Globus Relief

The mission of globus relief is to improve the delivery of healthcare worldwide by gathering, processing and distributing surplus medical and health supplies to charities at home and abroad.

International
7
Utahns Against Hunger

Our mission is to increase access to food across utah through advocacy, outreach, and education. utahns against hunger is utahs only state-wide anti-hunger non-profit organization working on public policy and advocacy for federal nutrition…

—
8
The Christmas Box International

The christmas box international partners with local, national and international communities and groups to prevent child abuse and to improve the quality of life for children, teens and young adults who have been abused, neglected or are…

Community Improvement
9
Utah Refugee Connection

Utah refugee connection mission: creating meaningful connections between refugees, the community, and public and private organizations which support refugees in developing self-sufficient and fulfilling lives.

Human Services
10
Family Promise - Salt Lake

We help families experiencing homelessness find lasting independence and security.

Housing & Shelter
11
Equality Utah Foundation

To secure equal rights and protections for lgbtq utahns and their families.

Civil Rights
12
The Advocates for Human Rights

To promote and protect human rights in the United States and around the world.

International
How this is measured
The grantee most central to the portfolio’s shape is Ouelessebougou Alliance; the most unlike its peers is Onerefugee. 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

95 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. 95 of the 123 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.

9
Load-bearing (≥25% of a budget)
8
Early backer (in before they grew)
93/95
Grantees still filing
57/95
Grew since first funded

Where the money sits, by cause and then by grantee

UNIVERSITY OF UTAH: $977,500 · OtherUNIVERSITY OF UTAHNATIONAL AUDUBON SOCIETY INC: $245,000 · OtherCATHOLIC CHARITIES: $225,000 · OtherTHE CHURCH OF JESUS CHRIST OF LATTERDAY: $225,000 · OtherMOVEABLE FEAST INC: $200,000 · OtherTHE MARYLAND FOOD BANK INC: $175,000 · OtherTHE PRODUCERS CLUB OF MD INC: $295,000 · OtherTHE PRODUCERS CLUB OF MD INCFARM ALLIANCE OF BALTIMORE INC: $250,000 · Other+57 more: $2,444,465 · Other+57 moreAmerican National Red Cross & Its Constituent Chapters and Branches: $420,000 · Human ServicesAmerican Na…CHARITY GLOBAL INC: $118,000 · Human ServicesCHARITY GLO…Immigrant Legal Services: $100,000 · Human ServicesImmigrant L…Backroads Foundation: $85,000 · Human ServicesBackroads F…Stand With Ukraine Inc dba To Ukraine With Love: $70,000 · Human ServicesStand With …THE INN BETWEEN: $65,000 · Human ServicesTHE INN BET…HOPING HEARTS FOUNDATION INC: $50,000 · Human ServicesAmerican Indian Services: $40,000 · Human Services+4 more: $76,000 · Human Services+4 moreInternational Rescue Committee INC: $358,000 · InternationalInternation…LIGHTHOUSE SANCTUARY: $130,000 · InternationalLIGHTHOUSE …UNITED STATES FUND FOR UNICEF: $105,000 · InternationalUNITED STAT…MEDECINS SANS FRONTIERES USA INC: $90,000 · InternationalMEDECINS SA…Save The Children Federation Inc: $75,000 · InternationalSave The Ch…MEDICAL TEAMS INTERNATIONAL: $70,000 · InternationalMEDICAL TEA…Global QRF: $60,000 · InternationalGlobal QRF+3 more: $70,000 · International+3 moreTHE GOOD SAMARITAN FOUNDATION: $257,500 · EducationTHE GOOD …THE VILLAGE LEARNING PLACE INC: $160,000 · EducationTHE VILLA…Onerefugee: $120,000 · EducationOnerefuge…Kids on the Move Inc: $95,000 · EducationKids on t…HIGH SCHOOL TO COLLEGE GUIDE FOUNDATION: $70,000 · EducationHIGH SCHO…PARENTS INVESTED IN EDUCATION SLC: $50,000 · EducationPARENTS I…Utah International Charter School: $30,000 · Education+3 more: $35,500 · EducationOASIS HOUSING INC: $135,000 · HealthTuerk House Inc: $107,000 · HealthHUNTSMAN CANCER FOUNDATION: $100,000 · HealthBREAKTHROUGH T1D: $80,000 · HealthSHRINERS HOSPITALS FOR CHILDREN: $60,000 · HealthMARYLAND NEW DIRECTIONS INC: $60,000 · HealthINTERNATIONAL CHILDREN'S SURGICAL FOUNDATION: $60,000 · HealthMAMA BABY INTERNATIONAL: $59,500 · HealthCYSTIC FIBROSIS FOUNDATION: $40,000 · HealthCHILDREN'S CRANIOFACIAL ASSOCIATION: $40,000 · Health+2 more: $20,000 · HealthUtah Chamber Artists: $145,000 · Arts & CultureCREATIVE ALLIANCE INC: $135,000 · Arts & CulturePARKER THEATRE OF THE ARTS: $122,500 · Arts & CultureOUR RESCUE: $110,000 · Arts & CultureTHE SALT LAKE TRIBUNE INC: $50,000 · Arts & CultureHALE CENTRE THEATRE: $40,000 · Arts & CultureSalt Lake Choral Artists: $40,000 · Arts & CultureOREGON SYMPHONY ASSOCIATION: $40,000 · Arts & CulturePortland Youth Philharmonic Association: $35,000 · Arts & Culture+2 more: $25,000 · Arts & CultureYELLOWSTONE FOREVER: $240,000 · EnvironmentBLUE WATER BALTIMORE: $130,000 · EnvironmentFRIENDS Of Great Salt Lake: $40,000 · Environment
Other$5,036,965Human Services$1,024,000International$958,000Education$818,000Health$761,500Arts & Culture$742,500Environment$410,000

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 budgetAmerican National Red Cross & Its Constituent Chapters and Branches: $420,000 over 2y, 0.0% of budgetInternational Rescue Committee INC: $358,000 over 2y, 0.0% of budgetTHE PRODUCERS CLUB OF MD INC: $295,000 over 2y, 21% of budgetTHE GOOD SAMARITAN FOUNDATION: $257,500 over 2y, 16% of budgetFARM ALLIANCE OF BALTIMORE INC: $250,000 over 2y, 7.3% of budgetYELLOWSTONE FOREVER: $240,000 over 2y, 0.6% of budgetMOVEABLE FEAST INC: $200,000 over 2y, 2.4% of budgetTHE MARYLAND FOOD BANK INC: $175,000 over 2y, 0.1% of budgetTHE VILLAGE LEARNING PLACE INC: $160,000 over 2y, 6.9% of budgetUtah Chamber Artists: $145,000 over 2y, 32% of budgetCREATIVE ALLIANCE INC: $135,000 over 2y, 2.3% of budgetOASIS HOUSING INC: $135,000 over 2y, 36% of budgetNational Alliance On Mental Illness: $130,000 over 2y, 38% of budgetLIGHTHOUSE SANCTUARY: $130,000 over 2y, 58% of budgetBLUE WATER BALTIMORE: $130,000 over 2y, 2.3% of budgetPARKER THEATRE OF THE ARTS: $122,500 over 2y, 15% of budgetOnerefugee: $120,000 over 2y, 4.5% of budgetCHARITY GLOBAL INC: $118,000 over 2y, 0.1% of budgetPACIFIC BALLROOM DANCE: $116,400 over 2y, 6.2% of budgetOUR RESCUE: $110,000 over 2y, 0.2% of budgetTuerk House Inc: $107,000 over 2y, 0.4% of budgetUNITED STATES FUND FOR UNICEF: $105,000 over 2y, 0.0% of budgetSHELTER THE HOMELESS INC: $100,000 over 2y, 0.3% of budgetImmigrant Legal Services: $100,000 over 2y, 13% of budgetHUNTSMAN CANCER FOUNDATION: $100,000 over 2y, 0.4% of budgetKids on the Move Inc: $95,000 over 2y, 0.7% of budgetMEDECINS SANS FRONTIERES USA INC: $90,000 over 2y, 0.0% of budgetBackroads Foundation: $85,000 over 2y, 23% of budgetBREAKTHROUGH T1D: $80,000 over 2y, 0.0% of budgetSave The Children Federation Inc: $75,000 over 2y, 0.0% of budgetStand With Ukraine Inc dba To Ukraine With Love: $70,000 over 1y, 0.1% of budgetHIGH SCHOOL TO COLLEGE GUIDE FOUNDATION: $70,000 over 1y, 92% of budgetMEDICAL TEAMS INTERNATIONAL: $70,000 over 2y, 0.1% of budgetKostopulos Dream Foundation: $70,000 over 2y, 2.1% of budgetTHE INN BETWEEN: $65,000 over 2y, 2.4% of budgetSHRINERS HOSPITALS FOR CHILDREN: $60,000 over 2y, 0.0% of budgetMARYLAND NEW DIRECTIONS INC: $60,000 over 2y, 1.8% of budgetWASATCH COMMUNITY GARDENS: $60,000 over 2y, 1.8% of budgetINTERNATIONAL CHILDREN'S SURGICAL FOUNDATION: $60,000 over 2y, 9.4% of budgetGlobal QRF: $60,000 over 1y, 44% of budgetMAMA BABY INTERNATIONAL: $59,500 over 1y, 6.9% of budgetUTAH FOOD BANK: $55,000 over 2y, 0.0% of budgetPARENTS INVESTED IN EDUCATION SLC: $50,000 over 1y, 100% of budgetSalt Lake Education Foundation: $50,000 over 1y, 1.8% of budgetNATIONAL ABILITY CENTER: $50,000 over 2y, 0.2% of budgetHOPING HEARTS FOUNDATION INC: $50,000 over 2y, 0.8% of budgetOREGON FOOD BANK: $50,000 over 2y, 0.0% of budgetTHE SALT LAKE TRIBUNE INC: $50,000 over 2y, 0.2% 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.

Sorenson Legacy Found…Larry H Miller and Ga…The Community Foundat…George S and Dolores …Lawrence & Janet Dee …McCarthey Family Foun…Dominion Energy Chari…Joan and Tim Fenton F…Kennecott Utah Copper…Henry W & Leslie M Es…C Scott & Dorothy E W…David Kelby Johnson M…
Sorenson Legacy FoundationUT63.5× affinity30 shared granteesties to 11 of 11Hover any node to trace its alignments.Compare side by side →

Open a dossier: Sorenson Legacy Foundation · Larry H Miller and Gail Miller Family Foundation · The Community Foundation of Utah · George S and Dolores Dore Eccles Foundation · Lawrence & Janet Dee Foundation · McCarthey Family Foundation · Dominion Energy Charitable Foundation · Joan and Tim Fenton Family Foundation · Kennecott Utah Copper Visitors Center Charitable Foundation · Henry W & Leslie M Eskuche Charitable Foundation · C Scott & Dorothy E Watkins Charitable Foundation · David Kelby Johnson Memorial 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 Wheeler Foundation funds: left to right is the share of its income from government, bottom to top the share from Wheeler Foundation. Bigger dots raise more.

2024
’20’21’22’23’24’25
no gov · 60%6%25%56%100%funder's share of their income ↑0%25%50%75%100%share of the org’s income from government →median 6%
  • Save the Children Federation Inc: 30% of income from government
  • Oregon Food Bank: 21% of income from government
  • Moveable Feast Inc: 18% of income from government
  • Medical Teams International: 14% of income from government
  • The Maryland Food Bank Inc: 11% of income from government
  • Maryland New Directions Inc: 8% of income from government
  • The Producers Club of Md Inc: 7% of income from government
  • The Village Learning Place Inc: 6% of income from government
  • Baltimore Museum of Art: 4% of income from government
  • Feed the Children Inc: 1% of income from government
  • Portland Youth Philharmonic Association: 0% of income from government
  • Casa of Clackamas County: 0% of income from government
  • Oregon Symphony Association: 0% of income from government
  • Shriners Hospitals for Children: 0% of income from government
  • Portland State University Foundation: 0% of income from government
no gov moneyreceives it· size = income
6get no government money at all
29report 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 Wheeler Foundation?

Find your warmest path to Wheeler 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 123 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.

Possibly out of date. A more recent filing (FY2024) is on record and reports $4.3M of grant expense with no grantee named in the published copy. A private foundation itemizes every grant it makes, so a return carrying none has filed its list as an attachment that the public copy does not include. The figures above are therefore from FY2023, the most recent year this funder’s grantee list reached the public record.

Source object · view filing

Play a game based on Wheeler’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