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Willens Family Foundation at a glance

· Private foundation

Willens Family 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.

$603k
Granted FY2025still arriving
19
Grants FY2025still arriving
9
States reached
$302k
Largest
01What it fundsRead
02The needRead
03Its granteesRead
04Its fieldRead
05Through PlinthRead
01What it funds
0199% classified

What it funded, over time

Every grant placed by its stated purpose and the recipient’s mission, by year, FY2020 to 2025.

Recreation & Sports$795kEducation$333kHealth$313kInternational$144kFood & Nutrition$94kHuman Services$86kScience & Tech$76kYouth Development$73kOther$0
02FY2025 · 19 grants

Where the money goes

Grants by size, and the largest recipients.

By grant size · FY2025

  • Under $10k5 grants · $36k
  • $10k–50k12 grants · $210k
  • $50k–250k1 grant · $55k
  • $250k+1 grant · $302k
$12,533
Median grant
9
States reached
$17M
Total assets
Largest grants
RecipientAmount
Northwestern University Office of Alumni Relations & Development$302,000
Civic Soul$55,134
Doctors Without Borders USA$37,600
Med Access International$37,600
Caltech Advancement and Alumni Relations$25,000
CAMFED USA$15,000
My Block My Hood My City$15,000
Boca Raton Regional Hospital$12,600
Individual grant recipient$12,533
Minds Matter NYC$12,533
Matthew Larson Foundation for Pediatric Brain Tumors$12,000
Sanctuary for Families$10,000
The University of Texas MD Anderson Cancer Center$10,000
Cancer Free Kids Pediatric Cancer Research Alliance$10,000
Breast Cancer Research Foundation$9,600
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 (FY22–25, $31k) land where the poverty rate runs at 15%, against an area that typically sits at 11%. 100% of those dollars go to grantees based in above-average-need neighborhoods. Most of its grants land in higher-need ZIPs.

area typical 11%The Brigid Alliance: $10k → 17%The Night Ministry: $7k → 14%Urban Initiatives: $5k → 14%Urban Initiatives: $5k → 14%Urban Initiatives: $2k → 14%Urban Initiatives: $2k → 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.

Which US states its grants reach

MN
IL
NY
MA
NV
OH
PA
NJ
CT
CA
CO
VA
MD
TN
DC
AL
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.

77%of every dollar goes to organizations it has funded before.
$1.6M · 17 repeat orgs$485k to everyone else

Grantees it renews have grown median revenue +14% since the first grant, against +13% for those funded once.

17 repeat relationships: 11 still active in FY2025, 6 since wound down; 8 grantees were first funded in FY2025 (too recent to call).

How the two cohorts compare

Re-uppedFunded once

Organizations

17
36

Total granted

$1.6M
$336k

Median revenue growth · since first grant

+14%
+13%

Still filing today

82%
61%

New vs renewed · share of each year

In FY2025, 75% of grant dollars renewed an existing relationship; $149k went to new ones.

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

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

’20’21’22’23’24’25
HealthFood & NutritionInternationalHuman ServicesCivil RightsEducationOther
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

  • Northwestern University
    6× · 2020–2025 · $1.1M · revenue +33%
  • MEDECINS SANS FRONTIERES USA INC
    3× · 2023–2025 · $87k · revenue +1%
  • BR
    Boca Raton Regional Hospital Inc
    5× · 2021–2025 · $73k · revenue +37%

Funded once

  • C
    Caltech
    one grant, 2024 · $26k
  • CI
    CALIFORNIA INSTITUTE OF TECHNOLOGY
    one grant, 2023 · $25k · revenue -10%
  • WORLD CENTRAL KITCHEN INC
    one grant, 2022 · $20k · revenue -40%
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
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
2
The Union of Concerned Scientists Inc

The union of concerned scientists puts rigorous, independent science into action, developing solutions and advocating for a healthy, safe, and just future.

International
3
The Common Application Inc

The common application is a not-for-profit membership organization of over 1,100 colleges and universities across the globe committed to access, equity, and integrity in the college admission process. every year, over 1.5 million students…

Education
4
International Aids Vaccine Initiative Inc

A nonprofit scientific research organization that develops vaccines and antibodies for hiv, tuberculosis, and emerging infectious diseases.

International
5
Commonwealth Care Alliance Inc

Commonwealth care alliance, inc.'s mission is to improve the health and well-being of people with significant needs by innovating, coordinating and providing the highest quality, individualized care.

Health
6
Children's Rights Inc

Children's rights is a national advocacy organization that investigates, exposes, and combats violations of the rights of children. through strategic advocacy and civil rights impact litigation, children's rights holds governments…

Civil Rights
7
Alternatives Inc

Alternatives, inc.'s mission is to facilitate personal development,strengthen family relationships and enhance the community's well being. serving over 3,000 youth and families annually, the organization offers a range of counseling and…

Health
8
Banner -University Medical Group

Assist banner health complete its mission to make health care easier so life can be better by providing integrated & coordinated care & population health management.

Health
9
The Global FoodBanking Network

To nourish the world's hungry through uniting and advancing food banks.

International
10
The Population Council Inc

We generate ideas, produce evidence, and design solutions to improve the lives of underserved populations around the world. we take a multidisciplinary, intergenerational, life-cycle approach that contributes to (see schedule o)four global…

International
11
American Academy of Neurology

The Academy's mission is to enhance member career fulfillment and promote brain health for all.

Community Improvement
12
Federation of State Medical Boards of the United States Inc

The fsmb serves as the voice for state medical boards, supporting them through education, assessment, research and advocacy while providing services and initiatives that promote patient safety, quality health care and regulatory best…

Health
How this is measured
The grantee most central to the portfolio’s shape is Camfed Usa Foundation; the most unlike its peers is Indigenous Environmental Network. 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

41 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. 41 of the 61 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.

1
Load-bearing (≥25% of a budget)
2
Early backer (in before they grew)
41/41
Grantees still filing
25/41
Grew since first funded

Where the money sits, by cause and then by grantee

Northwestern University: $1,097,400 · Recreation & SportsNorthwestern UniversityCaltech: $26,000 · OtherCaltech Advancement and Alumni Relations: $25,000 · OtherCOALITION FOR THE HOMELESS INC: $24,525 · OtherMatthew Larson Foundation for Pedia: $23,500 · OtherFeeding Palm Beach Florida: $17,050 · OtherBrain Behavior Research Foundatio: $16,500 · OtherSANCTUARY FOR FAMILIES INC: $20,000 · OtherCALIFORNIA INSTITUTE OF TECHNOLOGY: $25,000 · OtherNAACP LEGAL DEFENSE & EDUC FUND INC: $21,650 · OtherASSISTING LIVES IN LAS VEGAS: $33,750 · OtherASSISTING LIVES IN LAS VEG…+31 more: $261,683 · Other+31 moreMED ACCESS INTERNATIONAL: $97,650 · HealthMED ACCESS …Boca Raton Regional Hospital Inc: $73,350 · HealthBoca Raton …ST JUDE CHILDREN'S RESEARCH HOSPITAL INC: $15,000 · HealthST JUDE CHI…Ann & Robert H Lurie Children's Hospital of Chicago Foundation: $11,275 · HealthABORTION CARE NETWORK: $10,100 · HealthCancerFree KIDS: $10,000 · Health+1 more: $5,000 · HealthMEDECINS SANS FRONTIERES USA INC: $86,650 · InternationalWORLD CENTRAL KITCHEN INC: $20,200 · InternationalCAMFED USA FOUNDATION: $15,000 · InternationalBIRTHRIGHT ISRAEL FOUNDATION: $5,000 · InternationalCivic Soul: $55,134 · PhilanthropyMATTHEW LARSON FOUNDATION FOR PEDIATRIC: $12,000 · PhilanthropyCommunity Food Bank Of New Jersey Inc: $40,650 · Food & NutritionURBAN GROWERS COLLECTIVE INC: $9,000 · Food & NutritionGREATER CHICAGO FOOD DEPOSITORY: $6,200 · Food & NutritionFeeding America: $5,500 · Food & NutritionRole Model Movement Inc (NFP): $35,000 · Youth DevelopmentMINDS MATTER OF NYC INC: $25,783 · Youth Development
Recreation & Sports$1,097,400Other$494,658Health$222,375International$126,850Philanthropy$67,134Food & Nutrition$61,350Youth Development$60,783

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 budgetNorthwestern University: $1,097,400 over 6y, 0.0% of budgetMED ACCESS INTERNATIONAL: $97,650 over 5y, 46% of budgetMEDECINS SANS FRONTIERES USA INC: $86,650 over 3y, 0.0% of budgetBoca Raton Regional Hospital Inc: $73,350 over 5y, 0.0% of budgetCommunity Food Bank Of New Jersey Inc: $40,650 over 6y, 0.0% of budgetRole Model Movement Inc (NFP): $35,000 over 3y, 0.4% of budgetASSISTING LIVES IN LAS VEGAS: $33,750 over 6y, 0.6% of budgetMINDS MATTER OF NYC INC: $25,783 over 2y, 0.6% of budgetCALIFORNIA INSTITUTE OF TECHNOLOGY: $25,000 over 1y, 0.0% of budgetCOALITION FOR THE HOMELESS INC: $24,525 over 2y, 0.1% of budgetNAACP LEGAL DEFENSE & EDUC FUND INC: $21,650 over 3y, 0.0% of budgetWORLD CENTRAL KITCHEN INC: $20,200 over 1y, 0.0% of budgetSANCTUARY FOR FAMILIES INC: $20,000 over 2y, 0.0% of budgetCAMFED USA FOUNDATION: $15,000 over 1y, 0.1% of budgetST JUDE CHILDREN'S RESEARCH HOSPITAL INC: $15,000 over 1y, 0.0% of budgetURBAN INITIATIVES INC: $14,000 over 4y, 0.1% of budgetMATTHEW LARSON FOUNDATION FOR PEDIATRIC: $12,000 over 1y, 0.7% of budgetAnn & Robert H Lurie Children's Hospital of Chicago Foundation: $11,275 over 1y, 0.0% of budgetEQUAL JUSTICE INITIATIVE: $10,500 over 2y, 0.0% of budgetABORTION CARE NETWORK: $10,100 over 1y, 0.1% of budgetSANDY HOOK PROMISE FOUNDATION: $10,100 over 1y, 0.0% of budgetINDIGENOUS ENVIRONMENTAL NETWORK: $10,000 over 1y, 0.2% of budgetTHE BRIGID ALLIANCE INC: $10,000 over 1y, 0.1% of budgetTHE BREAST CANCER RESEARCH FOUNDATION INC: $9,600 over 1y, 0.0% of budgetURBAN GROWERS COLLECTIVE INC: $9,000 over 2y, 0.2% of budgetTHE NIGHT MINISTRY: $7,000 over 1y, 0.1% of budgetCHICAGO COALITION TO END HOMELESSNESS: $7,000 over 1y, 0.1% of budgetGREATER CHICAGO FOOD DEPOSITORY: $6,200 over 1y, 0.0% of budgetFeeding America: $5,500 over 1y, 0.0% of budgetCORA Community Overcoming Relationship Abuse: $5,500 over 1y, 0.1% of budgetCOMP-U-DOPT INC: $5,500 over 1y, 0.1% of budgetMENTAL HEALTH AMERICA INC: $5,500 over 1y, 0.1% of budgetMIDWEST ACCESS COALITION: $5,000 over 1y, 0.2% of budgetAmerican Heart Association Inc: $5,000 over 1y, 0.0% of budgetPAWS CHICAGO: $5,000 over 1y, 0.0% of budgetNATIONAL WOMEN'S LAW CENTER: $5,000 over 1y, 0.0% of budgetBIRTHRIGHT ISRAEL FOUNDATION: $5,000 over 1y, 0.0% of budgetCOALITION FOR RAINFOREST NATIONS SECRETARIAT: $3,000 over 1y, 0.0% of budgetCLEAN AIR TASK FORCE INC: $3,000 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 Blackbaud Giving …National Philanthropi…The Bank of America C…Morgan Stanley Global…Donor Advised Charita…American Online Givin…Fidelity Investments …Amazonsmile Foundation
The Blackbaud Giving FundSC10.5× affinity4 shared granteesties to 7 of 7Hover any node to trace its alignments.Compare side by side →

Open a dossier: The Blackbaud Giving Fund · National Philanthropic Trust · The Bank of America Charitable Foundation Inc · Morgan Stanley Global Impact Funding Trust Inc · Donor Advised Charitable Giving Inc · American Online Giving Foundation 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 Willens Family Foundation funds: left to right is the share of its income from government, bottom to top the share from Willens Family Foundation. Bigger dots raise more.

2024
’20’21’22’23’24’25
no gov · 30%3%13%28%50%funder's share of their income ↑0%23%45%68%90%share of the org’s income from government →median 0%
  • Sandy Hook Promise Foundation: 0% of income from government
no gov moneyreceives it· size = income
3get 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
⤢ axis zoomed · 0–90%
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 Willens Family Foundation?

Find your warmest path to Willens Family 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 61 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 Willens 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