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· Private foundation

Wilson-Garling Foundation NFP

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.

$1.8M
Granted FY2024still arriving
7
Grants FY2024still arriving
4
States reached
$750k
Largest
01What it funds
0189% classified

What it funded, over time

Every grant placed by its stated purpose and the recipient’s mission, by year, FY2017 to 2025.

Arts & Culture$5.3MEducation$1.0MCommunity Improvement$384kInternational$299kHealth$215kFood & Nutrition$205kHuman Services$115kPhilanthropy$100kOther$0
02FY2024 · 7 grants

Where the money goes

Grants by size, and the largest recipients.

How this is measured
The 7 grants below total $1,324,000, the rows itemized in this filing. The $1,798,000 headline is the total grant expense on the return; the other $474,000 is giving the schedule does not break out (grants under the $5,000 itemization floor, grants to individuals, grants on other schedules). Every figure below describes the itemized rows only.

By grant size · FY2024

  • Under $10k1 grant · $5k
  • $10k–50k3 grants · $75k
  • $50k–250k1 grant · $160k
  • $250k+2 grants · $1.1M
$25,000
Median grant
4
States reached
$21M
Total assets
Largest grants
RecipientAmount
Facing History and Ourselves, Inc.$750,000
US Chamber of Commerce Foundation$334,000
The Chicago Public Education Fund$160,000
Greater Chicago Food Depository$25,000
Erie Family Health Foundation$25,000
Middlebury College$25,000
Ingenuity Incorporated Chicago$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 (FY18–22, $95k) land where the poverty rate runs at 16%, 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%Cradles to Crayons: $35k → 16%Cradles to Crayons: $25k → 16%Cradles to Crayons: $10k → 16%Cradles to Crayons: $10k → 16%CRADLES TO CRAYONS: $10k → 16%CLEARBROOK: $5k → 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.
03Its grantees
repeat funding

Who it funds again

Organizations funded in more than one year, against those funded once.

90%of every dollar goes to organizations it has funded before.
$7.7M · 23 repeat orgs$892k to everyone else

Grantees it renews have grown median revenue +30% since the first grant, against 0% for those funded once.

23 repeat relationships: 5 still active in FY2024, 18 since wound down; 2 grantees were first funded in FY2024 (too recent to call).

How the two cohorts compare

Re-uppedFunded once

Organizations

23
20

Total granted

$7.7M
$553k

Median revenue growth · since first grant

+30%
0%

Still filing today

70%
45%

New vs renewed · share of each year

In FY2024, 74% of grant dollars renewed an existing relationship; $339k 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
EducationArts & CultureInternationalHuman ServicesHealthCrime & LegalOther
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

  • FH
    FACING HISTORY & OURSELVES INC
    8× · 2017–2024 · $4.7M · revenue +18%
  • TJ
    THE JOFFREY BALLET
    3× · 2019–2022 · $350k · revenue +81%
  • Teach for America Inc
    4× · 2018–2021 · $200k · revenue +1%

Funded once

  • UW
    United Way of Chicago
    one grant, 2020 · $100k
  • EVERYTOWN FOR GUN SAFETY SUPPORT FUND INC
    one grant, 2022 · $100k · revenue -36%
  • TF
    TEACH FOR AMERICA CHICAGO NW
    one grant, 2022 · $50k
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
Columbia College Chicago

The organization's mission is to educate students for creative occupations in diverse fields of arts and media.

Education
2
Central Indiana Corporate Partnership Inc

Central indiana corporate partnership (cicp) is an alliance of indiana's business and research university leaders coming together to foster long-term prosperity for the region. cicp's mission is to transform the economy of indiana in order…

Community Improvement
3
Lake Forest Graduate School of Management

Lake Forest Graduate School of Management's mission is to bring the real world to business education and leadership development.

—
4
The Chicago Scholars Foundation

Chicago scholars is transforming the leadership landscape of our city by resolving the fundamental barriers to success for academically driven, first generation college students from under-resourced communities.

Education
5
University of Chicago

The mission of the university of chicago has been to sustain at the highest level of excellence, the communication of knowledge, the creation of knowledge and the fostering of a dynamic community of scholars and students.

Education
6
President and Fellows of Harvard College

Undergraduate, graduate, and professional education and research across a broad array of academic domains.

Education
7
Chicagoland Chamber of Commerce

The chicagoland chamber of commerce combines the power of people, with our legacy of leadership and business advocacy, to drive a dynamic economy. we focus on delivering value for our members, making chicagoland a world-class place to live…

—
8
Saint Xavier University

Saint xavier university, a catholic institution inspired by the heritage of the sisters of mercy, educates persons to search for truth, think critically, communicate effectively and serve wisely and compassionately in support of human…

Education
9
National Opinion Research Center

See schedule onorc at the university of chicago conducts research and data science on critical societal issues to guide decision-making and the development of programs and public policy. our experts identify relationships and trends, and…

Social Science
10
Junior Achievement of Chicago

To inspire and prepare young people to succeed in a global economy

International
11
Kipp Chicago Schools

The team at kipp chicago schools is guided by a simple, yet powerful mission: to create a network of excellent schools in chicago that teach our students the character and academic skills necessary to succeed in college and beyond, and to…

Education
12
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
How this is measured
The grantee most central to the portfolio’s shape is Chicago Public Media Inc; the most unlike its peers is Link Incorporated. 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

27 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. 27 of the 45 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)
2
Early backer (in before they grew)
27/27
Grantees still filing
16/27
Grew since first funded

Where the money sits, by cause and then by grantee

FACING HISTORY & OURSELVES INC: $4,700,000 · Arts & CultureFACING HISTORY & OURSELVES INCTHE JOFFREY BALLET: $350,000 · Arts & CultureTHE JOFFREY BALLET+3 more: $115,000 · Arts & CultureIndividual grant recipient: $400,000 · OtherIndividual grant rec…WE: $350,000 · OtherWEMuseum of Contemp Art: $150,000 · OtherMuseum of Contemp Ar…United Way of Chicago: $100,000 · OtherUnited Way of Chicag…Greater Chi Food Depository: $70,000 · OtherCRADLES TO CRAYONS INC: $90,000 · OtherCRADLES TO CRAYONS I…+20 more: $432,500 · Other+20 moreCHICAGO PUBLIC EDUCATION FUND: $420,000 · EducationCHICAGO PUBLIC E…US Chamber of Commerce Foundation: $334,000 · EducationUS Chamber of Co…Teach for America Inc: $200,000 · EducationTeach for Americ…President and Fellows of Middlebury College: $175,000 · EducationPresident and Fe…Erikson Institute: $50,000 · Education+3 more: $60,000 · EducationWE CHARITY WILLIAM C MORAN & ASSOC PC: $150,000 · InternationalHUMAN RIGHTS WATCH INC: $149,333 · InternationalRush University Medical Center: $75,000 · HealthErie Family Health Foundation Inc: $60,000 · HealthGREATER CHICAGO FOOD DEPOSITORY: $100,000 · Food & NutritionEVERYTOWN FOR GUN SAFETY SUPPORT FUND INC: $100,000 · Crime & Legal
Arts & Culture$5,165,000Other$1,592,500Education$1,239,000International$299,333Health$135,000Food & Nutrition$100,000Crime & Legal$100,000

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 budgetFACING HISTORY & OURSELVES INC: $4,700,000 over 8y, 2.9% of budgetCHICAGO PUBLIC EDUCATION FUND: $420,000 over 3y, 4.4% of budgetTHE JOFFREY BALLET: $350,000 over 3y, 1.0% of budgetUS Chamber of Commerce Foundation: $334,000 over 1y, 0.8% of budgetTeach for America Inc: $200,000 over 4y, 0.0% of budgetPresident and Fellows of Middlebury College: $175,000 over 7y, 0.0% of budgetWE CHARITY WILLIAM C MORAN & ASSOC PC: $150,000 over 2y, 0.6% of budgetHUMAN RIGHTS WATCH INC: $149,333 over 3y, 0.1% of budgetGREATER CHICAGO FOOD DEPOSITORY: $100,000 over 4y, 0.0% of budgetEVERYTOWN FOR GUN SAFETY SUPPORT FUND INC: $100,000 over 1y, 0.2% of budgetCRADLES TO CRAYONS INC: $90,000 over 5y, 0.2% of budgetCHICAGO PUBLIC MEDIA INC: $85,000 over 4y, 0.1% of budgetRush University Medical Center: $75,000 over 2y, 0.0% of budgetErie Family Health Foundation Inc: $60,000 over 2y, 1.3% of budgetSTART EARLY: $50,000 over 4y, 0.0% of budgetErikson Institute: $50,000 over 3y, 0.1% of budgetGREENLIGHT FUND INC: $50,000 over 1y, 0.3% of budgetLINK Unlimited Scholars: $30,000 over 3y, 0.7% of budgetCatholic Charities of the Archdiocese of Chicago: $25,000 over 1y, 0.0% of budgetCHICAGO HISTORICAL SOCIETY: $25,000 over 1y, 0.1% of budgetCOLLEGE POSSIBLE INC: $25,000 over 1y, 0.1% of budgetLINCOLN PARK CONSERVANCY: $10,000 over 1y, 1.5% of budgetLINK INCORPORATED: $10,000 over 1y, 3.5% of budgetCLEARBROOK: $10,000 over 2y, 0.0% of budgetINGENUITY INCORPORATED CHICAGO: $5,000 over 1y, 0.3% of budgetLINCOLN PRESIDENTIAL FOUNDATION: $5,000 over 1y, 0.4% of budgetIgnition Community Glass: $2,500 over 1y, 1.1% 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.

  • Who funds FACING HISTORY & OURSELVES INC ↗
  • Who funds CHICAGO PUBLIC EDUCATION FUND ↗
  • Who funds THE JOFFREY BALLET ↗
  • Who funds US Chamber of Commerce Foundation ↗
  • Who funds Teach for America Inc ↗
  • Who funds President and Fellows of Middlebury College ↗
  • Who funds WE CHARITY WILLIAM C MORAN & ASSOC PC ↗
  • Who funds HUMAN RIGHTS WATCH INC ↗
  • Who funds GREATER CHICAGO FOOD DEPOSITORY ↗
  • Who funds EVERYTOWN FOR GUN SAFETY SUPPORT FUND INC ↗
  • Who funds CRADLES TO CRAYONS INC ↗
  • Who funds CHICAGO PUBLIC MEDIA INC ↗
  • Who funds Rush University Medical Center ↗
  • Who funds Erie Family Health Foundation Inc ↗
  • Who funds START EARLY ↗
  • Who funds Erikson Institute ↗
  • Who funds GREENLIGHT FUND INC ↗
  • Who funds LINK Unlimited Scholars ↗
  • Who funds Catholic Charities of the Archdiocese of Chicago ↗
  • Who funds CHICAGO HISTORICAL SOCIETY ↗
  • Who funds COLLEGE POSSIBLE INC ↗
  • Who funds LINCOLN PARK CONSERVANCY ↗
  • Who funds LINK INCORPORATED ↗
  • Who funds CLEARBROOK ↗

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 Chicago Community TrustIL19× affinity8 shared granteesties to 11 of 11Hover any node to trace its alignments.Compare side by side →

Open a dossier: The Chicago Community Trust · Lloyd a Fry Foundation · Gs Donor Advised Philanthropy Fund for Wealth Management Inc · Finnegan Family Foundation · Charities Aid Foundation America · Arie and Ida Crown Memorial · Jpmorgan Chase Foundation · Morgan Stanley Global Impact Funding Trust Inc · National Philanthropic Trust · The Blackbaud Giving Fund · American Online Giving Foundation Inc · The Bank of America Charitable 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 Wilson-Garling Foundation NFP funds: left to right is the share of its income from government, bottom to top the share from Wilson-Garling Foundation NFP. Bigger dots raise more.

2024
’20’21’22’23’24’25
no gov · 10%0%1%3%5%funder's share of their income ↑0%19%38%56%75%share of the org’s income from government →median 2%
  • Cradles to Crayons Inc: 2% of income from government
  • President and Fellows of Middlebury College: 1% of income from government
no gov moneyreceives it· size = income
1get no government money at all
4report 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 Wilson-Garling Foundation NFP?

Find your warmest path to Wilson-Garling Foundation NFP 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 45 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.

Possibly out of date. A more recent filing (FY2025) is on record and reports $1.9M 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 FY2024, the most recent year this funder’s grantee list reached the public record.

Source object · view filing

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