Skip to content
Zeppelin Family Foundation at a glance

· Private foundation

Zeppelin Family Foundation

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.

$8k
Granted FY2023
1
Grants FY2023
1
States reached
$8k
Largest
01What it fundsRead
02The needRead
03Its granteesRead
04Its fieldRead
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 2023.

Arts & Culture$184kHealth$22kYouth Development$14kEducation$12kPhilanthropy$9kCommunity Improvement$6kHuman Services$5kHousing & Shelter$3kOther$0
02FY2023 · 1 grant

Where the money goes

Grants by size, and the largest recipients.

$8,190
Median grant
1
States reached
$1k
Total assets
Largest grants
RecipientAmount
MUSEUM OF CONTEMPORARY ART - DENVER$8,190
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 (FY18–18, $500) land where the poverty rate runs at 12%, against an area that typically sits at 8%. 100% of those dollars go to grantees based in above-average-need neighborhoods. Most of its grants land in higher-need ZIPs.

area typical 8%BRIDGE HOUSE: $500 → 12%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.

89%of every dollar goes to organizations it has funded before.
$224k · 10 repeat orgs$27k to everyone else

10 repeat relationships: 1 still active in FY2023, 9 since wound down.

How the two cohorts compare

Re-uppedFunded once

Organizations

10
16

Total granted

$224k
$27k

Median revenue growth · since first grant

+27%
+56%

Still filing today

90%
75%

New vs renewed · share of each year

In FY2023, 100% of grant dollars renewed an existing relationship; $0 went to new ones.

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

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

’17’18’19’20’21’22’23
Arts & CultureEducationHealthYouth DevelopmentRecreation & SportsCivil RightsOther
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

  • LC
    LA CLINICA TEPEYAC
    4× · 2017–2020 · $22k · revenue +286%
  • Project VOYCE
    3× · 2017–2019 · $14k · revenue +20%
  • CS
    COLORADO SYMPHONY ASSOCIATION
    2× · 2020–2022 · $13k · revenue +55%

Funded once

  • IS
    INTERNATIONAL SCHOOL OF DENVERgraduated
    one grant, 2020 · $5k · revenue +75%
  • WF
    WORKING FAMILIES
    one grant, 2018 · $5k
  • CS
    COLORADO SYMPHONY FUNDgraduated
    one grant, 2019 · $3k · revenue +99%
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
Aia Colorado

AIA Colorado,is the voice of the architecture profession in Colorado. Through advocacy, leadership development, education and resources for architects, the organization supports architecture professionals in designing a better world where…

—
2
Colorado Museum of Natural History

Be a catalyst! Ignite our community's passion for nature and science.

Arts & Culture
3
Colorado Legal Services

To provide meaningful access to high quality, civil legal services in the pursuit of justice for as many low income persons and members of vulnerable populations throughout colorado as possible.

Crime & Legal
4
Denver World Affairs Council Dba Worldde

Community organization dedicated to advancing a deep understanding of global affairs and cultures.

Education
5
Denver Botanic Gardens Inc

The mission of denver botanic gardens is to connect people with plants, especially plants from the rocky mountain region and similar regions around the world, providing delight and enlightenment to everyone.

Environment
6
The Denver Foundation

To inspire people and mobilize resources to strengthen our community.

Philanthropy
7
Denver Biennial of the Americas Corp

The mission of the biennial of the americas is to create connections, build community, and inspire change across the americas through the transformative power of ideas and art.

Education
8
Colorado Nonprofit Association

Colorado nonprofit association strengthens colorado's nonprofits through education, connection and advocacy.

Community Improvement
9
Denver Metro Chamber of Commerce

The denver metro chamber of commerce is the architect of tomorrow, igniting change and driving progress to build dynamic economies and communities. we champion innovation, forge powerful partnerships, and relentlessly advocate for our…

—
10
Colorado Center On Law and Policy

Colorado center on law and policy is an antipoverty organization advancing the rights of every coloradan.

Crime & Legal
11
Barton Institute for Community Action

The barton institute supports leaders and their communities who are working to develop and foster places for opportunity, connection, and belonging in metro denver.

Philanthropy
12
Denver Children's Choir

To provide a challenging environment where children can reach their full potential by enhancing their musical talents, forging diverse meaningful friendships, and sharing their joy of music with others.

Arts & Culture
How this is measured
The grantee most central to the portfolio’s shape is Colorado Gives Foundation; the most unlike its peers is Denver Film Society. 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

24 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. 24 of the 29 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)
5
Early backer (in before they grew)
24/24
Grantees still filing
18/24
Grew since first funded

Where the money sits, by cause and then by grantee

LOVERS OF FRESH IDEAS ARTIST COALITION INC: $124,750 · OtherLOVERS OF FRESH IDEAS ARTIST COALITION INCWORKING FAMILIES: $5,000 · Other+11 more: $12,500 · Other+11 moreCOLORADO SYMPHONY ASSOCIATION: $13,032 · Arts & CultureCOLORADO SYMPHONY ASSOCIA…MUSEUM OF CONTEMPORARY ART DENVER: $12,290 · Arts & CultureMUSEUM OF CONTEMPORARY AR…PUBLIC BROADCASTING OF COLORADO INC: $12,212 · Arts & CulturePUBLIC BROADCASTING OF CO…DENVER FILM SOCIETY: $11,500 · Arts & CultureDENVER FILM SOCIETYDENVER ART MUSEUM: $5,400 · Arts & CultureDENVER ART MUSEUMCOLORADO SYMPHONY FUND: $3,000 · Arts & Culture+2 more: $1,500 · Arts & CultureLA CLINICA TEPEYAC: $21,680 · HealthLA CLINIC…Project VOYCE: $13,500 · Youth DevelopmentLARADON FOUNDATION INC: $7,000 · EducationINTERNATIONAL SCHOOL OF DENVER: $5,000 · EducationTIDES FOUNDATION: $5,000 · PhilanthropyCOLORADO GIVES FOUNDATION: $3,875 · PhilanthropyJEWISHColorado: $2,500 · PhilanthropyTHE BIG SANDBOX: $2,500 · Recreation & Sports
Other$142,250Arts & Culture$58,934Health$21,680Youth Development$13,500Education$12,000Philanthropy$11,375Recreation & Sports$2,500

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 budgetLA CLINICA TEPEYAC: $21,680 over 4y, 0.2% of budgetProject VOYCE: $13,500 over 3y, 0.5% of budgetCOLORADO SYMPHONY ASSOCIATION: $13,032 over 2y, 0.1% of budgetMUSEUM OF CONTEMPORARY ART DENVER: $12,290 over 3y, 0.1% of budgetPUBLIC BROADCASTING OF COLORADO INC: $12,212 over 3y, 0.0% of budgetDENVER FILM SOCIETY: $11,500 over 5y, 0.1% of budgetLARADON FOUNDATION INC: $7,000 over 2y, 0.9% of budgetDENVER ART MUSEUM: $5,400 over 5y, 0.0% of budgetTIDES FOUNDATION: $5,000 over 1y, 0.0% of budgetINTERNATIONAL SCHOOL OF DENVER: $5,000 over 1y, 0.0% of budgetCOLORADO GIVES FOUNDATION: $3,875 over 1y, 0.0% of budgetCOLORADO SYMPHONY FUND: $3,000 over 1y, 0.1% of budgetTHE BIG SANDBOX: $2,500 over 2y, 0.4% of budgetANTI-DEFAMATION LEAGUE: $2,500 over 1y, 0.0% of budgetJEWISHColorado: $2,500 over 1y, 0.0% of budgetTHE COLORADO NONPROFIT DEVELOPMENT CENTER: $2,000 over 1y, 0.0% of budgetPOSNER CENTER FOR INTERNATIONAL DEVELOPMENT: $1,500 over 1y, 0.2% of budgetThe Alliance For Collective Action: $1,000 over 1y, 0.0% of budgetHABITAT FOR HUMANITY OF METRO DENVER INC: $1,000 over 1y, 0.0% of budgetCURIOUS THEATRE COMPANY: $1,000 over 1y, 0.1% of budgetCENTRAL CITY OPERA HOUSE ASSOCIATION: $500 over 1y, 0.0% of budgetOPEN MEDIA FOUNDATION: $500 over 1y, 0.0% of budgetTHE GROWHAUS: $500 over 1y, 0.0% of budgetBridge House: $500 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 Denver FoundationRose Community Founda…Colorado Gives Founda…The Colorado Health F…Xcel Energy FoundationFine Arts FoundationBonfils-Stanton Found…El Pomar FoundationMile High United Way …Merle Chambers FundRecords Johnston Fami…Hill Foundation Wells…
The Denver FoundationCO28.3× affinity12 shared granteesties to 11 of 11Hover any node to trace its alignments.Compare side by side →

Open a dossier: The Denver Foundation · Rose Community Foundation · Colorado Gives Foundation · The Colorado Health Foundation · Xcel Energy Foundation · Fine Arts Foundation · Bonfils-Stanton Foundation · El Pomar Foundation · Mile High United Way Inc · Merle Chambers Fund · Records Johnston Family Foundation · Hill Foundation Wells Fargo Bank Na

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

2024
’20’21’22’23’24’25
no gov · 00%0%1%3%5%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.

    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 29 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 no grant expense, so the figures above are from FY2023, the most recent year this funder made grants.

    Source object · view filing

    Play a game based on Zeppelin 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