California · Nonprofit
FORTIFIED STRENGTH INC
FORTIFIED STRENGTH INC (California) receives grants from 8 organizations whose IRS filings report $198,258 to it, the largest being FIDELITY INVESTMENTS CHARITABLE GIFT FUND ($127,780). 4 of them have funded it in more than one year, and 99% of the money arrives through donor-advised or pass-through sponsors rather than from an institution directly.
- Revenue FY2025
- $269k
- Funders on record
- 8
- Grants received
- $198k
- Net assets
- $35k
What Fortified Strength Inc does
Mission
We use strength sports to build well rounded, physically and mentally strong Youth Athletes ready to lead exceptional and successful lives in an effort to combat youth delinquency. We believe this will result in a culture where athletes feel physically and emotionally supported and produce a better society. By cultivating technical excellence in strength sports, we provide frameworks for underserved youths with an athletic foundation that they will carry with them throughout their lives--as competitive athletes and beyond. We nurture and thrive in a diverse facility providing all with equal opportunities which encourage coaches and athletes to achieve individual outcomes. In particular, we leverage the techniques and training methodology of Olympic Weight lifting to achieve these goals. There are currently 81 youths in the program.
As stated on its FY2025 Form 990.
Program
Key Accomplishments:Fortified Strength concludes another remarkable year of service to the community, we're proud to share the exceptional impact our 501(c)(3)has made in developing strong, confident youth athletes through Olympic Weightlifting. Our key accomplishments in 2024:1. Acheived 2nd place overall for the youth division at the US National Championships, cementing our reputation for excellence. 2. Five athletes earned podium positions at Youth National Championships, including two National Champions winning Gold medals.3.16 youth to USA Youth National Championships in Pittsburgh, PA; 10 Youth to North American Open Finals in Atlanta, GA; 7 Youth to American Open series 1 in Columbus, OH.4. 12 first-time national competitors, representing our commitment to creating new opportunities for youth. Logged over 110 competition results with over 40 active USA Weightlifitng members participating in sanctioned events.5. Continued with a 5 member, independent, non-compensated board for organizational oversight.6. Successfully fundraised sufficient budget to operate in 2024 as per the budget.7. Reviewed nonprofit annual plan with 2 independent, successful charity executives as well as…
$241,333 spentof which $117,763 as grants$150,919 earned by the program100% of program spending
The program described on its FY2025 Form 990. Program spending in total: $241,333.
The organization over time
Each line starts at 100 in 2020, so what you read is the shape rather than the size: 150 means half as much again as 2020, 50 means half. The number beside each label in the key is where it ended. The shaded band is where the middle 50% of its peers' revenue would sit, given their growth.
Balance sheet
Total assets and total liabilities at each year end, in dollars. The largest one-year move in total assets was 2023 to 2024, from $65k to $36k (−45%).
How it's funded, over time
Each bar is one year's revenue split into where it came from, and every bar is the same height — these are shares, not amounts, so a year that raised twice as much looks the same size. Hover a bar for the split.
44% of FORTIFIED STRENGTH INC’s revenue is contributions — about as donation-reliant as the typical peer (83% for the typical peer).
Surplus & reserves
Operating surplus or deficit each year, and months of liquidity in hand. 2 of the last 6 reported years ran a deficit.
reserve
Leadership and staff
The officers, directors, trustees and key employees listed on each return. Joined and no longer listed compare each filing with the year before, matching people by surname and first initial; a year after a gap, or a roster under three people, has no comparison.
Chief executive
James Wiese
Director & CEO
As listed on its FY2025 Form 990.
Who funds it, year by year
2021 → 2023: the base broadened from 3 funders to 4 funders, grant income rose $18k → $35k.
7 of 8 of your funders are donor-advised or pass-through sponsors (tagged DAF) — 99% of grant dollars received. That money is really individual donors directing a sponsor; the institutions to cultivate are the non-DAF funders.
From the IRS filings of FORTIFIED STRENGTH INC’s funders (the co-funder graph). Association, not causation. Trends are read to FY2023, the last fiscal year that has finished arriving. FY2024–FY2026 are still being filed and are shown unshaded; they do not move any figure on this page.
How concentrated its funding is
FORTIFIED STRENGTH INC leans on a few funders — its largest provides 64% of grant income and the top three 91%; half comes from just 1 funder.
the vertical line marks half of all grant income — 1 funder to its left
99% of the income these shares are computed over arrives through pass-through sponsors or from payers whose filings do not say what kind of payment it is. Concentration is still measured over all of it, because the money is real; what it does not support is a claim about how many institutions have chosen to fund FORTIFIED STRENGTH INC.
Largest funder’s share by year: 2021 94% · 2022 98% · 2023 83% — diversifying over time.
“Effective funders” = inverse Herfindahl index (1 / Σ shareᵢ²) — the number of equal-sized funders that would give the same concentration. Trends are read to FY2023, the last fiscal year that has finished arriving. FY2024–FY2026 are still being filed and are shown unshaded; they do not move any figure on this page.
Where its funders are
99% of FORTIFIED STRENGTH INC's grant income arrives through donor-advised or pass-through sponsors, whose addresses record where the money is held rather than where the donor is. Of the $2k that is directly attributable, 100% of it comes from California funders.
In-state vs out-of-state, by year
Funder states come from each funder’s own filing. $197k arriving through sponsors registered in 6 states is excluded from the map and the split above: a sponsor holds money on a donor’s behalf, so its registered address would place those dollars somewhere no donor need ever have been. Trends are read to FY2023, the last fiscal year that has finished arriving. FY2024–FY2026 are still being filed and are shown unshaded; they do not move any figure on this page.
Against its field
FORTIFIED STRENGTH INC has grown faster than three-quarters of the 3,482 youth development nonprofits its size.
this organization peer median middle 50% of peers· 3,482 youth development nonprofits $100k–$1M, FY2025
Organizations like FORTIFIED STRENGTH INC
Organizations whose mission and program text most resemble this one, by semantic similarity over every organization in the US filings — the closest peers, and often the clearest route to shared or prospective funders.
In California
Nationally
Read directly from this organization’s own Form 990, as neutral context.
Where the money goes
89% of spending goes to programs.
Governance
Public support
100%
Share of support from the public (Schedule A) — the basis for its public-charity status.
Footprint & structure
Files a return copy in 1 state
Screen this organization
A dated, signed PDF of the compliance screen for FORTIFIED STRENGTH INC: IRS status (Business Master File, Publication 78, auto-revocation), the OFAC sanctions lists, the Internal Revenue Bulletin, and California registration, with the Rev. Proc. 2018-32 §8.01 reliance elements stated element by element. Generated from the current files at the moment you download it.
Screens are triage, not determinations; a source that cannot be read reports not screened, never clear. Screen this nonprofit · How the screen works · on the API as GET /api/screening/{ein}?format=pdf
Questions and answers
- Who funds FORTIFIED STRENGTH INC?
- FORTIFIED STRENGTH INC (California) receives grants from 8 organizations whose IRS filings report $198,258 to it, the largest being FIDELITY INVESTMENTS CHARITABLE GIFT FUND ($127,780). 4 of them have funded it in more than one year, and 99% of the money arrives through donor-advised or pass-through sponsors rather than from an institution directly.
- How many funders does FORTIFIED STRENGTH INC have?
- IRS filings report 8 organizations giving $198,258 in grants to FORTIFIED STRENGTH INC, 4 of which have funded it in more than one year.
- Who is the largest funder of FORTIFIED STRENGTH INC?
- FIDELITY INVESTMENTS CHARITABLE GIFT FUND is the largest funder on record, with $127,780 in grants. The full list of funders is on this page.
- How can an organization like FORTIFIED STRENGTH INC find more funders?
- Start with the funders already giving here, then look at the foundations that back similar organizations in California. The funding by cause and by state pages list the largest funders for a given area and how to approach them.
Play a game about who funds Fortified Strength →
These figures are read directly from IRS Form 990 / 990-PF e-file XML: this organization’s own return for FY2025 (financials across 2020–2025), and the filings of 8 funders that report grants to it. “On record” means captured in the filings we have parsed — a funder that does not e-file, or whose grant detail is not itemized, will not appear. Filings run roughly 12–24 months behind. Trends on this page end at FY2023, the last fiscal year that has finished arriving; later years are shown and marked, and move no figure. Data on this page was exported October 14, 2026. What this page cannot tell you · view filing