California · Nonprofit
Merlin's Magic Wand Foundation
Merlin's Magic Wand Foundation (California) receives grants from 3 organizations whose IRS filings report $17,581 to it, the largest being THE BARTON MALOW FOUNDATION ($8,000). 2 of them have funded it in more than one year, and 54% of the money arrives through donor-advised or pass-through sponsors rather than from an institution directly.
- Revenue FY2024
- $399k
- Funders on record
- 3
- Grants received
- $18k
- Net assets
- $651k
What Merlin's Magic Wand Foundation does
Mission
The Organization's purpose is to support children facing challenges of serious illness, disability, or adversity. The Organization believes that every child deserves to laugh, enjoy, and cherish memorable experiences and the Organization's mission is to enable them to access the magic of Merlin Entertainments.
As stated on its FY2024 Form 990.
Programs
Magical Days Out provided 58,963 tickets valued at $2,204,963 to children facing the challenges of serious illness, disability or adversity, their families, and caretakers. Families have a chance to create long-lasting memories and take valuable time out from their stressful daily routine by enjoying a day out at a Merlin Entertainments attraction.
$93,077 spent40% of program spendingBy designing and creating amazing projects in hospitals, orphanages, learning centers, and more, Merlin's Magic Spaces ensures that local children who are prevented from visiting the attractions due to severe illness, physical disability, or other exceptional circumstances still have the opportunity to experience the unique magic of Merlin.
$131,827 spent57% of program spendingWorking with the Organization's local communities at hospitals and hospices, Merlin's Magic on Tour enables the attractions to bring some of the Merlin magic to children wherever they are.
$7,482 spent3% of program spending
The 3 programs described on its FY2024 Form 990, listed largest first by expense. Program spending in total: $232,386.
The organization over time
Each line starts at 100 in 2018, so what you read is the shape rather than the size: 150 means half as much again as 2018, 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 2021 to 2022, from $573k to $903k (+57%).
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.
117% of Merlin's Magic Wand Foundation’s revenue is contributions — more reliant on donations than three-quarters of its peers (87% for the typical peer).
Surplus & reserves
Operating surplus or deficit each year, and months of liquidity in hand. 3 of the last 7 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.
Board chair
Scott Maupin
Board Chair
As listed on its FY2024 Form 990.
Who funds it, year by year
2020 → 2023: the base held at 2 funders, grant income fell $3k → $1k.
2 of 3 of your funders are donor-advised or pass-through sponsors (tagged DAF) — 55% 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 Merlin's Magic Wand Foundation’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
Merlin's Magic Wand Foundation leans on a few funders — its largest provides 46% of grant income and the top three 100%; half comes from just 2 funders.
the vertical line marks half of all grant income — 2 funders to its left
54% 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 Merlin's Magic Wand Foundation.
Largest funder’s share by year: 2020 87% · 2021 87% · 2022 66% · 2023 74% — 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
54% of Merlin's Magic Wand Foundation'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 $8k that is directly attributable, 100% of it comes from funders outside California, across 1 state.
In-state vs out-of-state, by year
Funder states come from each funder’s own filing. $10k arriving through sponsors registered in 2 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
Merlin's Magic Wand Foundation holds deeper cash reserves than three-quarters of the 7,117 philanthropy nonprofits its size.
this organization peer median middle 50% of peers· 7,117 philanthropy nonprofits $100k–$1M, FY2024
Organizations like Merlin's Magic Wand Foundation
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
65% of spending goes to programs.
Governance
Public support
97%
Share of support from the public (Schedule A) — the basis for its public-charity status.
Footprint & structure
Files a return copy in 17 states
Part of a family of 2 related entities
- Merlin Entertainments Group US Holdings · corp_trust
- Merlin Entertainments Limited · corp_trust
Screen this organization
A dated, signed PDF of the compliance screen for Merlin's Magic Wand Foundation: 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 Merlin's Magic Wand Foundation?
- Merlin's Magic Wand Foundation (California) receives grants from 3 organizations whose IRS filings report $17,581 to it, the largest being THE BARTON MALOW FOUNDATION ($8,000). 2 of them have funded it in more than one year, and 54% of the money arrives through donor-advised or pass-through sponsors rather than from an institution directly.
- How many funders does Merlin's Magic Wand Foundation have?
- IRS filings report 3 organizations giving $17,581 in grants to Merlin's Magic Wand Foundation, 2 of which have funded it in more than one year.
- Who is the largest funder of Merlin's Magic Wand Foundation?
- THE BARTON MALOW FOUNDATION is the largest funder on record, with $8,000 in grants. The full list of funders is on this page.
- How can an organization like Merlin's Magic Wand Foundation 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.
These figures are read directly from IRS Form 990 / 990-PF e-file XML: this organization’s own return for FY2024 (financials across 2018–2024), and the filings of 3 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