Tennessee · Nonprofit
OWL'S HILL NATURE SANCTUARY
OWL'S HILL NATURE SANCTUARY (Tennessee) receives grants from 23 organizations whose IRS filings report $502,247 to it, the largest being THE BARBARA J MAPP FOUNDATION ($132,280). 18 of them have funded it in more than one year.
- Revenue FY2025
- $2.4M
- Funders on record
- 23
- Grants received
- $502k
- Net assets
- $6.0M
What Owl's Hill Nature Sanctuary does
Mission
Mission/work: to provide a protected sanctuary for native wildlife and their habitats while connecting people with nature in ways that inspire exploration and lifelong environmental conservation.
As stated on its FY2025 Form 990.
Programs
Camp programsspring break camp and summer camps (11 weeks of programming) provide opportunities for 216 children age 5-12 to develop new friendships, explore nature, learn about the flora and fauna of owl's hill, develop social and emotional skills, and engage in screen-free activities for body and mind. The children collectively spent 6,500+ hours outdoors, connecting with the natural world and each other. Ohns educators and guest experts presented 300+ hours of environmental programming while day campers explored the open space at owl's hill. Weekly activities included hiking, live animal presentations, crafts, free play, unstructured learning, and habitat exploration.
Public programs: total visitation 10,6412,743 people of all ages took part in educator-led programs2,985 visitors hiked and explored owl's hill on their own4,126 children engaged in outdoor learning such as our knee high naturalists, scout programs, camps and more344 volunteers provided more than 4,000 hours to property projects, invasive species removal, trail upkeep, and program support30 adults completed the 10-month tennessee naturalist program
School programsowl's hill educators ignited curiosity for nature and the environment for 4,126 tennessee schoolchildren through nature-based school programming hosted at owl's hill on property and through school outreach visits. For the sixth year, owl's hill was selected as a metro nashville public schools steam partner reaching 1,386 4th grade students and 138 teachers at 22 schools. Students learn about nature using biofacts, journaling, and a guided hike.
Conservation & research 1.5 acres of invasive plants cleared by volunteers (278 hours) 67 individuals volunteered 754 hours toward citizen science projects monitoring plant and wildlife populations bird counts: 445 birds recorded representing 53 species. Data is reported to the tennessee ornithological society (nashville chapter) migration bird banding: 103 birds over 10 sessions banded and recorded. Eighteen (18) species represented in the fall (september mid-november) and 19 species represented in the spring (april early may). Data tracks trends in numbers, species diversity, longevity/recaptures, and the general condition of migrating birds. This activity is a vital tool in understanding the significance of owl's hill as a migratory stop-over site. Data is reported to the usgs banding lab and tennessee wildlife resource agency. Nest box monitoring: 139 birds fledged from nesting boxes (4% increase from prior year), mostly eastern bluebirds, black-capped chickadees, carolina wrens and tufted titmouse. Data is reported to the cornell lab of ornithology. Butterfly counts: 399 butterflies recorded representing 26 species (54% decrease in individuals and a 44% decrease in species…
$383,813 spent$210,035 earned by the program100% of program spending
The 4 programs described on its FY2024 Form 990, listed largest first by expense. Program spending in total: $383,813.
The organization over time
Each line starts at 100 in 2017, so what you read is the shape rather than the size: 150 means half as much again as 2017, 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 2024 to 2025, from $4.1M to $6.0M (+49%).
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.
Government-grant reliance: 2021 17%. Grants only. Government contracts and fees sit inside program revenue.
85% of OWL'S HILL NATURE SANCTUARY’s revenue is contributions — more donation-reliant than the typical peer (74% for the typical peer).
Surplus & reserves
Operating surplus or deficit each year, and months of liquidity in hand. 1 of the last 9 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
Susan Duvenhage
Executive director
Board chair
Dane Andersen
Board chairman
As listed on its FY2025 Form 990.
Who funds it, year by year
2017 → 2023: the base broadened from 8 funders to 17 funders, grant income rose $38k → $85k.
5 of 23 of your funders are donor-advised or pass-through sponsors (tagged DAF) — 31% 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 OWL'S HILL NATURE SANCTUARY’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
OWL'S HILL NATURE SANCTUARY has a broad base — no single funder exceeds 26% of grant income, and it takes 3 funders to reach half.
the vertical line marks half of all grant income — 3 funders to its left
33% 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 OWL'S HILL NATURE SANCTUARY.
Largest funder’s share by year: 2017 48% · 2018 43% · 2019 43% · 2020 34% · 2021 29% · 2022 35% · 2023 27% — 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.
How long its funders stay
83% of OWL'S HILL NATURE SANCTUARY's funders are still giving 3 years after their first grant; 78% give in more than one year at all.
Share of funders still giving k years after their first recorded grant, pooled across every acquisition cohort. A funder counts as retained in a year only if it made a grant that year. Measured to FY2023, the last fiscal year that has finished arriving — a funder cannot be counted as lapsed in a year most filers have not reached.
Where its funders are
97% of OWL'S HILL NATURE SANCTUARY's grant income comes from Tennessee funders.
In-state vs out-of-state, by year
Funder states come from each funder’s own filing. $156k arriving through sponsors registered in 5 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
OWL'S HILL NATURE SANCTUARY runs a healthier operating margin than three-quarters of the 717 animals nonprofits its size.
this organization peer median middle 50% of peers· 717 animals nonprofits $1M–$10M, FY2025
Organizations like OWL'S HILL NATURE SANCTUARY
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 Tennessee
Nationally
Read directly from this organization’s own Form 990, as neutral context.
Where the money goes
70% of spending goes to programs.
Governance
Public support
92%
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 OWL'S HILL NATURE SANCTUARY: 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 OWL'S HILL NATURE SANCTUARY?
- OWL'S HILL NATURE SANCTUARY (Tennessee) receives grants from 23 organizations whose IRS filings report $502,247 to it, the largest being THE BARBARA J MAPP FOUNDATION ($132,280). 18 of them have funded it in more than one year.
- How many funders does OWL'S HILL NATURE SANCTUARY have?
- IRS filings report 23 organizations giving $502,247 in grants to OWL'S HILL NATURE SANCTUARY, 18 of which have funded it in more than one year.
- Who is the largest funder of OWL'S HILL NATURE SANCTUARY?
- THE BARBARA J MAPP FOUNDATION is the largest funder on record, with $132,280 in grants. The full list of funders is on this page.
- How can an organization like OWL'S HILL NATURE SANCTUARY find more funders?
- Start with the funders already giving here, then look at the foundations that back similar organizations in Tennessee. 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 Owl's Hill Nature Sanctuary →
These figures are read directly from IRS Form 990 / 990-PF e-file XML: this organization’s own return for FY2025 (financials across 2017–2025), and the filings of 23 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