Canyon Institute
Phoenix, AZ · EIN 86-0977269. Reported 72 grants totalling $5,709,116 to 37 organizations across tax years 2020-2023. This foundation did not tell the IRS it funds only preselected organizations.
Does this foundation accept applications?
Yes -- on its own tax return. Form 990-PF asks every private foundation whether it makes grants only to organizations it selects itself. Of the 91,758 foundations in our data that made a grant and answered, 78% said yes -- and applying to those is wasted effort. Canyon Institute did not check that box on its most recent filing, which puts it in the minority that is at least open to being approached.
How big are its grants?
The median grant is $70,000. Half of everything it gave fell between $50,000 and $100,000; the smallest was $5,000 and the largest $319,327. If you are asking for materially more than the top of that range, you are asking the wrong foundation.
Every organization it funded
This is the complete list from its filings, largest first. Years funded is the number of separate tax years in which the organization received money -- more than one means a real relationship rather than a one-off.
| Organization | Location | Total received | Grants | Years funded | Last |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Grand Canyon University | Phoenix, AZ | $1,138,633 | 6 | 4 | 2023 |
| Guidestone Financial Resources | Dallas, TX | $801,525 | 4 | 4 | 2023 |
| Arizona Southern Baptist Convention | Phoenix, AZ | $290,500 | 3 | 3 | 2022 |
| North American Mission Board of the Sbc | Alpharetta, GA | $285,000 | 3 | 3 | 2022 |
| Episcopal Relief & Development | New York, NY | $260,000 | 4 | 4 | 2023 |
| Fellowship of Christian Athletes | Phoenix, AZ | $240,000 | 3 | 3 | 2023 |
| Christian Challenge Az | Tempe, AZ | $212,000 | 2 | 2 | 2023 |
| Orchard Africa | Gilbert, AZ | $204,000 | 3 | 3 | 2023 |
| Missions of Hope International | Phoenix, AZ | $190,000 | 3 | 3 | 2023 |
| Phoenix Rescue Mission | Phoenix, AZ | $177,500 | 2 | 2 | 2021 |
| 25 Project Inc | Mckinney, TX | $175,000 | 3 | 3 | 2023 |
| Northrise University Initiative | Scottsdale, AZ | $172,000 | 2 | 2 | 2023 |
| Wind River Ministries Inc | Estes Park, CO | $140,000 | 3 | 3 | 2023 |
| The Salvation Army | Phoenix, AZ | $125,000 | 2 | 2 | 2021 |
| International Mission Board of the Sbc | Richmond, VA | $107,000 | 2 | 2 | 2023 |
| Gcu Scholarship Foundation | Phoenix, AR | $103,858 | 1 | 1 | 2020 |
| Ecumenical Chaplaincy for the Homeless Inc | Phoenix, AZ | $102,000 | 4 | 4 | 2023 |
| Heartfire Missions Inc | Scottsdale, AZ | $100,000 | 2 | 2 | 2023 |
| Fellowship of Christian Athletes of Arizona | Phoenix, AZ | $80,000 | 1 | 1 | 2021 |
| House of Refuge Inc | Mesa, AZ | $80,000 | 1 | 1 | 2021 |
| World Gospel Mission | Peoria, AZ | $80,000 | 2 | 2 | 2023 |
| Northrise University Initiative | Irvine, CA | $75,000 | 1 | 1 | 2021 |
| Arizona Southern Baptist Disaster Relief | Scottsdale, AZ | $70,000 | 1 | 1 | 2021 |
| Goten Inc | Tulsa, OK | $70,000 | 1 | 1 | 2022 |
| Send Network Arizona | Peoria, AZ | $70,000 | 1 | 1 | 2020 |
| Neighborhood Ministries | Phoenix, AZ | $55,000 | 1 | 1 | 2020 |
| Christian Family Care Agency Inc | Phoenix, AZ | $50,000 | 1 | 1 | 2020 |
| Mentorkids USA | Scottsdale, AZ | $50,000 | 1 | 1 | 2023 |
| Orchardafrica | Gilbert, AZ | $50,000 | 1 | 1 | 2021 |
| Mercy House Initiative | Paradise Valley, AZ | $42,600 | 1 | 1 | 2023 |
| Young Life | Phoenix, AZ | $30,000 | 1 | 1 | 2020 |
| International Students Inc | Colorado Springs, CO | $25,000 | 1 | 1 | 2021 |
| The Navigators (ua) | Colorado Springs, CO | $20,000 | 1 | 1 | 2021 |
| Mission Quest | Wheaton, IL | $12,500 | 1 | 1 | 2023 |
| Agape Adoption Agency of Az | Phoenix, AZ | $10,000 | 1 | 1 | 2021 |
| Glendale Urban Young Life | Phoenix, AZ | $10,000 | 1 | 1 | 2021 |
| Az Reach | Tolleson, AZ | $5,000 | 1 | 1 | 2020 |
18 of 37 (49%) received money in more than one year over the 4 years we hold.
Measured the way we measure every foundation -- what share of one year's grantees are funded again the next -- this one retains 47%, across 3 year-to-year transitions. The median foundation retains about 67%, so this one is less consistent than most. A high number means its list is close to settled and a newcomer has to displace someone; a low one means it is still moving money around, which is where an opening is.
What the money was for
Taken verbatim from the purpose field of its filings. This is the closest thing to a statement of what this foundation cares about, in its own words.
- Grand Canyon University
STUDENTS INSPIRING STUDENTS SCHOLARSHIP PROGRAM ($150,000) GCU ENDOWED SCHOLARSHIP GRANT ($169,327) - Guidestone Financial Resources
MISSION DIGNITY SUPPORT FOR RETIRED PASTORS AND WIDOWS - Phoenix Rescue Mission
CAPITAL CAMPAIGN, HOPE COACH, AND FOOD BANK - Arizona Southern Baptist Convention
ARIZONA CHRISTIAN CHALLENGE - Christian Challenge Az
CAMPUS MINISTRY, ASU BLDG, SEMINARY SCHOLARSHIPS - Gcu Scholarship Foundation
SCHOLARSHIPS TO STUDENTS AT GCU
What kind of organizations it funds
By the recipient's own IRS classification, for the 38 grants where we could identify the organization. These are assigned categories, not our guesses.
Giving by year
| Tax year | Grants | Total | Median grant |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2020 | 17 | $1,362,013 | $72,000 |
| 2021 | 21 | $1,477,376 | $60,000 |
| 2022 | 16 | $1,469,327 | $70,000 |
| 2023 | 18 | $1,400,400 | $60,000 |
Tax years, not calendar years, and the most recent year is usually incomplete -- filings arrive about a year late, so a low final year means late paperwork rather than a foundation winding down.
Where its money goes
Foundations concentrate geographically far more than their mission statements suggest. 64% of this one's giving went to organizations in Arizona. If you are outside its footprint, that matters more than how well your programme fits.
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Funders that support the same organizations
These funders gave to organizations this one also funded -- some private foundations, some community foundations and other grantmaking charities. Shared grantees are the strongest available signal that two funders have overlapping priorities, and a funder already backing your peers is a far warmer prospect than one that merely lists your cause.
How to approach this foundation
- Check you are its size. The median grant is $70,000. Asking for ten times that is the most common way small organizations waste a submission.
- Check you are in its geography. Its giving is concentrated in Arizona.
- Read the recipient list above for organizations like yours. If nothing on it resembles your work, that is a real answer, and a cheap one to get.
- Look up the current filing before writing. The 990-PF names the foundation's officers and, where one exists, its application procedure. We link it below.
Related guides
Where these numbers come from
Everything above is taken from Canyon Institute's own Form 990-PF filings, which the IRS publishes in bulk. We used 4 returns (tax years 2020-2023). Nothing here is scraped, inferred, or estimated.
Address of record on the latest return: 3101 N Central Ave Ste 1490, Phoenix, AZ, 85012. This is the address the foundation gave the IRS; many small foundations file through an accountant or a bank trust department, so it may not be where post to a programme officer should go.
EIN 86-0977269 · See the original filings on ProPublica · How we build this
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