George W Neilson Foundation
Bemidji, MN · EIN 41-6022186. Reported 159 grants totalling $7,498,135 to 94 recipients across tax years 2021-2025. 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. George W Neilson Foundation 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 $25,000. Half of everything it gave fell between $10,000 and $50,000; the smallest was $1,000 and the largest $700,000. 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. Recipients are grouped by name and state as they were written on the returns, so an organization entered under two different names appears twice. Years funded is the number of separate tax years in which that name received money.
| Organization | Location | Total received | Grants | Years funded | Last |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Bemidji Community Arena | Bemidji, MN | $725,000 | 2 | 2 | 2024 |
| Boys and Girls Club of the Bemidji Area | Bemidji, MN | $553,000 | 8 | 4 | 2025 |
| Bemidji State University Foundation | Bemidji, MN | $544,778 | 15 | 5 | 2025 |
| Northwoods Battered Womens Shelter | Bemidji, MN | $500,000 | 2 | 2 | 2024 |
| Sanford Foundation | Bemidji, MN | $400,000 | 1 | 1 | 2025 |
| Concordia Language Villages | Bemidji, MN | $300,000 | 1 | 1 | 2022 |
| Bemidji Curling Club | Bemidji, MN | $250,000 | 1 | 1 | 2022 |
| Neilson Fieldhouse | Bemidji, MN | $250,000 | 1 | 1 | 2025 |
| Sanford Health | Bemidji, MN | $250,000 | 1 | 1 | 2021 |
| Headwaters Science Center | Bemidji, MN | $182,000 | 2 | 2 | 2025 |
| Headwaters Shooting Sports Foundation | Bemidji, MN | $180,894 | 3 | 3 | 2025 |
| Bemidji Career Academies | Bemidji, MN | $175,000 | 4 | 3 | 2023 |
| Northwoods Pregancy Center | Bemidji, MN | $175,000 | 1 | 1 | 2024 |
| Northern Minnesota Robotics Conference | Bemidji, MN | $165,000 | 1 | 1 | 2023 |
| Neilson Spearhead Center | Bemidji, MN | $156,000 | 3 | 2 | 2025 |
| Bemidji Area Cross Country Ski Club | Bemidji, MN | $152,000 | 3 | 3 | 2025 |
| Bemidji Symphony Orchestra | Bemidji, MN | $125,000 | 6 | 5 | 2025 |
| Greater BEMIDJIMI2 | Bemidji, MN | $125,000 | 1 | 1 | 2025 |
| 218 Sports Inc | Bemidji, MN | $120,000 | 3 | 3 | 2025 |
| Bemidji High School Field Improvement | Bemidji, MN | $100,000 | 1 | 1 | 2024 |
| Play and Learn for All Abilities | Bemidji, MN | $100,000 | 1 | 1 | 2023 |
| Beltrami County Historical Society | Bemidji, MN | $86,500 | 8 | 5 | 2025 |
| Greater Bemidji | Bemidji, MN | $80,000 | 2 | 2 | 2022 |
| Northwest Technical College Foundation | Bemidji, MN | $80,000 | 3 | 3 | 2025 |
| Bemidji State University Dept of Athletics | Bemidji, MN | $79,000 | 1 | 1 | 2023 |
| Bemidji Youth Soccer | Bemidji, MN | $75,000 | 1 | 1 | 2023 |
| Greenwood Cemetarty | Bemidji, MN | $72,658 | 1 | 1 | 2022 |
| Wells Academy Inc | Bemidji, MN | $62,402 | 1 | 1 | 2024 |
| Beltrami County Sheriff Department | Bemidji, MN | $60,000 | 1 | 1 | 2022 |
| Bemidji Youth League Baseball | Bemidji, MN | $60,000 | 1 | 1 | 2022 |
| Restore House Inc | Bemidji, MN | $60,000 | 1 | 1 | 2023 |
| Bemidji Senior Center | Bemidji, MN | $58,721 | 1 | 1 | 2024 |
| Bemidji Wrestling Club | Bemidji, MN | $50,691 | 2 | 1 | 2023 |
| Bagley PTO | Bagley, MN | $50,000 | 1 | 1 | 2024 |
| Bsuntcgreater BEMIDJIMI2 | Bemidji, MN | $50,000 | 1 | 1 | 2025 |
| Helga Township | Bemidji, MN | $50,000 | 1 | 1 | 2021 |
| No Mn Robotics Conference | Bemidji, MN | $50,000 | 1 | 1 | 2025 |
| Lakes Area Dive Team | Walker, MN | $47,500 | 2 | 2 | 2025 |
| Let's Go Fishing Bemdiji Chapter | Bemidji, MN | $46,000 | 1 | 1 | 2022 |
| Oak Hills College | Bemidji, MN | $45,000 | 2 | 1 | 2025 |
| Alaska Volunteer Fire Department | Puposky, MN | $40,000 | 1 | 1 | 2024 |
| Bemidji Rotary Club | Bemidji, MN | $36,165 | 1 | 1 | 2022 |
| Watermark Art Center | Bemidji, MN | $33,718 | 2 | 2 | 2024 |
| Bemidji Isd #31 | Bemidji, MN | $32,000 | 3 | 2 | 2023 |
| Great River Rescue | Bemidji, MN | $32,000 | 1 | 1 | 2023 |
| Beltrami County Agricultural Association | Bemidji, MN | $31,822 | 2 | 2 | 2025 |
| Bemidji High School Pool | Bemidji, MN | $30,000 | 1 | 1 | 2025 |
| Mewinzha Ondaadiziike Wiigaming | Bemidji, MN | $30,000 | 1 | 1 | 2023 |
| Oak Hills Christian College | Bemidji, MN | $30,000 | 2 | 1 | 2023 |
| Red Lake Rosie Rescue | Trail, MN | $30,000 | 1 | 1 | 2021 |
| Beltrami County Agricultural Associates | Bemidji, MN | $27,545 | 3 | 2 | 2023 |
| Bemidji Girls Fastpitch Softball Assn | Bemidji, MN | $25,000 | 1 | 1 | 2024 |
| Bemidji High School Math Department | Bemidji, MN | $25,000 | 1 | 1 | 2024 |
| Clear Waters Life Center | Clearbrook, MN | $25,000 | 1 | 1 | 2024 |
| Bemidji Isd #31 Education Foundation | Bemidji, MN | $20,000 | 1 | 1 | 2022 |
| Mississippi Headwaters Audubon Society | Bemidji, MN | $20,000 | 2 | 2 | 2023 |
| Northwest Minnesota Foundation | Bemidji, MN | $20,000 | 1 | 1 | 2024 |
| Northwest Tech College Foundation | Bemidji, MN | $20,000 | 1 | 1 | 2021 |
| Northwest Technical College | Bemidji, MN | $20,000 | 1 | 1 | 2022 |
| First National Bank Foundation | Bemidji, MN | $19,000 | 3 | 3 | 2025 |
| Lutheran Social Services | Bemidji, MN | $17,522 | 2 | 2 | 2023 |
| Beltrami County Natural Resourse Mgmt | Bemidji, MN | $16,179 | 1 | 1 | 2022 |
| Bemidji Blue Ox Marathon | Bemidji, MN | $15,000 | 1 | 1 | 2024 |
| Bemidji Community Theater | Bemidji, MN | $15,000 | 1 | 1 | 2021 |
| Bemidji Downtown Alliance | Bemidji, MN | $15,000 | 1 | 1 | 2025 |
| Bemidji High School All School Reunion | Bemidji, MN | $15,000 | 1 | 1 | 2025 |
| Cass Lake Volunteer Fire Dept | Cass Lake, MN | $15,000 | 1 | 1 | 2023 |
| Bemidji Middle School | Bemidji, MN | $10,000 | 2 | 2 | 2023 |
| Face-It-Together | Bemidji, MN | $10,000 | 1 | 1 | 2022 |
| Friends of Lake Bemidji State Park | Bemidji, MN | $10,000 | 1 | 1 | 2023 |
| Great River Resuce | Bemidji, MN | $10,000 | 1 | 1 | 2021 |
| Lincoln School PTO | Bemidji, MN | $10,000 | 1 | 1 | 2021 |
| Loon Country Arts Collective | Bemidji, MN | $10,000 | 1 | 1 | 2025 |
| Nature Connection | Blackduck, MN | $10,000 | 1 | 1 | 2023 |
| Northern Lights Council | Fargo, ND | $10,000 | 1 | 1 | 2025 |
| Lutheran Social Services Meals to Go | Bemidji, MN | $8,890 | 1 | 1 | 2021 |
| Friends Itasca State Park | Park Rapids, MN | $7,500 | 1 | 1 | 2021 |
| Bemidji Vex Robotics | Bemidji, MN | $6,000 | 1 | 1 | 2025 |
| Alaska Volunteer Fire Dept | Puposky, MN | $5,000 | 1 | 1 | 2022 |
| Bemidji Figure Skating Club | Bemidji, MN | $5,000 | 1 | 1 | 2024 |
| Bemidji Legion Softball | Bemidji, MN | $5,000 | 1 | 1 | 2024 |
| Gene Dillion Elementary | Bemidji, MN | $5,000 | 1 | 1 | 2021 |
| Lady Slipper Scenic Byway | Blackduck, MN | $4,840 | 1 | 1 | 2021 |
| Voyageurs Boy Scouts of America | Hermantown, MN | $4,150 | 1 | 1 | 2021 |
| Bemidji Isd #31 Marching Band | Bemidji, MN | $4,000 | 1 | 1 | 2023 |
| New Musical Theater Exc | Bemidji, MN | $3,000 | 1 | 1 | 2025 |
| Bemidji Bucks Baseball | Bemidji, MN | $2,000 | 1 | 1 | 2024 |
| Headwaters Music & Art | Bemidji, MN | $2,000 | 1 | 1 | 2025 |
| Miss Northern Lakes | Cottage Grove, MN | $2,000 | 1 | 1 | 2025 |
| Bemidji High School Grad Party | Bemidji, MN | $1,500 | 1 | 1 | 2024 |
| Beltrami County 4H | Bemidji, MN | $1,160 | 1 | 1 | 2021 |
| Bemidji Area Grad Party | Bemidji, MN | $1,000 | 1 | 1 | 2021 |
| Bemidji High School Class of 2025 | Bemidji, MN | $1,000 | 1 | 1 | 2025 |
| Headwaters Regional Development Association | Bemidji, MN | $1,000 | 1 | 1 | 2021 |
23 of 94 (24%) received money in more than one year over the 5 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 30%, across 4 year-to-year transitions. The median foundation retains about 67%, so this one is less consistent than most. This measures how often it paid the same organizations again. It says nothing about whether it would consider a new one.
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.
- Bemidji Curling Club
REPLACE ICE PLANT & PAINT - Play and Learn for All Abilities
HANDICAP PLAYGROUND EQUIPMENT - Greenwood Cemetarty
REPAIR/EQUIPMENT/MAINTENANCE - Headwaters Science Center
3 YEAR ORGANIZATIONAL SUPPORT - Boys and Girls Club of the Bemidji Area
CAPITAL PROJECT/STORAGE, OFFICE - Bemidji State University Foundation
FULL TUITION SCHOLARSHIPS
What kind of organizations it funds
By the activity category the IRS assigns each recipient, for the 62 grants where we could match the recipient to a registered organization. The categories are the IRS's. The match, made from the name and address on the return, is ours.
Giving by year
| Tax year | Grants | Total | Median grant |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2021 | 27 | $1,450,344 | $20,000 |
| 2022 | 34 | $1,587,594 | $33,082 |
| 2023 | 34 | $1,481,722 | $23,859 |
| 2024 | 30 | $1,398,763 | $27,500 |
| 2025 | 34 | $1,579,712 | $25,500 |
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.
Already committed for future years
Form 990-PF has a separate schedule for grants approved but not yet paid. George W Neilson Foundation has 41 of them, worth $13.3M. This is the one part of the filing that looks forward rather than back.
| Organization | Location | Approved |
|---|---|---|
| Greater Bemidji | Bemidji, MN | $4,000,000 |
| Greater Bemidji | Bemidji, MN | $1,600,000 |
| Greater Bemidji | Bemidji, MN | $1,600,000 |
| Greater Bemidji | Bemidji, MN | $1,200,000 |
| Sanford Heart Center | Bemidji, MN | $750,000 |
| Northwoods Battered Womens Shelter | Bemidji, MN | $500,000 |
| Cass Lake Volunteer Fire Dept | Cass Lake, MN | $300,000 |
| Cass Lake Volunteer Fire Department | Cass Lake, MN | $300,000 |
| Concordia Language Villages | Bemidji, MN | $300,000 |
| Cass Lake Volunteer Fire Dept | Cass Lake, MN | $300,000 |
| Northwoods Battered Womens Shelter | Bemidji, MN | $250,000 |
| Northwoods Battered Womens Shelter | Bemidji, MN | $250,000 |
| Neilson Spearhead Center | Bemidji, MN | $155,800 |
| Bemidji State University Foundation | Bemidji, MN | $150,000 |
| Bemidji State University Foundation | Bemidji, MN | $150,000 |
Where its money goes
100% of its giving went to organizations in Minnesota. If your organization is based elsewhere, look in the recipient list for grants to your area before writing.
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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 a sign of overlapping priorities and nothing more: they do not show that any of these funders would consider a new organization. Each page says what its filings show.
How to approach this foundation
- Check you are its size. The median grant is $25,000. A request many times that size asks for something it has rarely or never given.
- Check you are in its geography. Its giving is concentrated in Minnesota.
- 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.
Where these numbers come from
Everything above is taken from George W Neilson Foundation's own Form 990-PF filings, which the IRS publishes in bulk. We used 5 returns (tax years 2021-2025). Grant figures are from its returns. Matching recipients to registered organizations, their IRS classifications, the retention rate and the funders that support the same organizations are our own calculations, described in how we build this.
Address of record on the latest return: Po Box 692, Bemidji, MN, 56619. 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 41-6022186 · See the original filings on ProPublica · How we build this
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