Mesara Family Foundation
Kalamazoo, MI · EIN 47-3197993. Reported 178 grants totalling $1,634,915 to 85 organizations across tax years 2021-2024. 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. Mesara Family 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 $7,500. Half of everything it gave fell between $5,000 and $10,000; the smallest was $1,000 and the largest $50,000. 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. 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 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Wmu Foundation | Kalamazoo, MI | $106,410 | 3 | 3 | 2024 |
| Building Tomorrow | Indianapolis, IN | $83,000 | 3 | 3 | 2024 |
| Special Operations Warrior Foundation | Tampa, FL | $75,000 | 3 | 3 | 2023 |
| Leader Dogs for the Blind | Rochester Hills, MI | $70,100 | 4 | 4 | 2024 |
| She Jumps | Salt Lake City, UT | $58,525 | 3 | 3 | 2024 |
| Special Forces Scholarship Fund | Fayetteville, NC | $50,000 | 2 | 2 | 2022 |
| Seward Association for the Advancement of Marine Science | Seward, AK | $45,000 | 4 | 4 | 2024 |
| Michigan Interfaith Power and Light | Detroit, MI | $40,000 | 4 | 4 | 2024 |
| Wild Sheep Foundation | Bozeman, MT | $40,000 | 4 | 4 | 2024 |
| Catamount Institute | Colorado Springs, CO | $39,500 | 4 | 4 | 2024 |
| Florida Trail Association | Gainesville, FL | $37,880 | 2 | 2 | 2024 |
| Special Days Camps | Dimondale, MI | $37,000 | 4 | 4 | 2024 |
| First Day Shoe Fund | Portage, MI | $35,000 | 4 | 4 | 2024 |
| Pyxera Global Inc | Washington, DC | $35,000 | 4 | 4 | 2024 |
| Care and Share Food Bank of Southern Colorado | Colorado Springs, CO | $34,000 | 4 | 4 | 2024 |
| Feeding Tampa Bay | Tampa, FL | $34,000 | 4 | 4 | 2024 |
| Kalamazoo Loaves & Fishes | Kalamazoo, MI | $34,000 | 4 | 4 | 2024 |
| The Chill Foundation | Burlington, VT | $32,500 | 4 | 4 | 2024 |
| God's Special Peoples Camp | Jones, MI | $30,000 | 3 | 3 | 2024 |
| Malama Kauai | Kilauea, HI | $30,000 | 3 | 3 | 2023 |
| Mountain View Lakes Foundation | Owls Head, NY | $30,000 | 4 | 4 | 2024 |
| Inside Out Youth Services | Colorado Springs, CO | $27,000 | 4 | 4 | 2024 |
| Cetera Inc | Saint Petersburg, FL | $26,000 | 4 | 4 | 2024 |
| Special Forces Association Chapter 7 | Crestview, FL | $25,000 | 1 | 1 | 2024 |
| Friends of Cheyenne Mountain State Park | Colorado Springs, CO | $23,280 | 2 | 2 | 2023 |
| Hidden Harbor Marine Environmental Project Inc | Marathon, FL | $22,000 | 4 | 4 | 2024 |
| Hearts and Horses Therapeutic Riding | Loveland, CO | $21,720 | 2 | 2 | 2024 |
| American Friends of the Ocean Cleanup Foundation | Pasadena, CA | $20,000 | 2 | 2 | 2024 |
| Boone and Crocket Club | Missoula, MT | $20,000 | 4 | 4 | 2024 |
| Helping Hands of Paulding County | Dallas, GA | $20,000 | 1 | 1 | 2021 |
| Musk Ox Development Corporation | Palmer, AK | $20,000 | 5 | 4 | 2024 |
| Southridge Reformed Church | Kalamazoo, MI | $20,000 | 3 | 3 | 2024 |
| The Ocean Cleanup North Pacific Foundation | New York, NY | $20,000 | 2 | 2 | 2022 |
| Conch Republic Marine Army | Big Pine Key, FL | $16,000 | 4 | 4 | 2024 |
| Discovery Center Great Lakes | Traverse City, MI | $15,000 | 1 | 1 | 2022 |
| Friends of Seminole State Forest | Sorrento, FL | $15,000 | 1 | 1 | 2023 |
| Penrickton Center for Blind Children | Taylor, MI | $15,000 | 3 | 3 | 2024 |
| Pikes Peak Suicide Prevention Partnership | Colorado Springs, CO | $15,000 | 3 | 3 | 2024 |
| Portage Public Schools | Portage, MI | $14,000 | 2 | 2 | 2022 |
| Locks of Love Inc | West Palm Beach, FL | $12,500 | 1 | 1 | 2022 |
| Reef Environmental Education Foundation | Key Largo, FL | $12,500 | 2 | 2 | 2023 |
| Scott Elementary School | Colorado Springs, CO | $12,500 | 1 | 1 | 2022 |
| Boys & Girls Club of Greater Kalamazoo | Kalamazoo, MI | $10,000 | 1 | 1 | 2021 |
| Children's Hosptial Colorado Foundation | Denver, CO | $10,000 | 1 | 1 | 2024 |
| Children's Nature Playscape | Kalamazoo, MI | $10,000 | 1 | 1 | 2022 |
| Cole Community Solutions Inc | Portage, MI | $10,000 | 1 | 1 | 2022 |
| Humane Society of West Michigan | Walker, MI | $10,000 | 2 | 2 | 2023 |
| Kalamazoo County Nature Center | Kalamazoo, MI | $10,000 | 1 | 1 | 2023 |
| Kalamazoo County Parks and Recreation Development Foundation | Kalamazoo, MI | $10,000 | 1 | 1 | 2024 |
| Livesafe Resources | Marietta, GA | $10,000 | 1 | 1 | 2021 |
| Mackenzie's Animal Sanctuary Inc | Lake Odessa, MI | $10,000 | 2 | 2 | 2022 |
| Seasons of Justice | Zionville, IN | $10,000 | 1 | 1 | 2024 |
| Share Winter Foundation | Providence, RI | $10,000 | 1 | 1 | 2021 |
| Southwest Michigan Miracle League | Schoolcraft, MI | $10,000 | 2 | 2 | 2024 |
| Special Operations Transition Foundation | Smyrna, GA | $10,000 | 1 | 1 | 2021 |
| St Johns Riverkeeper Inc | Jacksonville, FL | $10,000 | 1 | 1 | 2022 |
| Olivet College | Olivet, MI | $8,500 | 2 | 2 | 2022 |
| Wild Blue Cats | Colorado Springs, CO | $8,000 | 3 | 3 | 2024 |
| Brother Wolf Animal Rescue | Asheville, NC | $7,500 | 1 | 1 | 2024 |
| Great Lakes Burn Camp | Jackson, MI | $7,500 | 3 | 3 | 2024 |
| Haverhill Elementary PTO | Portage, MI | $7,500 | 2 | 2 | 2024 |
| Mountain Projects | Waynesville, NC | $7,500 | 1 | 1 | 2024 |
| Reef | Key Largo, FL | $7,500 | 1 | 1 | 2024 |
| Kids on Bikes Inc | Colorado Springs, CO | $7,000 | 1 | 1 | 2021 |
| HUNT2HEAL | Grandville, MI | $6,500 | 1 | 1 | 2024 |
| Animal Rescue Project | Kalamazoo, MI | $5,000 | 1 | 1 | 2024 |
| Gryphon Place | Portage, MI | $5,000 | 1 | 1 | 2023 |
| Hawaii Animal Rescue Foundation | Wailuku, HI | $5,000 | 1 | 1 | 2023 |
| High Fives Foundation | Truckee, CA | $5,000 | 1 | 1 | 2024 |
| Maui Food Bank Inc | Wailuku, HI | $5,000 | 1 | 1 | 2023 |
| Bronson Health Foundation | Kalamazoo, MI | $4,000 | 1 | 1 | 2024 |
| Embark Outdoors | Salt Lake City, UT | $4,000 | 1 | 1 | 2023 |
| Daybreak Adp | Woodland Park, CO | $3,500 | 1 | 1 | 2022 |
| Alaska Raptor Center | Sitka, AK | $2,500 | 1 | 1 | 2021 |
| Douglas County Canine Rescue | Castle Rock, CO | $2,500 | 1 | 1 | 2021 |
| Hoods to Woods | Brooklyn, NY | $2,500 | 1 | 1 | 2022 |
| Key West Wildlife Center Inc | Key West, FL | $2,500 | 1 | 1 | 2022 |
| Reef Renewal USA Inc | Tampa, FL | $2,500 | 1 | 1 | 2023 |
| St Luke's Episcopal Church Partners in Housing | Kalamazoo, MI | $2,500 | 1 | 1 | 2024 |
| Portage Community Outreach Center | Portage, MI | $1,500 | 1 | 1 | 2024 |
| Animal Care Center of St John Inc | St John, VI | $1,000 | 1 | 1 | 2024 |
| Kalamazoo River Watershed Council | Kalamazoo, MI | $1,000 | 1 | 1 | 2021 |
| Meet the Ocean | Portland, OR | $1,000 | 1 | 1 | 2024 |
| Portage Public Schools Education Foundation | Portage, MI | $1,000 | 1 | 1 | 2021 |
| Save Our Key Deer | Big Pine Key, FL | $1,000 | 1 | 1 | 2021 |
43 of 85 (51%) 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 65%, across 3 year-to-year transitions. The median foundation retains about 67%, so this one is about typical. 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.
- Wmu Foundation
WMU STUDY ABROAD MESARA AIRFARE SCHOLARSHIP - Special Forces Association Chapter 7
SPECIAL FORCES SCHOLARSHIP FUND - Florida Trail Association
NEXT GENERATION COALITION - Friends of Cheyenne Mountain State Park
TERRAIN HOPPER WHEELCHAIR - Leader Dogs for the Blind
ENDOSCOPY SYSTEM REPLACEMENT - Catamount Institute
CATAMOUNT OUTDOOR SCHOOLS
What kind of organizations it funds
By the recipient's own IRS classification, for the 120 grants where we could identify the organization. These are assigned categories, not our guesses.
Giving by year
| Tax year | Grants | Total | Median grant |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2021 | 43 | $380,910 | $7,000 |
| 2022 | 45 | $420,100 | $7,500 |
| 2023 | 42 | $380,805 | $7,750 |
| 2024 | 48 | $453,100 | $7,500 |
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.
Where its money goes
Foundations concentrate geographically far more than their mission statements suggest. 33% of this one's giving went to organizations in Michigan. 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 $7,500. 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 Michigan.
- 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 Mesara Family Foundation's own Form 990-PF filings, which the IRS publishes in bulk. We used 4 returns (tax years 2021-2024). Nothing here is scraped, inferred, or estimated.
Address of record on the latest return: 131 Merriweather Lane, Kalamazoo, MI, 49006. 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 47-3197993 · See the original filings on ProPublica · How we build this
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