Robert & Elizabeth Fergus Foundation
Aspen, CO · EIN 31-6087932. Reported 249 grants totalling $621,635 to 103 recipients 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. Robert & Elizabeth Fergus 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 $2,000. Half of everything it gave fell between $1,000 and $3,000; the smallest was $25 and the largest $20,000. 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 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Conservation Northwest | Bellingham, WA | $32,000 | 4 | 4 | 2024 |
| Theaterworks | Palo Alto, CA | $31,500 | 4 | 4 | 2024 |
| Whatcom Film Association | Bellingham, WA | $30,000 | 3 | 2 | 2022 |
| Wellesley College | Wellesley, MA | $25,500 | 4 | 4 | 2024 |
| Multicultural Music Fellowship | Berkeley, CA | $21,000 | 5 | 4 | 2024 |
| Carneige Mellon | Pittsburgh, PA | $20,000 | 2 | 2 | 2023 |
| Beyond Fistula | Los Altos, CA | $17,500 | 4 | 4 | 2024 |
| Little Traverse Conservancy | Harbor Springs, MI | $15,500 | 9 | 4 | 2024 |
| Wellesley College Friends of Art | Wellesley, MA | $13,500 | 4 | 4 | 2024 |
| Columbus Museum of Art | Columbus, OH | $12,000 | 4 | 4 | 2024 |
| Doctors Without Borders | Hagerstown, MD | $12,000 | 3 | 3 | 2023 |
| Aspen Center for Enviromental Studi | Aspen, CO | $11,000 | 3 | 3 | 2023 |
| Caf America | Alexandria, VA | $11,000 | 4 | 3 | 2023 |
| Rocky Mountain Institute | Boulder, CO | $11,000 | 3 | 3 | 2023 |
| German Village Society | Columbus, OH | $10,500 | 4 | 4 | 2024 |
| Humans Right's Watch | San Francisco, CA | $10,500 | 2 | 2 | 2022 |
| Alfred Braun Hut System | Aspen, CO | $10,000 | 1 | 1 | 2024 |
| Pickford Film Center | Bellingham, WA | $10,000 | 2 | 2 | 2024 |
| Skagit Land Trust | Mount Vernon, WA | $10,000 | 4 | 4 | 2024 |
| University of Colorado Foundation | Aurora, CO | $10,000 | 1 | 1 | 2021 |
| Earth Island Institute | Berkeley, CA | $9,000 | 3 | 3 | 2023 |
| Planned Parenthood Fed of America | Washington, DC | $9,000 | 3 | 3 | 2023 |
| Kqed | San Francisco, CA | $8,025 | 4 | 4 | 2024 |
| Balletmet | Columbus, OH | $8,000 | 4 | 4 | 2024 |
| Downtown Bellingham Partnership | Bellingham, WA | $8,000 | 4 | 4 | 2024 |
| Global AIDS Interfaith Alliance | San Rafael, CA | $8,000 | 3 | 3 | 2023 |
| Palo Alto Community Fund | Palo Alto, CA | $8,000 | 4 | 4 | 2024 |
| Humans Rights Watch | San Francisco, CA | $7,500 | 1 | 1 | 2023 |
| American Civil Liberties Fndt | New York, NY | $7,000 | 3 | 3 | 2023 |
| Kulshan Community Land Trust | Bellingham, WA | $7,000 | 4 | 4 | 2024 |
| Methow Conservancy | Winthrop, WA | $7,000 | 3 | 3 | 2024 |
| Southern Poverty Law Center | Montgomery, AL | $7,000 | 4 | 4 | 2024 |
| Wyso | Yellow Springs, OH | $7,000 | 2 | 2 | 2022 |
| Earth Justice | San Francisco, CA | $6,500 | 4 | 4 | 2024 |
| North Cascades Institute | Sedro Woolley, WA | $6,500 | 4 | 4 | 2024 |
| Rios to Rivers | Aspen, CO | $6,125 | 1 | 1 | 2024 |
| Everytown for Gun Safety Support | New York, NY | $6,000 | 3 | 3 | 2023 |
| Sierra Club Foundation | Oakland, CA | $6,000 | 3 | 3 | 2023 |
| Pitkin County Library | Aspen, CO | $5,500 | 4 | 4 | 2024 |
| Planned Parenthood | San Jose, CA | $5,500 | 4 | 4 | 2024 |
| The School Fund | Palo Alto, CA | $5,500 | 4 | 4 | 2024 |
| University of Chicago Graham School | Chicago, IL | $5,500 | 2 | 1 | 2024 |
| Museum of Art and Photography | Boston, MA | $5,135 | 2 | 2 | 2023 |
| Ada | Palo Alto, CA | $5,000 | 3 | 3 | 2024 |
| Northwest Film Forum | Seattle, WA | $5,000 | 4 | 4 | 2024 |
| Promusica Chamber Orchestra | Columbus, OH | $5,000 | 2 | 2 | 2024 |
| University Club Scholarship Fund | Denver, CO | $5,000 | 2 | 2 | 2023 |
| Post | Palo Alto, CA | $4,500 | 4 | 4 | 2024 |
| Whatcom Land Trust | Bellingham, WA | $4,500 | 3 | 3 | 2023 |
| Cal Matters | Sacramento, CA | $4,000 | 3 | 3 | 2024 |
| Environmental Volunteers | Palo Alto, CA | $4,000 | 3 | 3 | 2024 |
| Mid-Ohio Food Collective | Grove City, OH | $4,000 | 4 | 4 | 2024 |
| Philemon Foundation | New York, NY | $4,000 | 3 | 3 | 2024 |
| Primary Stages | New York, NY | $4,000 | 4 | 4 | 2024 |
| Save the Bay | Oakland, CA | $4,000 | 3 | 3 | 2024 |
| Metropolitan Museum of Art | New York, NY | $3,500 | 4 | 4 | 2024 |
| Palo Alto Arts Center | Palo Alto, CA | $3,500 | 2 | 2 | 2022 |
| Aspen Public Radio | Aspen, CO | $3,000 | 3 | 3 | 2023 |
| Aspen Valley Hospital Fndt | Aspen, CO | $3,000 | 3 | 3 | 2023 |
| Caf America (cameras Without Borders) | Alexandria, VI | $3,000 | 1 | 1 | 2024 |
| Columbus Metropolitan Library Fndt | Cloumbus, OH | $3,000 | 2 | 2 | 2023 |
| Earth Island Institute (sacred Lands) | Berkeley, CA | $3,000 | 1 | 1 | 2024 |
| Equal Justice Initiative | Montgomery, AL | $3,000 | 2 | 2 | 2022 |
| NAMI Nat'l Alliance on Mental Illne | Baltimore, MD | $3,000 | 2 | 2 | 2022 |
| Promusica | Columbus, OH | $3,000 | 1 | 1 | 2022 |
| Raiin - Rape Abuse & Incest Nat'l | Washington, DC | $3,000 | 2 | 2 | 2022 |
| Wikimedia Foundation | Washington, DC | $2,600 | 3 | 2 | 2023 |
| Gaia | Oakland, CA | $2,500 | 1 | 1 | 2024 |
| Habitat for Humanity | Americus, GA | $2,500 | 1 | 1 | 2022 |
| Middlebury | Middlebury, VT | $2,500 | 1 | 1 | 2024 |
| Opera Columbus | Columbus, OH | $2,500 | 2 | 2 | 2024 |
| University Club Scholarship Fund | Palo Alto, CA | $2,500 | 1 | 1 | 2024 |
| University of Chicagograham School | Chicago, IL | $2,500 | 1 | 1 | 2023 |
| Brain & Behavior Research Fndt | New York, NY | $2,000 | 2 | 2 | 2022 |
| Everytown for Gun Safety Support Fund | New York, NY | $2,000 | 1 | 1 | 2024 |
| Freedom Reads | Hamden, CT | $2,000 | 1 | 1 | 2022 |
| Huckleberry House | San Francisco, CA | $2,000 | 2 | 2 | 2023 |
| Wosu | Columbus, OH | $2,000 | 1 | 1 | 2024 |
| Wosu Public Media | Columbus, OH | $2,000 | 1 | 1 | 2023 |
| Aspen Center for Environmental Studies | Aspen, CO | $1,500 | 1 | 1 | 2024 |
| Aspen Valley Hospital | Aspen, CO | $1,500 | 1 | 1 | 2024 |
| Whatcom Landtrust | Bellingham, WA | $1,500 | 1 | 1 | 2024 |
| 10TH Mountain Division Hut Assn | Aspen, CO | $1,000 | 1 | 1 | 2021 |
| American Civil Liberties Union Foundation | New York, NY | $1,000 | 1 | 1 | 2024 |
| Aspen Valley Land Trust | Carbondale, CO | $1,000 | 1 | 1 | 2021 |
| Beechwood School | Menlo Park, CA | $1,000 | 2 | 2 | 2022 |
| Canopy | Palo Alto, CA | $1,000 | 1 | 1 | 2021 |
| Huckleberry House | Columbus, OH | $1,000 | 1 | 1 | 2024 |
| Human Rights Watch | San Francisco, CA | $1,000 | 1 | 1 | 2024 |
| Palo Alto Historical Association | Palo Alto, CA | $1,000 | 2 | 2 | 2023 |
| Planned Parenthood of Greater Ohio | Cleveland, OH | $1,000 | 1 | 1 | 2024 |
| Rocky Mountain PBS | Denver, CO | $1,000 | 1 | 1 | 2021 |
| Seniors Independent | Aspen, CO | $1,000 | 1 | 1 | 2021 |
| Stephens College | Columbia, MO | $1,000 | 1 | 1 | 2021 |
| Wilderness Workshop | Carbondale, CO | $1,000 | 1 | 1 | 2021 |
| Palo Alto Stanford Heritage | Palo Alto, CA | $750 | 2 | 2 | 2024 |
| She Has a Name | Columbus, OH | $600 | 1 | 1 | 2024 |
| Columbus Metropolitan Library Foundation | Columbus, OH | $500 | 1 | 1 | 2024 |
| Freedom a La Cart | Columbus, OH | $500 | 1 | 1 | 2024 |
| Palo Alto Art Center | Palo Alto, CA | $500 | 1 | 1 | 2024 |
| Wikimedia | San Francisco, CA | $500 | 1 | 1 | 2024 |
| Wikimedia Foundation | San Francisco, CA | $500 | 1 | 1 | 2024 |
| Alzheimer Association | New York, NY | $400 | 1 | 1 | 2024 |
65 of 103 (63%) 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 76%, across 3 year-to-year transitions. The median foundation retains about 67%, so this one is unusually consistent. 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.
- Earth Island Institute
SACRED LANDS FILM PROJECT - University of Chicago Graham School
BASIC PROGRAM SECURING THE FUTURE FUND
What kind of organizations it funds
By the activity category the IRS assigns each recipient, for the 138 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 | 62 | $135,525 | $1,000 |
| 2022 | 69 | $218,735 | $2,500 |
| 2023 | 56 | $134,500 | $2,000 |
| 2024 | 62 | $132,875 | $1,500 |
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
30% of its giving went to organizations in California. 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 $2,000. 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 California.
- 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 Robert & Elizabeth Fergus Foundation's own Form 990-PF filings, which the IRS publishes in bulk. We used 4 returns (tax years 2021-2024). 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: Post Office Box 1515, Aspen, CO, 81612. 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 31-6087932 · See the original filings on ProPublica · How we build this
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