The Christopher L & M Susan Gust
Chicago, IL · EIN 61-1405669. Reported 151 grants totalling $6,555,517 to 64 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. The Christopher L & M Susan Gust 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 $10,000. Half of everything it gave fell between $5,000 and $40,000; the smallest was $500 and the largest $1,000,000. 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 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Shirley Ryan Ability Lab | Chicago, IL | $1,460,000 | 7 | 3 | 2023 |
| University of Michigan | Ann Arbor, MI | $1,200,000 | 4 | 4 | 2024 |
| St Ignatius College Prep | Chicago, IL | $1,100,000 | 3 | 3 | 2024 |
| Aspiritech | Evanston, IL | $270,000 | 3 | 3 | 2024 |
| Concussion Legacy Foundation | Boston, MA | $230,000 | 3 | 3 | 2024 |
| Team Impact | Quincy, MA | $225,000 | 3 | 3 | 2024 |
| Greater Chicago Food Depository | Chicago, IL | $150,000 | 4 | 4 | 2024 |
| Lurie Children's Hospital | Carol Stream, IL | $150,000 | 3 | 3 | 2023 |
| Chicago Mission | Chicago, IL | $121,000 | 3 | 3 | 2023 |
| Aspiritec | Highland Park, IL | $105,000 | 1 | 1 | 2021 |
| Have Dreams | Park Ridge, IL | $105,000 | 4 | 4 | 2024 |
| Denver Public Schoolsmaxwell Elementary School | Denver, CO | $102,128 | 2 | 1 | 2021 |
| International Sports Corp | Chicago, IL | $100,000 | 2 | 2 | 2024 |
| Rehab Institute of Chicago (shirley Ryab Ability Lab) | Chicago, IL | $100,000 | 1 | 1 | 2024 |
| The Night Ministry | Chicago, IL | $100,000 | 4 | 4 | 2024 |
| Our Lady of Angels Church | Chicago, IL | $95,805 | 3 | 3 | 2023 |
| Options for College Success | Evanston, IL | $92,480 | 4 | 3 | 2023 |
| Heartland Alliance | Chicago, IL | $75,000 | 3 | 3 | 2023 |
| North Chicago Public Education Foundation | North Chicago, IL | $55,000 | 4 | 4 | 2024 |
| Mission of Our Lady of Angels Church | Chicago, IL | $50,962 | 1 | 1 | 2024 |
| Lakeview Food Pantry | Chicago, IL | $50,000 | 2 | 2 | 2022 |
| Nourishing Hope (fka Lakeview Food Pantry) | Chicago, IL | $50,000 | 2 | 2 | 2024 |
| Hephazibah Children's Association | Oak Park, IL | $40,000 | 4 | 4 | 2024 |
| Meals on Wheels | Chicago, IL | $40,000 | 4 | 4 | 2024 |
| St Judes Childrens Hospital | Memphis, TN | $35,000 | 4 | 4 | 2024 |
| Rolfe Pancreatic Cancer Foundation | Chicago, IL | $30,815 | 2 | 2 | 2022 |
| Chicago Coalition for the Homeless | Chicago, IL | $30,000 | 4 | 4 | 2024 |
| Doctors Without Borders | New York, NY | $30,000 | 4 | 4 | 2024 |
| Planned Parenthood Federation of America | Washington, DC | $30,000 | 3 | 3 | 2024 |
| Center for Independent Futures | Evanston, IL | $25,000 | 3 | 3 | 2024 |
| Chicago Jets Hockey Club | Chicago, IL | $25,000 | 1 | 1 | 2022 |
| Chicago Public Media | Chicago, IL | $25,000 | 4 | 4 | 2024 |
| Southern Poverty | Montgomery, AL | $25,000 | 3 | 3 | 2023 |
| Travis Roy Foundation | Boston, MA | $25,000 | 1 | 1 | 2021 |
| Vista Grande Villa | Jackson, MI | $25,000 | 1 | 1 | 2021 |
| Chicago Public Schoolshelen C Peirce International Studies School | Chicago, IL | $21,963 | 3 | 3 | 2024 |
| League of Women Voters | Chicago, IL | $20,000 | 4 | 4 | 2024 |
| Mercy Home for Boys and Girls | Chicago, IL | $20,000 | 4 | 4 | 2024 |
| American Civil Liberties Union | Washington, DC | $15,000 | 2 | 2 | 2023 |
| St Ignatius Hockey Club | Chicago, IL | $12,500 | 1 | 1 | 2021 |
| Bernie's Book Bank | Lake Bluff, IL | $10,000 | 4 | 4 | 2024 |
| Southern Poverty Law Center | Montgomery, AL | $10,000 | 1 | 1 | 2024 |
| Chicago Public Schoolswest Park Stream Academy | Chicago, IL | $9,953 | 2 | 2 | 2023 |
| Chicago Hope Academy | Chicago, IL | $8,443 | 3 | 3 | 2023 |
| Riley Childrens Foundation | Indianapolis, IN | $7,675 | 1 | 1 | 2021 |
| Chicago Public Schoolsrufus M Hitch Elementary School | Chicago, IL | $5,400 | 2 | 2 | 2023 |
| Pancreatic Cancer Action Network | Manhattan Beach, CA | $5,150 | 1 | 1 | 2024 |
| Chicagoland Hockey Charities | Crystal Lake, IL | $5,075 | 2 | 2 | 2024 |
| Roosevelt University | Chicago, IL | $5,000 | 1 | 1 | 2021 |
| Spaulding Rehabilitation Hospital Boston | Charleston, MA | $3,158 | 1 | 1 | 2024 |
| Art Institute of Chicago | Chicago, IL | $3,000 | 1 | 1 | 2024 |
| Chicago Public Schoolssadlowski Elementary School | Chicago, IL | $2,909 | 2 | 2 | 2022 |
| Chicago Public Schoolsjohn Fiske Elementary School | Chicago, IL | $2,800 | 1 | 1 | 2024 |
| Friends of the Handicapped | Lincolnwood, IL | $2,500 | 1 | 1 | 2021 |
| Mary Derosa Cancer Charity Nfp | South Elgin, IL | $2,500 | 1 | 1 | 2023 |
| Chicago Public Schoolsburbank Elementary School | Chicago, IL | $2,101 | 1 | 1 | 2023 |
| Cdga Foundation | Lemont, IL | $1,250 | 1 | 1 | 2021 |
| Chicago Public Schoolsravenswood Elementary School | Chicago, IL | $1,052 | 1 | 1 | 2023 |
| Michael J Fox Foundation | New York, NY | $1,030 | 1 | 1 | 2021 |
| Breast Cancer Research Foundation | New York, NY | $1,000 | 1 | 1 | 2021 |
| Israels Gifts of Hope | Chicago, IL | $1,000 | 1 | 1 | 2022 |
| Chicago Public Schoolsgrimes Elementary School | Chicago, IL | $857 | 1 | 1 | 2023 |
| St Balderick Foundation | Monrovia, CA | $511 | 1 | 1 | 2022 |
| Lost Dunes Memorial Scholarship Fund | Bridgman, MI | $500 | 1 | 1 | 2022 |
38 of 64 (59%) 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 66%, 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.
- St Ignatius College Prep
GENERAL PURPOSE/HOCKEY PROGRAM - University of Michigan
BUILDING PLEDGE FOR ICE HOCKEY ARENA - Shirley Ryan Ability Lab
SHIRLEY RYAN ABILITY LAB SPARK 2022 PROGRAM - Denver Public Schoolsmaxwell Elementary School
FUND INCLUSION FACILITATOR STAFF POSITION - Our Lady of Angels Church
SUPPLIES FOR CHURCH THANKSGIVING ACTIVITIES - Mission of Our Lady of Angels Church
GENERAL PURPOSE/SUPPLIES FOR CHURCH
What kind of organizations it funds
By the recipient's own IRS classification, for the 59 grants where we could identify the organization. These are assigned categories, not our guesses.
Giving by year
| Tax year | Grants | Total | Median grant |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2021 | 42 | $2,167,507 | $10,000 |
| 2022 | 38 | $1,134,730 | $10,000 |
| 2023 | 40 | $1,704,335 | $10,000 |
| 2024 | 31 | $1,548,945 | $10,000 |
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. 70% of this one's giving went to organizations in Illinois. 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 $10,000. 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 Illinois.
- 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 The Christopher L & M Susan Gust'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: 141 W Jackson Blvd Ste 1310, Chicago, IL, 60604. 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 61-1405669 · See the original filings on ProPublica · How we build this
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