United Way of the Lakeshore
Muskegon, MI · EIN 38-1426895. Reported 228 grants totalling $6,166,240 to 76 organizations across tax years 2021-2025, on Form 990 Schedule I.
Does this grantmaker accept applications?
Its tax return does not say, and we will not guess. Private foundations file Form 990-PF, which asks outright whether they fund only organizations they select themselves -- 78% say yes, and that one answer is what lets the rest of this site tell you which foundations are worth approaching. Grantmaking charities like this one file a regular Form 990 instead, and the IRS never puts the question to them. Anyone claiming to know the answer from the filing is inventing it.
Three things in the filing do bear on it:
- What kind of organization it is. For United Way of the Lakeshore, the IRS classifies it as a federated giving programme -- a United Way, Jewish federation, Community Chest or similar (NTEE T70Z).
- How spread out its giving is. 76 distinct organizations, with 9% of the dollars going to the largest single recipient. That is genuinely spread out -- the mark of a funder making many independent decisions rather than underwriting one institution.
- How much its list changes. 74% of one year's grantees are funded again the next, across 4 year-to-year transitions. That is well above the 56% median for grantmaking charities, and above the 67% median for private foundations. It describes the organizations it already funds, not whether it would consider a new one.
How big are its grants?
The median reported grant is $14,747. Half of what it reported fell between $9,000 and $32,000; the smallest was $914 and the largest $187,699. If you are asking for materially more than the top of that range, you are asking the wrong organization.
Every organization it funded
This is the complete list from its filings, largest first. Recipients are grouped by the EIN the filer reported, not by name, so an organization that was typed differently in two years appears once rather than twice.
| Organization | Location | Total received | Grants | Years funded | Last |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Acset - Michigan Works | Grand Rapids, MI | $537,500 | 6 | 5 | 2025 |
| Every Womans Place | Muskegon, MI | $530,162 | 6 | 5 | 2025 |
| Dolly Parton Imagination Library | Pigeon Forge, TN | $462,394 | 3 | 3 | 2025 |
| Mission for Area People | Muskegon Hts, MI | $261,921 | 5 | 5 | 2025 |
| Community Access Line of the Lakeshore Inc | Muskegon, MI | $258,013 | 5 | 5 | 2025 |
| Legal Aid of Western Michigan | Grand Rapids, MI | $254,945 | 5 | 5 | 2025 |
| Boys and Girls Club of the Muskegon Lakeshore | Muskegon, MI | $246,081 | 8 | 5 | 2025 |
| Child Abuse Council of Muskegon County | Muskegon, MI | $245,777 | 5 | 5 | 2025 |
| Catholic Charities | Muskegon, MI | $240,129 | 5 | 5 | 2025 |
| Truenorth Community Services | Fremont, MI | $207,945 | 5 | 5 | 2025 |
| Dollywood Foundation | Sevierville, TN | $204,857 | 2 | 2 | 2022 |
| Community Encompass | Muskegon, MI | $204,000 | 5 | 3 | 2023 |
| Mediation & Restorative Services | Muskegon, MI | $202,906 | 5 | 5 | 2025 |
| Youth Solutions | Benton Harbor, MI | $170,000 | 3 | 3 | 2025 |
| Read Muskegon | Muskegon, MI | $160,234 | 5 | 5 | 2025 |
| Orchard View Congregational Church | Muskegon, MI | $123,000 | 6 | 5 | 2025 |
| Pathfinders | Muskegon Hts, MI | $103,167 | 6 | 5 | 2025 |
| Agewell Services of W Michigan | Muskegon, MI | $97,117 | 5 | 5 | 2025 |
| American National Red Cross | Washington, DC | $89,966 | 5 | 5 | 2025 |
| Goodwill Industries of West Michigan Inc | Muskegon, MI | $81,843 | 5 | 5 | 2025 |
| The Hope Project Inc | Muskegon, MI | $78,795 | 5 | 5 | 2025 |
| Kinexus Youth Solutions Inc | Benton Harbor, MI | $78,000 | 2 | 2 | 2022 |
| Love Inc of Muskegon County | Muskegon, MI | $74,182 | 5 | 5 | 2025 |
| Michigan Works West Central | Big Rapids, MI | $73,500 | 5 | 5 | 2025 |
| Hope Network | Grand Rapids, MI | $72,760 | 5 | 5 | 2025 |
| Arc Muskegonm | Muskegon, MI | $70,595 | 4 | 4 | 2024 |
| Salvation Army | Muskegon, MI | $68,075 | 4 | 4 | 2024 |
| White Lake Community Education | Whitehall, MI | $60,195 | 4 | 2 | 2022 |
| Newaygo County Commission on Aging | White Cloud, MI | $60,014 | 1 | 1 | 2024 |
| Arbor Circle Corporation | Grand Rapids, MI | $59,860 | 4 | 4 | 2025 |
| Volunteer for Dental | Muskegon, MI | $56,999 | 5 | 5 | 2025 |
| United Way of the West Shore | Ludington, MI | $50,792 | 5 | 5 | 2025 |
| Communities Overcoming Violent Encounters Inc | Ludington, MI | $49,225 | 5 | 5 | 2025 |
| Boy Scouts of America | Eagle, MI | $49,159 | 4 | 4 | 2024 |
| Newaygo County Resa | Fremont, MI | $42,230 | 4 | 4 | 2025 |
| Herco | Muskegon, MI | $33,140 | 2 | 2 | 2022 |
| White Lake Community Education | Whitehall, MI | $32,000 | 2 | 2 | 2024 |
| Fresh Coast Alliance | Muskegon, MI | $31,631 | 3 | 3 | 2025 |
| Newaygo County Compassion Home for the Terminally Ill | Fremont, MI | $30,129 | 4 | 4 | 2025 |
| Lake County Meals on Wheels | Baldwin, MI | $30,007 | 1 | 1 | 2024 |
| Muskegon County Community Foundation | Muskegon, MI | $30,000 | 2 | 1 | 2021 |
| Disability Network West Michigan | Muskegon, MI | $25,229 | 4 | 4 | 2025 |
| Step Up | Muskegon, MI | $20,002 | 3 | 3 | 2024 |
| Muskegon Young Mens Christian Association | Muskegon, MI | $18,750 | 2 | 2 | 2023 |
| Girl Scouts of Michigan Shore to Shore | Grand Rapids, MI | $18,724 | 2 | 2 | 2022 |
| Heart of West Michigan United Way | Grand Rapids, MI | $18,361 | 3 | 3 | 2025 |
| Kids Food Basket | Grand Rapids, MI | $18,333 | 2 | 2 | 2025 |
| Lakeshore Region Community Development Corporation | Norton Shores, MI | $17,500 | 2 | 2 | 2023 |
| West Shore Education Service | Ludington, MI | $15,000 | 1 | 1 | 2023 |
| Feeding America West Michigan | Kentwood, MI | $14,474 | 2 | 2 | 2022 |
| Girl Scounts of America- Mi Shore | Grand Rapids, MI | $13,943 | 2 | 2 | 2024 |
| Newaygo County Council for the Prevention of Child Abuse and Negl | White Cloud, MI | $12,866 | 3 | 3 | 2024 |
| Helping Every Living Person Survive | Muskegon, MI | $12,224 | 2 | 2 | 2024 |
| Community Foundation for Muskegon | Muskegon, MI | $11,344 | 1 | 1 | 2024 |
| Helping Every Living Person Service | Muskegon, MI | $11,275 | 1 | 1 | 2023 |
| Mecosta-Osceola Isd | Big Rapids, MI | $11,150 | 1 | 1 | 2023 |
| Michigan College Access Network | Lansing, MI | $10,748 | 2 | 2 | 2022 |
| Oceana County Council on Aging | Hart, MI | $9,000 | 1 | 1 | 2025 |
| Life Align Inc | Muskegon, MI | $8,000 | 1 | 1 | 2025 |
| Discovery School | Muskegon, MI | $7,056 | 1 | 1 | 2024 |
| Mid Michigan Community Action Agency Inc | Farwell, MI | $7,000 | 1 | 1 | 2025 |
| Pioneer Resources Inc | Muskegon, MI | $7,000 | 1 | 1 | 2022 |
| Muskegon Catholic Education Foundation Inc | Muskegon, MI | $6,549 | 1 | 1 | 2024 |
| Black Wall Street Muskegon | Muskegon, MI | $6,500 | 1 | 1 | 2022 |
| Allegan County Great Start | Allegan, MI | $5,576 | 1 | 1 | 2023 |
| Calhoun Intermediate School Dist | Marshall, MI | $5,573 | 1 | 1 | 2023 |
| Ottawa Area Isd | Holland, MI | $5,542 | 1 | 1 | 2023 |
| St Francis Desales Church | Muskegon, MI | $5,535 | 1 | 1 | 2024 |
| Little Ones Daycare and Preschool | Fremont, MI | $5,357 | 1 | 1 | 2024 |
| Oceana County Housing Commission Nonprofit Corporation | Hart, MI | $5,200 | 1 | 1 | 2022 |
| Project 714 Revival Outreach | Muskegon, MI | $5,000 | 1 | 1 | 2022 |
| H G a Nonprofit Homes Inc | Norton Shores, MI | $4,000 | 1 | 1 | 2022 |
| Lake Hawks in Flight Foundation Inc | Muskegon, MI | $4,000 | 1 | 1 | 2022 |
| Staircase Runaway & Youth Services Incorporated | Ludington, MI | $2,652 | 1 | 1 | 2022 |
| Association for the Blind and Visually Impaired | Grand Rapids, MI | $2,106 | 1 | 1 | 2022 |
| Empowerment Network | Fremont, MI | $1,426 | 1 | 1 | 2022 |
50 of 76 (66%) received money in more than one year over the 5 years we hold. Remember the $5,000 floor: an organization funded every year at $3,000 shows up here as never funded at all.
What the money was for
Taken verbatim from the purpose column of its filings, largest first. This is the closest thing to a statement of what it funds, in its own words.
- Every Womans Place Inc
DOMESTIC VIOLENCE COUNSELING AND SHELTER - Dollywood Foundation
GENERAL SUPPORT / IL BOOK MAILING - Mission for Area People
EMERGENCY NEEDS FUNDING, SHELTER FOR THE HOMELESS, GENERAL SUPPORT - Catholic Charities
FAMILY SUPPORT AND DEVELOPMENT - Dolly Parton Imagination Library
IMAGINATION LIBRARY BOOK MAILING - Big Brothersbig Sisters of the Lakeshore
ASSIST YOUTH IN AFTER SCHOOL PROGRAMS
What kind of organizations it funds
By the activity category the IRS assigns each recipient, for the 39 of 76 recipients we could match to a registered organization. The categories are the IRS's, not ours -- Schedule I reports the recipient's EIN, so this is a lookup rather than a name match.
Giving by year
| Tax year | Grants reported | Total | Median grant |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2021 | 42 | $1,322,267 | $18,088 |
| 2022 | 56 | $1,420,066 | $14,754 |
| 2023 | 47 | $1,280,413 | $15,000 |
| 2024 | 47 | $1,202,163 | $12,500 |
| 2025 | 36 | $941,331 | $10,904 |
Tax years, not calendar years, and the most recent year is usually incomplete -- Form 990 arrives about a year after the year it covers, so a low final year means late paperwork rather than a grantmaker winding down.
Where its money goes
88% of its giving went to organizations in Michigan. Community foundations and federated funds are usually the most geographically bounded funders there are -- being outside the footprint is normally disqualifying in a way that a weak programme fit is not.
Down to the city
Foundations that fund only organizations they pick gave to this one
6 private foundations that told the IRS they contribute only to organizations they select themselves reported 16 grants totalling $230,289 to United Way of the Lakeshore. That is 23% of the 26 funders we can see giving to it. Those 6 foundations do not take unsolicited requests -- their own returns say so. The IRS classifies this organization as a federated giving programme.
5 of them gave in more than one tax year, which is the only durability signal the filings carry.
What that does not mean. It does not mean an application here reaches that money. A grant from a closed foundation is often a designated gift or a donor-advised fund earmarked by whoever gave it, and has nothing to do with any open programme this organization runs. Neither tax return says which, so neither do we. The list below is who put money in. It is not a route to it.
| Foundation | State | Reported | Grants | Years | Last |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Howmet Aerospace Foundation | Pennsylvania | $225,000 | 5 | 4 | 2024 |
| Marvin G & Jerene L Dewitt Family | Michigan | $2,375 | 3 | 3 | 2023 |
| De Witt Families Conduit Foundation | Michigan | $2,000 | 2 | 2 | 2025 |
| The Alvin L Glick Foundation | Michigan | $450 | 2 | 2 | 2022 |
| Amazonsmile Foundation | Washington | $339 | 3 | 3 | 2023 |
| Verizon Foundation | New Jersey | $125 | 1 | 1 | 2024 |
A linked name has a page of its own. We publish one for a foundation that takes no unsolicited requests only when a real share of its giving goes to organizations that make grants themselves, and that page opens by saying it does not take requests.
Both the count and the total are floors. A foundation appears here only where its return named this organization clearly enough for us to match the name to an EIN, which we manage for about two thirds of 990-PF grant rows. There are more; we cannot name them.
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Funders that support the same organizations
These grantmakers and private foundations gave to organizations this one also funded. 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 grantmaker
- Look for a published programme first. Unlike most private foundations, organizations of this kind often do run open, deadlined grant cycles with written guidelines. Its own website is the authority on that; this page is the authority on who it has actually paid.
- Check you are its size. The median reported grant is $14,747 -- and because grants under $5,000 need not be reported, it very likely writes smaller cheques than this page can see.
- Check you are in its geography. Its giving concentrates in Michigan.
- Read the recipient list for organizations like yours. If nothing on it resembles your work, that is a real answer and a cheap one to get.
Related guides
Where these numbers come from
Everything above is taken from United Way of the Lakeshore's own Form 990 Schedule I filings, which the IRS publishes in bulk. We used 5 returns (tax years 2021-2025). Grant figures are from its returns. Recipient classifications, the concentration and retention figures and the funders that support the same organizations are our own calculations from them, described in how we build this.
On its most recent return it told the IRS it made grants to 49 section 501(c)(3) organizations and 0 other organizations. That is the filer's own count for one year; the totals above cover every year we hold.
Address of record on the latest return: Po Box 207, Muskegon, MI, 49443.
EIN 38-1426895 · See the original filings on ProPublica · How we build this
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