James P and Brenda S Grusecki Family
Chicago, IL · EIN 16-1639401. Reported 250 grants totalling $8,620,863 to 93 recipients across tax years 2021-2025. This foundation told the IRS it does not accept unsolicited requests: it contributes only to organizations it selects itself.
Does this foundation accept applications?
No -- on its own tax return. Form 990-PF asks every private foundation to check a box if it "only makes contributions to preselected charitable organizations and does not accept unsolicited requests for funds". James P and Brenda S Grusecki Family checked it on its most recent filing, as 78% of the 91,758 foundations in our data that made a grant and answered did. An unsolicited request is unlikely to go anywhere.
Organizations it funds that make grants of their own
3 of the organizations James P and Brenda S Grusecki Family funded make grants themselves, and it reported 6 grants totalling $67,443 to them. That is 1% of the $6,521,363 of its giving we could match to a registered organization. Each is classified by the IRS as a philanthropy or grantmaking organization, reported grants to at least 25 organizations of its own, and has at least 10 funders behind it.
All of them file Form 990, which never asks whether an organization funds only groups it picks, so there is no answer on record either way.
What that does not mean. It does not mean an application to any of them reaches this foundation's money. A private foundation's grant to a community foundation or a federated campaign is often a donor-advised fund or a gift designated for a purpose the foundation chose, and has nothing to do with any open programme the receiving organization runs. Its return's purpose text sometimes names a family fund or a designated purpose, which is the plainest case of money no applicant can reach; where it names none, neither return says which. The list is who this foundation paid that also makes grants. Whether any of them would fund you is a question for its own page.
| Grantmaker | Kind | State | Received | Grants | Years | Last | Only funds organizations it picks? |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Tides Foundation | grantmaking organization | California | $60,000 | 3 | 3 | 2023 | Its form does not ask |
| Forefront | grantmaking organization | Illinois | $4,443 | 2 | 2 | 2022 | Its form does not ask |
| Justice Outside | grantmaking organization | California | $3,000 | 1 | 1 | 2025 | Its form does not ask |
A floor, not a full list. A grantmaker appears here only where this foundation's return named it clearly enough for us to match the name to an EIN, which we manage for about two thirds of 990-PF grant rows, and only where that grantmaker has a page on this site. There may be more. Dollars here are summed by EIN across every spelling on its returns, so a figure can differ from the matching row in the full list below, which groups names as written. And the IRS classification cannot tell a grantmaker from a funders' association or a donor-advised fund sponsor, so a payment to one of these may be dues or an account rather than support for a grants programme.
How big are its grants?
The median grant is $30,000. Half of everything it gave fell between $15,000 and $45,000; the smallest was $2,088 and the largest $250,000.
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 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Planned Parenthood of Illinois | Chicago, IL | $530,000 | 4 | 3 | 2025 |
| Shattered Globe Theatre | Chicago, IL | $295,000 | 5 | 5 | 2025 |
| Thresholds | Chicago, IL | $265,000 | 5 | 5 | 2025 |
| Theatre Aspen | Aspen, CO | $264,420 | 5 | 5 | 2025 |
| Start Early | Chicago, IL | $260,000 | 5 | 5 | 2025 |
| Goodman Theatre | Chicago, IL | $250,000 | 6 | 5 | 2025 |
| Deborah's Place | Chicago, IL | $240,000 | 5 | 5 | 2025 |
| Golden Apple Foundation | Chicago, IL | $240,000 | 5 | 5 | 2025 |
| Remy Bumppo | Chicago, IL | $235,000 | 5 | 3 | 2025 |
| New Teacher Center | Santa Cruz, CA | $230,000 | 5 | 5 | 2025 |
| Porchlight Music Theatre | Chicago, IL | $225,000 | 5 | 3 | 2025 |
| Wttwwfmt | Chicago, IL | $225,000 | 6 | 5 | 2025 |
| Chicago Foundation for Women | Chicago, IL | $220,000 | 5 | 5 | 2025 |
| Timeline Theatre | Chicago, IL | $215,000 | 3 | 3 | 2025 |
| La CASA Norte | Chicago, IL | $210,000 | 5 | 5 | 2025 |
| New Moms | Chicago, IL | $210,000 | 5 | 5 | 2025 |
| Barack Obama Foundation | Chicago, IL | $200,000 | 1 | 1 | 2025 |
| Midwest Access Coalition | Chicago, IL | $185,000 | 5 | 5 | 2025 |
| Chicago Shakespeare Theater | Chicago, IL | $175,000 | 4 | 3 | 2025 |
| Wbezchicago Public Media | Chicago, IL | $175,000 | 4 | 3 | 2025 |
| Cara Collective | Chicago, IL | $170,000 | 4 | 4 | 2025 |
| Chicago Jesuit Academy | Chicago, IL | $170,000 | 5 | 5 | 2025 |
| 826CHI | Chicago, IL | $155,000 | 4 | 4 | 2025 |
| Breakthrough Urban Ministries | Chicago, IL | $140,000 | 3 | 3 | 2025 |
| Catholic Charities of the Archdiocese of Chicago | Chicago, IL | $140,000 | 3 | 3 | 2025 |
| Children's Literacy Initiative | Chicago, IL | $140,000 | 5 | 5 | 2025 |
| American Blues Theater | Chicago, IL | $125,000 | 5 | 3 | 2025 |
| Ingenuity Incorporated Chicago | Chicago, IL | $125,000 | 3 | 3 | 2025 |
| Lutheran Child & Family Services of Illinois | River Forest, IL | $120,000 | 3 | 3 | 2025 |
| Midwest Access Project | Chicago, IL | $120,000 | 4 | 4 | 2024 |
| Crossroads Fund | Chicago, IL | $115,000 | 3 | 3 | 2023 |
| Little Black Pearl Workshop | Chicago, IL | $115,000 | 3 | 3 | 2025 |
| Marwen | Chicago, IL | $115,000 | 3 | 3 | 2025 |
| Mikva Challenge Grant Foundation Inc | Chicago, IL | $115,000 | 3 | 3 | 2025 |
| Thrive Counseling Center | Oak Park, IL | $110,000 | 3 | 3 | 2025 |
| Lyric Opera of Chicago | Chicago, IL | $100,000 | 1 | 1 | 2025 |
| Catholic Charities | Chicago, IL | $90,000 | 4 | 2 | 2022 |
| American Library Association | Chicago, IL | $75,000 | 1 | 1 | 2025 |
| Repro Tlc | Berwyn, IL | $65,000 | 1 | 1 | 2025 |
| Breakthru Ministries | Chicago, IL | $60,000 | 2 | 2 | 2022 |
| English in Action | Basalt, CO | $60,000 | 5 | 5 | 2025 |
| Planned Parenthood | Chicago, IL | $60,000 | 2 | 2 | 2022 |
| Tides Foundation | San Francisco, CA | $60,000 | 3 | 3 | 2023 |
| Voter Participation Center | Washington, DC | $60,000 | 3 | 3 | 2023 |
| Chicago Shakespeare Theat | Chicago, IL | $55,000 | 2 | 2 | 2022 |
| Porchlight Theatre Co | Chicago, IL | $55,000 | 2 | 2 | 2022 |
| Chicago Public Library Foundation | Chicago, IL | $50,000 | 1 | 1 | 2025 |
| Ingenuity Inc Chicago Be Creative | Chicago, IL | $50,000 | 2 | 2 | 2022 |
| Lutheran Child and Family Services | River Forest, IL | $50,000 | 2 | 2 | 2022 |
| Panorama Global | Seattle, WA | $50,000 | 1 | 1 | 2025 |
| The Reader Institute for Community Journalism | Chicago, IL | $50,000 | 2 | 2 | 2024 |
| Thrive Counseling | Oak Park, IL | $50,000 | 2 | 2 | 2022 |
| University of St Thomas | St Paul, MN | $50,000 | 5 | 5 | 2025 |
| Little Black Pearl | Chicago, IL | $40,000 | 2 | 2 | 2022 |
| Marwen Foundation | Chicago, IL | $40,000 | 2 | 2 | 2022 |
| Mikva Challenge | Chicago, IL | $40,000 | 2 | 2 | 2022 |
| Merit School of Music | Chicago, IL | $37,500 | 5 | 5 | 2025 |
| Shattered Globe | Chicago, IL | $35,000 | 2 | 2 | 2024 |
| The Climate Center | Santa Rosa, CA | $35,000 | 4 | 4 | 2025 |
| Timeline Theatre Company | Chicago, IL | $35,000 | 2 | 2 | 2022 |
| The Cara Program | Chicago, IL | $30,000 | 1 | 1 | 2021 |
| The Learning Center (house of Connections) | Chicago, IL | $30,000 | 3 | 3 | 2025 |
| American Wrtiers Museum | Chicago, IL | $25,000 | 1 | 1 | 2025 |
| Chicago Public Media | Chicago, IL | $25,000 | 1 | 1 | 2021 |
| Remy Bumppo Theatre | Chicago, IL | $25,000 | 1 | 1 | 2021 |
| Stratford Shakespeare Fest of Amer | Detroit, MI | $25,000 | 1 | 1 | 2021 |
| The Reader Institute for Community | Chicago, IL | $25,000 | 1 | 1 | 2022 |
| Wbez Chicago Public Media | Chicago, IL | $25,000 | 1 | 1 | 2022 |
| All Voting Is Local | Washington, DC | $20,000 | 1 | 1 | 2023 |
| Amalgamated Charitable Fund | Washington, DC | $20,000 | 1 | 1 | 2022 |
| Leadership Conerence Education Fund | Washington DC, DC | $20,000 | 1 | 1 | 2021 |
| The Learning Center | Chicago, IL | $20,000 | 2 | 2 | 2022 |
| Earth Island | Berkeley, CA | $19,000 | 2 | 2 | 2025 |
| American Blues Theatre | Chicago, IL | $15,000 | 2 | 2 | 2022 |
| Stratford Festival America | Birmingham, MI | $12,000 | 1 | 1 | 2025 |
| Connection for Abused Women & Children | Chicago, IL | $10,000 | 2 | 2 | 2024 |
| Connection for Abused Womenchild | Chicago, IL | $10,000 | 2 | 2 | 2022 |
| Gilloury Institute | Chicago, IL | $10,000 | 1 | 1 | 2021 |
| The Trustees of the University of Pennsylvania | Philadelphia, PA | $10,000 | 2 | 2 | 2024 |
| Timeline Theater | Chicago, IL | $10,000 | 1 | 1 | 2023 |
| Univerity of Pennsylvania | Philadelphia, PA | $10,000 | 2 | 2 | 2022 |
| Catholic Parishes of Oak Park | Oak Park, IL | $5,000 | 1 | 1 | 2023 |
| Chicago Opera Theater | Chicago, IL | $5,000 | 1 | 1 | 2025 |
| Greater Chicago Food Depository | Chicago, IL | $5,000 | 1 | 1 | 2025 |
| Housing Forward | Maywood, IL | $5,000 | 1 | 1 | 2024 |
| St Luke & St Bernadine Parish | River Forest, IL | $5,000 | 1 | 1 | 2025 |
| Working in Schools | Chicago, IL | $5,000 | 1 | 1 | 2025 |
| Forefront | Chicago, IL | $4,443 | 2 | 2 | 2022 |
| Botanical Bus | Rohnert Park, CA | $3,000 | 1 | 1 | 2025 |
| Justice Outside | Oakland, CA | $3,000 | 1 | 1 | 2025 |
| Boys and Girls Club of Chicago | Chicago, IL | $2,500 | 1 | 1 | 2024 |
| California Enviromental Justice Alliance | Corona, CA | $2,500 | 1 | 1 | 2024 |
| Landpaths | Santa Rosa, CA | $2,500 | 1 | 1 | 2024 |
63 of 93 (68%) 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 82%, across 4 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, and this foundation told the IRS it does not.
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.
- Planned Parenthood of Illinois
GENERAL OPERATING SUPPORT & WELLNESS - New Teacher Center
CHICAGO AND OAK PARK PROGRAMMING & WELLNESS - Thresholds
THE VETERANS PROJECT & WELLNESS - Children's Literacy Initiative
CHICAGO PROGRAMMING & WELLNESS - The Cara Program
HOUSING & SOCIAL SERVICES - The Reader Institute for Community
CHICAGO INDEPENDENT MEDIA ALLIANCE P
What kind of organizations it funds
By the activity category the IRS assigns each recipient, for the 135 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 | 47 | $1,066,508 | $25,000 |
| 2022 | 47 | $1,087,355 | $25,000 |
| 2023 | 55 | $1,545,000 | $30,000 |
| 2024 | 49 | $1,750,000 | $35,000 |
| 2025 | 52 | $3,172,000 | $52,500 |
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
89% of its giving went to organizations in Illinois.
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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. Unlike this foundation, none of them is on record as funding only organizations it picks, and each page says what its filings show.
Related guides
Where these numbers come from
Everything above is taken from James P and Brenda S Grusecki Family'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: 840 North Lake Shore Dr 2301, Chicago, IL, 60611. This is the address the foundation gave the IRS.
EIN 16-1639401 · See the original filings on ProPublica · How we build this
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