Phoebe R & John D Lewis Foundation
Green Bay, WI · EIN 31-1401478. Reported 210 grants totalling $4,230,000 to 66 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". Phoebe R & John D Lewis Foundation 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 Phoebe R & John D Lewis Foundation funded make grants themselves, and it reported 11 grants totalling $398,382 to them. That is 13% of the $3,017,000 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? |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Madison Community Foundation | community foundation | Wisconsin | $376,382 | 8 | 5 | 2025 | Its form does not ask |
| Boston Foundation Inc | community foundation | Massachusetts | $20,000 | 2 | 2 | 2024 | Its form does not ask |
| Martha's Vineyard Community | grantmaking organization | Massachusetts | $2,000 | 1 | 1 | 2021 | 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 $15,000. Half of everything it gave fell between $10,000 and $25,000; the smallest was $2,000 and the largest $150,000.
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 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Martha's Vineyard Museum | Vineyard Haven, MA | $529,000 | 6 | 5 | 2025 |
| Madison Community Foundation | Madison, WI | $376,382 | 8 | 5 | 2025 |
| Meals on Wheels Northeastern Illinois | Evanston, IL | $290,000 | 6 | 5 | 2025 |
| Connections for the Homeless | Evanston, IL | $145,000 | 5 | 5 | 2025 |
| Northeastern University | Boston, MA | $140,000 | 5 | 5 | 2025 |
| National Outdoor Leadarship School | Lander, WY | $138,000 | 7 | 4 | 2024 |
| Sheriff's Meadow Foundation | Vineyard Haven, MA | $135,000 | 5 | 5 | 2025 |
| Piney Woods School | Piney Woods, MS | $120,000 | 5 | 5 | 2025 |
| Prager University Foundation | Sherman Oaks, CA | $120,000 | 5 | 5 | 2025 |
| Clean Lakes Alliance | Madison, WI | $106,235 | 5 | 5 | 2025 |
| Hoover Institute | Stanford, CA | $105,000 | 4 | 4 | 2025 |
| Suffield Academy | Suffield, CT | $105,000 | 3 | 3 | 2023 |
| Crossroads | Duxbury, MA | $100,000 | 5 | 5 | 2025 |
| Manhattan Institute | New York, NY | $100,000 | 4 | 4 | 2025 |
| One City Early Learning Center | Madison, WI | $100,000 | 5 | 5 | 2025 |
| Urban League of Greater Madison | Madison, WI | $90,383 | 4 | 4 | 2025 |
| Refugeeone | Chicago, IL | $87,500 | 5 | 5 | 2025 |
| Moran Center for Youth Advocacy | Evanston, IL | $80,000 | 4 | 4 | 2025 |
| Nelson Inst for Env Studies | Madison, WI | $80,000 | 5 | 5 | 2025 |
| Concord Academy | Concord, MA | $67,500 | 3 | 3 | 2023 |
| Banderland Bird Alliance | Madison, WI | $65,000 | 2 | 2 | 2024 |
| Family Promise North Shore | Glencoe, IL | $60,000 | 4 | 4 | 2025 |
| Foundation for Individual Rights and Expression | Philadelphia, PA | $60,000 | 3 | 3 | 2025 |
| Madison Audubon Society | Madison, WI | $60,000 | 2 | 2 | 2022 |
| Middlebury College | Middlebury, VT | $60,000 | 2 | 2 | 2025 |
| Copper Cannon | Franconia, NH | $51,000 | 5 | 5 | 2025 |
| Bruce's Legacy | Black River Falls, WI | $50,000 | 1 | 1 | 2025 |
| Enviromental Defense Fund | New York, NY | $50,000 | 5 | 5 | 2025 |
| Groundswell Conservancy | Madison, WI | $50,000 | 5 | 5 | 2025 |
| International Crane Foundation | Baraboo, WI | $50,000 | 5 | 5 | 2025 |
| U of Chicago-Dept of Radiology | Chicago, IL | $50,000 | 5 | 5 | 2025 |
| Driftless Area Land Conservancy | Dodgeville, WI | $35,000 | 2 | 2 | 2025 |
| Martha's Vineyard Preservation Trust | Edgartown, MA | $35,000 | 2 | 2 | 2025 |
| Rockford Family Planning Foundation | Rockford, IL | $35,000 | 4 | 4 | 2025 |
| American Indian College Fund | Denver, CO | $30,000 | 3 | 3 | 2025 |
| Southern Wisconsin Bird Alliance | Madison, WI | $30,000 | 1 | 1 | 2025 |
| Squash Busters | Boston, MA | $30,000 | 3 | 3 | 2023 |
| Boys & Girls Club of the North Country | Lisbon, NH | $26,000 | 4 | 4 | 2025 |
| Arizona Land and Water Trust | Tuscon, AZ | $25,000 | 5 | 5 | 2025 |
| Family Support and Resource Center | Madison, WI | $25,000 | 5 | 5 | 2025 |
| National Outdoor Leadership School | Lander, WY | $25,000 | 1 | 1 | 2025 |
| Martha's Vineyard Community Services | Oak Bluffs, MA | $23,000 | 4 | 4 | 2025 |
| Ammonoosuc Conservation Trust | Franconia, NH | $20,000 | 1 | 1 | 2025 |
| Carleton College | Northfield, MN | $20,000 | 2 | 2 | 2022 |
| The Boston Foundation | Boston, MA | $20,000 | 2 | 2 | 2024 |
| Cato Institute | Nw, WA | $15,000 | 3 | 3 | 2024 |
| Cradles to Crayons | Brighton, MA | $15,000 | 3 | 3 | 2023 |
| Epiphany School | Boston, MA | $15,000 | 3 | 3 | 2023 |
| Family Promise Chicago North Shore | Evanston, IL | $15,000 | 1 | 1 | 2021 |
| The Children's Room | Arlington, MA | $15,000 | 3 | 3 | 2023 |
| The Prairie Enthusiasts | Viroqua, WI | $15,000 | 1 | 1 | 2021 |
| Thurgood Marshall College Fund | Washington, DC | $15,000 | 1 | 1 | 2022 |
| Belmont Day School | Belmont, MA | $13,000 | 2 | 2 | 2025 |
| Audobon Mass - Habitat | Belmont, MA | $10,000 | 2 | 2 | 2023 |
| Hoover Institution | Stanford, CA | $10,000 | 1 | 1 | 2021 |
| International Rescue Committee | Albert Lea, MN | $10,000 | 1 | 1 | 2025 |
| James B Moran Center | Evanston, IL | $10,000 | 1 | 1 | 2021 |
| Lafayette Collete | Easton, PA | $10,000 | 2 | 2 | 2022 |
| Loomis Chaffee School | Windsor, CT | $10,000 | 2 | 2 | 2022 |
| Martha's Vineyard Community Serevices | Oak Bluffs, MA | $10,000 | 1 | 1 | 2021 |
| Next Door Foundation | Milwaukee, WI | $10,000 | 1 | 1 | 2025 |
| Open Learning Exchange | Cambridge, MA | $10,000 | 1 | 1 | 2023 |
| The Belmont Voice | Belmont, MA | $10,000 | 1 | 1 | 2024 |
| Attic Angel Association | Madison, WI | $5,000 | 1 | 1 | 2023 |
| Global Voices Iniative | Chicago, IL | $5,000 | 1 | 1 | 2022 |
| Martha's Vineyard Community Foundation | West Tisbury, MA | $2,000 | 1 | 1 | 2021 |
49 of 66 (74%) 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 83%, 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.
- Martha's Vineyard Museum
ANNUAL FUND, CATALYST FUND - Madison Community Foundation
PLANNED PARENTHOOD, TORCHLIGHT FUND - Madison Audubon Society
PROGRAM SUPPORT, LAND ACQUISITION AND MANAGEMENT - Urban League of Greater Madison
BLACK BUSINESS HUB, HOME OWNERSHIP EDUCATION AND FINANCIAL COACHING PROGRAM - National Outdoor Leadarship School
JOHN LEWIS SCHOLARSHIP FUND - Clean Lakes Alliance
YAHARA SOCIETY MEMBERSHIP, COMMUNITY MEETINGS, EDUCATION PROJECTS, PARTNERSHIPS OR GRANT FUNDING
What kind of organizations it funds
By the activity category the IRS assigns each recipient, for the 142 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 | 41 | $691,000 | $10,000 |
| 2022 | 47 | $915,000 | $15,000 |
| 2023 | 44 | $875,000 | $15,000 |
| 2024 | 37 | $800,000 | $20,000 |
| 2025 | 41 | $949,000 | $20,000 |
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
28% of its giving went to organizations in Massachusetts.
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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 Phoebe R & John D Lewis Foundation'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: 2300 Riverside Drive Ste 126, Green Bay, WI, 54301. This is the address the foundation gave the IRS.
EIN 31-1401478 · See the original filings on ProPublica · How we build this
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