The Sarofim Foundation
Houston, TX · EIN 23-7065248. Reported 87 grants totalling $13.5M to 69 recipients across tax years 2021-2023. 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 Sarofim 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 $25,000. Half of everything it gave fell between $10,000 and $50,000; the smallest was $1,000 and the largest $7,821,495. 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 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Various Charities Made By Transferee Foundation | Houston, TX | $7,821,495 | 1 | 1 | 2023 |
| Knowledge Arts Foundation Dba Teach | Houston, TX | $1,150,000 | 1 | 1 | 2021 |
| Episcopal High School | Bellaire, TX | $1,035,000 | 2 | 2 | 2022 |
| The Museum of Fine Arts Houston | Houston, TX | $448,444 | 3 | 3 | 2023 |
| United Way of Greater Houston | Houston, TX | $375,000 | 1 | 1 | 2022 |
| Awty International School | Houston, TX | $200,000 | 1 | 1 | 2022 |
| Houston Grand Opera | Houston, TX | $200,000 | 2 | 2 | 2022 |
| Alley Theatre | Houston, TX | $175,000 | 1 | 1 | 2022 |
| Houston Food Bank | Houston, TX | $175,000 | 2 | 2 | 2022 |
| Contemporary Arts Museum Houston | Houston, TX | $150,000 | 2 | 2 | 2022 |
| Houston Ballet | Houston, TX | $150,000 | 2 | 2 | 2022 |
| The Menil Collection | Houston, TX | $150,000 | 1 | 1 | 2022 |
| Star of Hope Mission | Houston, TX | $127,000 | 2 | 2 | 2022 |
| Thrive With Autism | The Woodlands, TX | $100,000 | 1 | 1 | 2022 |
| Bellville Hospital Foundation | Bellville, TX | $90,000 | 2 | 2 | 2022 |
| The Beacon Formerly Houston Compass Inc | Houston, TX | $80,000 | 2 | 2 | 2022 |
| Memorial Sloan Kettering Cancer Center | New York, NY | $75,000 | 1 | 1 | 2022 |
| Texas Children's Hospital & Cancer Center | Houston, TX | $75,000 | 2 | 2 | 2023 |
| Society of St Vincent De Paul | Houston, TX | $60,000 | 2 | 2 | 2022 |
| Harvard Business School | Boston, MA | $50,000 | 1 | 1 | 2022 |
| The Chinati Foundation | Marfa, TX | $50,000 | 2 | 2 | 2022 |
| University of Texas MD Anderson Cancer Center | Austin, TX | $50,000 | 1 | 1 | 2022 |
| YMCA of Greater Houston | Houston, TX | $50,000 | 2 | 2 | 2022 |
| Barbara Bush Houston Literacy | Houston, TX | $30,000 | 1 | 1 | 2022 |
| Children's Museum of Houston | Houston, TX | $30,000 | 2 | 2 | 2022 |
| American Cancer Society | Hagerstown, MD | $25,000 | 1 | 1 | 2022 |
| American Cancer Society | Houston, TX | $25,000 | 1 | 1 | 2021 |
| Christus Foundation for Healthcare | Houston, TX | $25,000 | 1 | 1 | 2022 |
| Discovery Green Conservancy | Houston, TX | $25,000 | 1 | 1 | 2022 |
| Emerge Fellowship | Houston, TX | $25,000 | 1 | 1 | 2022 |
| Glenwood Cemetery Historic Preservation | Houston, TX | $25,000 | 1 | 1 | 2022 |
| Harris County Hospital District Foundation | Houston, TX | $25,000 | 1 | 1 | 2022 |
| St George's School | Newport, RI | $25,000 | 1 | 1 | 2022 |
| St John's School | Houston, TX | $25,000 | 1 | 1 | 2022 |
| Stages Repertory Theatre | Houston, TX | $25,000 | 1 | 1 | 2022 |
| St Michael the Archangel Catholic Church | Houston, TX | $25,000 | 1 | 1 | 2021 |
| Texas Children's Hospital | Houston, TX | $25,000 | 1 | 1 | 2021 |
| University of St Thomas | Houston, TX | $25,000 | 1 | 1 | 2022 |
| Yes Prep | Houston, TX | $25,000 | 1 | 1 | 2022 |
| Houston Livestock Show & Rodeo | Houston, TX | $20,000 | 1 | 1 | 2022 |
| Susan Smith Blackburn Prize | Houston, TX | $20,000 | 1 | 1 | 2022 |
| Texas Heart Institute | Houston, TX | $20,000 | 2 | 2 | 2023 |
| Bayou Bend Collection & Gardens | Houston, TX | $15,000 | 1 | 1 | 2022 |
| Boys & Girls Country of Houston | Hockley, TX | $15,000 | 2 | 2 | 2023 |
| Depelchin Children's Center | Houston, TX | $15,000 | 1 | 1 | 2022 |
| Lighthouse of Houston | Houston, TX | $15,000 | 1 | 1 | 2022 |
| Ut Health | Austin, TX | $15,000 | 1 | 1 | 2022 |
| Whitney Museum of American Art | New York City, NY | $15,000 | 1 | 1 | 2022 |
| Angus Foundation | St Joseph, MO | $10,000 | 1 | 1 | 2022 |
| Cristo Rey Jesuit | Houston, TX | $10,000 | 1 | 1 | 2022 |
| First Steps Montessori School | Houston, TX | $10,000 | 1 | 1 | 2022 |
| Glasstire | Houston, TX | $10,000 | 1 | 1 | 2022 |
| Houston Public Media Foundation | Houston, TX | $10,000 | 2 | 2 | 2022 |
| Jamey Rootes Leadership Scholarship Fund | Houston, TX | $10,000 | 1 | 1 | 2022 |
| Junior League of Houston | Houston, TX | $10,000 | 1 | 1 | 2022 |
| Juvenile Diabetes Research Foundation | Hagerstown, MD | $10,000 | 1 | 1 | 2022 |
| Rice University | Houston, TX | $10,000 | 1 | 1 | 2022 |
| Ronald Mcdonald House | Houston, TX | $10,000 | 1 | 1 | 2022 |
| Rienzi | Houston, TX | $7,500 | 1 | 1 | 2022 |
| Hobby Center Foundation | Houston, TX | $6,000 | 1 | 1 | 2022 |
| Austin County Fair Association | Bellville, TX | $5,000 | 1 | 1 | 2022 |
| Jamaica Beach Volunteer Fire Dept | Galveston, TX | $5,000 | 1 | 1 | 2022 |
| Orange Show Center for Visionary Arts | Houston, TX | $5,000 | 1 | 1 | 2022 |
| Seven Acres Jewish Senior Care Services | Houston, TX | $5,000 | 1 | 1 | 2022 |
| Special Olympics Texas | San Antonio, TX | $5,000 | 1 | 1 | 2022 |
| St Thomas High School | Houston, TX | $5,000 | 1 | 1 | 2022 |
| Foundation Fighting Blindness | Columbia, MD | $2,625 | 1 | 1 | 2022 |
| Houston Bar Foundation | Houston, TX | $2,500 | 1 | 1 | 2022 |
| Bluebonnet Society | Bellville, TX | $1,000 | 1 | 1 | 2022 |
17 of 69 (25%) received money in more than one year over the 3 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 42%, across 2 year-to-year transitions. The median foundation retains about 67%, so this one is less consistent than most. 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.
- Various Charities Made By Transferee Foundation
GIFTS MADE BY TRANSFEREE FOUNDATION - THE SAROFIM FOUNDATION (FEIN: 37-2090276) IN SATISFACTION OF 2022 UNDISTRIBUTED INCOME REQUIREMENT - DETAILS AVAILABLE UPON REQUEST - Knowledge Arts Foundation Dba Teach
GENERAL CHARITABLE PURPOSES - The Museum of Fine Arts Houston
$100,000 FOR 2022 GRAND GALA BALL; REMAINDER GENERAL CHARITABLE PURPOSES - Episcopal High School
GENERAL CHARITABLE PURPOSES (2022 GALA) 1ST PAYMENT ON $1 MILLION PLEDGE/VISUAL PERFORMING ARTS CENTER - Houston Grand Opera
GENERAL CHARITABLE PURPOSES (8/1/21-7/31/22 SEASON) - Houston Ballet
GENERAL CHARITABLE PURPOSES (2022 NUTCRACKER MARKET)
What kind of organizations it funds
By the activity category the IRS assigns each recipient, for the 50 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 | 18 | $1,942,000 | $25,000 |
| 2022 | 64 | $3,630,883 | $25,000 |
| 2023 | 5 | $7,973,681 | $25,000 |
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
98% of its giving went to organizations in Texas. 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 $25,000. 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 Texas.
- 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 Sarofim Foundation's own Form 990-PF filings, which the IRS publishes in bulk. We used 3 returns (tax years 2021-2023). 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: Po Box 52830, Houston, TX, 77052. 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 23-7065248 · See the original filings on ProPublica · How we build this
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