The Topper Foundation
Allentown, PA · EIN 20-0523820. Reported 145 grants totalling $7,274,589 to 87 recipients 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 Topper 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 $6,500. Half of everything it gave fell between $5,000 and $25,000; the smallest was $100 and the largest $1,042,500. 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 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| United Way of the Greater Lv | Allentown, PA | $4,027,500 | 4 | 4 | 2024 |
| Villanova University | Villanova, PA | $602,500 | 4 | 4 | 2024 |
| The School Sisters of St Francis | Milwaukee, WI | $560,000 | 1 | 1 | 2024 |
| Province of Our Mother | Chicago, IL | $325,000 | 1 | 1 | 2024 |
| Diocese of Allentown | Allentown, PA | $145,850 | 3 | 3 | 2024 |
| School of Angels | Las Angeles, CA | $145,000 | 3 | 3 | 2024 |
| St Michael the Archangel | Levittown, PA | $128,000 | 2 | 2 | 2022 |
| Lehigh Valley Hospital | Allentown, PA | $115,340 | 3 | 3 | 2024 |
| St Michael the Archangels | Levittown, PA | $111,500 | 2 | 2 | 2024 |
| Assumption Church | Bethlehem, PA | $106,350 | 4 | 4 | 2024 |
| Regina Angelorum Academy | Ardmore, PA | $60,000 | 2 | 2 | 2024 |
| Trinity Hall | Tinton Falls, NJ | $60,000 | 2 | 2 | 2024 |
| Greens Ledge Light Preservation Society (light House) | Rowayton, CT | $50,000 | 2 | 2 | 2022 |
| Kolbe Academy | Bethlehem, PA | $49,334 | 1 | 1 | 2021 |
| The Catholic Foundation of Eastern Pa | Allentown, PA | $48,000 | 2 | 2 | 2023 |
| Desales University | Center Valley, PA | $45,200 | 3 | 3 | 2023 |
| Cay Galgon Life House | Bethlehem, PA | $43,500 | 4 | 4 | 2024 |
| Augustinian Fund | Villanova, PA | $43,000 | 4 | 4 | 2024 |
| Big Brothers Big Sisters | Allentown, PA | $29,500 | 4 | 4 | 2024 |
| Bloom | Bethlehem, PA | $27,500 | 2 | 2 | 2023 |
| Bishops Annual Appeal | Allentown, PA | $25,000 | 1 | 1 | 2021 |
| International Ocd Foundation | Boston, MA | $25,000 | 1 | 1 | 2023 |
| Knights of Columbus | West Covina, CA | $25,000 | 1 | 1 | 2022 |
| St John Vianney Regional School | Allentown, PA | $25,000 | 1 | 1 | 2021 |
| Boy & Girls Club of Allentown | Allentown, PA | $21,000 | 4 | 4 | 2024 |
| Good Shepherd | Center Valley, PA | $20,250 | 3 | 3 | 2024 |
| Health Network Foundation | Clevland, OH | $20,000 | 2 | 2 | 2024 |
| Nafasi Project | Atlantic Highlands, NJ | $20,000 | 2 | 2 | 2022 |
| Paypal Giving Fund | Washington, DC | $17,500 | 2 | 2 | 2024 |
| Historic Bethlehem | Bethlehem, PA | $16,000 | 2 | 2 | 2022 |
| Blessed Sacrament | Jackson Heights, NY | $15,000 | 1 | 1 | 2023 |
| Lehigh University | Bethlehem, PA | $15,000 | 1 | 1 | 2023 |
| Star Community Health | Allentown, PA | $15,000 | 1 | 1 | 2024 |
| Valley Youth House | Bethlehem, PA | $15,000 | 3 | 3 | 2024 |
| Tunnel to Towers Foundation | Staten Island, NY | $14,000 | 2 | 2 | 2024 |
| Macalusos Compassionate Care | Sparta, NJ | $12,896 | 1 | 1 | 2021 |
| Martin Bradbury & Griffith | Allentown, PA | $12,094 | 1 | 1 | 2022 |
| Friends School | Quakertown, PA | $12,000 | 1 | 1 | 2024 |
| Second Round Foundation | Mullica Hill, NJ | $12,000 | 1 | 1 | 2024 |
| Assumption Bvm Church | Colesville, PA | $11,150 | 4 | 4 | 2024 |
| Acchs | Allentown, PA | $10,000 | 2 | 2 | 2024 |
| Catholic Psychotherapy Association | Greelwy, CO | $10,000 | 2 | 2 | 2024 |
| Lehigh Community Humane Society | Allentown, PA | $10,000 | 1 | 1 | 2022 |
| St Lukes University Health Network | Bethlehem, PA | $10,000 | 1 | 1 | 2022 |
| Mercy School for Special Learning | Allentown, PA | $8,530 | 3 | 3 | 2023 |
| Saint Anne School | Bethlehem, PA | $8,500 | 1 | 1 | 2024 |
| Vuc | Valparaiso, IN | $8,156 | 1 | 1 | 2023 |
| Paulist Fathers | New York, NY | $7,564 | 2 | 2 | 2024 |
| Governor's School for Arts | Norfolk, VA | $7,500 | 1 | 1 | 2023 |
| Wolf Performing Arts Center | Bryn Mawr, PA | $7,500 | 2 | 2 | 2024 |
| Second Harvest Food Bank | Nazareth, PA | $6,248 | 2 | 2 | 2022 |
| Most Blessed Sacrament Church | Bally, PA | $5,500 | 1 | 1 | 2021 |
| Httpstruthf Pa | Bethlehem, PA | $5,145 | 1 | 1 | 2022 |
| Room at the Inn | Bridgeton, MO | $5,010 | 1 | 1 | 2024 |
| Allentown Rescue Mission | Allentown, PA | $5,000 | 1 | 1 | 2021 |
| American Cancer Society | Philadelphia, PA | $5,000 | 1 | 1 | 2023 |
| American Heart Association | Dallas, TX | $5,000 | 1 | 1 | 2021 |
| Chop | King of Prussia, PA | $5,000 | 1 | 1 | 2023 |
| Holy Family Home | Bethlehem, PA | $5,000 | 1 | 1 | 2024 |
| Little Sisters of the Poor | Philadelphia, PA | $5,000 | 1 | 1 | 2023 |
| Live Vertical Ministry | Springfield, PA | $5,000 | 1 | 1 | 2024 |
| Montefiore Medical Center | Bronx, NY | $5,000 | 1 | 1 | 2023 |
| Notre Dame Club of Lehigh Valley | Allentown, PA | $5,000 | 1 | 1 | 2021 |
| Red Cross | Allentown, PA | $5,000 | 1 | 1 | 2024 |
| St Francis School | Bally, PA | $5,000 | 1 | 1 | 2024 |
| Villanova Special Olympics | Villanova, PA | $5,000 | 1 | 1 | 2023 |
| Walking With Purpose | Greemwhich, CT | $5,000 | 1 | 1 | 2023 |
| The Agnes Irwin School | Mawr, PA | $2,584 | 1 | 1 | 2024 |
| Active Minds | Washington, DC | $2,500 | 1 | 1 | 2023 |
| Every Mother | Brooklyn, NY | $2,500 | 1 | 1 | 2024 |
| St Thomas Episcopal Church | Pittstown, NJ | $2,500 | 1 | 1 | 2024 |
| The Hillside School | Macungie, PA | $2,500 | 1 | 1 | 2021 |
| Amigos De Jesus | Malvern, PA | $2,000 | 1 | 1 | 2021 |
| Exponent Philanth | Washington, DC | $1,995 | 1 | 1 | 2022 |
| Association of Small Foundations | Washington, DC | $1,645 | 2 | 2 | 2024 |
| Second Harvest | Nazareth, PA | $1,562 | 1 | 1 | 2023 |
| YWCA | Allentown, PA | $1,500 | 2 | 2 | 2022 |
| Special Olympics | State College, PA | $1,036 | 1 | 1 | 2021 |
| Bob Price Memorial | Bethlehem, PA | $1,000 | 1 | 1 | 2024 |
| Moorings Park Fdn | Naples, FL | $1,000 | 1 | 1 | 2022 |
| St Baldrick's Foundation | Monrovia, CA | $1,000 | 1 | 1 | 2021 |
| New Bethany | Bethlehem, PA | $900 | 1 | 1 | 2022 |
| Abington Friends School | Jenkintown, PA | $500 | 1 | 1 | 2021 |
| St Baldricks Foundation | Monrovia, CA | $500 | 1 | 1 | 2024 |
| Maryknoll | Maryknoll, NY | $450 | 2 | 2 | 2023 |
| Center | Bethlehem, PA | $200 | 1 | 1 | 2022 |
| Cancer Support Community | Sierra Madre, CA | $100 | 1 | 1 | 2022 |
35 of 87 (40%) 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 53%, across 3 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 kind of organizations it funds
By the activity category the IRS assigns each recipient, for the 48 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 | 34 | $1,641,752 | $8,500 |
| 2022 | 31 | $1,414,761 | $8,500 |
| 2023 | 40 | $1,794,550 | $7,828 |
| 2024 | 40 | $2,423,526 | $5,005 |
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
81% of its giving went to organizations in Pennsylvania. 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 $6,500. 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 Pennsylvania.
- 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 Topper Foundation's own Form 990-PF filings, which the IRS publishes in bulk. We used 4 returns (tax years 2021-2024). 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: 645 Hamilton Street Suite 500, Allentown, PA, 18101. 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 20-0523820 · See the original filings on ProPublica · How we build this
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