William & Florence Wheeler Foundation
Bakersfield, CA · EIN 88-0233486. Reported 106 grants totalling $1,454,921 to 53 recipients across tax years 2020-2024. 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. William & Florence Wheeler 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 $5,000. Half of everything it gave fell between $2,500 and $16,450; the smallest was $500 and the largest $117,500. 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 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Garces Memorial High School | Bakersfield, CA | $140,213 | 5 | 5 | 2024 |
| California Reigning Horse Association | Temecula, CA | $117,500 | 1 | 1 | 2021 |
| Cmsf Heritage Foundation | Paso Robles, CA | $100,263 | 2 | 2 | 2024 |
| Boys & Girls Club of Kern County | Bakersfield, CA | $100,000 | 4 | 4 | 2024 |
| Mendiburu Magic Foundation | Bakersfield, CA | $90,000 | 4 | 4 | 2024 |
| Alano Pintado Equine Health Foundation | Los Olivos, CA | $85,000 | 2 | 2 | 2024 |
| Calm | Bakersfield, CA | $75,000 | 1 | 1 | 2022 |
| Hoffmann Hospice | Bakersfield, CA | $67,620 | 3 | 3 | 2024 |
| Kern County Museum | Bakersfield, CA | $60,000 | 1 | 1 | 2020 |
| Jack's Helping Hand | San Luis Obispo, CA | $55,000 | 3 | 3 | 2024 |
| California 4H Foundation | Davis, CA | $50,000 | 1 | 1 | 2023 |
| Heritage Foundation | Washington, DC | $50,000 | 2 | 2 | 2021 |
| Surfing for Hope | San Luis Obispo, CA | $50,000 | 4 | 4 | 2024 |
| Bakersfield College Foundation | Bakersfield, CA | $40,000 | 2 | 2 | 2024 |
| Junior League of Bakersfield | Bakersfield, CA | $30,000 | 2 | 2 | 2024 |
| Redwings Horse Sanctuary | Paso Robles, CA | $27,500 | 4 | 4 | 2024 |
| Bakersfield Museum of Art | Bakersfield, CA | $25,000 | 5 | 5 | 2024 |
| City Serve | Bakersfield, CA | $25,000 | 1 | 1 | 2021 |
| California Reining Horse Association | Temecula, CA | $24,375 | 3 | 3 | 2024 |
| Boy Scouts of America | Bakersfield, CA | $20,000 | 2 | 2 | 2024 |
| The Regents of the University of Calif | Santa Monica, CA | $20,000 | 2 | 2 | 2023 |
| Healing Futures | Bakersfield, CA | $15,000 | 1 | 1 | 2020 |
| Reflections for Women Inc | Bakersfield, CA | $15,000 | 3 | 3 | 2023 |
| The African American Network of Kc | Bakersfield, CA | $15,000 | 1 | 1 | 2020 |
| California Mid-State Fair Heritage | Paso Robles, CA | $12,000 | 1 | 1 | 2021 |
| Jim Burke Education Foundation | Bakersfield, CA | $10,000 | 4 | 4 | 2024 |
| The Blessing Corner Ministries | Bakersfield, CA | $10,000 | 1 | 1 | 2020 |
| The Regents of the University of California | Virginia Beach, VA | $10,000 | 1 | 1 | 2020 |
| Tunnel to Towers Foundation | Staten Island, NY | $10,000 | 2 | 2 | 2024 |
| Wounded Warriors Family Support | Omaha, CA | $10,000 | 2 | 2 | 2024 |
| Woods Humane Society | San Luis Obispo, CA | $9,500 | 4 | 4 | 2024 |
| Frontier Ag Boosters Inc | Bakersfield, CA | $8,000 | 4 | 4 | 2023 |
| Kathy's Legacy Foundation | Carlsbad, CA | $7,500 | 3 | 3 | 2024 |
| St Francis School Foundation | Bakersfield, CA | $5,250 | 4 | 4 | 2024 |
| Bakersfield Angels | Bakersfield, CA | $5,000 | 1 | 1 | 2020 |
| Bakersfield Memorial Hospital Foundation | Bakersfield, CA | $5,000 | 1 | 1 | 2021 |
| Big Brothers Big Sisters | San Diego, CA | $5,000 | 1 | 1 | 2021 |
| BSA Southern Sierra Council | Bakersfield, CA | $5,000 | 1 | 1 | 2022 |
| Cal Poly Animal Science | San Luis Obispo, CA | $5,000 | 1 | 1 | 2022 |
| Careity | Forth Worth, TX | $5,000 | 1 | 1 | 2020 |
| Saint Vincent De Paul | Bakersfield, CA | $5,000 | 1 | 1 | 2020 |
| Villagers Inc | Shafter, CA | $5,000 | 1 | 1 | 2020 |
| Zoo to You | Paso Robles, CA | $5,000 | 2 | 2 | 2024 |
| Fresno Pacific University | Fresno, CA | $4,200 | 1 | 1 | 2021 |
| San Diego Youth Services | San Diego, CA | $2,500 | 1 | 1 | 2023 |
| Stars Theatre | Bakersfield, CA | $2,500 | 1 | 1 | 2020 |
| The Plank Foundation | Bakersfield, CA | $2,500 | 1 | 1 | 2020 |
| Wesley House Student Residence Inc | San Diego, CA | $2,500 | 1 | 1 | 2023 |
| Bass Lake Chamber of Commerce | Bass Lake, CA | $2,000 | 2 | 2 | 2024 |
| Juvenile Diabetes Foundation | Bakersfield, CA | $2,000 | 1 | 1 | 2021 |
| Aqua-Nut Divers Inc | Boulder, CA | $1,000 | 1 | 1 | 2021 |
| Kern Around the Clock | Bakersfield, CA | $500 | 1 | 1 | 2020 |
| Readyland Pre-School | Bakersfield, CA | $500 | 1 | 1 | 2021 |
26 of 53 (49%) 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 58%, across 4 year-to-year transitions. The median foundation retains about 67%, so this one is about typical. 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.
- California Reigning Horse Association
TO ADVANCE THE SPORT OF REINING WITH DEDICATION AND PASSION. - Calm
TO PROTECT AND PRESERVE THE WONDERS OF OUR LOCAL HABITAT. - Alano Pintado Equine Health Foundation
TO RESEARCH, DISCOVER AND SHARE ADVANCEMENTS IN EQUINE VETERINARY MEDICINE THAT WILL DIRECTLY IMPACT THE HEALTH AND PERFORMANCE OF THE HORSE. - Garces Memorial High School
TO HELP NURTURE STUDENTS' SPIRITUALITY, DEVELOP THEIR INTELLECT AND THEIR CHARACTER. - Kern County Museum
TO SUPPORT OPERATIONS OF THE MUSEUM AND PRESERVATION OF HISTORICAL ARTIFACTS, DOCUMENTS, PHOTOGRAPHS, STRUCTURES, COLLECTIONS AND OTHER SUCH ITEMS. - Cmsf Heritage Foundation
TO PRESERVE AND ENRICH THE HERITAGE OF THE 16TH DISTRICT AGRICULTURAL ASSOCIATION AND SHOWCASE AGRICULTURAL INDUSTRIES TO THE COMMUNITY; TO OFFER SUPPORT TO THE 4-H AND FFA PROJECTS AND CREATE AGRICULTURAL EDUCATION OPPORTUNITIES; MAINTAIN A STANDARD OF EXCELLENCE IN THE FACILITIES AND CREATE CAPITAL IMPROVEMENT OPPORTUNITIES AND TO SERVE AS AN ARM OF THE CALIFORNIA MID-STATE FAIR THAT CAN ACCEPT CHARITABLE DONATIONS.
What kind of organizations it funds
By the activity category the IRS assigns each recipient, for the 58 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 |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2020 | 22 | $285,500 | $10,000 |
| 2021 | 18 | $246,633 | $5,000 |
| 2022 | 18 | $270,455 | $5,000 |
| 2023 | 26 | $324,641 | $6,250 |
| 2024 | 22 | $327,692 | $10,000 |
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
95% of its giving went to organizations in California. 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 $5,000. 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 California.
- 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 William & Florence Wheeler Foundation's own Form 990-PF filings, which the IRS publishes in bulk. We used 5 returns (tax years 2020-2024). 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: 5060 California Ave 800, Bakersfield, CA, 93309. 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 88-0233486 · See the original filings on ProPublica · How we build this
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