We are a non-profit group that travels the world to provide media content for non-profits, charities, and NGOs, producing high-quality documentaries, short videos, and public service announcements to communicate messages, promote activism, and raise awareness.
Birds Nest Foundation Inc centers its giving on producing short promotional videos for nonprofit organizations, with grants that finance the full process from organizing and shooting to editing and distribution. That media-production model appears repeatedly in its active programs and in recent grants, where large awards support nonprofit communications rather than unrestricted operating aid. The foundation also maintains a distinct scholarship track for U.S. military veterans through the Veterans Education Challenge, which is funded separately from its video grants. Among the largest recent grants, Help USA received $39,660 in 2025 and $31,600 in 2024. Other sizable awards went to Strive, which received $14,000 in 2024 and $7,000 in 2025, showing that some recipients return across years. The foundation’s recent giving also includes grants to organizations such as Mind Up, Hd Media, Safe at Home, Centro Romero, and Cfj Foundation, indicating a mix of communications support and mission-specific nonprofit assistance. The foundation’s public description says it travels to provide media content for nonprofits, charities, and NGOs, producing documentaries, short videos, and public service announcements to communicate messages, promote activism, and raise awareness.
Nonprofit communications is the clearest throughline in Birds Nest Foundation Inc’s grantmaking. It funds 3–5 minute promotional videos for eligible nonprofit organizations, including production, editing, and distribution, and recipients can use the finished video for websites, fundraising events, and donor outreach. Recent grants to Help USA and Strive fit that pattern. The foundation also supports advocacy and public awareness work through video production grants. Its active programs describe this support as serving nonprofit causes in communications, media, public awareness, and fundraising support, and the grant terms allow the completed video to be used in outreach settings. A second cause area is veteran education. Through the Veterans Education Challenge, the Richards family match public donations dollar-for-dollar up to $1 million, with funds directed to scholarships for U.S. military veterans for college costs the GI Bill does not cover.
Birds Nest Foundation Inc’s recent grants cluster tightly around round-dollar awards, with a typical grant size of $10,000 at the 25th percentile, median, and 75th percentile, while a few larger grants sit above that range. Help USA’s two awards across 2024 and 2025 and Strive’s repeat grants across the same years show recurring support rather than one-time-only giving. The foundation is not a donor-advised fund and does not make program-related investments. One active scholarship program is funded through matched public donations, with the Richards family matching contributions dollar-for-dollar up to $1 million.
$72K
$259K
$119K
$373K
Most grants fall between $10K and $12K, with a median of $10K.
25th Percentile
$10K
Median
$10K
75th Percentile
$12K
About 0% of grants go to recipients in NY.
AVIS RICHARDS
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All recent grants in the dataset went to U.S. recipients. New York appears most often by grant count, but the recipient list also includes organizations such as Help USA, Strive, Mind Up, Hd Media, Safe at Home, American Friends, Centro Romero, and Cfj Foundation outside any single-city pattern in the provided data. The recipient-country distribution is entirely domestic, with 12 grants in the United States.
Its core grantmaking finances and produces 3–5 minute promotional videos for nonprofit organizations. The video grants cover organizing, shooting, editing, and distribution, and the completed material can be used for websites, fundraising events, donor outreach, and public awareness work.
Yes. It runs the Veterans Education Challenge, a scholarship fund for U.S. military veterans. The program covers college costs that the GI Bill does not, and the Richards family matches public donations dollar-for-dollar up to $1 million.
Its typical grant size is $10,000 at the 25th percentile, median, and 75th percentile. Recent awards also include larger grants such as $39,660 and $31,600, alongside many $10,000 grants.
Yes. Help USA received grants in both 2024 and 2025, and Strive also appears in two different years. That pattern suggests repeat relationships with some recipients rather than strictly one-time awards.
Yes. The active video grant programs state that they accept unsolicited applications for U.S. nonprofit organizations, and one promotional video grant also lists international geography. The scholarship program for veterans is separate and does not accept unsolicited applications.
2025
Source: IRS Form 990-PF, fiscal year 2025.
Most recent grants reported to the IRS.
| Recipient | Location | Amount | Year | Purpose |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| HELP USA | — | $39,660 | 2025 | FUNDING |
| AMERICAN FRIENDS | — | $10,000 | 2025 | FUNDING |
| CENTRO ROMERO | — | $10,000 | 2025 | FUNDING |
| STRIVE | — | $7,000 | 2025 | FUNDING |
| CFJ FOUNDATION | — | $5,300 | 2025 | FUNDING |
| HELP USA | — | $31,600 | 2024 | FUNDING |
| STRIVE | — | $14,000 | 2024 | FUNDING |
| MIND UP | — | $10,560 | 2024 | FUNDING |
| SAFE AT HOME | — | $10,000 | 2024 | FUNDING |
| AMERICAN FRIENDS | — | $10,000 | 2024 | FUNDING |
| HD MEDIA | — | $10,000 | 2024 | FUNDING |
| CFJ FOUNDATION | — | $5,300 | 2024 | FUNDING |
| YOUTH INC | — | $26,160 | 2023 | FUNDING |
| STRIVE | — | $22,467 | 2023 | FUNDING |
| R BABY FOUNDATION | — | $10,000 | 2023 | FUNDING |
HELP USA
$39,660FUNDING
AMERICAN FRIENDS
$10,000FUNDING
CENTRO ROMERO
$10,000FUNDING
STRIVE
$7,000FUNDING
CFJ FOUNDATION
$5,300FUNDING
HELP USA
$31,600FUNDING
STRIVE
$14,000FUNDING
MIND UP
$10,560FUNDING
SAFE AT HOME
$10,000FUNDING
AMERICAN FRIENDS
$10,000FUNDING
HD MEDIA
$10,000FUNDING
CFJ FOUNDATION
$5,300FUNDING
YOUTH INC
$26,160FUNDING
STRIVE
$22,467FUNDING
R BABY FOUNDATION
$10,000FUNDING
Current and upcoming funding from Birds Nest Foundation that your nonprofit may be able to apply for.
Who can apply: Applicant must have 501(c)(3) status. The foundation strongly suggests the charity be rated on CharityNavigator.com and should have clear, tangible goals for what it wants to promote, cure, or raise awareness about.
Deadline: No specific deadline stated; applicants are asked to note any important timing needs for their video.
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Create a free accountDeadlines and eligibility are summarized from public sources and may change — always confirm the details on the funder's official application page before applying.
