Charles E Benidt Foundation
ActivePhilanthropy & VoluntarismFunds Individuals
About Charles E Benidt Foundation
The Charles E Benidt Foundation makes very large, targeted gifts focused on securing long-term institutional stability and religious infrastructure. Its giving is concentrated into a handful of transformative grants—notably a major endowment for a domestic violence service provider and multi-grant support for a Lutheran congregation’s capital campaign—rather than many small awards. The foundation appears willing to fund both social service endowments and church building projects, even outside its home state.
Focus Areas
Endowment funding for domestic violence and family peace centersCapital campaign support for Lutheran church facilities and campus projectsLarge one-time transformational grants to stabilize nonprofits and congregations
Who They Fund
students at rural college/educational campuseslow-income scholarship recipientspeople experiencing homelessness / transitional-living clientsimmigrants seeking citizenship or legal serviceschildren and youth participating in summer/leadership programs
About Charles E Benidt Foundation
CHARLES E BENIDT FOUNDATION INC is based in ELM GROVE, WI. It reported $14,948,119 in annual grants and $69,243,131 in total assets on its latest 990 year on file, 2025. Its grantmaking is national in scope, but most grants go to recipients in Wisconsin, which accounts for 62% of grants and is also the state where it gives most often. The foundation funds individuals, and it does not make program-related investments. Recent grants show a pattern of large, targeted awards. The largest listed grant was $5,000,000 to SOJOURNER FAMILY PEACE CENTER for an endowment in 2024. Other large grants include $675,000 and $650,000 to DESERT FOOTHILLS LUTHERAN CHURCH for capital campaign support in 2023 and 2024. It also gave $580,000 to PHOENIX RESCUE MISSION for the Transforming Lives Center and Changing Lives Center capital campaigns in 2023, and $500,000 to META HOUSE for its capital campaign in both 2024 and 2025. The grant list also includes $500,000 awards to MEDICAL COLLEGE OF WISCONSIN for rural campus scholarship support.
What Charles E Benidt Foundation Funds
Recent grantmaking spans domestic violence services and endowments, Lutheran church capital campaigns, and rural campus scholarship programs. Notable grants include $5,000,000 to SOJOURNER FAMILY PEACE CENTER for endowment support, $675,000 and $650,000 to DESERT FOOTHILLS LUTHERAN CHURCH for capital campaign work, and $500,000 awards to MEDICAL COLLEGE OF WISCONSIN for rural campus scholarship funding. The foundation has also funded citizenship and immigration legal services through JOURNEY HOUSE, summer and leadership programs through OUR NEXT GENERATION, and missionary support through LCMS WORLD MISSIONS. Several grants also support infrastructure and program operations, including PENFIELD CHILDREN'S CENTER and NEW WAY ACADEMY.
How Charles E Benidt Foundation Gives
CHARLES E BENIDT FOUNDATION INC makes relatively large grants. The typical grant size in the data is $5,000 at the 25th percentile, $75,000 at the median, and $126,405 at the 75th percentile. Recent awards suggest a preference for institutions, congregations, and service organizations rather than individuals, although the foundation does fund individuals. Grants are often structured for capital campaigns, endowments, scholarship funds, and program support. The latest 990 year on file is 2025, and the recent grant list includes awards in 2023, 2024, and 2025.
Financial Snapshot
Annual Giving
$2.6M
Total Assets
$69.2M
Total Revenue
$4.4M
Total Expenses
$3.2M
Typical Grant Size
Most grants fall between $5K and $126K, with a median of $75K.
25th Percentile
$5K
Median
$75K
75th Percentile
$126K
Geographic Reach
Regional8 states funded
Funding intensity
LowHigh
Headquarters
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