The Dick and Timmy Burton Foundation makes very large, targeted gifts primarily to the University of Utah and its affiliated units, along with major cultural and medical institutions in Utah. Their giving emphasizes higher education, health sciences, and regional cultural infrastructure, favoring institutional capacity and capital/undesignated support over many small grants.
Highly concentrated: very few, very large grants (multi-million-dollar gifts) with repeat support to the same university and its affiliated units; donor favors institutional rather than program-level grantees and appears regionally focused on Utah.
The Dick and Timmy Burton Foundation’s largest recent gifts have gone to the University of Utah, including $12.7 million in 2024 and $8,010,980 in 2023. That pattern signals a funder built around major institutional support rather than dispersed small grants. The foundation’s recent giving also extends to the University of Utah College of Nursing and John A Moran Eye Center, showing a strong emphasis on university-based health sciences. Beyond the university, the foundation has backed the Natural History Museum of Utah and other Salt Lake City cultural organizations, pairing higher education support with investments in regional public-facing institutions. Recent grants also reach beyond the university campus to groups such as the Visual Arts Institute, the Ij & Jeanne Wagner Jewish Community Center, and Wasatch County Sheriff. The overall picture is of a foundation that funds large, often flexible awards to a relatively small set of Utah institutions, with especially heavy concentration in Salt Lake City-area organizations and a clear preference for general support.
Higher education is the clearest theme in the Dick and Timmy Burton Foundation’s recent grants. In 2025, it gave $5 million to the University of Utah College of Nursing for general support, and in the same year it gave $30,000 to the University of Utah School of Dance for general support. Health sciences also receive direct backing: the foundation awarded $2.5 million to John A Moran Eye Center in 2025 for general support. Cultural and museum institutions appear as another consistent theme. It granted $5 million to the Natural History Museum of Utah in 2025 and $100,000 to Nora Eccles Harrison Museum of Art Utah State University in Logan for general support. The foundation also supports arts education and community-serving institutions, including $530,000 to the Visual Arts Institute in Salt Lake City and $50,000 to the Ij & Jeanne Wagner Jewish Community Center.
Typical awards are large: the p25 grant size is $25,000, the median is $30,000, and the p75 is $230,000, but the recent record also includes multi-million-dollar commitments. The foundation has repeated support patterns across years, including multiple grants to the University of Utah and to the Visual Arts Institute, along with a three-year sequence to Wasatch County Sheriff. The grant list is almost entirely general support, and the foundation does not fund individuals. Its activity is regional, with giving concentrated in Utah rather than the headquarters state of Illinois.
$13.3M
$20.3M
$1.1M
$13.4M
Most grants fall between $25K and $230K, with a median of $30K.
25th Percentile
$25K
Median
$30K
75th Percentile
$230K
About 0% of grants go to recipients in UT.
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Notable grantees: University of Utah, University of Utah College of Nursing, Natural History Museum of Utah, John A. Moran Eye Center
Grant recipients are overwhelmingly in Utah, and every recent grant listed goes to a U.S. organization. Salt Lake City is the main recipient hub, with grants to the University of Utah, Natural History Museum of Utah, Visual Arts Institute, and several other local institutions. Other Utah locations in the recent record include Logan, with Nora Eccles Harrison Museum of Art Utah State University, and Heber City, with Wasatch County Sheriff. Fairfield also appears through West Desert Aviators. The recipient country distribution is entirely U.S.-based, at 19 grants and 100.0%.
Recent grants center on the University of Utah and affiliated units, plus Utah cultural and medical institutions. Examples include the University of Utah College of Nursing, John A Moran Eye Center, the Natural History Museum of Utah, and the Visual Arts Institute, with most awards marked for general support.
Its grant-size distribution is large relative to many foundations: p25 is $25,000, the median is $30,000, and p75 is $230,000. The recent record also includes much larger awards, such as $12.7 million and $8,010,980 to the University of Utah.
Yes. The University of Utah appears in multiple recent years, including 2023, 2024, and 2025. Other repeat recipients include the Visual Arts Institute in 2023, 2024, and 2025, and Wasatch County Sheriff in 2023, 2024, and 2025.
Its giving is regional and concentrated in Utah. Recent recipients are in Salt Lake City, Logan, Heber City, and Fairfield, and the recipient country distribution is entirely U.S.-based, with 19 grants and 100.0% in the U.S.
2025
Source: IRS Form 990-PF, fiscal year 2025.
Most recent grants reported to the IRS.
| Recipient | Location | Amount | Year | Purpose |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| UNIVERSITY OF UTAH | SALT LAKE CITY, UT | $5,060,000 | 2025 | GENERAL |
| UNIVERSITY OF UTAH COLLEGE OF NURSING | SALT LAKE CITY, UT | $5,000,000 | 2025 | GENERAL SUPPORT |
| NATURAL HISTORY MUSEUM OF UTAH | SALT LAKE CITY, UT | $5,000,000 | 2025 | GENERAL SUPPORT |
| NATURAL HISTORY MUSEUM OF UTAH | SALT LAKE CITY, UT | $5,000,000 | 2025 | GENERAL |
| JOHN A MORAN EYE CENTER | SALT LAKE CITY, UT | $2,500,000 | 2025 | GENERAL |
| JOHN A MORAN EYE CENTER | SALT LAKE CITY, UT | $2,500,000 | 2025 | GENERAL SUPPORT |
| VISUAL ARTS INSTITUTE | SALT LAKE CITY, UT | $530,000 | 2025 | GENERAL SUPPORT |
| VISUAL ARTS INSTITUTE | SALT LAKE CITY, UT | $330,000 | 2025 | GENERAL |
| NORA ECCLES HARRISON MUSEUM OF ART UTAH STATE UNIVERSITY | LOGAN, UT | $100,000 | 2025 | GENERAL SUPPORT |
| IJ & JEANNE WAGNER JEWISH COMMUNITY CENTER | SALT LAKE CITY, UT | $50,000 | 2025 | GENERAL SUPPORT |
| SPRINGVILLE MUSEUM OF ART | SPRINGVILLE, UT | $30,000 | 2025 | GENERAL |
| MANNERS-GOLDEN RULE FOUNDATION | SALT LAKE CITY, UT | $30,000 | 2025 | GENERAL |
| UNIVERSITY OF UTAH SCHOOL OF DANCE | SALT LAKE CITY, UT | $30,000 | 2025 | GENERAL SUPPORT |
| GOLDEN RULE FOUNDATION | SALT LAKE CITY, UT | $30,000 | 2025 | GENERAL SUPPORT |
| WASATCH COUNTY SHERIFF | HEBER CITY, UT | $20,500 | 2025 | GENERAL SUPPORT |
| WASATCH COUNTY SHERIFF | HEBER CITY, UT | $20,500 | 2025 | GENERAL |
| WEST DESERT AVIATORS | FAIRFIELD, UT | $10,000 | 2025 | GENERAL SUPPORT |
| UNIVERSITY OF UTAH | SALT LAKE CITY, UT | $12,700,000 | 2024 | GENERAL |
| VISUAL ARTS INSTITUTE | SALT LAKE CITY, UT | $230,000 | 2024 | GENERAL |
| MANNERS-GOLDEN RULE FOUNDATION | SALT LAKE CITY, UT | $55,000 | 2024 | GENERAL |
| UTAH MUSEUM OF CONTEMPORARY ART | SALT LAKE CITY, UT | $25,000 | 2024 | GENERAL |
| WASATCH COUNTY SHERIFF | HEBER CITY, UT | $20,500 | 2024 | GENERAL |
| UNIVERSITY OF UTAH | SALT LAKE CITY, UT | $8,010,980 | 2023 | GENERAL |
| VISUAL ARTS INSTITUTE | SALT LAKE CITY, UT | $30,000 | 2023 | GENERAL |
| MANNERS-GOLDEN RULE FOUNDATION | SALT LAKE CITY, UT | $25,000 | 2023 | GENERAL |
| WASATCH COUNTY SHERIFF | HEBER CITY, UT | $20,500 | 2023 | GENERAL |
UNIVERSITY OF UTAH
$5,060,000GENERAL
UNIVERSITY OF UTAH COLLEGE OF NURSING
$5,000,000GENERAL SUPPORT
NATURAL HISTORY MUSEUM OF UTAH
$5,000,000GENERAL SUPPORT
NATURAL HISTORY MUSEUM OF UTAH
$5,000,000GENERAL
JOHN A MORAN EYE CENTER
$2,500,000GENERAL
JOHN A MORAN EYE CENTER
$2,500,000GENERAL SUPPORT
VISUAL ARTS INSTITUTE
$530,000GENERAL SUPPORT
VISUAL ARTS INSTITUTE
$330,000GENERAL
NORA ECCLES HARRISON MUSEUM OF ART UTAH STATE UNIVERSITY
$100,000GENERAL SUPPORT
IJ & JEANNE WAGNER JEWISH COMMUNITY CENTER
$50,000GENERAL SUPPORT
SPRINGVILLE MUSEUM OF ART
$30,000GENERAL
MANNERS-GOLDEN RULE FOUNDATION
$30,000GENERAL
UNIVERSITY OF UTAH SCHOOL OF DANCE
$30,000GENERAL SUPPORT
GOLDEN RULE FOUNDATION
$30,000GENERAL SUPPORT
WASATCH COUNTY SHERIFF
$20,500GENERAL SUPPORT
WASATCH COUNTY SHERIFF
$20,500GENERAL
WEST DESERT AVIATORS
$10,000GENERAL SUPPORT
UNIVERSITY OF UTAH
$12,700,000GENERAL
VISUAL ARTS INSTITUTE
$230,000GENERAL
MANNERS-GOLDEN RULE FOUNDATION
$55,000GENERAL
UTAH MUSEUM OF CONTEMPORARY ART
$25,000GENERAL
WASATCH COUNTY SHERIFF
$20,500GENERAL
UNIVERSITY OF UTAH
$8,010,980GENERAL
VISUAL ARTS INSTITUTE
$30,000GENERAL
MANNERS-GOLDEN RULE FOUNDATION
$25,000GENERAL
WASATCH COUNTY SHERIFF
$20,500GENERAL