Foothold
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About Foothold
Foothold is a Salt Lake County–focused family foundation that concentrates its giving on local human services and education initiatives, especially programs that help immigrants and refugees gain English fluency and succeed in school and the workforce. Its grants are few but large, with the vast majority of assets going to one flagship partner; smaller one-off gifts support intergenerational education, refugee relief, and occasional health/medical education causes in Utah. The foundation prioritizes practical, community-level interventions that improve integration and opportunity for vulnerable populations.
Focus Areas
English language acquisition and workforce integration for immigrants and refugees (local)Refugee relief and resettlement support in UtahIntergenerational care and education programsLocal medical education and cancer research support (small-scale)
Who They Fund
immigrants / local non-native English speakersrefugees (Ukrainian evacuees)school-aged students (K-12)job-seekers / workforce entrantsintergenerational families
About Foothold
Foothold’s recent giving is dominated by a single English-language and workforce-integration effort in Salt Lake City: two 2023 grants to Boost Foundation totaled $5,903,644 and were described as helping local citizens become fluent in English so they can excel in school and the labor market. That concentration makes the foundation’s priorities unusually clear. Around that flagship relationship, the funder also supports practical community services in Utah, including refugee assistance, intergenerational care, and small-scale medical education and cancer research. The pattern points to a local, hands-on grantmaker that uses large gifts to underwrite direct-service programs rather than spreading funds widely across many organizations. Foothold’s grantmaking is tightly centered on organizations serving people in Utah, with recent awards going to Salt Lake City-based recipients as well as one Washington-state organization for intergenerational care and education. The foundation’s portfolio suggests a preference for programs tied to daily needs and measurable participation: language fluency, school success, workforce readiness, refugee support, and health-related education or research. Across the latest grants, the emphasis stays on community-level interventions with clear service delivery goals.
What Foothold Funds
A defining theme in Foothold’s grantmaking is language access for immigrants and refugees. The foundation gave $3,745,000 to Boost Foundation in 2023 for helping local citizens become fluent in English and prepared for school and the labor market. Refugee relief also appears in the record: it awarded $30,000 to Community Foundation of Utah to assist refugees fleeing the Ukrainian war. Foothold’s support extends beyond newcomer services into intergenerational programming, including a $300,000 grant to Tears for Life the Tears Foundation for intergenerational care and education. Health-related giving is smaller but present, with $20,000 to Huntsman Cancer Foundation for research on cancer treatments and $5,000 to Millani Diamse for medical education.
How Foothold Gives
Foothold’s grant sizes are highly uneven: the p25 is $20,000, the median is $30,000, and the p75 jumps to $2,158,644. That spread reflects a structure built around a very large flagship gift alongside much smaller supplemental awards. The recent record shows repeated support for Boost Foundation in 2023, indicating recurring funding rather than one-off support in that core program area. The foundation is classified as a pure DAF provider, and it also makes program-related investments. The visible grant pattern is local and concentrated, with all listed recipients in the United States and the heaviest activity in Utah.
Financial Snapshot
Annual Giving
$6.3M
Total Assets
$4.5M
Total Revenue
$81K
Total Expenses
$316K
Typical Grant Size
Most grants fall between $20K and $2.2M, with a median of $30K.
25th Percentile
$20K
Median
$30K
75th Percentile
$2.2M
Geographic Reach
Local1 state funded
About 100% of grants go to recipients in UT.
Funding intensity
LowHigh
Headquarters
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