Kara J Trott Family Foundation Aka Life Leap Foundation
ActivePhilanthropy & VoluntarismFunds Individuals
Wilmington, DEWebsite
About Kara J Trott Family Foundation Aka Life Leap Foundation
The Kara J Trott Family Foundation (Life Leap Foundation) concentrates its giving on education and children's charitable services, primarily through large, repeated gifts that establish or sustain endowed funds and scholarship programs. Grants are targeted toward Ohio-based institutions and youth-serving nonprofits, supporting higher education endowments, high school scholarship programs, and child-focused wish/medical support. The foundation favors long-term commitments to a small set of grantees rather than broad, one-off donations.
Focus Areas
University endowments and named funds (Ohio State University Trott Gebhardt Phillips Endowment)High school scholarship programs (Life Leap Scholarship Fund at Heartland High School)Children's wish and medical support organizations in Ohio/region (Make‑A‑Wish of Ohio, Kentucky & Indiana)
Who They Fund
scholarship recipients/studentspeople experiencing homelessness or at risk of homelessnesspatients discharging to transitional/residential care (recovery population)immigrants/clients of immigration clinics
About Kara J Trott Family Foundation Aka Life Leap Foundation
A defining feature of the Kara J Trott Family Foundation AKA Life Leap Foundation is its repeated support for Ohio State University Foundation, where one recent grant built the Trott Gebhardt Phillips Endowment and later gifts created the Life Leap Foundation Research Innovation Fund. That pattern points to a funder that uses sizable, multi-year awards to underwrite endowments, research, and named funds rather than spreading support broadly. The foundation’s giving also reaches child-focused and student-facing programs in Ohio. It has made consecutive grants to Make-A-Wish Foundation of Ohio Kentucky and Indian for general and unrestricted support, and it has backed Heartland High School with scholarship funding across multiple years. Those awards sit alongside support for organizations serving people navigating trauma, recovery, and major life disruption, including homelessness prevention, immigration services, and discharge support for patients moving into residential care. Recent grants show a preference for mission-aligned nonprofits with durable programs that can absorb operating support, scholarship funding, or designated project dollars. Several grantees appear more than once over multiple years, suggesting the foundation favors ongoing relationships over isolated one-time gifts.
What Kara J Trott Family Foundation Aka Life Leap Foundation Funds
Education is a major theme in the foundation’s recent giving. It awarded $200,000 in 2025 to Heartland High School for the Life Leap Scholarship Fund, after $200,000 in 2024 for the same fund and $200,000 in 2023 for the TROTT FAMILY SCHOLARSHIP FUND. It also gave $10,000 to I Know I Can for the Founders' Scholarship Fund. Research and institutional support appear in the foundation’s Ohio State University Foundation grants. In 2025, it gave $500,000 for the Life Leap Foundation Research Innovation Fund, and in 2024 it made the same-size gift for the same purpose. Separate gifts also supported an Immigration Clinic Fund and a charitable event. The foundation also funds direct-service and community-support work. It gave $50,000 to Community Shelter Board for the Homelessness Prevention Network fund and $35,000 to Ohio State University Foundation for the Immigration Clinic Fund. In addition, it supported O S U Chabad House Inc for the Kitchen of Life Program, tying its giving to food assistance and community meals.
Financial Snapshot
Annual Giving
$1.1M
Total Assets
$948K
Total Revenue
$110K
Total Expenses
$1.1M
Typical Grant Size
Most grants fall between $37K and $213K, with a median of $50K.
25th Percentile
$37K
Median
$50K
75th Percentile
$213K
Geographic Reach
Regional4 states funded
About 0% of grants go to recipients in OH.
Funding intensity
LowHigh
Headquarters
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