About Kelly Foundation
Kelly Foundation’s recorded giving is unusually concentrated: three grants totaling $761,400 all went to "See Attached Statement of Contributions" in Libertyville, Illinois, and each was labeled "GENERAL FUND." That pattern points to support for core capacity rather than narrow project grants, with the foundation using large, unrestricted awards instead of spreading money across many recipients. The largest reported grant was $306,400 in 2023, followed by $227,900 in 2025 and $227,100 in 2024, showing a repeated funding relationship across multiple years.
The foundation’s public program descriptions, however, show a broader set of priorities in Northern California and the Greater Sacramento area, including children and youth assistance, food insecurity, homelessness, health and human services, and conservation, open space, and climate. Its active programs also include emergency grants and invitation-based strategic grantmaking. Together, the data suggests a funder with both a centralized grant record and a defined regional program structure, using general operating support in the available contributions record while naming multiple community issue areas in its grant programs.
What Kelly Foundation Funds
Kelly Foundation names children, youth assistance, and education as a core area, with grants for nonprofit programs serving youth through education, mentoring, crisis nursery services, and youth development. It also supports food insecurity work, including one-time projects, ongoing programs, and operational needs in the Greater Sacramento and Northern California region.
Housing and basic needs are another clear emphasis. The foundation’s strategic program for affordable housing and homelessness funds organizations working on affordable housing, resident services, homelessness prevention, and related supportive services. Health and human services is similarly broad, covering behavioral health, disability services, cancer support programs, and related community services. Conservation, open space, and climate grants add land conservation, habitat preservation, and outdoor education to the mix.
How Kelly Foundation Gives
The recorded grant-size distribution is tightly clustered at the upper end: p25 is $227,500, the median is $227,900, and p75 is $267,150. That points to a small number of relatively large grants rather than a wide spread of award sizes. In the available contribution record, the same recipient appears in 2023, 2024, and 2025, which indicates a recurring relationship rather than one-off support.
The foundation is not a funder of individuals and does not make program-related investments. The data also shows a consolidated recipient name in the recent grant record, with awards tagged as general fund support.
