The Lyons Share Foundation is a highly concentrated arts funder that focuses on underwriting live classical music and choral performance in Southern California. Nearly all of its giving goes to sustaining operating and program costs for two long-term performing-arts partners, indicating a preference for reliable, high-impact support that enables concert presentation and touring. Grants are sizable and repeated, aimed at ensuring program continuity rather than seed funding or broad diversification.
Lyons Share Foundation concentrates its giving on a small set of arts partners, with especially large awards for live classical music and choral presentation in Southern California. The clearest pattern in the recent record is sustained underwriting for Pacific Symphony and Pacific Chorale, both of which receive repeated support for concerts, operating expenses, and national presentations. That recurring structure points to a funder interested in keeping performance organizations active rather than seeding one-time projects. The foundation’s arts support reaches beyond those anchor grantees. It has also funded Arts Orange County, Chorus America, and the Smithsonian Institution, showing interest in both local arts infrastructure and presentation beyond Orange County. Smaller awards extend into education and community-facing arts work through groups such as Arts Learning Conservatory and Segerstrom Center for the Arts. The recent grants list also includes support for public university programs, museum exhibits and programs, and local nonprofit journalism, suggesting a broader but still tightly local network of cultural and civic interests.
A core theme is orchestra and chorus support. Lyons Share Foundation gave $510,000 to Pacific Symphony in 2025 to underwrite concerts and operating expenses, and it paired that with multiple awards to Pacific Chorale for national presentations and concerts. It also supported Chorus America with grants for national concerts and presentations in 2023, 2024, and 2025. The foundation also backs arts education and local arts infrastructure. It awarded $25,000 to Arts Learning Conservatory in 2025 for educational and arts programs, and $25,000 to Segerstrom Center for the Arts in 2025 for performances. Arts Orange County received repeated support for arts programs in 2023, 2024, and 2025. Beyond performing arts, Lyons Share Foundation funded the Smithsonian Institution for museum exhibits and programs, showing an interest in cultural programming outside Southern California.
Grant sizes range from $1,000 to $510,000 in the recent list, with a p25 of $1,750, a median of $17,500, and a p75 of $42,500. The pattern is concentrated rather than broad: a few large awards anchor the portfolio, while many smaller grants support related local and civic groups. Several recipients appear across multiple years, including Pacific Symphony, Pacific Chorale, Arts Orange County, Arts Learning Conservatory, Orange County Community Foundation, Segerstrom Center for the Arts, and Howard Jarvis Taxpayers Foundation. Lyons Share Foundation does not fund individuals and does not make program-related investments.
$3.9M
$16M
$1.5M
$4M
Most grants fall between $2K and $43K, with a median of $18K.
25th Percentile
$2K
Median
$18K
75th Percentile
$43K
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Highly concentrated giving: few, large, repeat grants to the same local performing-arts organizations (three grants each to two grantees), focused on operating and program underwriting rather than many small or experimental gifts.
Notable grantees: Pacific Symphony, Pacific Chorale
Lyons Share Foundation gives locally, and 85% of grants go to recipients in California. The biggest cluster is in Orange County cities such as Irvine, Costa Mesa, Santa Ana, and Newport Beach, with Irvine appearing on the largest grant and Costa Mesa appearing repeatedly across arts and education support. All recent grants in the data went to U.S. recipients. The recipient map in this record is tightly regional, even though one grant reached Washington, DC.
Its recent grants favor performing arts organizations, especially orchestras and choral groups, but the list also includes arts education, museum programming, public university programs, local community charities, a nonprofit newsroom, and advocacy-oriented organizations. The most frequent recipients are arts institutions in Orange County.
Yes. Several recipients appear in multiple years, including Pacific Symphony, Pacific Chorale, Arts Orange County, Arts Learning Conservatory, Orange County Community Foundation, Segerstrom Center for the Arts, and Howard Jarvis Taxpayers Foundation. That repeated pattern suggests ongoing operating or program support rather than one-time gifts.
The grant-size distribution is $1,750 at the 25th percentile, $17,500 at the median, and $42,500 at the 75th percentile. The recent record also includes a much larger outlier of $510,000, showing that the foundation combines smaller local awards with a few very large anchor grants.
The foundation gives locally, and 85% of grants go to recipients in California. Orange County cities dominate the list, including Irvine, Costa Mesa, Santa Ana, and Newport Beach. All grants in the recent data went to U.S. recipients.
2026
Source: IRS Form 990-PF, fiscal year 2026.
Most recent grants reported to the IRS.
| Recipient | Location | Amount | Year | Purpose |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| SEGERSTROM CENTER FOR THE ARTS | COSTA MESA, CA | $3,501,000 | 2026 | SUPPORT OF PERFORMANCES |
| PACIFIC SYMPHONY | IRVINE, CA | $150,000 | 2026 | UNDERWRITE CONCERTS AND OPERATING EXPENSES |
| ARTS ORANGE COUNTY | IRVINE, CA | $115,000 | 2026 | SUPPORT OF ARTS PROGRAMS |
| PACIFIC CHORALE | COSTA MESA, CA | $75,000 | 2026 | SUPPORT OF NATIONAL PRESENTATIONS/CONCERTS |
| CHORUS AMERICA | WASHINGTON, DC | $65,000 | 2026 | SUPPORT OF NATIONAL CONCERTS & PRESENTATIONS |
| ARTS LEARNING CONSERVATORY | COSTA MESA, CA | $20,000 | 2026 | SUPPORT EDUCATIONAL AND ARTS PROGRAMS |
| PHILHARMONIC SOCIETY OF ORANGE COUN | IRVINE, CA | $10,000 | 2026 | SUPPORT CONCERT PROGRAMING |
| NEWPORT HARBOR EDUCATIONAL FOUNDATI | NEWPORT BEACH, CA | $5,000 | 2026 | SUPPORT OF PUBLIC HIGH SCHOOL PROGRAMS |
| HOWARD JARVIS TAXPAYERS FOUNDATION | LOS ANGELES, CA | $1,000 | 2026 | LEGAL AID TO TAXPAYER ADVOCACY ORGANIZATIONS |
| AIRPORT WORKING GROUP OF ORANGE COU | NEWPORT BEACH, CA | $1,000 | 2026 | SUPPORT OF COMMUNITY ADVOCACY RE AIRPORT IMPACT |
| PACIFIC SYMPHONY | IRVINE, CA | $510,000 | 2025 | UNDERWRITE CONCERTS AND OPERATING EXPENSES |
| PACIFIC CHORALE | COSTA MESA, CA | $250,000 | 2025 | SUPPORT OF NATIONAL PRESENTATIONS/CONCERTS |
| CHORUS AMERICA | WASHINGTON, DC | $30,000 | 2025 | SUPPORT OF NATIONAL CONCERTS & PRESENTATIONS |
| SEGERSTROM CENTER FOR THE ARTS | COSTA MESA, CA | $25,000 | 2025 | SUPPORT OF PERFORMANCES |
| ARTS ORANGE COUNTY | IRVINE, CA | $25,000 | 2025 | SUPPORT OF ARTS PROGRAMS |
| ARTS LEARNING CONSERVATORY | COSTA MESA, CA | $25,000 | 2025 | SUPPORT EDUCATIONAL AND ARTS PROGRAMS |
| PHILHARMONIC SOCIETY OF ORANGE COUN | IRVINE, CA | $20,000 | 2025 | SUPPORT CONCERT PROGRAMING |
| NEWPORT HARBOR EDUCATIONAL FOUNDATI | NEWPORT BEACH, CA | $5,000 | 2025 | SUPPORT OF PUBLIC HIGH SCHOOL PROGRAMS |
| ORANGE COUNTY COMMUNITY FOUNDATION | NEWPORT BEACH, CA | $3,000 | 2025 | SUPPORT LOCAL COMMUNITY CHARITIES |
| PACIFIC SYMPHONY | IRVINE, CA | $255,000 | 2024 | UNDERWRITE CONCERTS AND OPERATING EXPENSES |
| PACIFIC CHORALE | COSTA MESA, CA | $240,000 | 2024 | SUPPORT OF NATIONAL PRESENTATIONS/CONCERTS |
| SMITHSONIAN INSTITUTION | WASHINGTON, DC | $35,000 | 2024 | SUPPORT OF MUSEUM EXHIBITS & PROGRAMS |
| CHORUS AMERICA | WASHINGTON, DC | $30,000 | 2024 | SUPPORT OF NATIONAL CONCERTS & PRESENTATIONS |
| ARTS ORANGE COUNTY | IRVINE, CA | $20,000 | 2024 | SUPPORT OF ARTS PROGRAMS |
| ONEOC | SANTA ANA, CA | $15,000 | 2024 | SUPPORTS NON-PROFIT ADMIN SOLUTIONS |
| ARTS LEARNING CONSERVATORY | COSTA MESA, CA | $15,000 | 2024 | SUPPORT EDUCATIONAL AND ARTS PROGRAMS |
| ORANGE COUNTY COMMUNITY FOUNDATION | NEWPORT BEACH, CA | $2,000 | 2024 | SUPPORT LOCAL COMMUNITY CHARITIES |
| SEGERSTROM CENTER FOR THE ARTS | COSTA MESA, CA | $1,000 | 2024 | SUPPORT OF PERFORMANCES |
| AIRPORT WORKING GROUP OF ORANGE COU | NEWPORT BEACH, CA | $1,000 | 2024 | SUPPORT OF COMMUNITY ADVOCACY RE AIRPORT IMPACT |
| HOWARD JARVIS TAXPAYERS FOUNDATION | LOS ANGELES, CA | $1,000 | 2024 | LEGAL AID TO TAXPAYER ADVOCACY ORGANIZATIONS |
| PACIFIC SYMPHONY | IRVINE, CA | $294,000 | 2023 | UNDERWRITE CONCERTS AND OPERATING EXPENSES |
| PACIFIC CHORALE | COSTA MESA, CA | $260,000 | 2023 | SUPPORT OF NATIONAL PRESENTATIONS/CONCERTS |
| ARTS ORANGE COUNTY | IRVINE, CA | $50,000 | 2023 | SUPPORT OF ARTS PROGRAMS |
| CHORUS AMERICA | WASHINGTON, DC | $40,000 | 2023 | SUPPORT OF NATIONAL CONCERTS & PRESENTATIONS |
| CAL STATE UNIVERSITY FULLERTON | LOS ANGELES, CA | $25,000 | 2023 | SUPPORT OF PUBLIC UNIVERSITY PROGRAMS |
| VOICE OF OC | SANTA ANA, CA | $15,000 | 2023 | SUPPORT PROGRAMS OF NON-PROFIT LOCAL NEWS ROOM |
| ORANGE COUNTY COMMUNITY FOUNDATION | NEWPORT BEACH, CA | $2,000 | 2023 | SUPPORT LOCAL COMMUNITY CHARITIES |
| SEGERSTROM CENTER FOR THE ARTS | COSTA MESA, CA | $1,000 | 2023 | SUPPORT OF PERFORMANCES |
| HOWARD JARVIS TAXPAYERS FOUNDATION | LOS ANGELES, CA | $1,000 | 2023 | LEGAL AID TO TAXPAYER ADVOCACY ORGANIZATIONS |
SEGERSTROM CENTER FOR THE ARTS
$3,501,000SUPPORT OF PERFORMANCES
ARTS ORANGE COUNTY
$115,000SUPPORT OF ARTS PROGRAMS
ARTS LEARNING CONSERVATORY
SUPPORT EDUCATIONAL AND ARTS PROGRAMS
NEWPORT HARBOR EDUCATIONAL FOUNDATI
$5,000SUPPORT OF PUBLIC HIGH SCHOOL PROGRAMS
HOWARD JARVIS TAXPAYERS FOUNDATION
$1,000LEGAL AID TO TAXPAYER ADVOCACY ORGANIZATIONS
AIRPORT WORKING GROUP OF ORANGE COU
$1,000SUPPORT OF COMMUNITY ADVOCACY RE AIRPORT IMPACT
CHORUS AMERICA
$30,000SUPPORT OF NATIONAL CONCERTS & PRESENTATIONS
SEGERSTROM CENTER FOR THE ARTS
$25,000SUPPORT OF PERFORMANCES
ARTS ORANGE COUNTY
$25,000SUPPORT OF ARTS PROGRAMS
ARTS LEARNING CONSERVATORY
$25,000SUPPORT EDUCATIONAL AND ARTS PROGRAMS
SUPPORT OF PUBLIC HIGH SCHOOL PROGRAMS
ARTS ORANGE COUNTY
$20,000SUPPORT OF ARTS PROGRAMS
ARTS LEARNING CONSERVATORY
$15,000SUPPORT EDUCATIONAL AND ARTS PROGRAMS
SEGERSTROM CENTER FOR THE ARTS
$1,000SUPPORT OF PERFORMANCES
AIRPORT WORKING GROUP OF ORANGE COU
$1,000SUPPORT OF COMMUNITY ADVOCACY RE AIRPORT IMPACT
HOWARD JARVIS TAXPAYERS FOUNDATION
$1,000LEGAL AID TO TAXPAYER ADVOCACY ORGANIZATIONS
ARTS ORANGE COUNTY
$50,000SUPPORT OF ARTS PROGRAMS
CHORUS AMERICA
$40,000SUPPORT OF NATIONAL CONCERTS & PRESENTATIONS
CAL STATE UNIVERSITY FULLERTON
$25,000SUPPORT OF PUBLIC UNIVERSITY PROGRAMS
VOICE OF OC
$15,000SUPPORT PROGRAMS OF NON-PROFIT LOCAL NEWS ROOM
SEGERSTROM CENTER FOR THE ARTS
$1,000SUPPORT OF PERFORMANCES
HOWARD JARVIS TAXPAYERS FOUNDATION
$1,000LEGAL AID TO TAXPAYER ADVOCACY ORGANIZATIONS