The Paul C Johnson Foundation is a locally focused Muskegon-area funder that directs most of its support to community infrastructure and place-based civic projects, often via the Community Foundation for Muskegon County. Its grants back municipal improvements (parks and veterans memorials), cultural and educational programming at the Muskegon Museum of Art, and recreational amenities tied to local congregations and neighborhoods. The foundation favors practical, visible community benefits rather than national causes.
A defining feature of The Paul C Johnson Foundation is its use of interfunding through the Community Foundation for Muskegon County, including a $200,000 grant in 2024 and a $128,000 grant in 2023. That pattern sits alongside direct support for local capital and civic projects in Muskegon County. The foundation’s recent grants show a narrow geographic reach and a preference for projects with visible public use rather than broad operating support. Its giving has included $30,000 to the City of Muskegon for Veterans Memorial Park match and another $30,000 to St Paul’s Episcopal Church for reimbursement toward the scoreboard at the North Muskegon soccer/multi-use complex. It also gave $22,500 to the Muskegon Museum of Art for educational programming. Across those awards, the foundation appears to favor place-based efforts that support parks, recreation, cultural programming, and local community institutions. The grants are concentrated in Muskegon, with recipients located in the same county and tied to civic, educational, or neighborhood-serving projects.
Community infrastructure is a clear theme. The foundation gave $30,000 to the City of Muskegon for Veterans Memorial Park match and $8,975 to the city in 2024 for the same park project, showing repeated support for a single site. Recreation is another area of interest. In 2025, it awarded $30,000 to St Paul’s Episcopal Church for reimbursement toward expenses for the scoreboard at the North Muskegon soccer/multi-use complex, linking its support to youth and amateur sports facilities. Arts and learning also appear in the grant record. The Muskegon Museum of Art received $22,500 for educational programming, indicating support for museum-based instruction and public learning activities. Through these grants, the foundation backs projects that serve local residents through specific facilities and programs.
Typical grants cluster around a midrange size: the median grant is $30,000, with a first quartile of $26,250 and a third quartile of $89,592. The recent record shows both larger interfunding transfers and smaller project grants, suggesting a mix of foundation-level support and targeted reimbursements or matches. Recipient patterns are repetitive: the Community Foundation for Muskegon County appears across multiple years, and the City of Muskegon appears in more than one grant. The foundation is structured as a private foundation and makes grants in a project-specific, restricted way rather than through program-related investments. Unsolicited application routes are listed for several active programs.
$134K
$4M
$121K
$159K
Most grants fall between $26K and $90K, with a median of $30K.
25th Percentile
$26K
Median
$30K
75th Percentile
$90K
CHARLES E JOHNSON II
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Concentrated, locally targeted giving: a large share of dollars go to one intermediary (Community Foundation for Muskegon County) through multiple grants, with the remainder split among repeat municipal and local cultural/religious recipients; grants are medium-to-large and aimed at capital or program-support projects with tangible community impact.
Notable grantees: Community Foundation for Muskegon County, City of Muskegon, Muskegon Museum of Art, St. Paul's Episcopal Church
All recent grants shown go to recipients in Michigan, and the recipient distribution is 100% U.S. The giving is centered in Muskegon: the Community Foundation for Muskegon County, the City of Muskegon, St Paul’s Episcopal Church, and the Muskegon Museum of Art are all in Muskegon. The active programs are also scoped to Muskegon County, matching the foundation’s local grant pattern.
The grant record points to local civic and place-based projects: interfunding through the Community Foundation for Muskegon County, Veterans Memorial Park match support for the City of Muskegon, a scoreboard reimbursement for the North Muskegon soccer/multi-use complex, and educational programming at the Muskegon Museum of Art.
The typical grant size is centered at $30,000, with a lower quartile of $26,250 and an upper quartile of $89,592. Recent awards range from under $10,000 to $200,000, showing both smaller project support and larger transfers.
The geographic scope of giving is local, and the recipient state distribution is 100% Michigan. Recent grants went to organizations in Muskegon, including the Community Foundation for Muskegon County, the City of Muskegon, St Paul’s Episcopal Church, and the Muskegon Museum of Art.
Several active programs are listed as accepting unsolicited requests, including the Frank Garber Fund, the Greater Muskegon Service League’s Women and Children’s Fund, the Community Betterment Fund, Teacher Mini-Grants, Committee Grants, Strategic Grants, Muskegon LEAD Grants, Community Empowerment Grants, the Muskegon County Housing Initiative, and Watch Us Vote Grants.
The listed programs cover education, community and economic development, diversity, equity, and inclusion, housing, civic engagement, and women and children’s services. Specific examples include Strategic Grants for systemic change in education and community development, Muskegon LEAD Grants for justice and equity, and Watch Us Vote Grants for nonpartisan civic engagement.
2025
Source: IRS Form 990-PF, fiscal year 2025.
Current and upcoming funding from Paul C Johnson Foundation that your nonprofit may be able to apply for.
Who can apply: Projects supporting medical training and STEM education related to the medical field.
Deadline: Uses the committee grant cycle; fall 2026 round opens in July 2026 with LOI due September 10, 2026 and full application due September 24, 2026.
Who can apply: Programs and projects that improve quality of life for White Lake Area residents; some sub-funds have more specific priorities.
Deadline: Uses the committee grant cycle; fall 2026 round opens in July 2026 with LOI due September 10, 2026 and full application due September 24, 2026.
Who can apply: Programs serving Muskegon County residents suffering from or at risk of sight and/or hearing loss, especially innovative programs.
Deadline: Uses the committee grant cycle; fall 2026 round opens in July 2026 with LOI due September 10, 2026 and full application due September 24, 2026.
Who can apply: Organizations must align with a committee fund’s stated priorities and apply through the Community Foundation’s general grant application.
Deadline: Two rounds in 2026: spring round (December 2025 - February 2026) closed; fall round (July 2026 - September 2026) open. Letter of intent due September 10, full application due September 24, 2026.
Who can apply: Programs serving women and children in Muskegon County, especially innovative projects and those serving low-income or marginalized populations.
Deadline: Uses the committee grant cycle; fall 2026 round opens in July 2026 with LOI due September 10, 2026 and full application due September 24, 2026.
Who can apply: Organizations and projects that serve or advance the LGBTQ+ community in Muskegon County.
Deadline: Uses the committee grant cycle; fall 2026 round opens in July 2026 with LOI due September 10, 2026 and full application due September 24, 2026.
Who can apply: Organizations and initiatives that address food security and healthy food systems.
Deadline: This opportunity will be available in the fall of 2026; fall committee grant deadlines are LOI due September 10, 2026 and full application due September 24, 2026.
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Most recent grants reported to the IRS.
| Recipient | Location | Amount | Year | Purpose |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| COMMUNITY FOUNDATION FOR MUSKEGON COUNTY | MUSKEGON, MI | $51,185 | 2025 | INTERFUNDING |
| CITY OF MUSKEGON | MUSKEGON, MI | $30,000 | 2025 | VETERANS MEMORIAL PARK MATCH |
| ST PAUL'S EPISCOPAL CHURCH | MUSKEGON, MI | $30,000 | 2025 | REIMBURSEMENT TOWARD EXPENSES FOR THE SCOREBOARD AT THE NORTH MUSKEGON SOCCER/MULTI-USE COMPLEX |
| MUSKEGON MUSEUM OF ART | MUSKEGON, MI | $22,500 | 2025 | EDUCATIONAL PROGRAMMING |
| COMMUNITY FOUNDATION FOR MUSKEGON COUNTY | MUSKEGON, MI | $200,000 | 2024 | INTERFUNDING |
| CITY OF MUSKEGON | MUSKEGON, MI | $8,975 | 2024 | VETERANS MEMORIAL PARK MATCH |
| COMMUNITY FOUNDATION FOR MUSKEGON COUNTY | MUSKEGON, MI | $128,000 | 2023 | INTERFUNDING |
CITY OF MUSKEGON
$30,000VETERANS MEMORIAL PARK MATCH
ST PAUL'S EPISCOPAL CHURCH
$30,000REIMBURSEMENT TOWARD EXPENSES FOR THE SCOREBOARD AT THE NORTH MUSKEGON SOCCER/MULTI-USE COMPLEX
MUSKEGON MUSEUM OF ART
$22,500EDUCATIONAL PROGRAMMING
CITY OF MUSKEGON
VETERANS MEMORIAL PARK MATCH