The Wilson Family Foundation concentrates its philanthropy almost exclusively on cultural heritage and museum-based education, directing substantial support to living-history interpretation, research, and preservation. Its giving is focused and institutionally targeted, backing a major national museum partner to sustain exhibitions, educational programs, and conservation work. The foundation appears to prioritize long-term stewardship of historical resources rather than broad-based community grantmaking.
The Wilson Family Foundation Inc has made Colonial Williamsburg Foundation a recurring anchor of its recent giving, with two large grants of $2,165,000 in 2024 and $586,000 in 2025 for education, museums, research, and preservation. That pattern matches a broader portfolio centered on cultural heritage, museum-based education, and historic stewardship. The foundation’s support reaches beyond one institution, but the strongest thread is sustained backing for organizations that interpret history, conserve collections, and connect audiences to place-based learning. Other grants show how the foundation pairs preservation with education and public programming. It supported Jamestown Rediscovery Foundation for preservation, education, and archaeological investigation at Historic Jamestowne, and Longwood Gardens for institutional support. On the education side, it also funded Northern Arizona University Foundation for engagement with students, alumni, parents, friends, and the broader NAU community. The grant list also includes support for museum-adjacent and community-serving organizations, indicating a portfolio that blends historical interpretation with education, stewardship, and targeted direct service.
Museum and historic-site work sits at the center of the foundation’s giving. Colonial Williamsburg Foundation received major support in 2024 and 2025 to sustain education, museums, research, and preservation. Jamestown Rediscovery Foundation also received funding for preservation, education, and archaeological investigation at Historic Jamestowne. The foundation also backs education-linked institutions. Northern Arizona University Foundation received grants to engage students, alumni, parents, friends, and the broader university community. MiraCosta College Foundation was funded to promote the benefits of the college and secure resources that transform lives. Outside heritage and higher education, the foundation has funded youth and family services. North Valley Caring Services received support for free academic and enrichment programs for children ages 5 to 18, and Upward Bound House received support to eliminate homelessness among families with children through housing, supportive services, and advocacy.
Typical grant size sits at $10,000 at the 25th percentile, $22,500 at the median, and $50,000 at the 75th percentile. The recent list also shows a small number of much larger awards, including multimillion-dollar support for a single longstanding institution. Several grantees recur across multiple years, including Colonial Williamsburg Foundation, Northern Arizona University Foundation, Upward Bound House, Aiken Equine Rescue, Center for Social Concerns, MiraCosta College Foundation, San Fernando Valley Refugee, and Feeding America San Diego. The foundation is a regular funder and also funds individuals. The grant history shown is entirely domestic, with no program-related investments reported.
$2.3M
$8.3M
$5.5M
$2.3M
Most grants fall between $10K and $50K, with a median of $23K.
25th Percentile
$10K
Median
$23K
75th Percentile
$50K
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Highly concentrated: very large grants to a single repeat grantee (two grants totaling the foundation's entire reported giving), indicating preference for deep, sustained support to one flagship cultural institution.
Notable grantees: Colonial Williamsburg Foundation
Grantmaking is national, but California appears most often in the recent record, with 57% of grants going to recipients in the state. Within California, repeat recipients include North Hills, Santa Monica, San Diego, Oceanside, and other in-state locations. Outside California, the recent list reaches Williamsburg, Virginia; Flagstaff, Arizona; Aiken, South Carolina; Notre Dame, Indiana; Kennett Square, Pennsylvania; and Atlanta, Georgia. All listed grants in the recent sample went to U.S. recipients.
The recent grants show a strong emphasis on museum, historic site, and cultural preservation work, especially organizations tied to education, research, and stewardship. The foundation also supports universities, youth enrichment, homelessness prevention for families with children, refugee services, food access, and equine rescue.
The foundation’s typical grant size is $10,000 at the 25th percentile, $22,500 at the median, and $50,000 at the 75th percentile. The recent record also includes larger awards, including a $2,165,000 grant and several six-figure grants.
Yes. Several recipients appear across multiple years, including Colonial Williamsburg Foundation, Northern Arizona University Foundation, Upward Bound House, Aiken Equine Rescue, Center for Social Concerns, MiraCosta College Foundation, San Fernando Valley Refugee, and Feeding America San Diego.
The foundation gives nationally, but California receives the largest share of grants in the recent data, with 57% going to recipients in the state. Recent California recipients include North Hills, Santa Monica, San Diego, and Oceanside.
Yes. The foundation is marked as funding individuals, alongside its organizational grantmaking. The recent grants list itself shows awards to a range of institutions, from cultural and educational organizations to direct-service nonprofits.
2025
Source: IRS Form 990-PF, fiscal year 2025.
Most recent grants reported to the IRS.
| Recipient | Location | Amount | Year | Purpose |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Colonial Williamsburg Foundation | Williamsburg, VA | $586,000 | 2025 | To support education, museums, research and preservation. |
| HalfTheStory | WESTERN SPRINGS, IL | $250,000 | 2025 | To support the mission of empowering the next generation's relationship with technology. |
| Northern Arizona University Foundation | Flagstaff, AZ | $150,000 | 2025 | To engage students, alumni, parents, friends and the broader NAU community to connect, invest, and inspire current and future Lumberjacks. |
| Flagstaff Christian Fellowship | Flagstaff, AZ | $150,000 | 2025 | To create a space where people can have authentic encounters with Christ, discover their gifts and use them for God's glory. |
| Aiken Equine Rescue | Aiken, SC | $100,000 | 2025 | to rescue and rehabilitate horses that have suffered from abuse and neglect, re-purpose Off-the-Track Thoroughbreds, and take horses whose owners can no longer care for them. |
| Upward Bound House | Santa Monica, CA | $100,000 | 2025 | To eliminate homelessness among families with children in our community by providing housing, supportive services, and advocacy. |
| Hitchcock Woods Foundation | AIKEN, SC | $85,000 | 2025 | To support the 2,100-acre Hitchcock woods in Aiken, South Carolina. |
| Jamestown Rediscovery Foundation | Jamestown, VA | $75,000 | 2025 | to support preservation, education, and the archaeological investigation of Historic Jamestowne, the original site of the first successful English settlement in America. |
| North Valley Caring Services | North Hills, CA | $70,000 | 2025 | To offer FREE academic and enrichment programs for kids ages 5 years to 18 years old. |
| Center for Social Concerns | Notre Dame, IN | $60,000 | 2025 | to respond to the complex demands of justice through a combination of justice education and research for the common good. |
| MiraCosta College Foundation | Oceanside, CA | $55,000 | 2025 | To promote the benefits of MiraCosta College and secure resources that transform lives. |
| San Fernando Valley Refugee | North Hills, CA | $50,000 | 2025 | To support programs that provide basic needs, opportunities for personal development, enrichment activities, and access to legal and social services to refugee children. |
| Longwood Gardens | KENNETT SQUARE, PA | $50,000 | 2025 | To provide support to the Longwood Gardens. |
| Feeding America San Diego | San Diego, CA | $50,000 | 2025 | To provide nationwide network of food banks deliver programs at the front line of hunger. Programs like school-based food pantries. |
| Monarch School | San Diego, CA | $50,000 | 2025 | To provide comprehensive academic, social and emotional support to youth, alumni, and their families. |
| Youth Haven Ranch | RIVES JUNCTION, MI | $48,000 | 2025 | To provide life-changing christ-centered experiences for disadvantaged children. |
| Brandywine Convervancy | Chadds Ford, PA | $40,000 | 2025 | To protects and conserves the land, water, natural, and cultural resources of the Brandywine-Christina watershed. |
| Girl Scouts of Greater Los Angeles | INGLEWOOD, CA | $40,000 | 2025 | To support the mission of building girls' courage, confidence, and character. |
| Escondido History Center | Escondido, CA | $40,000 | 2025 | To support the second largest history museum in San Diego County. |
| Unite 4 Africa | TUCSON, AZ | $26,000 | 2025 | To support organization's goals to unite, equip, and mobilize individuals and organizations to transform their communities. socially, physically and economically |
| USS Midway Museum | SAN DIEGO, CA | $25,000 | 2025 | To preserve the historic USS midway and the legacy of those who serve, inspire and educate future generations, and entertain museum guests. |
| Students Run LA | Tarzana, CA | $20,000 | 2025 | To provide underserved secondary students the experience of goal setting, character development, adult mentoring and improved health by training for and completing the LA Marathon. |
| The Michael J Fox Foundation | NEW YORK, NY | $20,000 | 2025 | The foundation is dedicated to finding a cure for Parkinson's disease. |
| Mr Holland's Opus Foundation | Burbank, CA | $15,000 | 2025 | To donates high-quality musical instruments to deserving, under-funded music programs, and provides an array of support services to school districts. |
| Happy House | Northridge, CA | $10,000 | 2025 | to help bring about a safer community by "Building Better Families." A "family" in this case can be small or large; it can be a school, church, business, neighborhood or even a country. |
| DIY Girls | SAN FRANCISCO, CA | $10,000 | 2025 | To support the mission to increased girls and gender-expansive youth's interest and long-term success in technology, engineering and making through innovative educational experiences and mentor relationships. |
| Sisterhood is Global Institute Inc | NEW YORK, NY | $10,000 | 2025 | To support the sisterhood in its strategic and activist role in the evolution of the international women's movement. |
| Diabetes Research Institute Foundation | Hollywood, FL | $10,000 | 2025 | To support Diabetes Research Institute (DRI) scientists in making continued progress toward a cure and improving the lives of people living with diabetes today. |
| Girls Growing Education | MCLEAN, VA | $10,000 | 2025 | To help provide students with access to world-class education through an offline edutech device. |
| Share Food Program | Philadelphia, PA | $10,000 | 2025 | To lead the fight against food insecurity in the Philadelphia region, by serving a network of organizations and school districts engaged in food distribution, education and advocacy. |
| Meals on Wheels | Arlington, VA | $10,000 | 2025 | To support programs addressing senior hunger and isolation. |
| Alzheimer's Disease Research | CLARKSBURG, MD | $10,000 | 2025 | To provide support to the foundation which seeks a world free from diseases of mind and sight. |
| The Culver City Education Foundation | Culver City, CA | $10,000 | 2025 | To bring the community together to enhance the educational experience of every student from the Culver City USD, can reach academic success. |
| Sahara Foundation | DENVER, CO | $10,000 | 2025 | To support the Reteti elephant sanctuary established to rescue and release orphaned and abandoned elephant calves. |
| American Contemporay Ballet | LOS ANGELES, CA | $10,000 | 2025 | To produce and present choreographic works of the highest quality which exemplify ballet as a musical art form. |
| Cougar Athletic Alumni Club | ESCONDIDO, CA | $6,000 | 2025 | To support the cougar alumni club which devotes its time and energy to the alumni and friends of Escondido High School. |
| Kitty of Angeles | LOS ANGELES, CA | $5,000 | 2025 | To support homeless cats and kittens in Los Angeles. |
| Salvation Army of Aiken | AIKEN, SC | $5,000 | 2025 | To support the mission to meet human needs wherever, whenever, and however we can through local programs and alleviate the effects of poverty. |
| Whiskers N Wishers Sanctuary Inc | MARANA, AZ | $5,000 | 2025 | To support organization's mission committed to rescuing cats in need, with a special emphasis on senior and disabled felines. |
| Patched Hearts Farm Sanctuary | CORAL, MI | $5,000 | 2025 | To support the organization's mission dedicated to rescuing and rehabilitating animals in need. |
| The Realm Company | SANTA MONICA, CA | $5,000 | 2025 | To support organization that works in motion pictures and live productions. |
| Friends of the Culver City Library | CULVER CITY, CA | $5,000 | 2025 | To support volunteers in supporting the Culver City Julian Dixon Library. |
| Soar | SILVER SPRINGS, MD | $5,000 | 2025 | To help assure financially stable and secure futures for elderly and frail members of Catholic religious congregations. |
| All For One Therapy | MONTROSE, CA | $5,000 | 2025 | To provide support to a non-profit mental health center dedicated to providing compassionate support and evidence-based therapy to individuals, families, and communities. |
| Arizona Symphonic Winds | TUCSON, AZ | $2,000 | 2025 | To support the musical organization. |
| Colonial Williamsburg Foundation | Williamsburg, VA | $2,165,000 | 2024 | To support education, museums, research and preservation. |
| Northern Arizona University Foundation | Flagstaff, AZ | $190,000 | 2024 | To engage students, alumni, parents, friends and the broader NAU community to connect, invest, and inspire current and future Lumberjacks. |
| North Valley Caring Services | North Hills, CA | $135,000 | 2024 | To offer FREE academic and enrichment programs for kids ages 5 years to 18 years old. |
| Flagstaff Christian Fellowship | Flagstaff, AZ | $100,000 | 2024 | To create a space where people can have authentic encounters with Christ, discover their gifts and use them for God's glory. |
| Upward Bound House | Santa Monica, CA | $100,000 | 2024 | To eliminate homelessness among families with children in our community by providing housing, supportive services, and advocacy. |
Colonial Williamsburg Foundation
$586,000To support education, museums, research and preservation.
To support the mission of empowering the next generation's relationship with technology.
To engage students, alumni, parents, friends and the broader NAU community to connect, invest, and inspire current and future Lumberjacks.
Flagstaff Christian Fellowship
$150,000To create a space where people can have authentic encounters with Christ, discover their gifts and use them for God's glory.
Aiken Equine Rescue
$100,000to rescue and rehabilitate horses that have suffered from abuse and neglect, re-purpose Off-the-Track Thoroughbreds, and take horses whose owners can no longer care for them.
To eliminate homelessness among families with children in our community by providing housing, supportive services, and advocacy.
Hitchcock Woods Foundation
$85,000To support the 2,100-acre Hitchcock woods in Aiken, South Carolina.
Jamestown Rediscovery Foundation
$75,000to support preservation, education, and the archaeological investigation of Historic Jamestowne, the original site of the first successful English settlement in America.
To offer FREE academic and enrichment programs for kids ages 5 years to 18 years old.
Center for Social Concerns
$60,000to respond to the complex demands of justice through a combination of justice education and research for the common good.
To promote the benefits of MiraCosta College and secure resources that transform lives.
To support programs that provide basic needs, opportunities for personal development, enrichment activities, and access to legal and social services to refugee children.
Longwood Gardens
$50,000To provide support to the Longwood Gardens.
Feeding America San Diego
$50,000To provide nationwide network of food banks deliver programs at the front line of hunger. Programs like school-based food pantries.
Monarch School
$50,000To provide comprehensive academic, social and emotional support to youth, alumni, and their families.
Youth Haven Ranch
$48,000To provide life-changing christ-centered experiences for disadvantaged children.
Brandywine Convervancy
$40,000To protects and conserves the land, water, natural, and cultural resources of the Brandywine-Christina watershed.
Girl Scouts of Greater Los Angeles
$40,000To support the mission of building girls' courage, confidence, and character.
Escondido History Center
$40,000To support the second largest history museum in San Diego County.
Unite 4 Africa
$26,000To support organization's goals to unite, equip, and mobilize individuals and organizations to transform their communities. socially, physically and economically
To preserve the historic USS midway and the legacy of those who serve, inspire and educate future generations, and entertain museum guests.
Students Run LA
$20,000To provide underserved secondary students the experience of goal setting, character development, adult mentoring and improved health by training for and completing the LA Marathon.
The Michael J Fox Foundation
$20,000The foundation is dedicated to finding a cure for Parkinson's disease.
To donates high-quality musical instruments to deserving, under-funded music programs, and provides an array of support services to school districts.
Happy House
$10,000to help bring about a safer community by "Building Better Families." A "family" in this case can be small or large; it can be a school, church, business, neighborhood or even a country.
To support the mission to increased girls and gender-expansive youth's interest and long-term success in technology, engineering and making through innovative educational experiences and mentor relationships.
To support the sisterhood in its strategic and activist role in the evolution of the international women's movement.
Diabetes Research Institute Foundation
$10,000To support Diabetes Research Institute (DRI) scientists in making continued progress toward a cure and improving the lives of people living with diabetes today.
Girls Growing Education
$10,000To help provide students with access to world-class education through an offline edutech device.
To lead the fight against food insecurity in the Philadelphia region, by serving a network of organizations and school districts engaged in food distribution, education and advocacy.
Meals on Wheels
$10,000To support programs addressing senior hunger and isolation.
Alzheimer's Disease Research
$10,000To provide support to the foundation which seeks a world free from diseases of mind and sight.
The Culver City Education Foundation
$10,000To bring the community together to enhance the educational experience of every student from the Culver City USD, can reach academic success.
Sahara Foundation
$10,000To support the Reteti elephant sanctuary established to rescue and release orphaned and abandoned elephant calves.
American Contemporay Ballet
$10,000To produce and present choreographic works of the highest quality which exemplify ballet as a musical art form.
Cougar Athletic Alumni Club
$6,000To support the cougar alumni club which devotes its time and energy to the alumni and friends of Escondido High School.
Kitty of Angeles
$5,000To support homeless cats and kittens in Los Angeles.
Salvation Army of Aiken
$5,000To support the mission to meet human needs wherever, whenever, and however we can through local programs and alleviate the effects of poverty.
Whiskers N Wishers Sanctuary Inc
$5,000To support organization's mission committed to rescuing cats in need, with a special emphasis on senior and disabled felines.
Patched Hearts Farm Sanctuary
$5,000To support the organization's mission dedicated to rescuing and rehabilitating animals in need.
The Realm Company
$5,000To support organization that works in motion pictures and live productions.
Friends of the Culver City Library
$5,000To support volunteers in supporting the Culver City Julian Dixon Library.
Soar
$5,000To help assure financially stable and secure futures for elderly and frail members of Catholic religious congregations.
All For One Therapy
$5,000To provide support to a non-profit mental health center dedicated to providing compassionate support and evidence-based therapy to individuals, families, and communities.
Arizona Symphonic Winds
$2,000To support the musical organization.
Colonial Williamsburg Foundation
$2,165,000To support education, museums, research and preservation.
To engage students, alumni, parents, friends and the broader NAU community to connect, invest, and inspire current and future Lumberjacks.
To offer FREE academic and enrichment programs for kids ages 5 years to 18 years old.
Flagstaff Christian Fellowship
$100,000To create a space where people can have authentic encounters with Christ, discover their gifts and use them for God's glory.
To eliminate homelessness among families with children in our community by providing housing, supportive services, and advocacy.