The Thomas Birdie and Bette Lowe Charitable Trust concentrates its giving on sustaining a small number of community organizations through repeat, unrestricted operating support. Half of its grants go to K–12 education-focused causes (via the South St. Paul Educational Foundation) and the other half to neighborhood-level human services (via Neighbors Inc.), indicating a local, service-oriented philanthropy. The foundation favors reliable, general operating gifts rather than project-specific funding.
Highly concentrated and repeat-focused: six grants split evenly between two organizations, multiple-year or multiple-grant support, relatively large single-recipient commitments rather than many small or widely distributed awards.
Thomas Birdie and Bette Lowe Charitable Trust gives in a two-organization pattern: South St Paul Educational Fdn and Neighbors Inc each received repeated general operating support across 2023, 2024, and 2025. That repeat cycle makes the trust easy to read as a steady local funder rather than a one-off grantmaker. The awards are not tied to projects; they are unrestricted operating gifts, which points to support for organizational core costs and continuity. The trust’s recent grants are all in Minnesota and all go to South St. Paul-based recipients. In 2024, both core grantees received $26,000, and in 2025 both received $20,000, showing a consistent pairing of school-related support and neighborhood services. The same organizations also appeared in 2023 at $15,000 each, reinforcing the trust’s multi-year commitment to a small set of community institutions. With annual grants of $122,000 and total assets of $494,481, the trust operates at a modest scale and keeps a concentrated portfolio. Its structure favors continuity over breadth, with grantmaking centered on recurring support for local nonprofits that serve education and basic needs.
One clear cause area is K–12 public school support and enrichment. South St Paul Educational Fdn received $26,000 in 2024 and $20,000 in 2025, both listed as general operating support. The repetition suggests the trust uses flexible funding to help a school-focused nonprofit sustain its day-to-day work. A second focus area is community-based basic needs and neighborhood human services. Neighbors Inc received the same grant pattern in those same years: $26,000 in 2024 and $20,000 in 2025, again as general operating support. That mirrors the trust’s broader preference for unrestricted funding. The recent record also shows the trust supporting the same two organizations in 2023, with $15,000 grants to each. Across these gifts, the foundation appears to favor a narrow set of local institutions rather than spreading funds across many causes.
Typical grants cluster in a tight range: p25 is $16,250, median is $20,000, and p75 is $24,500. The recent record shows a repeated two-grantee pattern, with the same organizations funded in 2023, 2024, and 2025. That suggests recurring support rather than one-time awards. The trust gives general operating support, and its portfolio is small and concentrated. It does not fund individuals and does not make program-related investments.
$14K
$497K
$27K
$24K
Most grants fall between $16K and $25K, with a median of $20K.
25th Percentile
$16K
Median
$20K
75th Percentile
$25K
About 0% of grants go to recipients in MN.
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Notable grantees: South St. Paul Educational Foundation, Neighbors Inc., Other local community nonprofits (unspecified)
Grantmaking is regional and highly concentrated in Minnesota. All recent grants in the data went to South St. Paul, MN, and the top state by grant count is MN. None of the recent grants went to recipients in Wisconsin, even though the trust’s headquarters are in Milwaukee. The recipient country distribution is entirely U.S.-based, with 6 grants in the US.
The trust supports a small set of local nonprofits focused on K–12 public school support and enrichment, plus community-based basic needs and neighborhood human services. The recent grant record shows repeated support for those two areas through South St. Paul Educational Fdn and Neighbors Inc.
It funds general operating support. All six recent grants are labeled general operating, including repeated awards in 2023, 2024, and 2025.
Typical awards are in the $16,250 to $24,500 range, with a median grant size of $20,000. The recent grants also show $15,000, $20,000, and $26,000 awards.
Minnesota receives the most grants by count, and the recent record shows all six listed grants going to South St. Paul, MN. The trust’s giving is regional rather than national.
2026
Source: IRS Form 990-PF, fiscal year 2026.
Most recent grants reported to the IRS.
| Recipient | Location | Amount | Year | Purpose |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| NEIGHBORS INC | SOUTH ST PAUL, MN | $7,000 | 2026 | GENERAL OPERATING |
| SOUTH ST PAUL EDUCATIONAL FDN | SOUTH ST PAUL, MN | $7,000 | 2026 | GENERAL OPERATING |
| NEIGHBORS INC | SOUTH ST PAUL, MN | $20,000 | 2025 | GENERAL OPERATING |
| SOUTH ST PAUL EDUCATIONAL FDN | SOUTH ST PAUL, MN | $20,000 | 2025 | GENERAL OPERATING |
| NEIGHBORS INC | SOUTH ST PAUL, MN | $26,000 | 2024 | GENERAL OPERATING |
| SOUTH ST PAUL EDUCATIONAL FDN | SOUTH ST PAUL, MN | $26,000 | 2024 | GENERAL OPERATING |
| NEIGHBORS INC | SOUTH ST PAUL, MN | $15,000 | 2023 | GENERAL OPERATING |
| SOUTH ST PAUL EDUCATIONAL FDN | SOUTH ST PAUL, MN | $15,000 | 2023 | GENERAL OPERATING |
SOUTH ST PAUL EDUCATIONAL FDN
$7,000GENERAL OPERATING
SOUTH ST PAUL EDUCATIONAL FDN
$20,000GENERAL OPERATING
SOUTH ST PAUL EDUCATIONAL FDN
$26,000GENERAL OPERATING
SOUTH ST PAUL EDUCATIONAL FDN
$15,000GENERAL OPERATING