The Robert and Jessie Whitmore Charitable Trust concentrates its giving on cultural institutions in Milwaukee and national health research charities. Grants are often targeted to core operating support for museums, performing arts, and large disease-focused nonprofits, with occasional local community services support. The foundation shows a clear preference for sustaining established institutions rather than distributing many small, experimental awards.
Concentrated, repeat support: multi-year or multiple equal-sized grants to a small set of established grantees, with relatively large unrestricted/general expense awards rather than many small one-off grants.
The Robert and Jessie Whitmore Charitable Trust shows a stable pattern of repeat support for a small set of Milwaukee cultural institutions, alongside disease-research grants and a recurring community-services gift to Congregational Home in Brookfield. The trust’s recent awards cluster around general operating or general expense support for major local arts and museum organizations, including the Milwaukee Art Museum, Milwaukee Public Museum, and Milwaukee Symphony Orchestra. It also funds research-oriented charities such as the American Cancer Society and American Heart Association. Among the recent grants, the same organizations appear across 2023, 2024, and 2025, with award levels staying in a relatively narrow band for the core recipients. The trust’s giving pattern suggests an emphasis on sustaining established nonprofits rather than making one-time, program-specific bets. This mix of cultural support, health research, and local services gives a clear picture of the trust’s priorities in the public-interest and community-serving nonprofit sector.
Cultural institutions make up a major share of the trust’s recent giving. In 2025, it gave $8,606 to Milwaukee Public Museum for general expense support and the same amount to Milwaukee Art Museum for general expense support, continuing a pattern seen in prior years. The Milwaukee Symphony Orchestra also received general expense support, including $8,606 in 2025. Health research is another clear area of support. The trust awarded $8,606 in 2025 to the American Cancer Society in Oklahoma City for research and $8,606 to the American Heart Association in Milwaukee for research. Those grants mirror earlier awards at the same amount in 2024 and $10,238 in 2023. Community services appear in the form of support for Congregational Home in Brookfield, which received $4,305 in 2025 for community services.
Typical awards are tightly clustered: p25, median, and p75 are $8,952, $8,952, and $10,238. That narrow spread points to a fairly uniform grant size across recipients. The trust also shows a repeating yearly pattern, with the same organizations appearing in 2023, 2024, and 2025. Its grants are directed to established nonprofits and are frequently labeled general expense or research support, which aligns with unrestricted or core operating support rather than project-specific funding. The trust is a charitable trust, not a donor-advised fund or a program-related-investment vehicle.
$153K
$824K
$63K
$75K
Most grants fall between $9K and $10K, with a median of $9K.
25th Percentile
$9K
Median
$9K
75th Percentile
$10K
About 83% of grants go to recipients in OK.
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Notable grantees: Milwaukee Art Museum, Milwaukee Public Museum, Milwaukee Symphony Orchestra, American Cancer Society, American Heart Association
The trust’s giving is heavily concentrated in Wisconsin, with 83% of grants going to recipients in the HQ state. Even so, Oklahoma is the top state by grant count because of repeated support for a recipient in Oklahoma City. In Wisconsin, Milwaukee is the main recipient city, with grants to the Milwaukee Art Museum, Milwaukee Public Museum, the Milwaukee Symphony Orchestra, and the American Heart Association. Outside Wisconsin, Oklahoma City appears through the American Cancer Society.
The recent grants show a consistent emphasis on Milwaukee arts and museum institutions, disease-research charities, and a local community-services provider. The most frequently repeated recipients include Milwaukee Art Museum, Milwaukee Public Museum, Milwaukee Symphony Orchestra, American Cancer Society, American Heart Association, and Congregational Home.
Typical awards cluster in a narrow range: p25 is $8,952, the median is $8,952, and p75 is $10,238. Recent grants also include smaller community-services awards to Congregational Home and larger awards of $10,238 in 2023.
Yes. Several recipients appear in 2023, 2024, and 2025, including Milwaukee Art Museum, Milwaukee Public Museum, Milwaukee Symphony Orchestra, American Cancer Society, American Heart Association, and Congregational Home. The repeated awards suggest ongoing support rather than one-time grants.
The recent grants center on three areas: cultural institutions in Milwaukee, health research organizations, and local community services. The purposes attached to the grants are mostly general expense or research support, with community services support for Congregational Home in Brookfield.
2025
Source: IRS Form 990-PF, fiscal year 2025.
Most recent grants reported to the IRS.
| Recipient | Location | Amount | Year | Purpose |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| AMERICAN HEART ASSOCIATION | MILWAUKEE, WI | $8,606 | 2025 | RESEARCH |
| MILWAUKEE SYMPHONY ORCHESTRA | MILWAUKEE, WI | $8,606 | 2025 | GENERAL EXPENSE |
| AMERICAN CANCER SOCIETY | OKLAHOMA CITY, OK | $8,606 | 2025 | RESEARCH |
| MILWAUKEE PUBLIC MUSEUM | MILWAUKEE, WI | $8,606 | 2025 | GENERAL EXPENSE |
| MILWAUKEE ART MUSEUM | MILWAUKEE, WI | $8,606 | 2025 | GENERAL EXPENSE |
| CONGREGATIONAL HOME | BROOKFIELD, WI | $4,305 | 2025 | COMMUNITY SERVICES |
| MILWAUKEE ART MUSEUM | MILWAUKEE, WI | $8,952 | 2024 | GENERAL EXPENSE |
| MILWAUKEE SYMPHONY ORCHESTRA | MILWAUKEE, WI | $8,952 | 2024 | GENERAL EXPENSE |
| AMERICAN HEART ASSOCIATION | MILWAUKEE, WI | $8,952 | 2024 | RESEARCH |
| AMERICAN CANCER SOCIETY | OKLAHOMA CITY, OK | $8,952 | 2024 | RESEARCH |
| MILWAUKEE PUBLIC MUSEUM | MILWAUKEE, WI | $8,952 | 2024 | GENERAL EXPENSE |
| CONGREGATIONAL HOME | BROOKFIELD, WI | $4,476 | 2024 | COMMUNITY SERVICES |
| MILWAUKEE SYMPHONY ORCHESTRA | MILWAUKEE, WI | $10,238 | 2023 | GENERAL EXPENSE |
| MILWAUKEE PUBLIC MUSEUM | MILWAUKEE, WI | $10,238 | 2023 | GENERAL EXPENSE |
| MILWAUKEE ART MUSEUM | MILWAUKEE, WI | $10,238 | 2023 | GENERAL EXPENSE |
| AMERICAN HEART ASSOCIATION | MILWAUKEE, WI | $10,238 | 2023 | RESEARCH |
| AMERICAN CANCER SOCIETY | OKLAHOMA CITY, OK | $10,238 | 2023 | RESEARCH |
| CONGREGATIONAL HOME | BROOKFIELD, WI | $5,119 | 2023 | COMMUNITY SERVICES |
AMERICAN HEART ASSOCIATION
$8,606RESEARCH
MILWAUKEE SYMPHONY ORCHESTRA
$8,606GENERAL EXPENSE
AMERICAN CANCER SOCIETY
$8,606RESEARCH
MILWAUKEE PUBLIC MUSEUM
$8,606GENERAL EXPENSE
MILWAUKEE ART MUSEUM
$8,606GENERAL EXPENSE
CONGREGATIONAL HOME
$4,305COMMUNITY SERVICES
MILWAUKEE ART MUSEUM
GENERAL EXPENSE
MILWAUKEE SYMPHONY ORCHESTRA
$8,952GENERAL EXPENSE
AMERICAN HEART ASSOCIATION
$8,952RESEARCH
AMERICAN CANCER SOCIETY
$8,952RESEARCH
MILWAUKEE PUBLIC MUSEUM
$8,952GENERAL EXPENSE
CONGREGATIONAL HOME
$4,476COMMUNITY SERVICES
MILWAUKEE SYMPHONY ORCHESTRA
$10,238GENERAL EXPENSE
MILWAUKEE PUBLIC MUSEUM
$10,238GENERAL EXPENSE
MILWAUKEE ART MUSEUM
$10,238GENERAL EXPENSE
AMERICAN HEART ASSOCIATION
$10,238RESEARCH
AMERICAN CANCER SOCIETY
$10,238RESEARCH
CONGREGATIONAL HOME
$5,119COMMUNITY SERVICES