Hawks Foundation

About Hawks Foundation

The Hawks Foundation’s largest recent gift was a $13,453,544 commitment to the Joslyn Art Museum for a museum capital project, a signal of how heavily the foundation backs anchor institutions and long-horizon civic projects. Across its recent grants, the foundation pairs major capital support with operating and program funding for Omaha and Nebraska organizations serving culture, education, behavioral health, and family services. That pattern shows up in repeated support for the Omaha Public Library Foundation, Community Alliance Foundation, Child Savings Institute, and Downtown Riverfront Trust. These awards are not isolated checks: the foundation has returned to the same organizations across multiple years, including back-to-back support for Joslyn Art Museum and Community Alliance Foundation. The grant record also includes scholarships and education support through University of Nebraska Foundation, public media, legal aid for immigrants and refugees, and aid for low-income child care, affordable housing, food access, palliative care, and youth justice. The foundation’s giving is regional and place-based, with Nebraska recipients appearing throughout the portfolio and Omaha as the main center of activity. Its recent grantmaking suggests a preference for large awards to established institutions and service providers rather than a broad scatter of small grants.

What Hawks Foundation Funds

Arts and cultural institutions are a clear priority. The foundation gave $1,500,000 to Museum of Nebraska Art for an art museum and $1,070,000 to Omaha Community Playhouse for performing arts, alongside major capital support for Joslyn Art Museum. Education and literacy also appear in the record. It awarded $6,050,000 to Omaha Public Library Foundation for library collections and $300,000 to Nebraska Public Media for educational media. Behavioral health and family services are another recurring theme. Community Alliance Foundation received $4,015,000, $3,550,000, and $2,515,000 for mental health programs, while Child Savings Institute received $2,016,000 and $2,002,980 for child and family services. The foundation also supports community infrastructure and direct aid. Downtown Riverfront Trust received $2,000,000 for city beautification and another $2,000,000 for a community park project, and Habitat for Humanity Omaha received $450,000 for affordable housing.

How Hawks Foundation Gives