BetsWest Foundation

Private foundation · Grantmaker Brenham, TX EIN: 26-3222176

BetsWest Foundation is a private foundation based in Brenham, Texas. Its 2024 filing reports grants to charitable organizations in Texas, including organizations serving youth, preserving local history, providing animal welfare services, and delivering community fire and emergency services.

BetsWest Foundation at a glance

In short: BetsWest Foundation gave $93K across 15 grants in 2024 (avg $6K), mostly in Texas. 7% of 2024 grantees were new. Source: 2024 IRS Form 990-PF.

Annual giving (2024)
$92,500
-15.7% vs 2023
Grants made (2024)
15
+15.4% vs 2023
Average grant
$6,167
-27.0% vs 2023
Median grant
$2,500
Total assets
$1,877,565
+2.9% vs 2023
New grantees (estimate)
7% first-time grantees (1 of 15, 2024; small sample)
Primary geography
Texas (100% of itemized 2024 grant dollars)
Latest 990 filing
Form 990-PF, 2024 View filing

Data from IRS Form 990-PF, 2024; updated October 2026. New grantees are estimated by matching recipient names across years (methodology).

How to apply to BetsWest Foundation

Accepts unsolicited proposals
No
How to Apply

The foundation states that it makes contributions only to preselected charitable organizations and does not accept unsolicited requests for funds.

Contact

Mailing address: PO Box 2196, Brenham, TX 77834-2196
Phone: (979) 830-8884

Application details from Grantable's research on the foundation's public materials; confirm on its website before applying.

Who BetsWest Foundation funds

How this funder distributes its grants

Top Recipients

Top 10 recipients in 2024

Camp for All: $25KCamp for All$25KWashington on the Brazos Historical Foundation: $17KWashington on the BrazosHistorical Foundation$17KChappell Hill United Methodist Church: $12KChappell Hill United MethodistChurch$12KBoys & Girls Club of Washington County: $10KBoys & Girls Club ofWashington County$10KWashington County Healthy Living Association: $10KWashington County HealthyLiving Association$10KBrenham Animal Services: $5KBrenham Animal Services$5KAnimal Friends of Washington County: $3KAnimal Friends of WashingtonCounty$3KChappell Hill Historical Society: $3KChappell Hill HistoricalSociety$3KMargaret Blizzard Senior Activity Center: $3KMargaret Blizzard SeniorActivity Center$3KChappell Hill Volunteer Fire Department: $2KChappell Hill Volunteer FireDepartment$2K

The largest 2024 recipient was Camp for All ($25K). Together the top 10 received $88K.

Grant Size Distribution

95 grants across all recorded years

93<$50K$50–100K$100–250K2$250–500K$500K–1M$1–5M$5M+

The most common grant size was under $50K: 93 grants of 95 (98%).

Geographic Focus

Where this funder awards grants

All grant dollars reported for 2024 went to recipients in Texas. Listed recipients include organizations in Brenham, Chappell Hill, Burton, Washington, and Houston.

Grant Distribution by State

6states

Share of 2024 grant dollars across all 15 itemized grants.

Cities

BrenhamChappell HillAustinBurtonHoustonPortlandSmithtwonWashingtonBryanCollege StationDenverKanabNew YorkYorktown HeightsBeavertonCaldwellEnglewood

Is BetsWest Foundation open to new grantees?

7%

first-time grantees, 2024

In 2024, 1 of 15 grantees (7%) were first-time recipients. With only 15 grantees, that is a small sample: one grantee more or less moves the share by about 7 points. First grants averaged $10K; repeat grants $6K. How we count

Medians: $10K first-time, $3K repeat.

  • 80% of 2024 grantees were also funded in 2023. Method
  • Giving fell 75% from 2021 to 2024. Method
  • In 2024 it paid out 91% of its IRS minimum distribution (the 5% rule). Foundations have until the end of the next year to meet it. Method

Estimate from itemized grant lists in IRS Form 990-PF filings (2020–2024). Recipient names are matched across years, so a renamed or misspelled grantee can look new; grants to individuals are left out. Methodology.

Giving History

Giving Over Time

Total grant dollars and number of grants per year

$0$100K$200K$300K$400K26 grants2020 25 grants2021 16 grants2022 13 grants2023 15 grants2024

From 2020 to 2024, annual grant giving ranged from $93K (2024) to $373K (2021). In 2024 it made 15 grants totaling $93K.

Grants by year

Grant recipients and amounts by year

RecipientPurposeAmount
Camp for All Burton, TXGeneral Support$25,000
Washington on the Brazos Historical Foundation Washington, TXGeneral Support$16,500
Chappell Hill United Methodist Church Chappell Hill, TXGeneral Support$12,000
Boys & Girls Club of Washington County Brenham, TXGeneral Support$10,000
Washington County Healthy Living Association Brenham, TXGeneral Support$10,000
Brenham Animal Services Brenham, TXGeneral Support$5,000
Animal Friends of Washington County Brenham, TXGeneral Support$2,500
Chappell Hill Historical Society Chappell Hill, TXGeneral Support$2,500
Margaret Blizzard Senior Activity Center Brenham, TXGeneral Support$2,500
Chappell Hill Volunteer Fire Department Chappell Hill, TXGeneral Support$2,000
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Financial History

Multi-year comparison from IRS filings

Figures from IRS filings, by filing year
Filing yearTotal AssetsRevenueExpensesGrants paidGrantsQualifying DistributionsNet Investment IncomeDistributable Amount
2024$1,877,565$162,302$105,236$92,50015$92,500$149,566$101,104
2023$1,824,321$24,061$121,503$109,75313$109,753$52,364$95,958
2022$1,910,032$-339,028$384,746$358,50016$358,500$26,898$106,586
2021$2,640,892$570,518$389,541$372,50025$372,500$560,828$128,398
2020$2,457,356$189,893$140,891$120,40926—$175,010$123,417

Under IRS private-foundation payout rules, BetsWest Foundation reported a distributable amount of $101K for 2024 — the minimum it must pay out in qualifying distributions.

Research compiled by Grantable AI from public sources. Last updated September 2026.

Mission & Focus Areas

No foundation mission statement is provided. Its 2024 grants show support for organizations with varied purposes. For example, the Boys & Girls Club of Washington County says its mission is to promote the health and development of boys and girls ages six to eighteen. The Chappell Hill Historical Society describes its work as preserving historic buildings and educating the public about local history. Animal Friends of Washington County says it works to prevent animal overpopulation and care for abused or abandoned animals, while the Chappell Hill Volunteer Fire Department says it provides fire and emergency services for its community.

Grantmaking

In 2024, the foundation gave $92,500 through 15 grants. Grant amounts ranged from $500 to $25,000, with a median of $2,500. The largest awards included $25,000 to Camp for All, $16,500 to Washington on the Brazos Historical Foundation, $12,000 to Chappell Hill United Methodist Church, and $10,000 each to the Boys & Girls Club of Washington County and Washington County Healthy Living Association. These grants were listed for general support.

Leadership & Key People

Leadership team and compensation from IRS filings

The 2024 filing lists Sally L Blackie-Sengel as president, Elizabeth H Blackie as secretary, and Weston C Blackie as treasurer.

BetsWest Foundation is led by Sally L Blackie-Sengel, President on every filing since 2020; none of the 3 officers listed in 2024 report compensation.

Officers on the 2024 filing

  • Sally L Blackie-Sengel

    President

    On filings since 2020

    No compensation reported

  • Elizabeth H Blackie

    Secretary

    On filings since 2020

    No compensation reported

  • Weston C Blackie

    Treasurer

    On filings since 2020

    No compensation reported

Data from IRS Form 990 filings, 2020–2024. "On filings since" is the earliest filing we hold that lists the person; hours are average hours per week as reported.

Frequently asked questions about BetsWest Foundation

How much does BetsWest Foundation give each year?

BetsWest Foundation gave $93K across 15 grants in 2024, according to its 2024 IRS Form 990-PF. In 2023 it gave $110K across 13 grants.

What is BetsWest Foundation's typical grant size?

BetsWest Foundation's median grant in 2024 was $2,500, and its average grant was $6,167, across 15 grants on its 2024 IRS Form 990-PF. Organizations receiving their first grant from BetsWest Foundation that year got $10K on average.

Where does BetsWest Foundation give grants?

BetsWest Foundation gives mostly in Texas: 100% of the grant dollars itemized on its 2024 IRS Form 990-PF went to recipients there. The most frequent recipient cities were Brenham, TX (8 grants) and Chappell Hill, TX (3 grants).

Does BetsWest Foundation give general operating support?

Yes: 100% of BetsWest Foundation's 2024 grants with a stated purpose (15 of 15) were for general or operating support, per its 2024 IRS Form 990-PF.

Who are BetsWest Foundation's largest grantees?

BetsWest Foundation's largest 2024 grantees include Camp for All ($25,000), Washington on the Brazos Historical Foundation ($16,500) and Chappell Hill United Methodist Church ($12,000), according to its 2024 IRS Form 990-PF. Together they received 58% of its itemized 2024 grant dollars.

How large is BetsWest Foundation?

BetsWest Foundation reported $1.9M in total assets on its 2024 IRS Form 990-PF. It paid out $93K in qualifying distributions that year, against a required minimum of $101K (roughly 5% of its investment assets). Falling short in one year is not a violation: foundations have until the end of the next year to meet the minimum.

What does BetsWest Foundation fund?

No foundation mission statement is provided. Its 2024 grants show support for organizations with varied purposes. For example, the Boys & Girls Club of Washington County says its mission is to promote the health and development of boys and girls ages six to eighteen. See mission & focus areas ↑

How do I apply for a grant from BetsWest Foundation?

The foundation states that it makes contributions only to preselected charitable organizations and does not accept unsolicited requests for funds. Eligibility and process details are in the grantmaking section of this profile. See how to apply ↑

What is BetsWest Foundation's EIN?

BetsWest Foundation's EIN (Employer Identification Number) is 26-3222176. IRS Form 990 filing data is available on this page for 2020–2024.

Does BetsWest Foundation accept unsolicited proposals?

No, according to Grantable's research on the foundation's published guidelines. See how to apply ↑

Data last updated October 2026. Sourced from IRS Form 990-PF filings. Research dossier generated September 2026.

Data update history

(1)

When this profile's IRS filing data changed on Grantable

  1. IRS filings on file for fiscal years 2020–2024

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Cite this profile

Grantable. (2026). BetsWest Foundation funder profile. GrantGraph. Retrieved October 14, 2026, from https://grantable.co/funders/betswest-foundation-morg_593a7514d2a64307a105ad9bea7a40b0

BibTeX
@misc{grantable_263222176_2026,
  author       = {{Grantable}},
  title        = {{BetsWest Foundation funder profile}},
  howpublished = {GrantGraph},
  year         = {2026},
  url          = {https://grantable.co/funders/betswest-foundation-morg_593a7514d2a64307a105ad9bea7a40b0},
  note         = {Accessed 2026-10-14. Data licensed CC BY 4.0}
}

The figures on this page are open data under CC BY 4.0: reuse them with credit to Grantable and a link. Download the data.

Figures come from BetsWest Foundation's IRS filings (methodology). AI-written summaries, news items and logos are not covered by the open licence. Spot an error? Email hello@grantable.co.

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