Burns-Donovan Foundation
The Burns-Donovan Foundation is a private foundation based in Ames, Iowa. Its 2025 filing reports grants to Iowa organizations, with listed grant purposes primarily identified as religious education.
Burns-Donovan Foundation at a glance
In short: Burns-Donovan Foundation gave $120K across 15 grants in 2025 (avg $8K), mostly in Iowa. 33% of 2025 grantees were new. Source: 2025 IRS Form 990-PF.
- Annual giving (2025)
- $120,317
- +53.4% vs 2024
- Grants made (2025)
- 15
- +50.0% vs 2024
- Average grant
- $8,021
- +2.2% vs 2024
- Median grant
- $6,000
- Total assets
- $769,097
- -3.5% vs 2024
- New grantees (estimate)
- 33% first-time grantees (5 of 15, 2025; small sample)
- Primary geography
- Iowa (100% of itemized 2025 grant dollars)
- Latest 990 filing
- Form 990-PF, 2025 View filing
Data from IRS Form 990-PF, 2025; updated October 2026. New grantees are estimated by matching recipient names across years (methodology).
How to apply to Burns-Donovan 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: c/o First National Bank, PO Box 8, Ames, IA 50010
Phone: (515) 663-3037
Application details from Grantable's research on the foundation's public materials; confirm on its website before applying.
Who Burns-Donovan Foundation funds
How this funder distributes its grants
Top Recipients
Top 10 recipients in 2025
The largest 2025 recipient was St Stephen the Witness Catholic Student Center ($22K). Together the top 10 received $110K.
Grant Size Distribution
55 grants across all recorded years
The most common grant size was under $50K: 55 grants of 55 (100%).
Geographic Focus
Where this funder awards grants
All grant dollars in filing year 2025 went to recipients in Iowa.
Grant Distribution by State
Share of 2025 grant dollars across all 15 itemized grants.
Cities
Is Burns-Donovan Foundation open to new grantees?
33%
first-time grantees, 2025
In 2025, 5 of 15 grantees (33%) 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 $9K; repeat grants $8K. How we count
Medians: $6K first-time, $7K repeat.
- 53% of 2025 grantees were also funded in 2024. Method
- Giving grew 63% from 2022 to 2025. Method
- In 2025 it paid out 172% of its IRS minimum distribution (the 5% rule). Method
Estimate from itemized grant lists in IRS Form 990-PF filings (2019–2025). 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
From 2019 to 2025, annual grant giving ranged from $56K (2020) to $120K (2025). In 2025 it made 15 grants totaling $120K.
Grants by year
Grant recipients and amounts by year
| Recipient | Purpose | Amount |
|---|---|---|
| St Stephen the Witness Catholic Student Center Cedar Falls, IA | Religous Education | $22,000 |
| St Thomas Aquinas Church and Catholic Student Center Ames, IA | Religious Education | $17,000 |
| Immaculate Conception Parish Charles City, IA | Religious Education | $15,500 |
| Mater DEI Catholic Parish Sioux City, IA | Religous Education | $12,000 |
| St Patrick Catholic Church Waukon, IA | Religious Education | $10,000 |
| St Teresa of Calcutta Faith Formation Calmar, IA | Religious Education | $9,312 |
| St Cecilia Catholic Church Ames, IA | Religous Education | $8,000 |
| Trinity Cluster Monona, IA | Religous Education | $6,000 |
| Archangels Catholic Church Forest City, IA | Religious Education | $5,000 |
| Spires of Faith Cluster Dyersville, IA | Religious Education | $5,000 |
Ready to take the next step with Burns-Donovan Foundation?
Financial History
Multi-year comparison from IRS filings
| Filing year | Total Assets | Revenue | Expenses | Grants paid | Grants | Qualifying Distributions | Net Investment Income | Distributable Amount |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2025 | $769,097 | $108,701 | $136,959 | $120,317 | 15 | $120,317 | $108,701 | $70,067 |
| 2024 | $797,355 | $34,091 | $95,725 | $78,450 | 10 | $78,450 | $34,594 | $70,841 |
| 2023 | $858,989 | $85,769 | $95,209 | $80,629 | 10 | $80,629 | $84,443 | $65,555 |
| 2022 | $868,429 | $26,973 | $92,699 | $73,740 | 10 | $73,740 | $28,835 | $68,860 |
| 2021 | $934,155 | $158,550 | $92,443 | $76,631 | 10 | $76,631 | $158,550 | $74,498 |
| 2020 | $868,048 | $15,895 | $70,172 | $55,664 | 10 | — | $16,706 | $65,645 |
| 2019 | $922,325 | $52,810 | $92,414 | $76,967 | 19 | — | $41,165 | $64,590 |
Under IRS private-foundation payout rules, Burns-Donovan Foundation reported a distributable amount of $70K for 2025 — 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 mission statement is provided. The 2025 filing lists religious education as the purpose for the grants shown and names recipients including Catholic churches, parishes, and student centers.
Grantmaking
In filing year 2025, the foundation gave $120,317 through 15 grants. Grant amounts ranged from $555 to $22,000, with a median grant of $6,000.
Among the largest listed grants were $22,000 to St Stephen the Witness Catholic Student Center in Cedar Falls, $17,000 to St Thomas Aquinas Church and Catholic Student Center in Ames, and $15,500 to Immaculate Conception Parish in Charles City. The filing identifies religious education as the purpose of each.
Leadership & Key People
Leadership team and compensation from IRS filings
The 2025 filing lists Cynthia L Inbody as secretary/treasurer/director, Father Kyle Digmann as director, and Steven P Wandro as president/director.
Burns-Donovan Foundation is led by Steven P. Wandro, President & Director on every filing since 2019; none of the 3 officers listed in 2025 report compensation.
Officers on the 2025 filing
Steven P. Wandro
President & Director
On filings since 2019
1 hr/week
No compensation reported
Father Kyle Digmann
Director
On filings since 2019
1 hr/week
No compensation reported
Cynthia L. Inbody
Secretary, Treasurer & Director
On filings since 2024
1 hr/week
No compensation reported
Former officers (1)
- Former: Cynthia L. Bourke (2019–2023) — Secretary, Treasurer & Director
Data from IRS Form 990 filings, 2019–2025. "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 Burns-Donovan Foundation
How much does Burns-Donovan Foundation give each year?
Burns-Donovan Foundation gave $120K across 15 grants in 2025, according to its 2025 IRS Form 990-PF. In 2024 it gave $78K across 10 grants.
What is Burns-Donovan Foundation's typical grant size?
Burns-Donovan Foundation's median grant in 2025 was $6,000, and its average grant was $8,021, across 15 grants on its 2025 IRS Form 990-PF. Organizations receiving their first grant from Burns-Donovan Foundation that year got $9K on average.
Where does Burns-Donovan Foundation give grants?
Burns-Donovan Foundation gives mostly in Iowa: 100% of the grant dollars itemized on its 2025 IRS Form 990-PF went to recipients there. The most frequent recipient cities were Ames, IA (2 grants), Sioux City, IA (2 grants) and Dyersville, IA (2 grants).
Does Burns-Donovan Foundation give general operating support?
Not in 2025: none of the 15 grants with a stated purpose on Burns-Donovan Foundation's 2025 IRS Form 990-PF were described as general or operating support. Recurring purposes include "Religious Education" (8 grants) and "Religous Education" (7 grants).
Who are Burns-Donovan Foundation's largest grantees?
Burns-Donovan Foundation's largest 2025 grantees include St Stephen the Witness Catholic Student Center ($22,000), St Thomas Aquinas Church and Catholic Student Center ($17,000) and Immaculate Conception Parish ($15,500), according to its 2025 IRS Form 990-PF. Together they received 45% of its itemized 2025 grant dollars.
How large is Burns-Donovan Foundation?
Burns-Donovan Foundation reported $769K in total assets on its 2025 IRS Form 990-PF. It paid out $120K in qualifying distributions that year, against a required minimum of $70K (roughly 5% of its investment assets).
What does Burns-Donovan Foundation fund?
No mission statement is provided. The 2025 filing lists religious education as the purpose for the grants shown and names recipients including Catholic churches, parishes, and student centers. See mission & focus areas ↑
How do I apply for a grant from Burns-Donovan 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 Burns-Donovan Foundation's EIN?
Burns-Donovan Foundation's EIN (Employer Identification Number) is 42-1445649. IRS Form 990 filing data is available on this page for 2019–2025.
Does Burns-Donovan 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
(8)
When this profile's IRS filing data changed on Grantable
- Updated Form 990-PF for fiscal year 2019 (received by the IRS September 4, 2020)
- Updated Form 990-PF for fiscal year 2020 (received by the IRS November 3, 2021)
- Updated Form 990-PF for fiscal year 2021 (received by the IRS September 14, 2022)
- Updated Form 990-PF for fiscal year 2022 (received by the IRS July 17, 2023)
- Updated Form 990-PF for fiscal year 2023 (received by the IRS June 4, 2024)
- Updated Form 990-PF for fiscal year 2024 (received by the IRS July 14, 2025)
- Added Form 990-PF for fiscal year 2025 (received by the IRS August 5, 2026)
- IRS filings on file for fiscal years 2019–2024
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Figures come from Burns-Donovan 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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