C E Bennett Foundation
C E Bennett Foundation is a private foundation based in Wilmington, Delaware. Its 2025 filing reports 15 charitable grants totaling $510,000 to organizations including arts, community-service, environmental, food-assistance, and education organizations.
C E Bennett Foundation at a glance
In short: C E Bennett Foundation gave $510K across 15 grants in 2025 (avg $34K), mostly in Delaware. 0% of 2025 grantees were new. Source: 2025 IRS Form 990-PF.
- Annual giving (2025)
- $510,000
- +5.4% vs 2024
- Grants made (2025)
- 15
- +0.0% vs 2024
- Average grant
- $34,000
- +5.4% vs 2024
- Median grant
- $16,800
- Total assets
- $8,178,560
- +6.6% vs 2024
- New grantees (estimate)
- 0% first-time grantees (0 of 15, 2025; small sample)
- Primary geography
- Delaware (64% 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 C E Bennett Foundation
- Accepts unsolicited proposals
- No
- How to Apply
-
The foundation makes contributions only to preselected charitable organizations and does not accept unsolicited requests.
- Contact
Mailing address: 2751 Centerville Road 300, Wilmington, DE 19808
Phone: (302) 225-5000
Application details from Grantable's research on the foundation's public materials; confirm on its website before applying.
Who C E Bennett Foundation funds
How this funder distributes its grants
Top Recipients
Top 10 recipients in 2025
The largest 2025 recipient was Delaware Symphony Orchestra ($100K). Together the top 10 received $449K.
Organizations only. It also paid 1 grant to individuals ($35,000), which are not listed by name.
Grant Size Distribution
61 grants across all recorded years
The most common grant size was under $50K: 38 grants of 61 (62%).
Geographic Focus
Where this funder awards grants
In 2025, grant dollars were reported as going to recipients in Delaware (64%), Pennsylvania (33%), and New York (3%).
Grant Distribution by State
Share of 2025 grant dollars across all 15 itemized grants.
Cities
Is C E Bennett Foundation open to new grantees?
0%
first-time grantees, 2025
In 2025, 0 of 15 grantees (0%) 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. How we count
- 100% of 2025 grantees were also funded in 2024. Method
- Giving held roughly steady from 2022 to 2025 (−15%). Method
- In 2025 it paid out 101% of its IRS minimum distribution (the 5% rule). Method
Estimate from itemized grant lists in IRS Form 990-PF filings (2020–2025). 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 2020 to 2025, annual grant giving ranged from $400K (2020) to $655K (2021). In 2025 it made 15 grants totaling $510K.
Grants by year
Grant recipients and amounts by year
| Recipient | Purpose | Amount |
|---|---|---|
| Delaware Symphony Orchestra Wilmington, DE | Charitable | $100,000 |
| Kennett Area Community Service Kennett Square, PA | Charitable | $80,000 |
| Silverside Church Wilmington, DE | Charitable | $79,000 |
| Delaware Art Museum Wilmington, DE | Charitable | $61,650 |
| Brandywine Red Clay Alliance West Chester, PA | Charitable | $42,000 |
| 1 grant to individuals Recipients not named | — | $35,000 |
| Food Bank of Delaware Newark, DE | Charitable | $27,000 |
| Janus School Scholarship Fund Mount Joy, PA | Charitable | $16,800 |
| Colgate Rochester Crozer Divinity School Rochester, NY | Charitable | $16,650 |
| Delaware Museum of Nature & Science Wilmington, DE | Charitable | $15,000 |
Ready to take the next step with C E Bennett Foundation?
Financial History
Multi-year comparison from IRS filings
The foundation’s filing type is Form 990-PF.
| Filing year | Total Assets | Revenue | Expenses | Grants paid | Grants | Qualifying Distributions | Net Investment Income | Distributable Amount |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2025 | $8,178,560 | $1,051,848 | $564,054 | $510,000 | 15 | $512,150 | $1,009,899 | $506,317 |
| 2024 | $7,673,237 | $582,858 | $510,856 | $484,000 | 15 | $485,930 | $563,661 | $491,009 |
| 2023 | $7,608,981 | $441,794 | $511,641 | $481,000 | 15 | $483,734 | $409,265 | $466,672 |
| 2022 | $7,685,944 | $469,020 | $659,320 | $600,000 | 9 | $602,098 | $407,235 | $471,151 |
| 2021 | $7,895,946 | $720,904 | $716,176 | $655,000 | 7 | $656,725 | $656,890 | $511,250 |
| 2020 | $7,896,872 | $330,586 | $454,444 | $400,000 | 6 | — | $276,851 | $462,665 |
Under IRS private-foundation payout rules, C E Bennett Foundation reported a distributable amount of $506K 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 for the foundation is provided. Its 2025 grants show support for a range of charitable organizations. For example, Kennett Area Community Service describes its mission as strengthening southern Chester County through food, housing, crisis, and education services. The Delaware Art Museum says it connects people to art and serves as an inclusive community resource. Brandywine Red Clay Alliance describes work to conserve and restore watershed resources through education, science, stewardship, and advocacy. These are the grantees’ missions, not stated missions of the foundation.
Grantmaking
In 2025, the foundation made 15 grants totaling $510,000. Grants ranged from $2,000 to $100,000, with a median of $16,800. Among the largest listed grants were $100,000 to Delaware Symphony Orchestra, $80,000 to Kennett Area Community Service, $79,000 to Silverside Church, $61,650 to Delaware Art Museum, and $42,000 to Brandywine Red Clay Alliance. Other listed recipients included an individual recipient at the University of Delaware ($35,000), Food Bank of Delaware ($27,000), Janus School Scholarship Fund ($16,800), and Delaware Museum of Nature & Science ($15,000). Kennett Library received $7,500.
Leadership & Key People
Leadership team and compensation from IRS filings
The 2025 filing lists Karl E Bennett as president, David Bennett as vice president, and Linda B Frick as treasurer.
C E Bennett Foundation is led by Karl E. Bennett, President since 2022 (on filings since 2020); none of the 3 officers listed in 2025 report compensation.
Officers on the 2025 filing
Karl E. Bennett
President
Vice President → President, 2022
On filings since 2020
1 hr/week
No compensation reported
David Bennett
Vice President
On filings since 2022
1 hr/week
No compensation reported
Linda B. Frick
Treasurer
On filings since 2022
1 hr/week
No compensation reported
Former officers (1)
- Former: Edna B. Pierce (2020–2022) — Executive President
Data from IRS Form 990 filings, 2020–2025. "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 C E Bennett Foundation
How much does C E Bennett Foundation give each year?
C E Bennett Foundation gave $510K across 15 grants in 2025, according to its 2025 IRS Form 990-PF. In 2024 it gave $484K across 15 grants.
What is C E Bennett Foundation's typical grant size?
C E Bennett Foundation's median grant in 2025 was $16,800, and its average grant was $34,000, across 15 grants on its 2025 IRS Form 990-PF.
Where does C E Bennett Foundation give grants?
C E Bennett Foundation gives mostly in Delaware: 64% of the grant dollars itemized on its 2025 IRS Form 990-PF went to recipients there. The next largest state was Pennsylvania (33%). The most frequent recipient cities were Wilmington, DE (5 grants), Kennett Square, PA (3 grants) and West Chester, PA (2 grants).
Does C E Bennett Foundation give general operating support?
Not in 2025: none of the 15 grants with a stated purpose on C E Bennett Foundation's 2025 IRS Form 990-PF were described as general or operating support. Recurring purposes include "Charitable" (15 grants).
Who are C E Bennett Foundation's largest grantees?
C E Bennett Foundation's largest 2025 grantees include Delaware Symphony Orchestra ($100,000), Kennett Area Community Service ($80,000) and Silverside Church ($79,000), according to its 2025 IRS Form 990-PF. It also paid 1 grant to individuals ($35,000), which are not listed by name. Together they received 51% of its itemized 2025 grant dollars.
How large is C E Bennett Foundation?
C E Bennett Foundation reported $8.2M in total assets on its 2025 IRS Form 990-PF. It paid out $512K in qualifying distributions that year, against a required minimum of $506K (roughly 5% of its investment assets).
What does C E Bennett Foundation fund?
No mission statement for the foundation is provided. Its 2025 grants show support for a range of charitable organizations. For example, Kennett Area Community Service describes its mission as strengthening southern Chester County through food, housing, crisis, and education services. See mission & focus areas ↑
How do I apply for a grant from C E Bennett Foundation?
The foundation makes contributions only to preselected charitable organizations and does not accept unsolicited requests. Eligibility and process details are in the grantmaking section of this profile. See how to apply ↑
What is C E Bennett Foundation's EIN?
C E Bennett Foundation's EIN (Employer Identification Number) is 51-0102289. IRS Form 990 filing data is available on this page for 2020–2025.
Does C E Bennett 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
(2)
When this profile's IRS filing data changed on Grantable
- Added Form 990-PF for fiscal year 2025 (received by the IRS May 8, 2026)
- IRS filings on file for fiscal years 2020–2024
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Cite this profile
Grantable. (2026). C E Bennett Foundation funder profile. GrantGraph. Retrieved October 14, 2026, from https://grantable.co/funders/c-e-bennett-foundation-morg_b07f1b2c28e74283ade1cf9eed3a8ecd
BibTeX
@misc{grantable_510102289_2026,
author = {{Grantable}},
title = {{C E Bennett Foundation funder profile}},
howpublished = {GrantGraph},
year = {2026},
url = {https://grantable.co/funders/c-e-bennett-foundation-morg_b07f1b2c28e74283ade1cf9eed3a8ecd},
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 C E Bennett 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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