First Financial Foundation
First Financial Foundation is a private foundation based in Cincinnati, Ohio. Created in 2017, it supports programs and organizations that enhance and develop communities where First Financial does business, with particular attention to low-income communities.
First Financial Foundation at a glance
In short: First Financial Foundation gave $2.7M across 92 grants in 2024 (avg $29K), mostly in Ohio. 36% of 2024 grantees were new. Source: 2024 IRS Form 990-PF.
- Annual giving (2024)
- $2,653,201
- +10.0% vs 2023
- Grants made (2024)
- 92
- +7.0% vs 2023
- Average grant
- $28,839
- +2.8% vs 2023
- Median grant
- $10,000
- Total assets
- $1,878,655
- +994.9% vs 2023
- New grantees (estimate)
- 36% first-time grantees (32 of 90, 2024)
- Primary geography
- Ohio (82% 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 First Financial Foundation
- How to Apply
-
The Foundation’s filing directs applicants to its website for the application form and materials. The filing states that recipients must be within the bank’s market footprint and deliver services in target areas. Its website says the 2026 grant campaign is closed and anticipates the next open-funding period in Q2 2027.
- Review Cycle
- The Foundation’s 2024 filing lists no deadline.
- Deadline
- The Foundation’s 2024 filing lists no deadline.
- Contact
Application contact: First Financial Foundation
Mailing address: 255 East Fifth Street Suite 800, Cincinnati, OH 45202
Phone: (513) 551-1108
Email: communitydevelopment@bankatfirst.com
Application details from Grantable's research on the foundation's public materials; confirm on its website before applying.
Open Grants
1 open opportunity from First Financial Foundation
Who First Financial Foundation funds
How this funder distributes its grants
Top Recipients
Top 10 recipients in 2024
The largest 2024 recipient was United Way of Greater Cincinnati ($391K). Together the top 10 received $1.7M.
Grant Size Distribution
482 grants across all recorded years
The most common grant size was under $50K: 410 grants of 482 (85%).
Geographic Focus
Where this funder awards grants
The Foundation says it serves communities where First Financial does business and focuses particularly on low-income communities. Its filing states that recipients must be within the bank’s market footprint and provide services in target areas. In 2024, 82% of grant dollars went to Ohio recipients, 12% to Indiana, 5% to Kentucky, 1% to Washington, D.C., and less than 1% to Illinois.
Grant Distribution by State
Share of 2024 grant dollars across all 92 itemized grants.
Cities
Is First Financial Foundation open to new grantees?
36%
first-time grantees, 2024
In 2024, 32 of 90 grantees (36%) were first-time recipients. First grants averaged $11K; repeat grants $40K. How we count
Medians: $5K first-time, $10K repeat.
- 47% of 2024 grantees were also funded in 2023. Method
- Giving held roughly steady from 2021 to 2024 (+1%). 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
From 2020 to 2024, annual grant giving ranged from $2.4M (2023) to $2.9M (2020). In 2024 it made 92 grants totaling $2.7M.
Grants by year
Grant recipients and amounts by year
| Recipient | Purpose | Amount |
|---|---|---|
| United Way of Greater Cincinnati Cincinnati, OH | Annual Campaign (Including Ee Match) | $391,368 |
| Hamilton Community Foundation Hamilton, OH | For the development of a Port Authority to address unproductive real estate and create jobs in Hamilton, OH | $240,000 |
| Cincinnati USA Regional Chamber Minority Business Cincinnati, OH | Support development of minority and small business in the cincinnati region | $200,000 |
| Accelerate Great Schools Cincinnati, OH | Funding for School Programming in Underserved Neighborhoods | $200,000 |
| FC Cincinnati Foundation Cincinnati, OH | Community Support for West End Development | $200,000 |
| Cincinnati Playhouse in the Park Cincinnati, OH | Capital campaign to support a new building for performances and school programming for disadvantaged children | $125,000 |
| Working in Neighborhoods Cincinnati, OH | Redevelopment of 5 LMI Cincinnati Neighborhoods | $75,000 |
| Fundnoire Cincinnati, OH | Fund 24 black owned businesses over two years throughout the City of Cincinnati in $50,000 (max) increments. | $75,000 |
| Freestore Foodbank Inc Cincinnati, OH | Campaign support to assist in suppling meals to those of the community in need | $50,000 |
| Exodus Refugee Immigration Inc Indianapolis, IN | Humanitarian services and self sufficiency training to immigrants and asylum seekers | $50,000 |
Ready to take the next step with First Financial Foundation?
Financial History
Multi-year comparison from IRS filings
| Filing year | Total Assets | Revenue | Expenses | Grants paid | Grants | Qualifying Distributions | Net Investment Income |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2024 | $1,878,655 | $4,361,176 | $1,604,772 | $2,653,201 | 92 | $2,653,326 | $60,396 |
| 2023 | $171,585 | $2,556,233 | $2,002,241 | $2,412,743 | 86 | $2,412,818 | $56,145 |
| 2022 | $28,258 | $9,489 | $3,250,734 | $2,495,483 | 80 | $2,495,708 | $6,310 |
| 2021 | $2,514,504 | $58,717 | $2,372,699 | $2,637,387 | 88 | $2,637,612 | $1,960 |
| 2020 | $5,093,486 | $7,006,642 | $4,065,780 | $2,875,104 | 136 | — | $6,191 |
Research compiled by Grantable AI from public sources. Last updated September 2026.
Mission & Focus Areas
The Foundation says it aims to help communities grow and prosper. Its neighborhood-development priority includes affordable housing, neighborhood revitalization, homebuyer education, foreclosure prevention, and services that help people maintain their homes. Its other stated priorities are workforce development and education, and culture and the arts.
Its 2024 grantees illustrate the range of organizations it supports. United Way of Greater Cincinnati Foundation describes its role as providing a flexible vehicle for financial support of United Way of Greater Cincinnati, its initiatives, agencies, and their human services. Working in Neighborhoods describes its work as community building, home ownership, and economic learning. Accelerate Great Schools says it works to ensure every student in every Cincinnati neighborhood has access to a great school; Cincinnati Playhouse in the Park describes itself as a theater committed to bringing diverse, engaging works to the community. Other 2024 recipients included a food bank whose stated mission is to eliminate hunger in partnership with the community and a refugee organization serving people fleeing persecution, injustice, and war.
Grantmaking
In 2024, the Foundation reported 92 grants totaling $2,653,201. Grants ranged from $5,000 to $391,368, with a median of $10,000.
Among its largest 2024 grants were $391,368 to United Way of Greater Cincinnati for its annual campaign, including an employee match; $240,000 to Hamilton Community Foundation for development of a port authority addressing unproductive real estate and creating jobs in Hamilton; and $200,000 each to Cincinnati USA Regional Chamber Minority Business, Accelerate Great Schools, and FC Cincinnati Foundation. Other notable grants included $125,000 to Cincinnati Playhouse in the Park for a capital campaign, $75,000 to Working in Neighborhoods for redevelopment in five Cincinnati neighborhoods, and $50,000 each to Freestore Foodbank, Exodus Refugee Immigration, ArtsWave, and Homesteading and Urban Redevelopment Corporation.
Leadership & Key People
Leadership team and compensation from IRS filings
The 2024 filing lists Roddell McCullough as secretary/director, Karen B. Woods as treasurer/director, Archie Brown as president/chair, and Jamie Anderson, Mandy Neeley, and Matt Reckman as directors.
First Financial Foundation is led by Archie Brown, President & Chair on every filing since 2020; none of the 6 officers listed in 2024 report compensation.
Officers on the 2024 filing
Archie Brown
President & Chair
On filings since 2020
No compensation reported
Jamie Anderson
Director
On filings since 2020
No compensation reported
Karen B. Woods
Treasurer & Director
On filings since 2020
No compensation reported
Mandy Neeley
Director
On filings since 2020
No compensation reported
Roddell McCullough
Secretary & Director
On filings since 2020
No compensation reported
Matt Reckman
Director
New on the 2024 filing
No compensation reported
Former officers (3)
- Former: Rick Dennen (2022–2023) — Director
- Former: Andy Hauck (2020–2021) — Director
- Former: Cathy Myers (2020) — Director
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 First Financial Foundation
How much does First Financial Foundation give each year?
First Financial Foundation gave $2.7M across 92 grants in 2024, according to its 2024 IRS Form 990-PF. In 2023 it gave $2.4M across 86 grants.
What is First Financial Foundation's typical grant size?
First Financial Foundation's median grant in 2024 was $10,000, and its average grant was $28,839, across 92 grants on its 2024 IRS Form 990-PF. Organizations receiving their first grant from First Financial Foundation that year got $11K on average.
Where does First Financial Foundation give grants?
First Financial Foundation gives mostly in Ohio: 82% of the grant dollars itemized on its 2024 IRS Form 990-PF went to recipients there. The next largest state was Indiana (12%). The most frequent recipient cities were Cincinnati, OH (32 grants), Hamilton, OH (7 grants), Indianapolis, IN (7 grants) and Louisville, KY (5 grants).
Does First Financial Foundation give general operating support?
Occasionally: 1% of First Financial Foundation's 2024 grants with a stated purpose (1 of 92) were for general or operating support, per its 2024 IRS Form 990-PF.
Who are First Financial Foundation's largest grantees?
First Financial Foundation's largest 2024 grantees include United Way of Greater Cincinnati ($391,368), Hamilton Community Foundation ($280,000 across 2 grants) and Cincinnati USA Regional Chamber Minority Business ($200,000), according to its 2024 IRS Form 990-PF. Together they received 33% of its itemized 2024 grant dollars.
How large is First Financial Foundation?
First Financial Foundation reported $1.9M in total assets on its 2024 IRS Form 990-PF. Its revenue that year was $4.4M.
What does First Financial Foundation fund?
The Foundation says it aims to help communities grow and prosper. Its neighborhood-development priority includes affordable housing, neighborhood revitalization, homebuyer education, foreclosure prevention, and services that help people maintain their homes. See mission & focus areas ↑
How do I apply for a grant from First Financial Foundation?
The Foundation’s filing directs applicants to its website for the application form and materials. Eligibility and process details are in the grantmaking section of this profile. See how to apply ↑
What is First Financial Foundation's EIN?
First Financial Foundation's EIN (Employer Identification Number) is 82-3823145. IRS Form 990 filing data is available on this page for 2020–2024.
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
- IRS filings on file for fiscal years 2020–2024
Live grants for the work First Financial Foundation funds
Philanthropy, Voluntarism & Grantmaking Open opportunities, soonest deadline first.
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Browse active grant opportunities in First Financial Foundation's focus areas in our free grants database
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Cite this profile
Grantable. (2026). First Financial Foundation funder profile. GrantGraph. Retrieved October 17, 2026, from https://grantable.co/funders/first-financial-foundation-morg_d37b329077b34bc597210da313121c89
BibTeX
@misc{grantable_823823145_2026,
author = {{Grantable}},
title = {{First Financial Foundation funder profile}},
howpublished = {GrantGraph},
year = {2026},
url = {https://grantable.co/funders/first-financial-foundation-morg_d37b329077b34bc597210da313121c89},
note = {Accessed 2026-10-17. 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 First Financial 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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