Five Below Foundation
Five Below Foundation is a private foundation based in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. It makes contributions to preselected charitable organizations and, in 2025, reported grants to organizations working in areas including literacy, youth development, autism research and care, grief support, and hunger relief.
Five Below Foundation at a glance
In short: Five Below Foundation gave $1.1M across 28 grants in 2025 (avg $38K), top state Pennsylvania. Source: 2025 IRS Form 990-PF.
- Annual giving (2025)
- $1,073,000
- +111.7% vs 2024
- Grants made (2025)
- 28
- +7.7% vs 2024
- Average grant
- $38,321
- +96.6% vs 2024
- Median grant
- $22,500
- Total assets
- $3,256,122
- -0.1% vs 2024
- Primary geography
- Pennsylvania (29% of itemized 2025 grant dollars)
- Latest 990 filing
- Form 990-PF, 2025 View filing
Data from IRS Form 990-PF, 2025; updated October 2026.
How to apply to Five Below Foundation
- Accepts unsolicited proposals
- No
- How to Apply
-
The foundation makes contributions only to preselected charitable organizations and does not accept unsolicited requests for funds.
- Contact
Mailing address: 701 Market Street 300, Philadelphia, PA 19106
Phone: (215) 558-6438
Application details from Grantable's research on the foundation's public materials; confirm on its website before applying.
Who Five Below Foundation funds
How this funder distributes its grants
Top Recipients
Top 10 recipients in 2025
The largest 2025 recipient was Reading Partners ($300K). Together the top 10 received $835K.
Grant Size Distribution
84 grants across all recorded years
The most common grant size was under $50K: 72 grants of 84 (86%).
Geographic Focus
Where this funder awards grants
In 2025, Pennsylvania and California each received 29% of grant dollars, followed by Georgia (14%), Arizona (9%), and New Jersey (7%).
Grant Distribution by State
Share of 2025 grant dollars across all 28 itemized grants.
States
Cities
How Five Below Foundation gives
- 39% of 2025 grantees were also funded in 2024. Method
- Giving grew 496% from 2022 to 2025. Method
- In 2025 it paid out 683% of its IRS minimum distribution (the 5% rule). Method
Estimate from itemized grant lists in IRS Form 990-PF filings (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 2021 to 2025, annual grant giving ranged from $50K (2021) to $1.1M (2025). In 2025 it made 28 grants totaling $1.1M.
Grants by year
Grant recipients and amounts by year
| Recipient | Purpose | Amount |
|---|---|---|
| Reading Partners Oakland, CA | General Support | $300,000 |
| Boys and Girls Club of America Atlanta, GA | General Support | $150,000 |
| Make a Wish Foundation of America Phoenix, AZ | General Support | $100,000 |
| Eagles Autism Challenge Philadelphia, PA | General Support | $75,000 |
| Girls on the Run Philadelphia, PA | General Support | $60,000 |
| The Malcolm Jenkins Foundation Piscataway, NJ | General Support | $50,000 |
| Ch Pennsylvania Under 21 Philadelphia, PA | General Support | $25,000 |
| Cradles to Crayons Boston, MA | General Support | $25,000 |
| Eluna Philadelphia, PA | General Support | $25,000 |
| Philabundance Philadelphia, PA | General Support | $25,000 |
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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 | $3,256,122 | $1,114,665 | $1,119,685 | $1,073,000 | 28 | $1,073,000 | $170,436 | $157,204 |
| 2024 | $3,260,642 | $1,259,932 | $537,065 | $506,750 | 26 | $511,750 | $131,109 | $130,796 |
| 2023 | $2,539,035 | $52,988 | $672,836 | $640,000 | 21 | $645,000 | $50,832 | $146,227 |
| 2022 | $3,154,673 | $1,000,575 | $191,220 | $180,000 | 6 | $189,070 | — | $117,640 |
| 2021 | $2,356,976 | $2,000,000 | $64,672 | $50,000 | 3 | — | — | $39,337 |
Under IRS private-foundation payout rules, Five Below Foundation reported a distributable amount of $157K 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 foundation mission statement is provided. Its 2025 grants included general support for organizations whose missions, as described by the grantees, include helping students become confident readers (Reading Partners), supporting youth in underserved communities (The Malcolm Jenkins Foundation), and addressing hunger (Philabundance). Other recipients described work supporting children and families affected by grief or addiction (Eluna) and providing essential items to children in low-income or homeless situations (Cradles to Crayons).
Grantmaking
In 2025, the foundation reported 28 grants totaling $1,073,000. Grant amounts ranged from $2,500 to $300,000, with a median of $22,500. The largest awards included $300,000 to Reading Partners, $150,000 to Boys and Girls Club of America, $100,000 to Make a Wish Foundation of America, $75,000 to Eagles Autism Challenge, and $60,000 to Girls on the Run. Each of these grants was listed for general support.
Leadership & Key People
Leadership team and compensation from IRS filings
The 2025 filing lists Ron Masciantonio as president; Sarah KS Auerbach as vice president and secretary; Carmelo Jalosjos as vice president and treasurer; and Kenneth Bull, Molly Gellerman, and George Hill as directors.
Five Below Foundation is led by Ron Masciantonio, President since 2024 (on filings since 2021); none of the 6 officers listed in 2025 report compensation.
Officers on the 2025 filing
Ron Masciantonio
President
Vice President & Sec'y → Vice President & Secretary, 2022
Vice President & Secretary → President, 2024
On filings since 2021
0.8 hrs/week
No compensation reported
George S. Hill
Director
Vice President → Director, 2024
On filings since 2021
0 hrs/week
No compensation reported
Kenneth Bull
Director
New on the 2025 filing
0 hrs/week
No compensation reported
Molly Gellerman
Director
New on the 2025 filing
0 hrs/week
No compensation reported
Sarah K. S. Auerbach
Vice President & Secretary
Assistant Secretary → Vice President & Treasurer, 2024
Vice President & Treasurer → Vice President & Secretary, 2025
On filings since 2021
0 hrs/week
No compensation reported
Carmelo Jalosjos
Vice President & Treasurer
On filings since 2023
0.2 hrs/week
No compensation reported
Former officers (9)
- Former: Joel D. Anderson (2021–2024) — Director
- Former: Michael F. Romanko (2021–2024) — Director
- Former: Maureen Gellerman (2024) — Director
- Former: Judy Werthauser (2021–2023) — President
- Former: Krischelle Tennessen (2022–2023) — Director
- Former: Aaron Bookman (2021–2022) — Vice President & Treasurer
- Former: Bill Clark (2021) — Vice President
- Former: David Makuen (2021) — Vice President
- Former: Eric M. Specter (2021) — Vice President
Data from IRS Form 990 filings, 2021–2025. "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 Five Below Foundation
How much does Five Below Foundation give each year?
Five Below Foundation gave $1.1M across 28 grants in 2025, according to its 2025 IRS Form 990-PF. In 2024 it gave $507K across 26 grants.
What is Five Below Foundation's typical grant size?
Five Below Foundation's median grant in 2025 was $22,500, and its average grant was $38,321, across 28 grants on its 2025 IRS Form 990-PF.
Where does Five Below Foundation give grants?
Five Below Foundation's top state is Pennsylvania, with 29% of the grant dollars itemized on its 2025 IRS Form 990-PF. The next largest states were California (29%) and Georgia (14%). The most frequent recipient cities were Philadelphia, PA (12 grants) and Washington, DC (2 grants).
Does Five Below Foundation give general operating support?
Yes: 100% of Five Below Foundation's 2025 grants with a stated purpose (28 of 28) were for general or operating support, per its 2025 IRS Form 990-PF.
Who are Five Below Foundation's largest grantees?
Five Below Foundation's largest 2025 grantees include Reading Partners ($300,000), Boys and Girls Club of America ($150,000) and Make a Wish Foundation of America ($100,000), according to its 2025 IRS Form 990-PF. Together they received 51% of its itemized 2025 grant dollars.
How large is Five Below Foundation?
Five Below Foundation reported $3.3M in total assets on its 2025 IRS Form 990-PF. It paid out $1.1M in qualifying distributions that year, against a required minimum of $157K (roughly 5% of its investment assets).
What does Five Below Foundation fund?
No foundation mission statement is provided. See mission & focus areas ↑
How do I apply for a grant from Five Below Foundation?
The foundation 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 Five Below Foundation's EIN?
Five Below Foundation's EIN (Employer Identification Number) is 82-5406623. IRS Form 990 filing data is available on this page for 2021–2025.
Does Five Below 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
- IRS filings on file for fiscal years 2021–2025
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Cite this profile
Grantable. (2026). Five Below Foundation funder profile. GrantGraph. Retrieved October 11, 2026, from https://grantable.co/funders/five-below-foundation-morg_b6a95aba2d8e4c1292cec608e980e194
BibTeX
@misc{grantable_825406623_2026,
author = {{Grantable}},
title = {{Five Below Foundation funder profile}},
howpublished = {GrantGraph},
year = {2026},
url = {https://grantable.co/funders/five-below-foundation-morg_b6a95aba2d8e4c1292cec608e980e194},
note = {Accessed 2026-10-11. 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 Five Below 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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