Frank and Lucille Puncer Foundation Ltd

Private foundation · Grantmaker Milwaukee, WI EIN: 39-2031461

The Frank and Lucille Puncer Foundation is a private foundation based in Milwaukee, Wisconsin. Its 2025 filing lists grants to charitable organizations, including organizations working in communication services, domestic violence support, addiction recovery, family services, and the arts.

Key facts about Frank and Lucille Puncer Foundation Ltd

In short: Frank and Lucille Puncer Foundation Ltd gave $565K across 25 grants in 2025 (avg $23K), mostly in Wisconsin. 16% of 2025 grantees were new. Source: 2025 IRS Form 990-PF.

EIN
39-2031461
Latest 990 filing
Form 990-PF, 2025
Annual giving (2025)
$565,000
Grants made (2025)
25
Average grant
$22,600
Median grant
$20,000
New grantees (estimate)
16% first-time grantees (4 of 25, 2025)
Total assets
$7,149,979
Primary geography
Wisconsin (94% of itemized 2025 grant dollars)
Accepts unsolicited proposals
No
How to apply
The foundation makes contributions only to preselected charitable organizations and does not accept unsolicited requests for funds. Full details ↓

Data from IRS Form 990-PF, 2025; updated October 2026. New grantees are estimated by matching recipient names across years (methodology). Application details from Grantable's research on the foundation's public materials; confirm on its website before applying.

Financial Overview

From 2025 IRS Form 990-PF · View filing

Total Assets

$7.1M

-4.9% YoY

Annual Giving

$565K

+13.0% YoY

Grant Count

25

+4.2% YoY

Avg Grant Size

$23K

+8.5% YoY

Under IRS private-foundation payout rules, Frank and Lucille Puncer Foundation Ltd reported a distributable amount of $544K for 2025 — the minimum it must pay out in qualifying distributions.

Is Frank and Lucille Puncer Foundation Ltd open to new grantees?

16%

first-time grantees, 2025

In 2025, 4 of 25 grantees (16%) were first-time recipients. First grants averaged $20K; repeat grants $23K. How we count

Medians: $23K first-time, $20K repeat.

  • 80% of 2025 grantees were also funded in 2024. Method
  • Giving held roughly steady from 2022 to 2025 (+13%). Method
  • In 2025 it paid out 104% 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.

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

Mission & Focus Areas

The available information does not state a mission for the foundation. Its grants include support for organizations with varied missions. For example, HEAR Wisconsin says it helps people overcome communication and language barriers through services, technology, and education. Sojourner Family Peace Center describes its mission as transforming lives impacted by domestic violence, while Meta House says it works to end the generational cycle of addiction by healing women and strengthening families. TBEY Arts Center says it strengthens youth and young adults through arts exposure and creative opportunities.

Grantmaking

In 2025, the foundation reported 25 grants totaling $565,000. Grant amounts ranged from $5,000 to $60,000, with a median of $20,000. The largest grants included $60,000 to HEAR Wisconsin, $50,000 each to Kinship Community Food Center and Sojourner Family Peace Center, and $35,000 each to Capuchin Community Services and Women’s Care Center Milwaukee. The listed purposes for these grants were general.

Other 2025 recipients included Meta House ($30,000), Ozaukee Family Services ($25,000), Urban Ecology Center ($20,000), TBEY Arts Center ($15,000), and Mequon Nature Preserve ($10,000).

How to Apply

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

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Geographic Focus

Where this funder awards grants

The 2025 filing reports that 94% of grant dollars went to recipients in Wisconsin, 5% to recipients in Illinois, and 1% to recipients in Virginia.

Grant Distribution by State

4states

Share of 2025 grant dollars across all 25 itemized grants.

Cities

MilwaukeeMequonChicagoWest AllisNew YorkMukwonagoAttonCedarburgGraftonWest MilwaukeeShorewoodBrookfieldSt Francis

Giving Over Time

Total grant dollars and number of grants per year

$0$200K$400K$600K15 grants2020 17 grants2021 17 grants2022 19 grants2023 24 grants2024 25 grants2025

From 2020 to 2025, annual grant giving ranged from $466K (2020) to $565K (2025). In 2025 it made 25 grants totaling $565K.

Grant Insights

How this funder distributes its grants

Top Recipients

Top 10 recipients in 2025

Hear Wisconsin: $60KHear Wisconsin$60KKinship Community Food Center: $50KKinship Community Food Center$50KSojourner Family Peace Center: $50KSojourner Family Peace Center$50KCapuchin Community Services: $35KCapuchin Community Services$35KWomen's Care Center Milwaukee: $35KWomen's Care Center Milwaukee$35KMeta House: $30KMeta House$30KThe Missionaries of Charities: $30KThe Missionaries of Charities$30KNeighborhood House of MKE: $25KNeighborhood House of MKE$25KOzaukee Family Services: $25KOzaukee Family Services$25KHistoric Haymarket MKE: $25KHistoric Haymarket MKE$25K

The largest 2025 recipient was Hear Wisconsin ($60K). Together the top 10 received $365K.

Grant Size Distribution

102 grants across all recorded years

89<$50K13$50–100K$100–250K$250–500K$500K–1M$1–5M$5M+

The most common grant size was under $50K: 89 grants of 102 (87%).

Giving History

Grant recipients and amounts by year

RecipientPurposeAmount
Hear Wisconsin West Allis, WIGeneral$60,000
Kinship Community Food Center Milwaukee, WIGeneral$50,000
Sojourner Family Peace Center Milwaukee, WIGeneral$50,000
Capuchin Community Services Milwaukee, WIGeneral$35,000
Women's Care Center Milwaukee Milwaukee, WIGeneral$35,000
Meta House Milwaukee, WIGeneral$30,000
The Missionaries of Charities Chicago, ILGeneral$30,000
Neighborhood House of MKE Milwaukee, WIGeneral$25,000
Ozaukee Family Services Cedarburg, WIGeneral$25,000
Historic Haymarket MKE Milwaukee, WIGeneral$25,000

Financial History

Multi-year comparison from IRS filings

Filing year Assets Revenue Expenses Grants
2025 $7,149,979 $320,927 $690,115 $565,000
2024 $7,515,747 $306,945 $622,790 $500,000
2023 $7,831,592 $263,193 $595,484 $480,000
Revenue
Expenses
Qualifying Distributions
Net Investment Income
$0$200K$400K$600K$800K2020 2021 2022 2023 2024 2025
Metric202520242023
Total Assets$7,149,979$7,515,747$7,831,592
Revenue$320,927$306,945$263,193
Expenses$690,115$622,790$595,484
Qualifying Distributions$565,000$500,000$480,000
Net Investment Income$237,557$215,964$244,210
Distributable Amount$544,324$509,501$454,839

Data update history

When this profile's IRS filing data changed on Grantable

  1. Updated Form 990-PF for fiscal year 2020 (received by the IRS July 20, 2022)
  2. Updated Form 990-PF for fiscal year 2021 (received by the IRS May 8, 2022)
  3. Updated Form 990-PF for fiscal year 2022 (received by the IRS May 15, 2023)
  4. Updated Form 990-PF for fiscal year 2023 (received by the IRS March 4, 2024)
  5. Updated Form 990-PF for fiscal year 2024 (received by the IRS May 12, 2025)
  6. Added Form 990-PF for fiscal year 2025 (received by the IRS May 2, 2026)
  7. IRS filings on file for fiscal years 2020–2024

Leadership & Key People

Leadership team and compensation from IRS filings

The 2025 filing lists John Lewenauer as Director/V-P, Donal Demet as Treasurer, and Donald Shane as Director.

Frank and Lucille Puncer Foundation Ltd's 2025 filing lists 3 officers; all 3 officers listed in 2025 are compensated.

Officers on the 2025 filing

  • Donald Shane

    Director

    On filings since 2020

    2 hrs/week

    $12K (2020) → $16K (2025)

  • John Lewenauer

    Director & V-P

    On filings since 2020

    2 hrs/week

    $12K (2020) → $16K (2025)

  • Donal Demet

    Treasurer

    On filings since 2020

    3 hrs/week

    $14K (2020) → $18K (2025)

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.

Compensation Overview

From 2025 IRS filing

Donal Demet — Treasurer: $18KDonal DemetTreasurer$18KJohn Lewenauer — Director/V-P: $16KJohn LewenauerDirector/V-P$16KDonald Shane — Director: $16KDonald ShaneDirector$16K

The highest reported compensation on the 2025 filing was $18K, to Donal Demet (Treasurer). 3 officers or directors reported compensation on that filing.

Contact

Mailing address: 111 E Wisconsin Ave Suite 1800, Milwaukee, WI 53202
Phone: (414) 326-3101

Frequently asked questions about Frank and Lucille Puncer Foundation Ltd

How much does Frank and Lucille Puncer Foundation Ltd give each year?

Frank and Lucille Puncer Foundation Ltd gave $565K across 25 grants in 2025, according to its 2025 IRS Form 990-PF. In 2024 it gave $500K across 24 grants.

What is Frank and Lucille Puncer Foundation Ltd's typical grant size?

Frank and Lucille Puncer Foundation Ltd's median grant in 2025 was $20,000, and its average grant was $22,600, across 25 grants on its 2025 IRS Form 990-PF. Organizations receiving their first grant from Frank and Lucille Puncer Foundation Ltd that year got $20K on average.

Where does Frank and Lucille Puncer Foundation Ltd give grants?

Frank and Lucille Puncer Foundation Ltd gives mostly in Wisconsin: 94% of the grant dollars itemized on its 2025 IRS Form 990-PF went to recipients there. The next largest state was Illinois (5%). The most frequent recipient cities were Milwaukee, WI (17 grants) and Mequon, WI (2 grants).

Does Frank and Lucille Puncer Foundation Ltd give general operating support?

Yes: 100% of Frank and Lucille Puncer Foundation Ltd's 2025 grants with a stated purpose (25 of 25) were for general or operating support, per its 2025 IRS Form 990-PF.

Who are Frank and Lucille Puncer Foundation Ltd's largest grantees?

Frank and Lucille Puncer Foundation Ltd's largest 2025 grantees include Hear Wisconsin ($60,000), Kinship Community Food Center ($50,000) and Sojourner Family Peace Center ($50,000), according to its 2025 IRS Form 990-PF. Together they received 28% of its itemized 2025 grant dollars.

How large is Frank and Lucille Puncer Foundation Ltd?

Frank and Lucille Puncer Foundation Ltd reported $7.1M in total assets on its 2025 IRS Form 990-PF. It paid out $565K in qualifying distributions that year, against a required minimum of $544K (roughly 5% of its investment assets).

What does Frank and Lucille Puncer Foundation Ltd fund?

The available information does not state a mission for the foundation. Its grants include support for organizations with varied missions. For example, HEAR Wisconsin says it helps people overcome communication and language barriers through services, technology, and education. See mission & focus areas ↑

How do I apply for a grant from Frank and Lucille Puncer Foundation Ltd?

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 Frank and Lucille Puncer Foundation Ltd's EIN?

Frank and Lucille Puncer Foundation Ltd's EIN (Employer Identification Number) is 39-2031461. IRS Form 990 filing data is available on this page for 2020–2025.

Does Frank and Lucille Puncer Foundation Ltd 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.

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