Garm Foundation
Garm Foundation is a private foundation based in Chicago, Illinois. Its 2026 filing reports 18 grants totaling $94,500 to charitable organizations, including organizations serving children and families, people experiencing homelessness, and students.
Garm Foundation at a glance
In short: Garm Foundation gave $95K across 18 grants in 2026 (avg $5K), mostly in Florida. 17% of 2026 grantees were new. Source: 2026 IRS Form 990-PF.
- Annual giving (2026)
- $94,500
- +12.1% vs 2025
- Grants made (2026)
- 18
- +20.0% vs 2025
- Average grant
- $5,250
- -6.6% vs 2025
- Median grant
- $5,000
- Total assets
- $1,257,496
- +4.8% vs 2025
- New grantees (estimate)
- 17% first-time grantees (3 of 18, 2026; small sample)
- Primary geography
- Florida (59% of itemized 2026 grant dollars)
- Latest 990 filing
- Form 990-PF, 2026 View filing
Data from IRS Form 990-PF, 2026; updated October 2026. New grantees are estimated by matching recipient names across years (methodology).
How to apply to Garm Foundation
- Accepts unsolicited proposals
- No
- How to Apply
-
The foundation does not accept unsolicited requests and makes contributions only to preselected charitable organizations.
- Contact
Mailing address: PO Box 803878, Chicago, IL 60680
Phone: (312) 630-6000
Application details from Grantable's research on the foundation's public materials; confirm on its website before applying.
Who Garm Foundation funds
How this funder distributes its grants
Top Recipients
Top 10 recipients in 2026
The largest 2026 recipient was Grace Place for Children ($13K). Together the top 10 received $70K.
Grant Size Distribution
68 grants across all recorded years
The most common grant size was under $50K: 68 grants of 68 (100%).
Geographic Focus
Where this funder awards grants
The 2026 grants went to recipients in multiple states. Florida accounted for 59% of grant dollars, followed by Massachusetts (11%), New Hampshire (10%), Maine (7%), and Illinois (5%).
Grant Distribution by State
Share of 2026 grant dollars across all 18 itemized grants.
Cities
Is Garm Foundation open to new grantees?
17%
first-time grantees, 2026
In 2026, 3 of 18 grantees (17%) were first-time recipients. With only 18 grantees, that is a small sample: one grantee more or less moves the share by about 6 points. First grants averaged $4K; repeat grants $6K. How we count
Medians: $5K first-time, $5K repeat.
- 83% of 2026 grantees were also funded in 2025. Method
- Giving grew 44% from 2023 to 2026. Method
- In 2026 it paid out 81% of its IRS minimum distribution (the 5% rule). Foundations have until the end of the next year to meet it. Method
Estimate from itemized grant lists in IRS Form 990-PF filings (2020–2026). 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 2026, annual grant giving ranged from $55K (2021) to $95K (2026). In 2026 it made 18 grants totaling $95K.
Grants by year
Grant recipients and amounts by year
| Recipient | Purpose | Amount |
|---|---|---|
| Grace Place for Children Naples, FL | To the Bright Beginnings | $13,000 |
| The Salvation Army of Naples, FL | For Summer Camp and | $11,000 |
| The Shelter for Abused Women Immokalee, FL | After School Care Program | $8,000 |
| Bates College Lewiston, ME | General Support | $7,000 |
| Catholic Charities Jacksonville, FL | For the Family Counseling | $6,000 |
| Valerie's House Fort Myers, FL | General Support | $5,000 |
| Chinese Family Camp Chicago, IL | General Support | $5,000 |
| Kremples Center Portsmouth, NH | Scholarships for Brain | $5,000 |
| Pine Street Inn Boston, MA | General Support | $5,000 |
| Rosie's Place Boston, MA | General Support | $5,000 |
Ready to take the next step with Garm 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 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2026 | $1,257,496 | $172,874 | $115,118 | $94,500 | 18 | $107,157 | $164,564 | $131,939 |
| 2025 | $1,199,901 | $32,066 | $117,189 | $84,312 | 15 | $109,373 | $24,997 | $119,472 |
| 2024 | $1,284,880 | $63,261 | $96,308 | $73,500 | 15 | $89,089 | $56,847 | $100,049 |
| 2023 | $1,317,927 | $55,045 | $90,728 | $65,500 | 11 | $81,485 | $45,964 | $89,714 |
| 2022 | $1,356,612 | $202,836 | $86,655 | $59,000 | 9 | $75,572 | $196,034 | $105,552 |
| 2021 | $1,240,431 | $108,070 | $77,367 | $55,000 | 9 | — | $97,271 | $88,900 |
| 2020 | $1,209,807 | $223,430 | $81,290 | $64,300 | 10 | — | $219,442 | $73,030 |
Under IRS private-foundation payout rules, Garm Foundation reported a distributable amount of $132K for 2026 — 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 2026 grants include support for organizations whose own missions include helping children and families cope with bereavement (Valerie’s House), ending homelessness (Pine Street Inn), and providing affordable reproductive healthcare and health information (Planned Parenthood of Southwest and Central Florida). Connecticut College describes its mission as educating students to put the liberal arts into action as citizens of a global society. These are the grantees’ stated missions, not the foundation’s.
Grantmaking
In filing year 2026, Garm Foundation made 18 grants totaling $94,500. Grant amounts ranged from $500 to $13,000, with a median of $5,000.
Among the largest listed grants were $13,000 to Grace Place for Children for “the Bright Beginnings”; $11,000 to The Salvation Army of Naples for “summer camp”; $8,000 to The Shelter for Abused Women for an after-school care program; and $7,000 to Bates College for general support. Other listed awards included $6,000 to Catholic Charities for family counseling, and $5,000 each to Valerie’s House, Chinese Family Camp, Krempels Center, Pine Street Inn, Rosie’s Place, Connecticut College, and Boys & Girls Club of Collier County.
Leadership & Key People
Leadership team and compensation from IRS filings
The 2026 filing lists Christine St Jean as president, and Justin St Jean and Dr Nicole St Jean as directors.
Garm Foundation is led by Christine St Jean, President on every filing since 2020; none of the 3 officers listed in 2026 report compensation.
Officers on the 2026 filing
Christine St Jean
President
On filings since 2020
1 hr/week
No compensation reported
Justin St Jean
Director
On filings since 2020
1 hr/week
No compensation reported
Nicole St Jean
Director
On filings since 2020
1 hr/week
No compensation reported
Data from IRS Form 990 filings, 2020–2026. "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 Garm Foundation
How much does Garm Foundation give each year?
Garm Foundation gave $95K across 18 grants in 2026, according to its 2026 IRS Form 990-PF. In 2025 it gave $84K across 15 grants.
What is Garm Foundation's typical grant size?
Garm Foundation's median grant in 2026 was $5,000, and its average grant was $5,250, across 18 grants on its 2026 IRS Form 990-PF. Organizations receiving their first grant from Garm Foundation that year got $4K on average.
Where does Garm Foundation give grants?
Garm Foundation gives mostly in Florida: 59% of the grant dollars itemized on its 2026 IRS Form 990-PF went to recipients there. The next largest states were Massachusetts (11%) and New Hampshire (10%). The most frequent recipient cities were Naples, FL (3 grants), Immokalee, FL (2 grants), Boston, MA (2 grants) and Sarasota, FL (2 grants).
Does Garm Foundation give general operating support?
Yes: 61% of Garm Foundation's 2026 grants with a stated purpose (11 of 18) were for general or operating support, per its 2026 IRS Form 990-PF.
Who are Garm Foundation's largest grantees?
Garm Foundation's largest 2026 grantees include Grace Place for Children ($13,000), The Salvation Army of ($11,000) and The Shelter for Abused Women ($8,000), according to its 2026 IRS Form 990-PF. Together they received 34% of its itemized 2026 grant dollars.
How large is Garm Foundation?
Garm Foundation reported $1.3M in total assets on its 2026 IRS Form 990-PF. It paid out $107K in qualifying distributions that year, against a required minimum of $132K (roughly 5% of its investment assets). Falling short in one year is not a violation: foundations have until the end of the next year to meet the minimum.
What does Garm Foundation fund?
No mission statement for the foundation is provided. See mission & focus areas ↑
How do I apply for a grant from Garm Foundation?
The foundation does not accept unsolicited requests and makes contributions only to preselected charitable organizations. Eligibility and process details are in the grantmaking section of this profile. See how to apply ↑
What is Garm Foundation's EIN?
Garm Foundation's EIN (Employer Identification Number) is 59-3686848. IRS Form 990 filing data is available on this page for 2020–2026.
Does Garm 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 2026 (received by the IRS August 10, 2026)
- IRS filings on file for fiscal years 2020–2025
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Cite this profile
Grantable. (2026). Garm Foundation funder profile. GrantGraph. Retrieved October 15, 2026, from https://grantable.co/funders/garm-foundation-morg_290255eb482349b498ea07af997732fc
BibTeX
@misc{grantable_593686848_2026,
author = {{Grantable}},
title = {{Garm Foundation funder profile}},
howpublished = {GrantGraph},
year = {2026},
url = {https://grantable.co/funders/garm-foundation-morg_290255eb482349b498ea07af997732fc},
note = {Accessed 2026-10-15. 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 Garm 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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