Gayle and Tom Benson Charitable Foundation
The Gayle and Tom Benson Charitable Foundation is a private foundation based in Metairie, Louisiana. Its 2024 filing reports 93 grants totaling nearly $9.6 million, with 96% of grant dollars going to recipients in Louisiana.
Gayle and Tom Benson Charitable Foundation at a glance
In short: Gayle and Tom Benson Charitable Foundation gave $11.1M across 149 grants in 2025 (avg $75K), mostly in Louisiana. Source: 2025 IRS Form 990-PF.
- Annual giving (2025)
- $11,103,745
- +16.0% vs 2024
- Grants made (2025)
- 149
- +60.2% vs 2024
- Average grant
- $74,522
- -27.6% vs 2024
- Median grant
- $5,000
- Total assets
- $10,822
- -87.9% vs 2024
- Primary geography
- Louisiana (93% of itemized 2025 grant dollars)
- Latest 990 filing
- Form 990-PF, 2025 View filing
Data from IRS Form 990-PF, 2025; updated November 2026.
How to apply to Gayle and Tom Benson Charitable Foundation
- How to Apply
-
The filing says the foundation does not restrict giving to preselected organizations. It lists no application form or other required materials, no deadline, and no restrictions on awards.
- Contact
Application contact: Brittany Whitsell
Mailing address: 5800 Airline Drive, Metairie, LA 70003
Phone: (504) 731-1779
Email: brittany.whitsell@saints.nfl.com
Application details from Grantable's research on the foundation's public materials; confirm on its website before applying.
Who Gayle and Tom Benson Charitable Foundation funds
How this funder distributes its grants
Top Recipients
Top 10 recipients in 2025
The largest 2025 recipient was Ochsner Clinic Foundation ($2.5M). Together the top 10 received $7.8M.
Grant Size Distribution
379 grants across all recorded years
The most common grant size was under $50K: 266 grants of 379 (70%).
Geographic Focus
Where this funder awards grants
The 2024 filing reports that 96% of grant dollars went to recipients in Louisiana. Virginia, New Hampshire, Pennsylvania, and New York each accounted for 1%.
Grant Distribution by State
Share of 2025 grant dollars across all 149 itemized grants.
States
Cities
How Gayle and Tom Benson Charitable Foundation gives
- 30% of 2025 grantees were also funded in 2024. Method
- Giving grew 64% from 2022 to 2025. Method
- In 2025 it paid out well above 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 2019 to 2025, annual grant giving ranged from $6.8M (2022) to $11.1M (2025). In 2025 it made 149 grants totaling $11.1M.
Grants by year
Grant recipients and amounts by year
| Recipient | Purpose | Amount |
|---|---|---|
| Ochsner Clinic Foundation New Orleans, LA | To Support the Mission of the Organization | $2,500,000 |
| Catholic Community Foundation New Orleans, LA | To Support the Mission of the Organization | $1,268,900 |
| Jefferson Parish Gretna, LA | To Fund Community Aquatic Center | $1,000,000 |
| Greater New Orleans Foundation New Orleans, LA | To Support the Mission of the Organization | $525,000 |
| Archbishop Rummel High School Metairie, LA | To Support the Mission of the Organization | $500,000 |
| Second Harvest Food Bank New Orleans, LA | To Support the Mission of the Organization | $500,000 |
| National World War II Museum Inc New Orleans, LA | To Support the Mission of the Organization | $500,000 |
| La SPCA New Orleans, LA | To Support the Mission of the Organization | $300,000 |
| New Orleans Medical Mission Services Inc Harahan, LA | To Support the Mission of the Organization | $250,000 |
| United Way of Southeast Louisiana New Orleans, LA | To Support the Mission of the Organization | $250,000 |
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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 | $10,822 | $11,030,044 | $11,108,544 | $11,103,745 | 149 | $11,108,543 | $19 | $16,419 |
| 2024 | $89,322 | $9,624,192 | $9,581,984 | $9,573,988 | 93 | $9,581,982 | $67 | $45,512 |
| 2023 | $47,114 | $7,418,203 | $7,415,720 | $7,413,633 | 70 | $7,415,720 | $175 | $2,570 |
| 2022 | $84,629 | $6,770,196 | $6,770,093 | $6,768,283 | 34 | $6,768,283 | — | $2,367 |
| 2021 | $44,526 | $10,673,881 | $10,938,299 | $10,936,826 | 33 | $10,936,826 | — | $7,622 |
| 2020 | $308,944 | $8,525,778 | $8,966,209 | $8,944,500 | 25 | — | — | $18,769 |
| 2019 | $749,375 | $27,671 | $9,583,480 | $9,562,730 | 46 | — | — | $50,478 |
Under IRS private-foundation payout rules, Gayle and Tom Benson Charitable Foundation reported a distributable amount of $16K 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
The foundation’s mission is not stated in the available information. Its 2024 grantees illustrate the range of organizations it supported. Ochsner Clinic Foundation describes its mission as serving, healing, leading, educating, and innovating. Bastion Community of Resilience says it supports returning warriors and their families through their transition from military service by providing a healing environment in an intentionally designed neighborhood.
Other 2024 recipients included educational organizations. Louisiana Key Academy says it provides evidence-based education for children with dyslexia, while Metairie Park Country Day School describes its work as educating talented young people in a challenging and supportive community. The grantees also included arts and cultural organizations: the New Orleans Museum of Art says it collects, preserves, exhibits, and presents visual art while engaging the public, and the New Orleans Ballet Association describes accessible arts instruction and performance opportunities as part of its work.
Grantmaking
In 2024, the foundation made 93 grants totaling $9,573,988. Grant amounts ranged from $100 to $2.6 million, with a median grant of $5,000. Its 2025 filing, the latest on this page, reports 149 grants totaling $11.1 million.
The largest reported grants included $2.6 million to Ochsner Clinic Foundation, $1,687,200 to Catholic Community Foundation, and $1 million to Jesuit High School of New Orleans Foundation. Other notable awards were $502,000 to Notre Dame Seminary; $500,000 each to Archbishop Rummel High School, Second Harvest Food Bank, and the National World War II Museum; and $300,000 to LA SPCA. The filing listed each of these grants as supporting the recipient organization’s mission.
Leadership & Key People
Officers and directors from IRS filings
Gayle and Tom Benson Charitable Foundation's 2025 filing lists 5 officers; none of the 5 officers listed in 2025 report compensation.
Officers on the 2025 filing
Dennis Lauscha
Trustee
Trustee → Trusteee, 2024
Trusteee → Trustee, 2025
On filings since 2019
1 hr/week
No compensation reported
Edward F. Lang
Trustee
On filings since 2019
1 hr/week
No compensation reported
Gayle M. Benson
Trustee
On filings since 2019
1 hr/week
No compensation reported
Gregory C. Bensel
Trustee
On filings since 2019
1 hr/week
No compensation reported
S. Benjamin Hales
Trustee
On filings since 2019
1 hr/week
No compensation reported
Data from IRS Form 990 filings, 2019–2025. "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 Gayle and Tom Benson Charitable Foundation
How much does Gayle and Tom Benson Charitable Foundation give each year?
Gayle and Tom Benson Charitable Foundation gave $11.1M across 149 grants in 2025, according to its 2025 IRS Form 990-PF. In 2024 it gave $9.6M across 93 grants.
What is Gayle and Tom Benson Charitable Foundation's typical grant size?
Gayle and Tom Benson Charitable Foundation's median grant in 2025 was $5,000, and its average grant was $74,522, across 149 grants on its 2025 IRS Form 990-PF.
Where does Gayle and Tom Benson Charitable Foundation give grants?
Gayle and Tom Benson Charitable Foundation gives mostly in Louisiana: 93% of the grant dollars itemized on its 2025 IRS Form 990-PF went to recipients there. The most frequent recipient cities were New Orleans, LA (85 grants), Metairie, LA (18 grants), Baton Rouge, LA (3 grants) and Mandeville, LA (3 grants).
Does Gayle and Tom Benson Charitable Foundation give general operating support?
Not in 2025: none of the 149 grants with a stated purpose on Gayle and Tom Benson Charitable Foundation's 2025 IRS Form 990-PF were described as general or operating support. Recurring purposes include "To Support the Mission of the Organization" (148 grants).
Who are Gayle and Tom Benson Charitable Foundation's largest grantees?
Gayle and Tom Benson Charitable Foundation's largest 2025 grantees include Ochsner Clinic Foundation ($2,500,000), Catholic Community Foundation ($1,268,900) and Jefferson Parish ($1,000,000), according to its 2025 IRS Form 990-PF. Together they received 43% of its itemized 2025 grant dollars.
How large is Gayle and Tom Benson Charitable Foundation?
Gayle and Tom Benson Charitable Foundation reported $11K in total assets on its 2025 IRS Form 990-PF. It paid out $11.1M in qualifying distributions that year, against a required minimum of $16K (roughly 5% of its investment assets).
What does Gayle and Tom Benson Charitable Foundation fund?
The foundation’s mission is not stated in the available information. Its 2024 grantees illustrate the range of organizations it supported. Ochsner Clinic Foundation describes its mission as serving, healing, leading, educating, and innovating. See mission & focus areas ↑
How do I apply for a grant from Gayle and Tom Benson Charitable Foundation?
The filing says the foundation does not restrict giving to preselected organizations. Eligibility and process details are in the grantmaking section of this profile. See how to apply ↑
What is Gayle and Tom Benson Charitable Foundation's EIN?
Gayle and Tom Benson Charitable Foundation's EIN (Employer Identification Number) is 26-0221908. IRS Form 990 filing data is available on this page for 2019–2025.
Data last updated November 2026. Sourced from IRS Form 990-PF filings. Research dossier generated September 2026.
Data update history
(3)
When this profile's IRS filing data changed on Grantable
- Added Form 990-PF for fiscal year 2025 (received by the IRS September 17, 2026)
- Added Form 990-PF for fiscal year 2019 (received by the IRS August 19, 2020)
- IRS filings on file for fiscal years 2020–2024
Live grants for the work Gayle and Tom Benson Charitable Foundation funds
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Cite this profile
Grantable. (2026). Gayle and Tom Benson Charitable Foundation funder profile. GrantGraph. Retrieved November 2, 2026, from https://grantable.co/funders/gayle-and-tom-benson-charitable-foundation-morg_8a8b2b915ebb4c6191afd8fd7a3a42eb
BibTeX
@misc{grantable_260221908_2026,
author = {{Grantable}},
title = {{Gayle and Tom Benson Charitable Foundation funder profile}},
howpublished = {GrantGraph},
year = {2026},
url = {https://grantable.co/funders/gayle-and-tom-benson-charitable-foundation-morg_8a8b2b915ebb4c6191afd8fd7a3a42eb},
note = {Accessed 2026-11-02. 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 Gayle and Tom Benson Charitable 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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