Head of the Lakes United Way
Head of the Lakes United Way is a public charity based in Duluth, Minnesota, formed in 1922. It supports community programs and initiatives focused on health, education, and financial stability across communities in northeastern Minnesota and northwestern Wisconsin.
Head of the Lakes United Way at a glance
In short: Head of the Lakes United Way gave $604K across 33 grants in 2025 (avg $18K), mostly in Minnesota. 6% of 2025 grantees were new. Source: 2025 IRS Form 990.
- Annual giving (2025)
- $604,163
- +6.8% vs 2024
- Grants made (2025)
- 33
- +3.1% vs 2024
- Average grant
- $18,308
- +3.6% vs 2024
- Median grant
- $15,687
- Total assets
- $8,784,558
- +2.8% vs 2024
- New grantees (estimate)
- 6% first-time grantees (2 of 33, 2025)
- Primary geography
- Minnesota (86% of itemized 2025 grant dollars)
- Latest 990 filing
- Form 990, 2025 View filing
Data from IRS Form 990, 2025; updated September 2026. New grantees are estimated by matching recipient names across years (methodology).
How to apply to Head of the Lakes United Way
- Contact
Mailing address: 314 W Superior St 750, Duluth, MN 55802
Phone: (218) 726-4770
Website: https://hlunitedway.org
Application details from Grantable's research on the foundation's public materials; confirm on its website before applying.
Who Head of the Lakes United Way funds
How this funder distributes its grants
Top Recipients
Top 10 recipients in 2025
The largest 2025 recipient was Human Development Center ($48K). Together the top 10 received $307K.
Grant Size Distribution
176 grants across all recorded years
The most common grant size was under $50K: 165 grants of 176 (94%).
Geographic Focus
Where this funder awards grants
Head of the Lakes United Way identifies its service areas as Ashland and Bayfield Counties, Greater Duluth, Lake and Cook Counties, and Superior-Douglas County. Its website defines Greater Duluth to include Duluth, Hermantown, Proctor, Rice Lake, and specified surrounding townships.
In 2025, 86% of grant dollars went to recipients in Minnesota and 14% to recipients in Wisconsin.
Grant Distribution by State
Share of 2025 grant dollars across all 33 itemized grants.
Cities
Is Head of the Lakes United Way open to new grantees?
6%
first-time grantees, 2025
In 2025, 2 of 33 grantees (6%) were first-time recipients. First grants averaged $15K; repeat grants $19K. How we count
Medians: $15K first-time, $16K repeat.
Estimate from itemized grant lists in IRS Form 990 filings (2019–2025). 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 $566K (2024) to $1.2M (2019). In 2025 it made 33 grants totaling $604K.
Grants by year
Grant recipients and amounts by year
| Recipient | Purpose | Amount |
|---|---|---|
| Human Development Center Duluth, MN | Child & Family Services Duluth | $47,928 |
| Family Freedom Center Duluth, MN | Freedom Startups, Freedom Farms, Neighborhood Youth Services | $38,553 |
| Family Rise Together Appleton, WI | Health Place | $35,996 |
| Life House Duluth, MN | Youth Center | $35,110 |
| Mentor North Duluth, MN | Mentor Duluth | $34,186 |
| Legal Aid Service of Northeast Minnesota Duluth, MN | Lasnem Duluth Program | $28,767 |
| Duluth Community Schools Collaborative Duluth, MN | Full Service Community Schools Implementation | $26,997 |
| The Salvation Army Roseville, MN | Family Transitional Housing | $20,013 |
| Boys & Girls Clubs of the Northland Duluth, MN | Academic Success DULUTH&SUPERIOR, Healthy Lifestyles Duluth & Superior | $19,863 |
| Soar Career Solutions Duluth, MN | Employment Services | $19,768 |
Ready to take the next step with Head of the Lakes United Way?
Financial History
Multi-year comparison from IRS filings
| Filing year | Total Assets | Revenue | Expenses | Grants paid | Grants | Net Investment Income |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2025 | $8,784,558 | $1,527,230 | $1,600,559 | $604,163 | 33 | $38,398 |
| 2024 | $8,546,818 | $1,578,819 | $1,561,194 | $565,741 | 32 | $458,453 |
| 2023 | $8,182,381 | $1,569,849 | $1,819,044 | $804,328 | 33 | $252,984 |
| 2022 | $8,000,348 | $1,656,785 | $1,893,843 | $914,066 | 39 | $1,446 |
| 2021 | $9,050,785 | $1,838,907 | $1,833,162 | $947,852 | 39 | $160 |
| 2020 | $7,451,013 | $2,032,746 | $2,094,104 | $1,142,833 | 40 | $2,601 |
| 2019 | $7,214,473 | $2,191,872 | $2,344,527 | $1,170,727 | 39 | $2,681 |
Research compiled by Grantable AI from public sources. Last updated September 2026.
Mission & Focus Areas
The organization’s mission, as stated in its 2024 filing, is to unite caring people and mobilize resources to empower individuals and strengthen communities. Its community investment funding supports programs in health, education, and financial stability. The 2024 filing says this process provides funding for nearly 70 community programs.
Its 2025 grants included support for organizations serving youth, families, and people facing housing, legal, employment, health, and safety needs. For example, Human Development Center describes its own mission as providing integrated, culturally respectful mental health and addiction services; Life House says it works to reconnect homeless and street youth to their dreams; and SOAR Career Solutions says it inspires personal transformation through career development. These are the grantees’ stated missions, not Head of the Lakes United Way’s.
Grantmaking
In filing year 2025, Head of the Lakes United Way reported 33 grants totaling $604,163. Grant amounts ranged from $7,097 to $47,928, with a median of $15,687.
The largest grants included $47,928 to Human Development Center for child and family services in Duluth; $38,553 to Family Freedom Center for Freedom Startups, Freedom Farms, and Neighborhood Youth Services; $35,996 to Family Rise Together for Health Place; $35,110 to Life House for its youth center; and $34,186 to Mentor North for Mentor Duluth. Other grants included $28,767 to Legal Aid Service of Northeast Minnesota for its Duluth program and $26,997 to Duluth Community Schools Collaborative for full-service community schools implementation.
The organization’s website describes a program-based community investment process. For the 2026 cycle, applications were limited to programs serving one of its listed geographic areas, fitting at least one of its three impact areas, and demonstrating effort to serve individuals experiencing ALICE. Applicants had to be a 501(c)(3) organization or have a fiscal sponsor. The application requested information about the organization and program, impact, community benefit, and amount requested. The website listed regional request ranges: $2,500–$40,000 for Greater Duluth, $2,500–$20,000 for Superior-Douglas County, $2,500–$12,000 for Ashland and Bayfield Counties, and $2,500–$8,000 for Lake and Cook Counties.
The 2026 application deadline was January 2, 2026, at 11:59 p.m.; that cycle is past. The website stated that funding recipients would be announced in spring 2026. The organization’s 2024 filing says grantees sign agreements setting out grant restrictions and reporting requirements, receive a site visit during the grant period, and submit quantitative and qualitative end-of-period reporting.
Leadership & Key People
Leadership team and compensation from IRS filings
The 2025 filing lists Janet Nelson as chair/director; Elizabeth McCuskey as vice chair/chair; Allison Hanig-Landrus as director/vice chair; Amy Hallback as treasurer; Frances Wittenberg as director/secretary; and Todd Gustafson, Amy Starzecki, Chloe Holland, and Jordan Mershon as directors. Tricia Hobbs is listed as secretary, with an end date of December 2024.
Head of the Lakes United Way is led by Sara Niemi, President on the 2025 filing; 2 of 20 officers listed in 2025 are compensated.
Officers on the 2025 filing
Sara Niemi
President
New on the 2025 filing
40 hrs/week
$51K (2025)
Elizabeth McCuskey
Vice Chair & Chair
Director → Vice Chair, 2023
Vice Chair → Vice Chair & Chair, 2025
On filings since 2019
1 hr/week
No compensation reported
Janet Nelson
Chair & Director
Director → Chair, 2022
Chair → Chair & Director, 2025
On filings since 2019
1 hr/week
No compensation reported
Kimberly Ulmer
Finance Director
New on the 2025 filing
40 hrs/week
$75K (2025)
Annie Lepper
Director
On filings since 2019
1 hr/week
No compensation reported
Amy Starzecki
Director
On filings since 2020
1 hr/week
No compensation reported
Allison Hanig-Landrus
Director & Vice Chair
Director → Director & Vice Chair, 2025
On filings since 2023
1 hr/week
No compensation reported
Frances Wittenberg
Director & Secretary
Director → Director & Secretary, 2025
On filings since 2023
1 hr/week
No compensation reported
Jerrid Anderson
Director
On filings since 2023
1 hr/week
No compensation reported
Shawn Carr
Director
On filings since 2023
1 hr/week
No compensation reported
Todd Gustafson
Director
On filings since 2023
1 hr/week
No compensation reported
Amy Honkala
Director
New on the 2025 filing
1 hr/week
No compensation reported
Chloe Holland
Director
New on the 2025 filing
1 hr/week
No compensation reported
Cory Ouellete
Director
New on the 2025 filing
1 hr/week
No compensation reported
Emily Nygren
Director
New on the 2025 filing
1 hr/week
No compensation reported
Jon Benson
Director
New on the 2025 filing
1 hr/week
No compensation reported
Jordan Mershon
Director
New on the 2025 filing
1 hr/week
No compensation reported
Paul Eberth
Director
New on the 2025 filing
1 hr/week
No compensation reported
Amy Hallback
Treasurer
Director → Treasurer, 2024
On filings since 2019
1 hr/week
No compensation reported
Tricia Hobbs
Secretary
Director → At-Large Executive, 2023
At-Large Executive → Secretary, 2024
On filings since 2019
1 hr/week
No compensation reported
Former officers (28)
- Former: Jen Patterson (2019–2024) — Director
- Former: Matthew Hunter (2019–2024) — President
- Former: Kim Ulmer (2023–2024) — Finance Director
- Former: Beth McCuskey (2024) — Vice Chair
- Former: Dustin Letica (2019–2023) — Director
- Former: Eric Siljendahl (2019–2023) — Secretary
- Former: Kathryn Kock (2019–2023) — At-Large Executive
- Former: Lisa Neitzel (2019–2023) — Director
- Former: Louise Anderson (2019–2023) — Immediate Past Chair
- Former: Mark Britton (2019–2023) — Director
- Former: Mark Sitek (2019–2023) — Director
- Former: Neal Ronquist (2019–2023) — Director
- Former: Phil Jents (2019–2023) — Director
- Former: Steve Morris (2019–2023) — Treasurer
- Former: Nicholas Rhinehart (2021–2023) — Finance Director
- Former: Christine Carl (2023) — Director
- Former: Cindy Theien (2019–2022) — Director
- Former: Jill Pinkney Pastrana (2019–2022) — Director
- Former: Joan Jeaneta (2019–2022) — Director
- Former: Kalee Hermanson (2019–2022) — Vice Chair
- Former: Scott Studden (2019–2022) — Director
- Former: Charles Fause (2019–2021) — Finance Director -
- Former: Mary Anderson-Petroske (2019–2020) — Former Director
- Former: Cassandra Beardsley (2019) — Former Director
- Former: Deanna Benson (2019) — Former Treasurer
- Former: Denise Hamsher (2019) — Former Director
- Former: Jenice Meyer (2019) — Former Director
- Former: Lisa Erwin (2019) — Former Director
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.
Compensation Overview
From 2025 IRS filing
The highest reported compensation on the 2025 filing was $75K, to Kimberly Ulmer (Finance Director). 2 officers or directors reported compensation on that filing.
Frequently asked questions about Head of the Lakes United Way
How much does Head of the Lakes United Way give each year?
Head of the Lakes United Way gave $604K across 33 grants in 2025, according to its 2025 IRS Form 990. In 2024 it gave $566K across 32 grants.
What is Head of the Lakes United Way's typical grant size?
Head of the Lakes United Way's median grant in 2025 was $15,687, and its average grant was $18,308, across 33 grants on its 2025 IRS Form 990. Organizations receiving their first grant from Head of the Lakes United Way that year got $15K on average.
Where does Head of the Lakes United Way give grants?
Head of the Lakes United Way gives mostly in Minnesota: 86% of the grant dollars itemized on its 2025 IRS Form 990 went to recipients there. The next largest state was Wisconsin (14%). The most frequent recipient cities were Duluth, MN (24 grants), Superior, WI (2 grants), Two Harbors, MN (2 grants) and Ashland, WI (2 grants).
Does Head of the Lakes United Way give general operating support?
Occasionally: 3% of Head of the Lakes United Way's 2025 grants with a stated purpose (1 of 33) were for general or operating support, per its 2025 IRS Form 990.
Who are Head of the Lakes United Way's largest grantees?
Head of the Lakes United Way's largest 2025 grantees include Human Development Center ($47,928), Family Freedom Center ($38,553) and Family Rise Together ($35,996), according to its 2025 IRS Form 990. Together they received 20% of its itemized 2025 grant dollars.
How large is Head of the Lakes United Way?
Head of the Lakes United Way reported $8.8M in total assets on its 2025 IRS Form 990. Its revenue that year was $1.5M.
What does Head of the Lakes United Way fund?
The organization’s mission, as stated in its 2024 filing, is to unite caring people and mobilize resources to empower individuals and strengthen communities. Its community investment funding supports programs in health, education, and financial stability. See mission & focus areas ↑
How do I apply for a grant from Head of the Lakes United Way?
Head of the Lakes United Way has no public application process in the sources Grantable reviewed. Check hlunitedway.org for current guidelines, or contact the foundation directly before submitting a request.
What is Head of the Lakes United Way's EIN?
Head of the Lakes United Way's EIN (Employer Identification Number) is 41-0857077. IRS Form 990 filing data is available on this page for 2019–2025.
Data last updated September 2026. Sourced from IRS Form 990 filings. Research dossier generated September 2026.
Data update history
(8)
When this profile's IRS filing data changed on Grantable
- Updated Form 990 for fiscal year 2019 (received by the IRS May 1, 2020)
- Updated Form 990 for fiscal year 2020 (received by the IRS February 26, 2021)
- Updated Form 990 for fiscal year 2021 (received by the IRS April 28, 2022)
- Updated Form 990 for fiscal year 2022 (received by the IRS April 4, 2023)
- Updated Form 990 for fiscal year 2023 (received by the IRS May 15, 2024)
- Updated Form 990 for fiscal year 2024 (received by the IRS April 11, 2025)
- Added Form 990 for fiscal year 2025 (received by the IRS May 14, 2026)
- IRS filings on file for fiscal years 2019–2024
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Cite this profile
Grantable. (2026). Head of the Lakes United Way funder profile. GrantGraph. Retrieved October 4, 2026, from https://grantable.co/funders/head-of-the-lakes-united-way-morg_02cf40bae0f440b4898d51adbc9c915f
BibTeX
@misc{grantable_410857077_2026,
author = {{Grantable}},
title = {{Head of the Lakes United Way funder profile}},
howpublished = {GrantGraph},
year = {2026},
url = {https://grantable.co/funders/head-of-the-lakes-united-way-morg_02cf40bae0f440b4898d51adbc9c915f},
note = {Accessed 2026-10-04. 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 Head of the Lakes United Way'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.
Head of the Lakes United Way down — hundreds of funders to go?