Hixon Family Foundation

Private foundation · Grantmaker San Antonio, TX EIN: 74-2882611

The Hixon Family Foundation is a private foundation based in San Antonio, Texas. It supports charitable organizations working on environmental preservation, animal welfare and preservation, community building, and education.

Key facts about Hixon Family Foundation

In short: Hixon Family Foundation gave $177K across 67 grants in 2025 (avg $3K), mostly in Texas. 19% of 2025 grantees were new. Source: 2025 IRS Form 990-PF.

EIN
74-2882611
Latest 990 filing
Form 990-PF, 2025
Annual giving (2025)
$176,634
Grants made (2025)
67
Average grant
$2,636
Median grant
$2,000
New grantees (estimate)
19% first-time grantees (10 of 54, 2025)
Total assets
$3,005,768
Primary geography
Texas (77% 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. Full details ↓

Data from IRS Form 990-PF, 2025; updated September 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

$3.0M

+9.4% YoY

Annual Giving

$177K

+5.7% YoY

Grant Count

67

+15.5% YoY

Avg Grant Size

$3K

-8.5% YoY

Under IRS private-foundation payout rules, Hixon Family Foundation reported a distributable amount of $194K for 2025 — the minimum it must pay out in qualifying distributions.

Is Hixon Family Foundation open to new grantees?

19%

first-time grantees, 2025

In 2025, 10 of 54 grantees (19%) were first-time recipients. First grants averaged $2K; repeat grants $4K. How we count

Medians: $2K first-time, $3K repeat.

  • 65% of 2025 grantees were also funded in 2024. Method
  • Giving held roughly steady from 2022 to 2025 (−5%). Method
  • In 2025 it paid out 91% 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 (2020–2025). 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 foundation describes its charitable activity as donations to organizations focused on preserving rivers, water, parks, and land, as well as other environmental goals, animal welfare and preservation, community building, and education.

Its 2025 grants included organizations with a range of missions. For example, the National Parks Conservation Association says its mission is to protect America’s national parks for present and future generations. Bat Conservation International describes its work as conserving bats and their ecosystems, while Texas Public Radio says it aims to engage, inspire, and inform people about their community and world. The Texas Freedom Network Education Fund says it supports civic education, voter engagement, and research promoting equality, religious freedom, and social justice.

Grantmaking

In filing year 2025, the foundation reported 67 grants totaling $176,634. Grant amounts ranged from $150 to $15,000, with a median of $2,000.

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Geographic Focus

Where this funder awards grants

In 2025, 77% of grant dollars went to recipients in Texas, 14% to recipients in the District of Columbia, 5% to recipients in Virginia, 3% to recipients in California, and 1% to recipients in Georgia.

Grant Distribution by State

10states

Share of 2025 grant dollars across all 67 itemized grants.

Cities

San AntonioAustinWashingtonBoerneArlingtonSan MarcosOaklandWimberlyAtlantaCambridgeCanyon LakeCoronadoNew YorkSaddle BrookWimberleyBee CaveJohnson CityPipe CreekBig Bend National ParkWashinton

Giving Over Time

Total grant dollars and number of grants per year

$0$50K$100K$150K$200K53 grants2020 64 grants2021 62 grants2022 58 grants2023 58 grants2024 67 grants2025

From 2020 to 2025, annual grant giving ranged from $156K (2023) to $186K (2022). In 2025 it made 67 grants totaling $177K.

Grant Insights

How this funder distributes its grants

Top Recipients

Top 10 recipients in 2025

GEAA (Greater Edwards Acquifer): $17K across 3 grantsGEAA (Greater EdwardsAcquifer)$17K · 3 grantsLast Chance Forever Bird of Prey: $15KLast Chance Forever Bird ofPrey$15KNational Parks Conservation Association: $11KNational Parks ConservationAssociation$11KPhil Hardberger Park: $10K across 2 grantsPhil Hardberger Park$10K · 2 grantsThe Conservation Fund: $8K across 2 grantsThe Conservation Fund$8K · 2 grantsSave Our Springs Alliance: $7K across 2 grantsSave Our Springs Alliance$7K · 2 grantsSan Antonio Botanical Gardens: $6K across 2 grantsSan Antonio Botanical Gardens$6K · 2 grantsOcean Conservancy: $6K across 2 grantsOcean Conservancy$6K · 2 grantsTexas Public Radio: $5K across 2 grantsTexas Public Radio$5K · 2 grantsBat Conservation International: $5KBat Conservation International$5K

The largest 2025 recipient was GEAA (Greater Edwards Acquifer) ($17K across 3 grants). Together the top 10 received $89K.

Grant Size Distribution

309 grants across all recorded years

309<$50K$50–100K$100–250K$250–500K$500K–1M$1–5M$5M+

The most common grant size was under $50K: 309 grants of 309 (100%).

Giving History

Grant recipients and amounts by year

RecipientPurposeAmount
Last Chance Forever Bird of Prey San Antonio, TXProtect Birds of Prey$15,000
National Parks Conservation Association Washington, DCProtect Public Lands$10,500
GEAA (Greater Edwards Acquifer) San Antonio, TXProtect Public Water$10,000
The Conservation Fund Arlington, VALand Conservation$5,282
GEAA (Greater Edwards Acquifer) San Antonio, TXProtect Public Water$5,050
Bat Conservation International Austin, TXSpecies Conservation$5,000
Phil Hardberger Park San Antonio, TXProtect Public Parks$5,000
Phil Hardberger Park San Antonio, TXProtect Public Parks$5,000
Save Our Springs Alliance Austin, TXPublic Waters$5,000
Texas Freedom Network Education Fund Austin, TXEducation Young Leaders$5,000

Financial History

Multi-year comparison from IRS filings

Filing year Assets Revenue Expenses Grants
2025 $3,005,768 $471,462 $227,521 $176,634
2024 $2,748,229 $177,669 $211,582 $167,073
2023 $2,790,157 $98,138 $197,642 $156,087
Revenue
Expenses
Qualifying Distributions
Net Investment Income
$0$200K$400K$600K2020 2021 2022 2023 2024 2025
Metric202520242023
Total Assets$3,005,768$2,748,229$2,790,157
Revenue$471,462$177,669$98,138
Expenses$227,521$211,582$197,642
Qualifying Distributions$176,634$167,073$156,087
Net Investment Income$420,575—$58,810
Distributable Amount$193,896—$161,037

Data update history

When this profile's IRS filing data changed on Grantable

  1. Added Form 990-PF for fiscal year 2025 (received by the IRS May 13, 2026)
  2. IRS filings on file for fiscal years 2020–2024

Leadership & Key People

Leadership team and compensation from IRS filings

The 2025 filing lists Steve Hixon as president and treasurer, Martha Hixon as vice president and secretary, and David Hixon and Jennifer Hixon as directors.

Hixon Family Foundation is led by Steve Hixon, President & Treasurer on every filing since 2020; none of the 4 officers listed in 2025 report compensation.

Officers on the 2025 filing

  • Steve Hixon

    President & Treasurer

    On filings since 2020

    2 hrs/week

    No compensation reported

  • David Hixon

    Director

    On filings since 2020

    No compensation reported

  • Jennifer Hixon

    Director

    On filings since 2020

    No compensation reported

  • Martha Hixon

    Vice President & Secretary

    On filings since 2020

    2 hrs/week

    No compensation reported

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.

Contact

Mailing address: 114 Rio Bravo, San Antonio, TX 78232
Phone: (210) 651-9211

Frequently asked questions about Hixon Family Foundation

How much does Hixon Family Foundation give each year?

Hixon Family Foundation gave $177K across 67 grants in 2025, according to its 2025 IRS Form 990-PF. In 2024 it gave $167K across 58 grants.

What is Hixon Family Foundation's typical grant size?

Hixon Family Foundation's median grant in 2025 was $2,000, and its average grant was $2,636, across 67 grants on its 2025 IRS Form 990-PF. Organizations receiving their first grant from Hixon Family Foundation that year got $2K on average.

Where does Hixon Family Foundation give grants?

Hixon Family Foundation gives mostly in Texas: 77% of the grant dollars itemized on its 2025 IRS Form 990-PF went to recipients there. The next largest state was District of Columbia (14%). The most frequent recipient cities were San Antonio, TX (30 grants), Austin, TX (8 grants), Washington, DC (6 grants) and San Marcos, TX (3 grants).

Does Hixon Family Foundation give general operating support?

Not in 2025: none of the 67 grants with a stated purpose on Hixon Family Foundation's 2025 IRS Form 990-PF were described as general or operating support. Recurring purposes include "Public Waters" (7 grants), "Protect Environment" (4 grants) and "Protect Public Water" (4 grants).

Who are Hixon Family Foundation's largest grantees?

Hixon Family Foundation's largest 2025 grantees include GEAA (Greater Edwards Acquifer) ($16,550 across 3 grants), Last Chance Forever Bird of Prey ($15,000) and National Parks Conservation Association ($10,500), according to its 2025 IRS Form 990-PF. Together they received 24% of its itemized 2025 grant dollars.

How large is Hixon Family Foundation?

Hixon Family Foundation reported $3.0M in total assets on its 2025 IRS Form 990-PF. It paid out $177K in qualifying distributions that year, against a required minimum of $194K (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 Hixon Family Foundation fund?

The foundation describes its charitable activity as donations to organizations focused on preserving rivers, water, parks, and land, as well as other environmental goals, animal welfare and preservation, community building, and education. See mission & focus areas ↑

How do I apply for a grant from Hixon Family Foundation?

The foundation makes contributions only to preselected charitable organizations and does not accept unsolicited requests. Eligibility and process details are in the grantmaking section of this profile. See how to apply ↑

What is Hixon Family Foundation's EIN?

Hixon Family Foundation's EIN (Employer Identification Number) is 74-2882611. IRS Form 990 filing data is available on this page for 2020–2025.

Does Hixon Family Foundation accept unsolicited proposals?

No, according to Grantable's research on the foundation's published guidelines. See how to apply ↑

Data last updated September 2026. Sourced from IRS Form 990-PF filings. Research dossier generated September 2026.

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