John & Clara Dolan Foundation
The John & Clara Dolan Foundation is a private foundation based in Minnetonka, Minnesota. It makes grants to charitable organizations; its 2025 grants included organizations working in education, health, humanitarian relief, housing, and other charitable activities.
John & Clara Dolan Foundation at a glance
In short: John & Clara Dolan Foundation gave $154K across 31 grants in 2025 (avg $5K), top state Minnesota. 0% of 2025 grantees were new. Source: 2025 IRS Form 990-PF.
- Annual giving (2025)
- $154,100
- +18.8% vs 2024
- Grants made (2025)
- 31
- -8.8% vs 2024
- Average grant
- $4,971
- +30.3% vs 2024
- Median grant
- $3,000
- Total assets
- $1,582,467
- -4.1% vs 2024
- New grantees (estimate)
- 0% first-time grantees (0 of 31, 2025)
- Primary geography
- Minnesota (49% of itemized 2025 grant dollars)
- Latest 990 filing
- Form 990-PF, 2025 View filing
Data from IRS Form 990-PF, 2025; updated September 2026. New grantees are estimated by matching recipient names across years (methodology).
How to apply to John & Clara Dolan Foundation
- Accepts unsolicited proposals
- No
- How to Apply
-
The foundation states that it makes contributions only to preselected charitable organizations and does not accept unsolicited requests for funds.
- Contact
Mailing address: 15901 Dawn Drive, Minnetonka, MN 55345
Phone: (952) 934-6720
Application details from Grantable's research on the foundation's public materials; confirm on its website before applying.
Who John & Clara Dolan Foundation funds
How this funder distributes its grants
Top Recipients
Top 10 recipients in 2025
The largest 2025 recipient was American Red Cross Society Hurrican ($40K). Together the top 10 received $98K.
Grant Size Distribution
141 grants across all recorded years
The most common grant size was under $50K: 141 grants of 141 (100%).
Geographic Focus
Where this funder awards grants
In 2025, 49% of grant dollars went to recipients in Minnesota and 26% to recipients in Iowa. Maryland, Arizona, and New York each accounted for 5% of grant dollars.
Grant Distribution by State
Share of 2025 grant dollars across all 31 itemized grants.
States
Cities
Is John & Clara Dolan Foundation open to new grantees?
0%
first-time grantees, 2025
In 2025, 0 of 31 grantees (0%) were first-time recipients. How we count
- 100% of 2025 grantees were also funded in 2024. Method
- Giving grew 56% from 2022 to 2025. Method
- In 2025 it paid out 124% 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.
Giving History
Giving Over Time
Total grant dollars and number of grants per year
From 2020 to 2025, annual grant giving ranged from $87K (2021) to $154K (2025). In 2025 it made 31 grants totaling $154K.
Grants by year
Grant recipients and amounts by year
| Recipient | Purpose | Amount |
|---|---|---|
| American Red Cross Society Hurrican Boone, IA | Charitable Activities | $40,000 |
| Elevate Life Eagan, MN | Charitable Activities | $13,100 |
| St Judes Children Research Hospital St Louis Park, MN | Charitable Activities | $10,000 |
| American Cancer Society Hagerstown, MD | Charitable Activities | $5,000 |
| Benilde-St Margarets St Louis Park, MN | Education | $5,000 |
| College of St Catherine St. Paul, MN | Education | $5,000 |
| College of St Benedicts St Joseph, MN | Higher Education | $5,000 |
| Doctors Without Borders New York, NY | Charitable Activities | $5,000 |
| Habitat for Humanity St. Paul, MN | Charitable Activities | $5,000 |
| International Rescue Committee Albert Lea, MN | Charitable Activities | $5,000 |
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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 | $1,582,467 | $96,071 | $163,308 | $154,100 | 31 | $154,100 | $91,668 | $124,480 |
| 2024 | $1,649,704 | $99,502 | $136,475 | $129,700 | 34 | $129,700 | $97,288 | $80,806 |
| 2023 | $1,686,677 | $641,375 | $109,572 | $100,100 | 25 | $100,100 | $78,585 | $101,400 |
| 2022 | $1,154,874 | $68,132 | $104,857 | $98,700 | 26 | $98,700 | $63,393 | $90,274 |
| 2021 | $1,191,599 | $58,106 | $93,135 | $87,100 | 25 | $87,100 | $58,795 | $94,116 |
| 2020 | $1,226,628 | $60,666 | $95,702 | $89,700 | 29 | — | $58,576 | $86,410 |
Under IRS private-foundation payout rules, John & Clara Dolan Foundation reported a distributable amount of $124K 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
No foundation mission statement is provided. The 2025 grant list includes support for educational institutions and organizations whose stated work spans different areas. For example, Habitat for Humanity describes its mission as “helping families thrive through affordable homeownership,” while the International Rescue Committee says it responds to humanitarian crises and helps people affected by conflict and disaster. Elevate Life describes itself as a pro-life organization serving a network of affiliated pregnancy centers.
Grantmaking
In 2025, the foundation made 31 grants totaling $154,100. Grant amounts ranged from $1,000 to $40,000, with a median of $3,000. Its largest listed grants were $40,000 to American Red Cross Society Hurrican for charitable activities, $13,100 to Elevate Life for charitable activities, and $10,000 to St Judes Children Research Hospital for charitable activities.
Other 2025 grants included $5,000 to Benilde-St Margarets and $5,000 to College of St Catherine for education; $5,000 to College of St Benedicts for higher education; and $5,000 each to Doctors Without Borders, Habitat for Humanity, and International Rescue Committee for charitable activities. The foundation also gave $5,000 to Mayo Clinic Cancer Center for research. Marquette University describes its mission as a Catholic, Jesuit university committed to truth, learning, personal and professional excellence, faith, and service.
The foundation made 34 grants totaling $129,700 in 2024 and 25 grants totaling $100,100 in 2023.
Leadership & Key People
Leadership team and compensation from IRS filings
Officers and directors listed on the 2025 filing are Mary Lou Thue, president; Dan Thue, secretary/treasurer; and Ann Jensen, Teresa Dolan, and Dean Dolan, directors.
John & Clara Dolan Foundation is led by Mary Lou Thue, President since 2022 (on filings since 2020); all 5 officers listed in 2025 are compensated.
Officers on the 2025 filing
Mary Lou Thue
President
Treasurer → President, 2022
On filings since 2020
$800 (2020) → $1K (2025)
Ann Jensen
Director
On filings since 2020
$600 (2020) → $600 (2025)
Dean Dolan
Director
On filings since 2020
$600 (2020) → $600 (2025)
Teresa Dolan
Director
On filings since 2020
$600 (2020) → $600 (2025)
Dan Thue
Secretary
On filings since 2020
$600 (2020) → $600 (2025)
Former officers (1)
- Former: Clara Dolan (2020–2021) — President
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
The highest reported compensation on the 2025 filing was $1K, to Mary Lou Thue (President). 5 officers or directors reported compensation on that filing.
Frequently asked questions about John & Clara Dolan Foundation
How much does John & Clara Dolan Foundation give each year?
John & Clara Dolan Foundation gave $154K across 31 grants in 2025, according to its 2025 IRS Form 990-PF. In 2024 it gave $130K across 34 grants.
What is John & Clara Dolan Foundation's typical grant size?
John & Clara Dolan Foundation's median grant in 2025 was $3,000, and its average grant was $4,971, across 31 grants on its 2025 IRS Form 990-PF.
Where does John & Clara Dolan Foundation give grants?
John & Clara Dolan Foundation's top state is Minnesota, with 49% of the grant dollars itemized on its 2025 IRS Form 990-PF. The next largest states were Iowa (26%) and Maryland (5%). The most frequent recipient cities were St. Paul, MN (6 grants), St Louis Park, MN (3 grants), Phoenix, AZ (3 grants) and New York, NY (2 grants).
Does John & Clara Dolan Foundation give general operating support?
Not in 2025: none of the 31 grants with a stated purpose on John & Clara Dolan Foundation's 2025 IRS Form 990-PF were described as general or operating support. Recurring purposes include "Charitable Activities" (24 grants) and "Education" (3 grants).
Who are John & Clara Dolan Foundation's largest grantees?
John & Clara Dolan Foundation's largest 2025 grantees include American Red Cross Society Hurrican ($40,000), Elevate Life ($13,100) and St Judes Children Research Hospital ($10,000), according to its 2025 IRS Form 990-PF. Together they received 41% of its itemized 2025 grant dollars.
How large is John & Clara Dolan Foundation?
John & Clara Dolan Foundation reported $1.6M in total assets on its 2025 IRS Form 990-PF. It paid out $154K in qualifying distributions that year, against a required minimum of $124K (roughly 5% of its investment assets).
What does John & Clara Dolan Foundation fund?
No foundation mission statement is provided. The 2025 grant list includes support for educational institutions and organizations whose stated work spans different areas. See mission & focus areas ↑
How do I apply for a grant from John & Clara Dolan Foundation?
The foundation states that it 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 John & Clara Dolan Foundation's EIN?
John & Clara Dolan Foundation's EIN (Employer Identification Number) is 36-3321532. IRS Form 990 filing data is available on this page for 2020–2025.
Does John & Clara Dolan 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.
Data update history
(7)
When this profile's IRS filing data changed on Grantable
- Updated Form 990-PF for fiscal year 2020 (received by the IRS November 3, 2021)
- Updated Form 990-PF for fiscal year 2021 (received by the IRS November 15, 2022)
- Updated Form 990-PF for fiscal year 2022 (received by the IRS October 31, 2023)
- Updated Form 990-PF for fiscal year 2023 (received by the IRS November 13, 2024)
- Updated Form 990-PF for fiscal year 2024 (received by the IRS November 3, 2025)
- Updated Form 990-PF for fiscal year 2025 (received by the IRS April 23, 2026)
- IRS filings on file for fiscal years 2020–2025
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Cite this profile
Grantable. (2026). John & Clara Dolan Foundation funder profile. GrantGraph. Retrieved October 18, 2026, from https://grantable.co/funders/john-and-clara-dolan-foundation-morg_6376c23ae83b4b63911d4645326d6b64
BibTeX
@misc{grantable_363321532_2026,
author = {{Grantable}},
title = {{John \& Clara Dolan Foundation funder profile}},
howpublished = {GrantGraph},
year = {2026},
url = {https://grantable.co/funders/john-and-clara-dolan-foundation-morg_6376c23ae83b4b63911d4645326d6b64},
note = {Accessed 2026-10-18. 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 John & Clara Dolan 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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