La Crosse Community Foundation

Public charity · Grantmaker La Crosse, WI EIN: 39-6037996

La Crosse Area Community Foundation is a public charity based in La Crosse, Wisconsin. Founded in 1930, it manages charitable funds, awards grants and scholarships, and supports organizations working to strengthen quality of life in La Crosse County.

La Crosse Community Foundation at a glance

In short: La Crosse Community Foundation gave $4.7M across 109 grants in 2025 (avg $43K), mostly in Wisconsin. 20% of 2025 grantees were new. Source: 2025 IRS Form 990.

Annual giving (2025)
$4,688,188
+1.1% vs 2024
Grants made (2025)
109
-10.7% vs 2024
Average grant
$43,011
+13.1% vs 2024
Median grant
$19,800
Total assets
$89,156,004
+10.2% vs 2024
New grantees (estimate)
20% first-time grantees (22 of 108, 2025)
Primary geography
Wisconsin (94% of itemized 2025 grant dollars)
Latest 990 filing
Form 990, 2025 View filing

Data from IRS Form 990, 2025; updated October 2026. New grantees are estimated by matching recipient names across years (methodology).

How to apply to La Crosse Community Foundation

Accepts unsolicited proposals
Yes
How to Apply

The Foundation accepts unsolicited requests through its competitive grant process; applications are submitted through its online grant portal with the relevant program materials.

Review Cycle
As of October 2, 2026, the Quarter 4 mini-grant and Field of Interest Funds cycle is scheduled to open October 6 and close November 2, 2026. Micro-grant applications are scheduled to remain open through November 2, 2026, or earlier if funding is fully expended; applications are reviewed on the second Monday of each month. The Quarter 1, Quarter 2, and Quarter 3 2026 cycles have passed.
Deadline
As of October 2, 2026, the Quarter 4 mini-grant and Field of Interest Funds cycle is scheduled to open October 6 and…
Contact

Mailing address: 601 7Th St N 203, La Crosse, WI 54601
Phone: (608) 782-3223

Application details from Grantable's research on the foundation's public materials; confirm on its website before applying.

Who La Crosse Community Foundation funds

How this funder distributes its grants

Top Recipients

Top 10 recipients in 2025

Boys & Girls Clubs of Greater La Crosse: $417KBoys & Girls Clubs of GreaterLa Crosse$417KCity of Onalaska: $287KCity of Onalaska$287KGundersen Medical Foundation: $274KGundersen Medical Foundation$274KFirst Lutheran Church: $237KFirst Lutheran Church$237KOutdoor Recreation Alliance: $187KOutdoor Recreation Alliance$187KThe Center 7 Rivers LGBTQ Connection: $183KThe Center 7 Rivers LGBTQConnection$183KRenaissance Charitable Foundation Inc: $131KRenaissance CharitableFoundation Inc$131KCouleecap: $122KCouleecap$122KThe Good Fight Community Center: $113KThe Good Fight CommunityCenter$113KFather Joseph Walijewski Legacy Guild CASA Hogar: $102KFather Joseph WalijewskiLegacy Guild CASA Hogar$102K

The largest 2025 recipient was Boys & Girls Clubs of Greater La Crosse ($417K). Together the top 10 received $2.1M.

Organizations only. It also paid 2 individual scholarships ($104,900), which are not listed by name.

Grant Size Distribution

513 grants across all recorded years

408<$50K74$50–100K22$100–250K7$250–500K1$500K–1M1$1–5M$5M+

The most common grant size was under $50K: 408 grants of 513 (80%).

Geographic Focus

Where this funder awards grants

The Foundation’s competitive grant program is aimed at organizations primarily serving residents of La Crosse County, Wisconsin. In filing year 2025, 94% of grant dollars went to recipients in Wisconsin; the filing also lists recipients in Indiana, Minnesota, Pennsylvania, and Virginia.

Grant Distribution by State

18states

Share of 2025 grant dollars across all 109 itemized grants.

Cities

La CrosseOnalaskaMilwaukeeSt. PaulRochesterWestbyHolmenFerryvilleMadisonWest AllisCallawayWest SalemArrow RockCoon ValleyCulpeperElkhornHagerstownMinneapolisOshkoshPhoenix

Is La Crosse Community Foundation open to new grantees?

20%

first-time grantees, 2025

In 2025, 22 of 108 grantees (20%) were first-time recipients. First grants averaged $33K; repeat grants $46K. How we count

Medians: $15K first-time, $22K repeat.

  • 69% of 2025 grantees were also funded in 2024. Method
  • Giving grew 50% from 2022 to 2025. Method

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

$0$2M$4M$6M76 grants2019 85 grants2020 84 grants2021 93 grants2022 105 grants2023 122 grants2024 109 grants2025

From 2019 to 2025, annual grant giving ranged from $2.1M (2019) to $4.7M (2025). In 2025 it made 109 grants totaling $4.7M.

Grants by year

Grant recipients and amounts by year

RecipientPurposeAmount
Boys & Girls Clubs of Greater La Crosse La Crosse, WIRecreation and Wellness$416,557
City of Onalaska Onalaska, WIRecreation and Wellness$286,754
Gundersen Medical Foundation La Crosse, WIHealth and Human Services$273,777
First Lutheran Church Onalaska, WIFAITH$237,225
Outdoor Recreation Alliance La Crosse, WIRecreation and Wellness$187,325
The Center 7 Rivers LGBTQ Connection La Crosse, WICulture and Diversity$183,300
Renaissance Charitable Foundation Inc Indianapolis, INCommunity Improvement$131,077
Couleecap Westby, WIHealth and Human Services$121,966
The Good Fight Community Center La Crosse, WIRecreation and Wellness$112,500
Father Joseph Walijewski Legacy Guild CASA Hogar La Crosse, WIFAITH$102,000
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Financial History

Multi-year comparison from IRS filings

The Foundation’s 2025 filing reports 298 donor-directed funds, $3,874,544 in noncompetitive grants, and $373,000 in scholarships. It also reports 32 funds awarding competitive grants.

Figures from IRS filings, by filing year
Filing yearTotal AssetsRevenueExpensesGrants paidGrantsNet Investment Income
2025$89,156,004$9,312,016$6,758,688$4,688,188109$5,750,549
2024$80,894,492$7,038,702$6,589,394$4,638,024122$4,082,392
2023$75,914,919$19,167,163$5,224,526$3,629,609105$3,890,321
2022$59,131,423$5,067,377$4,913,497$3,126,86993$1,540,668
2021$69,726,999$8,261,750$5,237,416$4,056,26084$4,163,784
2020$62,818,234$4,891,046$4,942,232$3,814,73285$1,309,454
2019$57,359,813$6,472,963$3,013,903$2,141,61876$1,200,314

Research compiled by Grantable AI from public sources. Last updated October 2026.

Mission & Focus Areas

The Foundation’s mission is to invest in communities, for good, forever, and to strengthen quality of life in La Crosse County by connecting generous people, proven nonprofits, and shared community goals. Its 2025 filing describes its mission as “connecting people, passion, and giving in the La Crosse area forever.”

The Foundation’s 2025 competitive grant program covered eight impact areas: Arts & Humanities, Community Improvement, Culture & Diversity, Education, Environment, Faith, Health & Human Services, and Recreation & Wellness. Grantees include organizations whose stated missions address youth programming, medical education and community health, outdoor recreation, poverty and self-sufficiency, and community gardens. For example, Boys & Girls Clubs of Greater La Crosse says it serves K–12 youth through after-school, summer, and athletic programs; Outdoor Recreation Alliance says it works to provide equitable and sustainable outdoor recreation; and Couleecap says it fights poverty and promotes self-sufficiency, economic development, and social justice.

Grantmaking

In filing year 2025, the Foundation reported 109 itemized grants totaling $4,688,188. Grant amounts ranged from $5,153 to $416,557, with a median of $19,800. The filing reports $909,343 in competitive grants, while the Foundation’s website says it awarded $1,059,350 in competitive grants in 2025.

Among the largest reported 2025 grants were $416,557 to Boys & Girls Clubs of Greater La Crosse for recreation and wellness; $286,754 to the City of Onalaska for recreation and wellness; $273,777 to Gundersen Medical Foundation for health and human services; $237,225 to First Lutheran Church for faith; and $187,325 to Outdoor Recreation Alliance for recreation and wellness. Other notable grants included $183,300 to The Center 7 Rivers LGBTQ Connection for culture and diversity and $121,966 to Couleecap for health and human services.

The Foundation’s competitive programs include micro, mini, standard, and capacity-building grants. Standard grants are for result-oriented projects and programs addressing a proven community need or priority; the 2026 standard grant request minimum is $15,000. Applications are submitted through the online grant portal. The Foundation’s application guidance directs applicants to review the RFP, preview the application, review the evaluation rubric, and submit an application. Eligible applicants generally must be 501(c)(3) public charities or qualifying government bodies, primarily serve La Crosse County residents, and agree to the Foundation’s awardee requirements, including its DEIB Appendix. A formal fiscal sponsor relationship with a 501(c)(3) may provide an eligibility route for organizations that do not meet the applicant criteria directly.

The Foundation says competitive grant awards cannot fund open-ended repeat grants for the same project, partisan political activities, organizational endowments, scholarships or grants to individuals, religious activities primarily for religious education or proselytization, retroactive expenses, or loan or debt payments. Its filing also describes grantee due diligence and reporting requirements, including progress and/or final reports for competitive grants.

Leadership & Key People

Leadership team and compensation from IRS filings

The 2025 filing lists Richard Kyte as chair, Joe Moua as vice-chair, and Sr. Sue Ernster as treasurer. Directors listed include Clara Gelatt, Josh Court, Jim Warren, Everett McKinney, and Katelyn Doyle. Taylor Mathy Sauerman is listed as a director until April 2025, and Dina Zavala as a director until June 2025.

La Crosse Community Foundation is led by Chad Dull, Chief Executive Officer on the 2025 filing; 2 of 14 officers listed in 2025 are compensated.

Officers on the 2025 filing

  • Chad Dull

    Chief Executive Officer

    New on the 2025 filing

    40 hrs/week

    $139K (2025)

  • Richard Kyte

    Chair

    Vice Chair → Chair, 2024

    On filings since 2022

    1 hr/week

    No compensation reported

  • Erin Belby

    Operations Director

    Chief Operating Officer → Operations Director, 2024

    On filings since 2023

    40 hrs/week

    $115K (2023) → $118K (2025)

  • Clara Gelatt

    Director

    Board Member → Director, 2025

    On filings since 2020

    1 hr/week

    No compensation reported

  • Dina Zavala

    Director

    Board Member → Director, 2025

    On filings since 2022

    1 hr/week

    No compensation reported

  • Josh Court

    Director

    Board Member → Director, 2025

    On filings since 2023

    1 hr/week

    No compensation reported

  • Everett McKinney

    Director

    Board Member → Director, 2025

    On filings since 2024

    1 hr/week

    No compensation reported

  • Jim Warren

    Director

    Board Member → Director, 2025

    On filings since 2024

    1 hr/week

    No compensation reported

  • Katelyn Doyle

    Director

    Board Member → Director, 2025

    On filings since 2024

    1 hr/week

    No compensation reported

  • Taylor Mathy Sauerman

    Director

    Board Member → Director, 2025

    On filings since 2024

    1 hr/week

    No compensation reported

  • Margaret Webster

    Director

    New on the 2025 filing

    1 hr/week

    No compensation reported

  • Sarah Havens

    Director

    New on the 2025 filing

    1 hr/week

    No compensation reported

  • Joe Moua

    Vice Chair

    Board Member → Treasurer, 2021

    Treasurer → Vice Chair, 2024

    On filings since 2019

    1 hr/week

    No compensation reported

  • Sr Sue Ernster

    Treasurer

    Board Member → Treasurer, 2024

    On filings since 2019

    1 hr/week

    No compensation reported

Former officers (13)
  • Former: Jamie Schloegel (2019–2024) — Chief Executive Officer
  • Former: Margie Webster (2024) — Board Member
  • Former: Jamie Dahl (2019–2023) — Board Member
  • Former: Taylor Mathy (2019–2023) — Secretary
  • Former: Tom Kennedy (2019–2023) — Board Member
  • Former: Tara Johnson (2021–2023) — Board Member
  • Former: Brent Smith Jc (2022–2023) — Chair
  • Former: Taggert Brooks (2019–2022) — Board Member
  • Former: Barb Erickson (2019–2021) — Board Member
  • Former: Brent Smith (2019–2021) — Chair
  • Former: Rick Kyte (2019–2021) — Vice Chair
  • Former: Sandy Brekke (2019–2020) — Chair
  • Former: Julie Nordeen (2019) — Board Member

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

Chad Dull — Chief Executive Officer: $139KChad DullChief Executive Officer$139KErin Belby — Operations Director: $118KErin BelbyOperations Director$118K

The highest reported compensation on the 2025 filing was $139K, to Chad Dull (Chief Executive Officer). 2 officers or directors reported compensation on that filing.

Frequently asked questions about La Crosse Community Foundation

How much does La Crosse Community Foundation give each year?

La Crosse Community Foundation gave $4.7M across 109 grants in 2025, according to its 2025 IRS Form 990. In 2024 it gave $4.6M across 122 grants.

What is La Crosse Community Foundation's typical grant size?

La Crosse Community Foundation's median grant in 2025 was $19,800, and its average grant was $43,011, across 109 grants on its 2025 IRS Form 990. Organizations receiving their first grant from La Crosse Community Foundation that year got $33K on average.

Where does La Crosse Community Foundation give grants?

La Crosse Community Foundation gives mostly in Wisconsin: 94% of the grant dollars itemized on its 2025 IRS Form 990 went to recipients there. The most frequent recipient cities were La Crosse, WI (74 grants), Onalaska, WI (8 grants), Holmen, WI (3 grants) and Milwaukee, WI (3 grants).

Does La Crosse Community Foundation give general operating support?

Not in 2025: none of the 109 grants with a stated purpose on La Crosse Community Foundation's 2025 IRS Form 990 were described as general or operating support. Recurring purposes include "Health and Human Services" (40 grants), "Community Improvement" (15 grants) and "Faith" (13 grants).

Who are La Crosse Community Foundation's largest grantees?

La Crosse Community Foundation's largest 2025 grantees include Boys & Girls Clubs of Greater La Crosse ($416,557), City of Onalaska ($286,754) and Gundersen Medical Foundation ($273,777), according to its 2025 IRS Form 990. It also paid 2 individual scholarships ($104,900), which are not listed by name. Together they received 21% of its itemized 2025 grant dollars.

How large is La Crosse Community Foundation?

La Crosse Community Foundation reported $89.2M in total assets on its 2025 IRS Form 990. Its revenue that year was $9.3M.

What does La Crosse Community Foundation fund?

The Foundation’s mission is to invest in communities, for good, forever, and to strengthen quality of life in La Crosse County by connecting generous people, proven nonprofits, and shared community goals. See mission & focus areas ↑

How do I apply for a grant from La Crosse Community Foundation?

The Foundation accepts unsolicited requests through its competitive grant process; applications are submitted through its online grant portal with the relevant program materials. Eligibility and process details are in the grantmaking section of this profile. See how to apply ↑

What is La Crosse Community Foundation's EIN?

La Crosse Community Foundation's EIN (Employer Identification Number) is 39-6037996. IRS Form 990 filing data is available on this page for 2019–2025.

Does La Crosse Community Foundation accept unsolicited proposals?

Yes, 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 filings. Research dossier generated October 2026.

Data update history

(8)

When this profile's IRS filing data changed on Grantable

  1. Updated Form 990 for fiscal year 2022 (received by the IRS September 11, 2023)
  2. Updated Form 990 for fiscal year 2023 (received by the IRS September 20, 2024)
  3. Updated Form 990 for fiscal year 2024 (received by the IRS June 4, 2025)
  4. Updated Form 990 for fiscal year 2019 (received by the IRS June 10, 2020)
  5. Updated Form 990 for fiscal year 2020 (received by the IRS May 12, 2021)
  6. Updated Form 990 for fiscal year 2021 (received by the IRS May 12, 2022)
  7. Added Form 990 for fiscal year 2025 (received by the IRS July 20, 2026)
  8. IRS filings on file for fiscal years 2019–2024

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Assets

—

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Cite this profile

Grantable. (2026). La Crosse Community Foundation funder profile. GrantGraph. Retrieved October 14, 2026, from https://grantable.co/funders/la-crosse-community-foundation-morg_2c32af9f5e1b420aab22894be10977d3

BibTeX
@misc{grantable_396037996_2026,
  author       = {{Grantable}},
  title        = {{La Crosse Community Foundation funder profile}},
  howpublished = {GrantGraph},
  year         = {2026},
  url          = {https://grantable.co/funders/la-crosse-community-foundation-morg_2c32af9f5e1b420aab22894be10977d3},
  note         = {Accessed 2026-10-14. 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 La Crosse Community 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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