Lakota Community Foundation
Lakota Community Foundation is a private foundation based in Lakota, North Dakota. Its 2025 filing describes direct support for Nelson County programs and services, Lakota Public School District, and City of Lakota services and facilities.
Lakota Community Foundation at a glance
In short: Lakota Community Foundation gave $70K across 11 grants in 2025 (avg $6K), mostly in North Dakota. 20% of 2025 grantees were new. Source: 2025 IRS Form 990-PF.
- Annual giving (2025)
- $69,981
- +58.4% vs 2024
- Grants made (2025)
- 11
- +37.5% vs 2024
- Average grant
- $6,362
- +15.2% vs 2024
- Median grant
- $2,000
- Total assets
- $1,143,233
- +1.0% vs 2024
- New grantees (estimate)
- 20% first-time grantees (2 of 10, 2025; small sample)
- Primary geography
- North Dakota (100% of itemized 2025 grant dollars)
- Latest 990 filing
- Form 990-PF, 2025 View filing
Data from IRS Form 990-PF, 2025; updated October 2026. New grantees are estimated by matching recipient names across years (methodology).
How to apply to Lakota Community Foundation
- How to Apply
-
The foundation’s filing says it does not restrict giving to preselected organizations. It lists James Aaker as the contact for applying, gives no application form or materials, and states that awards must have a connection to Lakota, North Dakota, and/or the surrounding area.
- Contact
Application contact: James Aaker
Mailing address: PO Box 468, Lakota, ND 58344
Phone: (701) 740-7962
Application details from Grantable's research on the foundation's public materials; confirm on its website before applying.
Who Lakota Community Foundation funds
How this funder distributes its grants
Top Recipients
Top 10 recipients in 2025
The largest 2025 recipient was Lakota Ambulance Service ($24K). Together the top 10 received $70K.
Grant Size Distribution
58 grants across all recorded years
The most common grant size was under $50K: 58 grants of 58 (100%).
Geographic Focus
Where this funder awards grants
All grant dollars listed for 2025 went to recipients in North Dakota. The filing states that awards must have a connection to Lakota, North Dakota, and/or the surrounding area.
Grant Distribution by State
Share of 2025 grant dollars across all 11 itemized grants.
States
Cities
Is Lakota Community Foundation open to new grantees?
20%
first-time grantees, 2025
In 2025, 2 of 10 grantees (20%) were first-time recipients. With only 10 grantees, that is a small sample: one grantee more or less moves the share by about 10 points. First grants averaged $500; repeat grants $9K. How we count
Medians: $500 first-time, $5K repeat.
- 30% of 2025 grantees were also funded in 2024. Method
- Giving grew 28% from 2022 to 2025. Method
- In 2025 it paid out 129% 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 $44K (2024) to $70K (2025). In 2025 it made 11 grants totaling $70K.
Grants by year
Grant recipients and amounts by year
| Recipient | Purpose | Amount |
|---|---|---|
| Lakota Ambulance Service Lakota, ND | ambulance support | $24,000 |
| City of Lakota Lakota, ND | Municipal Golf Course - support for clubhouse renovation. | $20,000 |
| St Marys Catholic Church Lakota, ND | building project | $10,000 |
| Lakota Public School District Lakota, ND | Athletics support | $4,731 |
| Nelson County Sheriffs Department Lakota, ND | County Sheriff K9 program | $4,000 |
| Lakota Public School District Lakota, ND | Facilities improvements | $2,000 |
| Lakota Scholarship Committee Lakota, ND | college scholarships | $2,000 |
| Lakota Park District Lakota, ND | parks & recreation support | $1,750 |
| Lomice Cemetery Lawton, ND | cemetery support | $500 |
| Nelson County Arts Council Pekin, ND | youth arts program support | $500 |
Ready to take the next step with Lakota Community Foundation?
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 | $1,143,233 | $81,421 | $70,590 | $69,981 | 11 | $69,981 | $49,927 | $54,398 |
| 2024 | $1,132,402 | $66,458 | $45,108 | $44,172 | 8 | $44,172 | $43,825 | $53,292 |
| 2023 | $1,111,052 | $66,917 | $64,405 | $63,683 | 15 | $63,683 | $46,797 | $52,638 |
| 2022 | $1,108,540 | $64,744 | $55,913 | $54,880 | 10 | $54,880 | $17,958 | $53,733 |
| 2021 | $1,099,709 | $36,296 | $53,798 | $52,950 | 14 | $52,950 | $15,036 | $54,670 |
| 2020 | $1,117,211 | $59,853 | $57,680 | $57,215 | 11 | — | $26,076 | $54,773 |
Under IRS private-foundation payout rules, Lakota Community Foundation reported a distributable amount of $54K 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 filing describes direct charitable support for Nelson County programs and services; Lakota Public School District; and the City of Lakota library, cemetery, park district, golf course, ambulance, and fire departments.
In 2025, it supported organizations and projects including ambulance service, a municipal golf course clubhouse renovation, a church building project, school athletics and facilities, college scholarships, parks and recreation, a sheriff’s K9 program, cemetery support, youth arts, and youth agriculture. Lakota Ambulance Service Inc., a 2025 grantee, describes its mission as providing affordable rural ambulance service to Nelson County and the surrounding area, and safety and medical emergency services training for volunteer ambulance staff and the public. That is the grantee’s stated mission, not the foundation’s.
Grantmaking
In filing year 2025, the foundation gave 11 grants totaling $69,981. Grant amounts ranged from $500 to $24,000, with a median of $2,000.
Notable 2025 grants included $24,000 to Lakota Ambulance Service, $20,000 to the City of Lakota for support of a municipal golf course clubhouse renovation, $10,000 to St Marys Catholic Church for a building project, and $4,731 to Lakota Public School District for athletics support. Other grants included $4,000 to Nelson County Sheriffs Department for its K9 program, $2,000 to Lakota Public School District for facilities improvements, $2,000 to Lakota Scholarship Committee for college scholarships, and $1,750 to Lakota Park District for parks and recreation support.
Leadership & Key People
Leadership team and compensation from IRS filings
The 2025 filing lists James Aaker as president; Ron Nelson as vice president; Jeffry Anderson as secretary treasurer; and Dan Kassian, Jill Wall, Lisa Miller, and Larry Hulstrand as directors.
Lakota Community Foundation is led by James Aaker, President on every filing since 2020; none of the 7 officers listed in 2025 report compensation.
Officers on the 2025 filing
James Aaker
President
On filings since 2020
1 hr/week
No compensation reported
Dan Kassian
Director
On filings since 2020
1 hr/week
No compensation reported
Jill Wall
Director
On filings since 2020
1 hr/week
No compensation reported
Larry Hulstrand
Director
On filings since 2020
1 hr/week
No compensation reported
Lisa Miller
Director
On filings since 2020
1 hr/week
No compensation reported
Jeffry Anderson
Secretary Treasurer
Secretary & Treasurer → Secretary Treasurer, 2021
On filings since 2020
3 hrs/week
No compensation reported
Ron Nelson
Vice President
On filings since 2020
1 hr/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.
Frequently asked questions about Lakota Community Foundation
How much does Lakota Community Foundation give each year?
Lakota Community Foundation gave $70K across 11 grants in 2025, according to its 2025 IRS Form 990-PF. In 2024 it gave $44K across 8 grants.
What is Lakota Community Foundation's typical grant size?
Lakota Community Foundation's median grant in 2025 was $2,000, and its average grant was $6,362, across 11 grants on its 2025 IRS Form 990-PF. Organizations receiving their first grant from Lakota Community Foundation that year got $500 on average.
Where does Lakota Community Foundation give grants?
Lakota Community Foundation gives mostly in North Dakota: 100% of the grant dollars itemized on its 2025 IRS Form 990-PF went to recipients there. The most frequent recipient cities were Lakota, ND (8 grants).
Does Lakota Community Foundation give general operating support?
Not in 2025: none of the 11 grants with a stated purpose on Lakota Community Foundation's 2025 IRS Form 990-PF were described as general or operating support.
Who are Lakota Community Foundation's largest grantees?
Lakota Community Foundation's largest 2025 grantees include Lakota Ambulance Service ($24,000), City of Lakota ($20,000) and St Marys Catholic Church ($10,000), according to its 2025 IRS Form 990-PF. Together they received 77% of its itemized 2025 grant dollars.
How large is Lakota Community Foundation?
Lakota Community Foundation reported $1.1M in total assets on its 2025 IRS Form 990-PF. It paid out $70K in qualifying distributions that year, against a required minimum of $54K (roughly 5% of its investment assets).
What does Lakota Community Foundation fund?
The foundation’s filing describes direct charitable support for Nelson County programs and services; Lakota Public School District; and the City of Lakota library, cemetery, park district, golf course, ambulance, and fire departments. See mission & focus areas ↑
How do I apply for a grant from Lakota Community Foundation?
The foundation’s filing says it 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 Lakota Community Foundation's EIN?
Lakota Community Foundation's EIN (Employer Identification Number) is 45-0436454. IRS Form 990 filing data is available on this page for 2020–2025.
Data last updated October 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 May 12, 2021)
- Updated Form 990-PF for fiscal year 2021 (received by the IRS May 13, 2022)
- Updated Form 990-PF for fiscal year 2022 (received by the IRS May 15, 2023)
- Updated Form 990-PF for fiscal year 2023 (received by the IRS May 7, 2024)
- Updated Form 990-PF for fiscal year 2024 (received by the IRS May 8, 2025)
- Added Form 990-PF for fiscal year 2025 (received by the IRS May 12, 2026)
- IRS filings on file for fiscal years 2020–2024
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Cite this profile
Grantable. (2026). Lakota Community Foundation funder profile. GrantGraph. Retrieved October 19, 2026, from https://grantable.co/funders/lakota-community-foundation-morg_56ae3d10c1b9416dbe5f4ad59f0c3873
BibTeX
@misc{grantable_450436454_2026,
author = {{Grantable}},
title = {{Lakota Community Foundation funder profile}},
howpublished = {GrantGraph},
year = {2026},
url = {https://grantable.co/funders/lakota-community-foundation-morg_56ae3d10c1b9416dbe5f4ad59f0c3873},
note = {Accessed 2026-10-19. 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 Lakota 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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