Lily Lai Foundation
Lily Lai Foundation is a private foundation based in San Diego, California. Its 2024 grants supported charitable organizations, including groups working in child advocacy and foster youth services, food assistance, education, and cancer research.
Lily Lai Foundation at a glance
In short: Lily Lai Foundation gave $1.4M across 26 grants in 2024 (avg $54K), mostly in California. 0% of 2024 grantees were new. Source: 2024 IRS Form 990-PF.
- Annual giving (2024)
- $1,405,000
- +36.0% vs 2023
- Grants made (2024)
- 26
- +8.3% vs 2023
- Average grant
- $54,038
- +25.5% vs 2023
- Median grant
- $45,000
- Total assets
- $31,653,160
- +28.2% vs 2023
- New grantees (estimate)
- 0% first-time grantees (0 of 25, 2024)
- Primary geography
- California (100% of itemized 2024 grant dollars)
- Latest 990 filing
- Form 990-PF, 2024 View filing
Data from IRS Form 990-PF, 2024; updated October 2026. New grantees are estimated by matching recipient names across years (methodology).
How to apply to Lily Lai 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: 4227 Mancilla Ct, San Diego, CA 92130
Phone: (858) 537-7130
Application details from Grantable's research on the foundation's public materials; confirm on its website before applying.
Who Lily Lai Foundation funds
How this funder distributes its grants
Top Recipients
Top 10 recipients in 2024
The largest 2024 recipient was California CASA Association ($150K). Together the top 10 received $950K.
Grant Size Distribution
124 grants across all recorded years
The most common grant size was under $50K: 78 grants of 124 (63%).
Geographic Focus
Where this funder awards grants
All grant dollars in 2024 went to recipients in California.
Grant Distribution by State
Share of 2024 grant dollars across all 26 itemized grants.
States
Cities
Is Lily Lai Foundation open to new grantees?
0%
first-time grantees, 2024
In 2024, 0 of 25 grantees (0%) were first-time recipients. How we count
- 92% of 2024 grantees were also funded in 2023. Method
- Giving grew 33% from 2021 to 2024. Method
- In 2024 it paid out 102% of its IRS minimum distribution (the 5% rule). Method
Estimate from itemized grant lists in IRS Form 990-PF filings (2020–2024). 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 2024, annual grant giving ranged from $808K (2020) to $1.4M (2024). In 2024 it made 26 grants totaling $1.4M.
Grants by year
Grant recipients and amounts by year
| Recipient | Purpose | Amount |
|---|---|---|
| California CASA Association San Diego, CA | Program/General Support | $150,000 |
| UC San Diego Foundation San Diego, CA | Moores Cancer Center Program | $100,000 |
| Library Foundation SD San Diego, CA | Program/General Support | $100,000 |
| Feeding San Diego San Diego, CA | Program/General Support | $100,000 |
| Salk Institute La Jolla, CA | Salk Cancer Center Program | $100,000 |
| Focusing Philanthorpy Santa Monica, CA | FBO Voices for Children (San Diego County) | $100,000 |
| Voices for Children San Diego, CA | Program/General Support | $100,000 |
| YWCA of San Diego County San Diego, CA | Program/General Support | $70,000 |
| Casa de Amparo San Marcos, CA | Program/General Support | $60,000 |
| Just in Time for Foster Youth San Diego, CA | Program/General Support | $50,000 |
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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 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2024 | $31,653,160 | $3,040,996 | $1,451,587 | $1,405,000 | 26 | $1,405,000 | $3,037,008 | $1,381,471 |
| 2023 | $24,698,011 | $1,895,150 | $1,063,482 | $1,033,000 | 24 | $1,033,000 | $1,890,667 | $1,004,695 |
| 2022 | $15,219,191 | $1,873,418 | $1,038,776 | $1,008,000 | 26 | $1,008,000 | $1,868,360 | $886,931 |
| 2021 | $21,338,949 | $1,042,486 | $1,077,661 | $1,058,000 | 25 | $1,058,000 | $1,036,888 | $1,010,863 |
| 2020 | $18,473,265 | $823,031 | $828,008 | $808,000 | 23 | — | $814,661 | $778,466 |
Under IRS private-foundation payout rules, Lily Lai Foundation reported a distributable amount of $1.4M for 2024 — 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 mission statement for the foundation is provided. Its 2024 grants show support for organizations with varied missions. For example, Feeding San Diego says it connects people facing hunger with nutritious meals through food rescue and community partnerships. Voices for Children says it provides court-appointed special advocates for abused children, while Just in Time for Foster Youth describes its work as providing relationships and resources to help young people thrive. UC San Diego Foundation says it raises private support for the university’s research, teaching, and public service mission.
Grantmaking
In 2024, the foundation made 26 grants totaling $1,405,000. Awards ranged from $5,000 to $150,000, with a median grant of $45,000. The largest grant was $150,000 to California CASA Association for program/general support. Other notable grants included $100,000 each to UC San Diego Foundation for the Moores Cancer Center Program, Library Foundation SD for program/general support, Feeding San Diego for program/general support, Salk Institute for the Salk Cancer Center Program, Focusing Philanthropy for the benefit of Voices for Children in San Diego County, and Voices for Children for program/general support.
Leadership & Key People
Leadership team and compensation from IRS filings
The 2024 filing lists George Lai as president, Edwin Luwa as secretary, Doreen Young as treasurer, and Antoinette Haskel and Ching Huang as directors.
Lily Lai Foundation is led by George Lai, President since 2021 (on filings since 2020); none of the 5 officers listed in 2024 report compensation.
Officers on the 2024 filing
George Lai
President
President & Director → President, 2021
On filings since 2020
5 hrs/week
No compensation reported
Antoinette Haskel
Director
On filings since 2020
1 hr/week
No compensation reported
Ching Huang
Director
On filings since 2020
1 hr/week
No compensation reported
Doreen Young
Treasurer
Treasurer & Director → Treasurer, 2021
On filings since 2020
1 hr/week
No compensation reported
Edwin Luwa
Secretary
Secretary & Director → Secretary, 2021
On filings since 2020
1 hr/week
No compensation reported
Data from IRS Form 990 filings, 2020–2024. "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 Lily Lai Foundation
How much does Lily Lai Foundation give each year?
Lily Lai Foundation gave $1.4M across 26 grants in 2024, according to its 2024 IRS Form 990-PF. In 2023 it gave $1.0M across 24 grants.
What is Lily Lai Foundation's typical grant size?
Lily Lai Foundation's median grant in 2024 was $45,000, and its average grant was $54,038, across 26 grants on its 2024 IRS Form 990-PF.
Where does Lily Lai Foundation give grants?
Lily Lai Foundation gives mostly in California: 100% of the grant dollars itemized on its 2024 IRS Form 990-PF went to recipients there. The most frequent recipient cities were San Diego, CA (14 grants), La Jolla, CA (3 grants) and Santa Monica, CA (2 grants).
Does Lily Lai Foundation give general operating support?
Yes: 77% of Lily Lai Foundation's 2024 grants with a stated purpose (20 of 26) were for general or operating support, per its 2024 IRS Form 990-PF.
Who are Lily Lai Foundation's largest grantees?
Lily Lai Foundation's largest 2024 grantees include California CASA Association ($150,000), UC San Diego Foundation ($120,000 across 2 grants) and Library Foundation SD ($100,000), according to its 2024 IRS Form 990-PF. Together they received 26% of its itemized 2024 grant dollars.
How large is Lily Lai Foundation?
Lily Lai Foundation reported $31.7M in total assets on its 2024 IRS Form 990-PF. It paid out $1.4M in qualifying distributions that year, against a required minimum of $1.4M (roughly 5% of its investment assets).
What does Lily Lai Foundation fund?
No mission statement for the foundation is provided. Its 2024 grants show support for organizations with varied missions. For example, Feeding San Diego says it connects people facing hunger with nutritious meals through food rescue and community partnerships. See mission & focus areas ↑
How do I apply for a grant from Lily Lai 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 Lily Lai Foundation's EIN?
Lily Lai Foundation's EIN (Employer Identification Number) is 27-1159623. IRS Form 990 filing data is available on this page for 2020–2024.
Does Lily Lai Foundation accept unsolicited proposals?
No, 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-PF filings. Research dossier generated September 2026.
Data update history
(1)
When this profile's IRS filing data changed on Grantable
- IRS filings on file for fiscal years 2020–2024
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Cite this profile
Grantable. (2026). Lily Lai Foundation funder profile. GrantGraph. Retrieved October 15, 2026, from https://grantable.co/funders/lily-lai-foundation-morg_e3e634e1dd67467e97652ef9ea16d228
BibTeX
@misc{grantable_271159623_2026,
author = {{Grantable}},
title = {{Lily Lai Foundation funder profile}},
howpublished = {GrantGraph},
year = {2026},
url = {https://grantable.co/funders/lily-lai-foundation-morg_e3e634e1dd67467e97652ef9ea16d228},
note = {Accessed 2026-10-15. 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 Lily Lai 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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