Linda T Watson Family Foundation

Private foundation · Grantmaker Mission Hills, KS EIN: 43-6816063

The Linda T Watson Family Foundation is a private foundation based in Mission Hills, Kansas. It makes grants to organizations selected by its trustees; its 2025 filing says donating to various organizations was its only activity.

Linda T Watson Family Foundation at a glance

In short: Linda T Watson Family Foundation gave $107K across 16 grants in 2025 (avg $7K), mostly in Kansas. 0% of 2025 grantees were new. Source: 2025 IRS Form 990-PF.

Annual giving (2025)
$106,743
+26.2% vs 2024
Grants made (2025)
16
+166.7% vs 2024
Average grant
$6,671
-52.7% vs 2024
Median grant
$3,000
Total assets
$789,425
-7.1% vs 2024
New grantees (estimate)
0% first-time grantees (0 of 16, 2025; small sample)
Primary geography
Kansas (64% 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 Linda T Watson Family Foundation

How to Apply

The filing describes a written request naming the charity, its purpose, and the proposed use of the requested funds. It states that there are no restrictions on awards.

Review Cycle
Requests must be submitted by November 1 to be considered for the year ending December 31.
Deadline
Requests must be submitted by November 1 to be considered for the year ending December 31.
Contact

Application contact: Cole Helbert Merrill Lynch
Mailing address: 3401 College Boulevard, Leawood, KS 66211
Phone: (913) 906-5316

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

Who Linda T Watson Family Foundation funds

How this funder distributes its grants

Top Recipients

Top 10 recipients in 2025

Children's Mercy Hospital: $50KChildren's Mercy Hospital$50KMaddie's Mission: $10KMaddie's Mission$10KHarvesters: $10KHarvesters$10KKansas City PBS: $5KKansas City PBS$5KThe Folly Theater: $5KThe Folly Theater$5KThe New Reform Temple: $4KThe New Reform Temple$4KTemple Israel: $4KTemple Israel$4KKansas City Chorale: $3KKansas City Chorale$3KKansas City Hospice: $3KKansas City Hospice$3KJewish Federation: $3KJewish Federation$3K

The largest 2025 recipient was Children's Mercy Hospital ($50K). Together the top 10 received $97K.

Grant Size Distribution

92 grants across all recorded years

89<$50K3$50–100K$100–250K$250–500K$500K–1M$1–5M$5M+

The most common grant size was under $50K: 89 grants of 92 (97%).

Geographic Focus

Where this funder awards grants

In 2025, 64% of grant dollars went to recipients in Kansas, 35% to Missouri, and 2% to Minnesota. The filing’s reported shares total 101%.

Grant Distribution by State

5states

Share of 2025 grant dollars across all 16 itemized grants.

Cities

Kansas CityOverland ParkPrairie VillageLeawoodRochesterNew YorkManhattanMays LandingNorth Kansas CityRoeland ParkShawneeStaten IslandTopeka

Is Linda T Watson Family Foundation open to new grantees?

0%

first-time grantees, 2025

In 2025, 0 of 16 grantees (0%) were first-time recipients. With only 16 grantees, that is a small sample: one grantee more or less moves the share by about 6 points. How we count

  • 31% of 2025 grantees were also funded in 2024. Method
  • Giving held roughly steady from 2022 to 2025 (+16%). Method
  • In 2025 it paid out 237% 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

$0$50K$100K$150K28 grants2020 24 grants2021 23 grants2022 23 grants2023 6 grants2024 16 grants2025

From 2020 to 2025, annual grant giving ranged from $57K (2020) to $108K (2021). In 2025 it made 16 grants totaling $107K.

Grants by year

Grant recipients and amounts by year

RecipientPurposeAmount
Children's Mercy Hospital Overland Park, KSVarious Program Activities$50,000
Maddie's Mission Prairie Village, KSVarious Program Activities$10,000
Harvesters Kansas City, MOVarious Program Activities$10,000
Kansas City PBS Kansas City, MOVarious Program Activities$5,000
The Folly Theater Kansas City, MOVarious Program Activities$5,000
The New Reform Temple Kansas City, MOVarious Program Activities$4,371
Temple Israel Prairie Village, KSVarious Program Activities$4,272
Kansas City Chorale Kansas City, MOVarious Program Activities$3,000
Kansas City Hospice Kansas City, MOVarious Program Activities$3,000
Jewish Federation Overland Park, KSVarious Program Activities$2,600
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Financial History

Multi-year comparison from IRS filings

Figures from IRS filings, by filing year
Filing yearTotal AssetsRevenueExpensesGrants paidGrantsQualifying DistributionsNet Investment IncomeDistributable Amount
2025$789,425$55,410$115,456$106,74316$108,493$113,953$45,812
2024$849,699$295,826$91,838$84,5886$86,238$99,224$42,873
2023$645,712$45,095$108,174$101,86623$103,366$40,287$36,334
2022$708,797$51,592$106,003$92,40023$93,900$46,652$40,819
2021$763,653$172,421$114,472$107,55024$108,800$267,541$44,266
2020$706,127$5,838$63,186$57,25028—$9,660$40,878

Under IRS private-foundation payout rules, Linda T Watson Family Foundation reported a distributable amount of $46K 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 separate mission statement for the foundation is provided. Its 2025 grants show support for organizations with varied activities. For example, Kansas City Hospice describes its mission as bringing care, comfort, guidance, and hope to people affected by serious illness or grief. Kansas City Chorale says it uses vocal music to entertain, educate, and inspire audiences. The Midwest Center for Holocaust Education describes its mission as promoting remembrance, research, and education concerning the Holocaust. UMKC Foundation says its purpose is to support academic programs and educational opportunities at the University of Missouri–Kansas City.

Grantmaking

In 2025, the foundation made 16 grants totaling $106,743. Grant amounts ranged from $1,000 to $50,000, with a median of $3,000. Its largest reported grants included $50,000 to Children’s Mercy Hospital for various program activities, $10,000 each to Maddie’s Mission and Harvesters, and $5,000 each to Kansas City PBS and The Folly Theater. Other grants included $4,371 to The New Reform Temple, $4,272 to Temple Israel, and $3,000 each to Kansas City Chorale and Kansas City Hospice.

Leadership & Key People

Leadership team and compensation from IRS filings

The 2025 filing lists Linda R. Watson, Margaret E. Watson, Michael B. Watson, and Claudia M. Trevino as co-trustees.

Linda T Watson Family Foundation's 2025 filing lists 4 officers; none of the 4 officers listed in 2025 report compensation.

Officers on the 2025 filing

  • Claudia M. Trevino

    Co-Trustee

    On filings since 2020

    1 hr/week

    No compensation reported

  • Linda R. Watson

    Co-Trustee

    On filings since 2020

    1 hr/week

    No compensation reported

  • Margaret E. Watson

    Co-Trustee

    On filings since 2020

    1 hr/week

    No compensation reported

  • Michael B. Watson

    Co-Trustee

    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 Linda T Watson Family Foundation

How much does Linda T Watson Family Foundation give each year?

Linda T Watson Family Foundation gave $107K across 16 grants in 2025, according to its 2025 IRS Form 990-PF. In 2024 it gave $85K across 6 grants.

What is Linda T Watson Family Foundation's typical grant size?

Linda T Watson Family Foundation's median grant in 2025 was $3,000, and its average grant was $6,671, across 16 grants on its 2025 IRS Form 990-PF.

Where does Linda T Watson Family Foundation give grants?

Linda T Watson Family Foundation gives mostly in Kansas: 64% of the grant dollars itemized on its 2025 IRS Form 990-PF went to recipients there. The next largest state was Missouri (35%). The most frequent recipient cities were Kansas City, MO (10 grants), Overland Park, KS (2 grants) and Prairie Village, KS (2 grants).

Does Linda T Watson Family Foundation give general operating support?

Not in 2025: none of the 16 grants with a stated purpose on Linda T Watson Family Foundation's 2025 IRS Form 990-PF were described as general or operating support. Recurring purposes include "Various Program Activities" (16 grants).

Who are Linda T Watson Family Foundation's largest grantees?

Linda T Watson Family Foundation's largest 2025 grantees include Children's Mercy Hospital ($50,000), Maddie's Mission ($10,000) and Harvesters ($10,000), according to its 2025 IRS Form 990-PF. Together they received 66% of its itemized 2025 grant dollars.

How large is Linda T Watson Family Foundation?

Linda T Watson Family Foundation reported $789K in total assets on its 2025 IRS Form 990-PF. It paid out $108K in qualifying distributions that year, against a required minimum of $46K (roughly 5% of its investment assets).

What does Linda T Watson Family Foundation fund?

No separate mission statement for the foundation is provided. Its 2025 grants show support for organizations with varied activities. For example, Kansas City Hospice describes its mission as bringing care, comfort, guidance, and hope to people affected by serious illness or grief. See mission & focus areas ↑

How do I apply for a grant from Linda T Watson Family Foundation?

The filing describes a written request naming the charity, its purpose, and the proposed use of the requested funds. Eligibility and process details are in the grantmaking section of this profile. See how to apply ↑

What is Linda T Watson Family Foundation's EIN?

Linda T Watson Family Foundation's EIN (Employer Identification Number) is 43-6816063. 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

  1. Updated Form 990-PF for fiscal year 2020 (received by the IRS May 10, 2021)
  2. Updated Form 990-PF for fiscal year 2021 (received by the IRS May 13, 2022)
  3. Updated Form 990-PF for fiscal year 2022 (received by the IRS May 11, 2023)
  4. Updated Form 990-PF for fiscal year 2023 (received by the IRS May 15, 2024)
  5. Updated Form 990-PF for fiscal year 2024 (received by the IRS June 9, 2025)
  6. Added Form 990-PF for fiscal year 2025 (received by the IRS May 7, 2026)
  7. IRS filings on file for fiscal years 2020–2024

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Cite this profile

Grantable. (2026). Linda T Watson Family Foundation funder profile. GrantGraph. Retrieved October 5, 2026, from https://grantable.co/funders/linda-t-watson-family-foundation-morg_5c35de3334844a5db8500f808e92d5f1

BibTeX
@misc{grantable_436816063_2026,
  author       = {{Grantable}},
  title        = {{Linda T Watson Family Foundation funder profile}},
  howpublished = {GrantGraph},
  year         = {2026},
  url          = {https://grantable.co/funders/linda-t-watson-family-foundation-morg_5c35de3334844a5db8500f808e92d5f1},
  note         = {Accessed 2026-10-05. 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 Linda T Watson Family 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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