Maria Foundation
Maria Foundation is a private foundation based in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania. Its 2025 filing reports 18 grants totaling $129,500 to organizations in multiple states. The filing says the foundation’s awards are limited to religious, charitable, scientific, literary, or educational purposes within the meaning of Section 501(c)(3).
Maria Foundation at a glance
In short: Maria Foundation gave $130K across 18 grants in 2025 (avg $7K), top state California. 44% of 2025 grantees were new. Source: 2025 IRS Form 990-PF.
- Annual giving (2025)
- $129,500
- +13.7% vs 2024
- Grants made (2025)
- 18
- +20.0% vs 2024
- Average grant
- $7,194
- -5.2% vs 2024
- Median grant
- $7,500
- Total assets
- $2,593,249
- +3.6% vs 2024
- New grantees (estimate)
- 44% first-time grantees (8 of 18, 2025; small sample)
- Primary geography
- California (31% 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 Maria Foundation
- How to Apply
-
The filing states that no formal application is required and that a letter is sufficient. Awards are limited to religious, charitable, scientific, literary, or educational purposes within the meaning of Section 501(c)(3). The filing also states that giving is not restricted to preselected organizations.
- Review Cycle
- None stated.
- Deadline
- None stated.
- Contact
Application contact: Mr Kenneth Spruill -Pt-Ptwr-27-1
Mailing address: The Tower At Pnc Plaza 300 Fifth Av, Pittsburgh, PA 15222
Phone: (412) 762-5157
Application details from Grantable's research on the foundation's public materials; confirm on its website before applying.
Who Maria Foundation funds
How this funder distributes its grants
Top Recipients
Top 10 recipients in 2025
The largest 2025 recipient was American Brownstone Institute ($20K). Together the top 10 received $115K.
Grant Size Distribution
90 grants across all recorded years
The most common grant size was under $50K: 90 grants of 90 (100%).
Geographic Focus
Where this funder awards grants
The 2025 grants went to recipients in multiple states. The largest shares of grant dollars by recipient state were California (31%), Texas (15%), Arizona (12%), Washington, D.C. (8%), and Ohio (8%).
Grant Distribution by State
Share of 2025 grant dollars across all 18 itemized grants.
States
Cities
Is Maria Foundation open to new grantees?
44%
first-time grantees, 2025
In 2025, 8 of 18 grantees (44%) were first-time recipients. With only 18 grantees, that is a small sample: one grantee more or less moves the share by about 6 points. First grants averaged $6K; repeat grants $8K. How we count
Medians: $2K first-time, $9K repeat.
- 56% of 2025 grantees were also funded in 2024. Method
- Giving held roughly steady from 2022 to 2025 (−8%). Method
- In 2025 it paid out 97% of its IRS minimum distribution (the 5% rule). Foundations have until the end of the next year to meet it. Method
Estimate from itemized grant lists in IRS Form 990-PF 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
From 2019 to 2025, annual grant giving ranged from $109K (2020) to $141K (2022). In 2025 it made 18 grants totaling $130K.
Grants by year
Grant recipients and amounts by year
| Recipient | Purpose | Amount |
|---|---|---|
| American Brownstone Institute Austin, TX | General Support | $20,000 |
| Arizona State University Tempe, AZ | General Support | $15,000 |
| Curiodyssey San Mateo, CA | General Support; 3 Way | $15,000 |
| Commoncrawl Foundation Beverly Hills, CA | General Support | $10,000 |
| Independent Medical Alliance Washington, DC | General Support | $10,000 |
| Freedom Council Plainesville, OH | General Support | $10,000 |
| St Matthew's Episcopal Day School San Mateo, CA | General Support | $10,000 |
| St Ignatius College Prep Chicago, IL | General Support | $10,000 |
| Bucknell University Lewisburg, PA | General Support | $7,500 |
| Vanderbilt University Nashville, TN | General Support | $7,500 |
Ready to take the next step with Maria 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 | $2,593,249 | $258,197 | $167,729 | $129,500 | 18 | $144,890 | $235,651 | $149,747 |
| 2024 | $2,503,983 | $148,185 | $154,069 | $113,881 | 15 | $128,881 | $126,907 | $143,378 |
| 2023 | $2,508,092 | $229,436 | $157,280 | $122,032 | 14 | $137,422 | $210,011 | $129,271 |
| 2022 | $2,436,794 | $152,753 | $180,628 | $140,533 | 21 | $155,533 | $131,945 | $137,032 |
| 2021 | $2,465,436 | $229,967 | $158,422 | $120,734 | 22 | $135,734 | $205,633 | $155,533 |
| 2020 | $2,397,264 | $76,551 | $144,809 | $108,578 | 15 | — | $54,208 | $135,734 |
| 2019 | $2,467,408 | $193,260 | $185,557 | $137,650 | 19 | — | $169,309 | $135,274 |
Under IRS private-foundation payout rules, Maria Foundation reported a distributable amount of $150K 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 does not state a mission. Its grants include support for organizations whose stated work spans education, science, health, and youth opportunities. For example, Curiodyssey describes itself as a science playground and zoo that inspires children’s curiosity; the American Brownstone Institute describes its work as providing an independent voice for personal liberty and free enterprise; and the Boys & Girls Clubs of the Peninsula says it works to expand young people’s access to social, academic, and career opportunities.
Health-related grantees describe work that includes restoring the doctor-patient relationship and promoting medical autonomy (Independent Medical Alliance), supporting people affected by Lewy body dementias (Lewy Body Dementia Association), and funding Alzheimer’s disease research (Alzheimer’s Disease Research Foundation). These are the grantees’ stated missions, not a mission statement from the foundation.
Grantmaking
In filing year 2025, the foundation reported 18 grants totaling $129,500. Grant amounts ranged from $1,000 to $20,000, with a median of $7,500.
Largest reported awards included $20,000 to American Brownstone Institute; $15,000 each to Arizona State University and Curiodyssey; and $10,000 each to Commoncrawl Foundation, Independent Medical Alliance, Freedom Council, St Matthew’s Episcopal Day School, and St Ignatius College Prep. Other reported awards included $7,500 each to Bucknell University and Vanderbilt University, $4,000 to Lewy Body Dementia Association, and $2,500 to Alzheimer’s Disease Research Foundation.
Leadership & Key People
Leadership team and compensation from IRS filings
The 2025 filing lists Michael E Markson and Thomas R Markson as co-trustees.
Maria Foundation's 2025 filing lists 2 officers; none of the 2 officers listed in 2025 report compensation.
Officers on the 2025 filing
Michael E. Markson
Co-Trustee
On filings since 2019
1 hr/week
No compensation reported
Thomas R. Markson
Co-Trustee
On filings since 2019
1 hr/week
No compensation reported
Former officers (1)
- Former: A. Richard Markson (2019–2020) — Co-Trustee
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.
Frequently asked questions about Maria Foundation
How much does Maria Foundation give each year?
Maria Foundation gave $130K across 18 grants in 2025, according to its 2025 IRS Form 990-PF. In 2024 it gave $114K across 15 grants.
What is Maria Foundation's typical grant size?
Maria Foundation's median grant in 2025 was $7,500, and its average grant was $7,194, across 18 grants on its 2025 IRS Form 990-PF. Organizations receiving their first grant from Maria Foundation that year got $6K on average.
Where does Maria Foundation give grants?
Maria Foundation's top state is California, with 31% of the grant dollars itemized on its 2025 IRS Form 990-PF. The next largest states were Texas (15%) and Arizona (12%). The most frequent recipient cities were San Mateo, CA (2 grants).
Does Maria Foundation give general operating support?
Yes: 83% of Maria Foundation's 2025 grants with a stated purpose (15 of 18) were for general or operating support, per its 2025 IRS Form 990-PF.
Who are Maria Foundation's largest grantees?
Maria Foundation's largest 2025 grantees include American Brownstone Institute ($20,000), Arizona State University ($15,000) and Curiodyssey ($15,000), according to its 2025 IRS Form 990-PF. Together they received 39% of its itemized 2025 grant dollars.
How large is Maria Foundation?
Maria Foundation reported $2.6M in total assets on its 2025 IRS Form 990-PF. It paid out $145K in qualifying distributions that year, against a required minimum of $150K (roughly 5% of its investment assets). Falling short in one year is not a violation: foundations have until the end of the next year to meet the minimum.
What does Maria Foundation fund?
The foundation’s filing does not state a mission. Its grants include support for organizations whose stated work spans education, science, health, and youth opportunities. See mission & focus areas ↑
How do I apply for a grant from Maria Foundation?
The filing states that no formal application is required and that a letter is sufficient. Eligibility and process details are in the grantmaking section of this profile. See how to apply ↑
What is Maria Foundation's EIN?
Maria Foundation's EIN (Employer Identification Number) is 23-7892071. IRS Form 990 filing data is available on this page for 2019–2025.
Data last updated October 2026. Sourced from IRS Form 990-PF filings. Research dossier generated September 2026.
Data update history
(3)
When this profile's IRS filing data changed on Grantable
- Added Form 990-PF for fiscal year 2019 (received by the IRS March 30, 2020)
- Added Form 990-PF for fiscal year 2025 (received by the IRS May 12, 2026)
- IRS filings on file for fiscal years 2020–2024
Live grants for the work Maria Foundation funds
Philanthropy, Voluntarism & Grantmaking Open opportunities, soonest deadline first.
Explore Open Grants
Browse active grant opportunities in Maria Foundation's focus areas in our free grants database
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Cite this profile
Grantable. (2026). Maria Foundation funder profile. GrantGraph. Retrieved October 17, 2026, from https://grantable.co/funders/maria-foundation-morg_6c96fbc2d6c14561a73e460ded3c312d
BibTeX
@misc{grantable_237892071_2026,
author = {{Grantable}},
title = {{Maria Foundation funder profile}},
howpublished = {GrantGraph},
year = {2026},
url = {https://grantable.co/funders/maria-foundation-morg_6c96fbc2d6c14561a73e460ded3c312d},
note = {Accessed 2026-10-17. 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 Maria 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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