Mon Valley Initiative
Mon Valley Initiative (MVI) is a public charity based in Homestead, Pennsylvania, founded in 1988. It works to strengthen communities in the Mon Valley through real estate and community development, housing counseling, and workforce development and financial coaching.
Mon Valley Initiative at a glance
In short: Mon Valley Initiative gave $418K across 12 grants in 2025 (avg $35K), top state Illinois. 17% of 2025 grantees were new. Source: 2025 IRS Form 990.
- Annual giving (2025)
- $417,773
- +92.6% vs 2024
- Grants made (2025)
- 12
- +50.0% vs 2024
- Average grant
- $34,814
- +28.4% vs 2024
- Median grant
- $38,791
- Total assets
- $22,235,310
- -2.6% vs 2024
- New grantees (estimate)
- 17% first-time grantees (2 of 12, 2025; small sample)
- Primary geography
- Illinois (22% of itemized 2025 grant dollars)
- Latest 990 filing
- Form 990, 2025 View filing
Data from IRS Form 990, 2025; updated November 2026. New grantees are estimated by matching recipient names across years (methodology).
How to apply to Mon Valley Initiative
- Contact
Mailing address: 305 E 8Th Ave, Homestead, PA 15120
Phone: (412) 464-4000
Website: https://monvalleyinitiative.com
Application details from Grantable's research on the foundation's public materials; confirm on its website before applying.
Who Mon Valley Initiative funds
How this funder distributes its grants
Top Recipients
Top 10 recipients in 2025
The largest 2025 recipient was Housing Opportunities - Ft Worth ($72K). Together the top 10 received $402K.
Grant Size Distribution
49 grants across all recorded years
The most common grant size was under $50K: 37 grants of 49 (76%).
Geographic Focus
Where this funder awards grants
MVI describes its local service region as Mon Valley communities along the Monongahela and Youghiogheny rivers in Allegheny, Washington, and Westmoreland counties in Pennsylvania. Its housing counseling intermediary network operates nationally.
Grant Distribution by State
Share of 2025 grant dollars across all 12 itemized grants.
Cities
Is Mon Valley Initiative open to new grantees?
17%
first-time grantees, 2025
In 2025, 2 of 12 grantees (17%) were first-time recipients. With only 12 grantees, that is a small sample: one grantee more or less moves the share by about 8 points. First grants averaged $24K; repeat grants $37K. How we count
Medians: $24K first-time, $39K repeat.
Estimate from itemized grant lists in IRS Form 990 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 $217K (2024) to $651K (2021). In 2025 it made 12 grants totaling $418K.
Grants by year
Grant recipients and amounts by year
| Recipient | Purpose | Amount |
|---|---|---|
| Housing Opportunities - Ft Worth Fort Worth, TX | — | $72,048 |
| Homesight Seattle, WA | — | $55,246 |
| The Neighbor Project Aurora, IL | — | $54,566 |
| Interfaith Community Housing Wilmington, DE | — | $42,293 |
| Braddock Carnegie Library Assoc Braddock, PA | — | $40,000 |
| Fairmont-Morgantown Housing a Fairmont, WV | — | $39,486 |
| Comm PTNRS for Afford House Libertyville, IL | — | $38,096 |
| North Folk Housing Alliance Greenport, NY | — | $22,305 |
| New Kensington Community Developmen Philadelphia, PA | — | $20,400 |
| Change Inc Weirton, WV | — | $17,370 |
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Financial History
Multi-year comparison from IRS filings
| Filing year | Total Assets | Revenue | Expenses | Grants paid | Grants | Net Investment Income |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2025 | $22,235,310 | $3,420,162 | $4,358,814 | $417,773 | 12 | $336,583 |
| 2024 | $22,832,294 | $5,040,135 | $4,743,823 | $216,953 | 8 | $405,224 |
| 2023 | $22,726,082 | $14,993,148 | $5,660,108 | $303,784 | 10 | $31,395 |
| 2022 | $14,466,741 | $6,041,263 | $5,577,187 | $219,280 | 7 | $80,046 |
| 2021 | $13,834,509 | $6,776,914 | $5,935,490 | $651,194 | 12 | $84,691 |
| 2020 | $12,722,267 | $6,065,542 | $3,222,954 | $575,179 | 12 | $75,886 |
Research compiled by Grantable AI from public sources. Last updated September 2026.
Mission & Focus Areas
MVI states its mission as strengthening the Mon Valley region by responsibly investing in its people and places. Its work includes acquiring, rehabilitating, and developing housing and commercial properties; providing housing counseling; supporting community engagement; and helping residents with career development and financial coaching.
As a HUD-approved intermediary, MVI provides grant funding and administrative, compliance, and technical support to a national network of housing counseling agencies. The filing reports that agencies in the network counseled 7,122 households during HUD’s 2024 fiscal year. MVI’s own pre-purchase counseling program assisted 111 participants in 2024, of whom 37 became homeowners. MVI also reports serving 328 workforce-development participants in 2024.
Examples of organizations receiving grants in 2023 include HomeSight, whose stated mission is to create affordable homeownership opportunities through homebuyer education and lending programs, primarily for low- and moderate-income first-time buyers in parts of Washington state. The Neighbor Project describes its mission as activating working families’ potential to revitalize neighborhoods through homeownership, education, and savings programs. Change, Inc. describes its mission as integrating services, building partnerships, and consolidating resources to empower families toward healthy, self-sufficient living.
Grantmaking
MVI reported giving 10 grants totaling $303,784 in 2023, an average of about $30,378 per grant. The filing reports seven grants totaling $219,280 in 2022 and no grants in 2024. Its 2025 filing, the latest on this page, reports 12 grants totaling $417,773.
Among the 2023 grantees, HomeSight received $67,505, The Neighbor Project received $28,992, and Change, Inc. received $25,418. The website describes MVI’s intermediary work as providing HUD grant funding to a national network of housing counseling agencies. The grant totals above are reported as MVI’s grant expenses in its filings.
Leadership & Key People
Leadership team and compensation from IRS filings
The 2024 filing lists Laura Zinski as CEO; April Hoover as CFO; Barata Bey as chairman; Jane Flaherty as vice chair; and Mary Carol Kennedy as treasurer. It also lists Godfrey Bethea, Dale Bizub, Lindsey Coy, Jebediah Feldman, and Monet Ham as board members.
Mon Valley Initiative is led by Laura Zinski, CEO on every filing since 2020; 2 of 13 officers listed in 2025 are compensated.
Officers on the 2025 filing
Laura Zinski
CEO
On filings since 2020
40 hrs/week
$112K (2020) → $127K (2025)
Jane Flaherty
Chair
Secretary → Vice Chair, 2023
Vice Chair → Chair, 2025
On filings since 2020
2 hrs/week
No compensation reported
April Hoover
CFO
On filings since 2020
40 hrs/week
$76K (2020) → $95K (2025)
Barbara Laface
Board Member
On filings since 2020
1 hr/week
No compensation reported
Dale Bizub
Board Member
Secretary → Board Member, 2022
On filings since 2020
1 hr/week
No compensation reported
Jebediah Feldman
Board Member
On filings since 2020
1 hr/week
No compensation reported
Mary Carol Kennedy
Treasurer
Chair → Treasurer, 2022
On filings since 2020
2 hrs/week
No compensation reported
Richard Wallace
Board Member
On filings since 2020
1 hr/week
No compensation reported
Terry Ward
Vice Chair
Board Member → Secretary, 2023
Secretary → Vice Chair, 2025
On filings since 2020
2 hrs/week
No compensation reported
Lindsey Coy
Board Member
On filings since 2021
1 hr/week
No compensation reported
Tyler Reeder
Secretary
Board Member → Secretary, 2025
On filings since 2022
2 hrs/week
No compensation reported
Godfrey Bethea
Board Member
On filings since 2024
1 hr/week
No compensation reported
Monet Ham
Board Member
On filings since 2024
1 hr/week
No compensation reported
Former officers (5)
- Former: Barata Bey (2020–2024) — Chairman
- Former: Joseph P Flynn Jr. (2020–2022) — Chairman
- Former: Joey-Linn Ulrich (2021–2022) — COO
- Former: Michael Tobias (2020) — Board Member
- Former: Sharon Alberts (2020) — Board Member
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.
Compensation Overview
From 2025 IRS filing
The highest reported compensation on the 2025 filing was $127K, to Laura Zinski (CEO). 2 officers or directors reported compensation on that filing.
Frequently asked questions about Mon Valley Initiative
How much does Mon Valley Initiative give each year?
Mon Valley Initiative gave $418K across 12 grants in 2025, according to its 2025 IRS Form 990. In 2024 it gave $217K across 8 grants.
What is Mon Valley Initiative's typical grant size?
Mon Valley Initiative's median grant in 2025 was $38,791, and its average grant was $34,814, across 12 grants on its 2025 IRS Form 990. Organizations receiving their first grant from Mon Valley Initiative that year got $24K on average.
Where does Mon Valley Initiative give grants?
Mon Valley Initiative's top state is Illinois, with 22% of the grant dollars itemized on its 2025 IRS Form 990. The next largest states were Pennsylvania (18%) and Texas (17%).
Who are Mon Valley Initiative's largest grantees?
Mon Valley Initiative's largest 2025 grantees include Housing Opportunities - Ft Worth ($72,048), Homesight ($55,246) and The Neighbor Project ($54,566), according to its 2025 IRS Form 990. Together they received 44% of its itemized 2025 grant dollars.
How large is Mon Valley Initiative?
Mon Valley Initiative reported $22.2M in total assets on its 2025 IRS Form 990. Its revenue that year was $3.4M.
What does Mon Valley Initiative fund?
MVI states its mission as strengthening the Mon Valley region by responsibly investing in its people and places. See mission & focus areas ↑
How do I apply for a grant from Mon Valley Initiative?
Mon Valley Initiative has no public application process in the sources Grantable reviewed. Check monvalleyinitiative.com for current guidelines, or contact the foundation directly before submitting a request.
What is Mon Valley Initiative's EIN?
Mon Valley Initiative's EIN (Employer Identification Number) is 25-1591350. IRS Form 990 filing data is available on this page for 2020–2025.
Data last updated November 2026. Sourced from IRS Form 990 filings. Research dossier generated September 2026.
Data update history
(7)
When this profile's IRS filing data changed on Grantable
- Added Form 990 for fiscal year 2025 (received by the IRS September 18, 2026)
- Updated Form 990 for fiscal year 2020 (received by the IRS September 2, 2021)
- Updated Form 990 for fiscal year 2021 (received by the IRS September 12, 2022)
- Updated Form 990 for fiscal year 2022 (received by the IRS August 16, 2023)
- Updated Form 990 for fiscal year 2023 (received by the IRS August 20, 2024)
- Updated Form 990 for fiscal year 2024 (received by the IRS August 19, 2025)
- IRS filings on file for fiscal years 2020–2024
Live grants for the work Mon Valley Initiative funds
Community Improvement & Capacity Building Open opportunities, soonest deadline first.
Explore Open Grants
Browse active grant opportunities in Mon Valley Initiative's focus areas in our free grants database
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Cite this profile
Grantable. (2026). Mon Valley Initiative funder profile. GrantGraph. Retrieved November 4, 2026, from https://grantable.co/funders/mon-valley-initiative-morg_3ce056740f6842ecb6c51c3c9d91c550
BibTeX
@misc{grantable_251591350_2026,
author = {{Grantable}},
title = {{Mon Valley Initiative funder profile}},
howpublished = {GrantGraph},
year = {2026},
url = {https://grantable.co/funders/mon-valley-initiative-morg_3ce056740f6842ecb6c51c3c9d91c550},
note = {Accessed 2026-11-04. 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 Mon Valley Initiative'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.
Mon Valley Initiative down — hundreds of funders to go?