Nickless Family Charitable
Nickless Family Charitable is a Form 990-PF private foundation based in Saginaw, Michigan. Its filing says it awards grants primarily to charitable entities in Michigan’s Bay region and in areas where its directors reside, and it operates the A.H. Nickless Innovation Award competition for high school students in four Michigan counties.
Nickless Family Charitable at a glance
In short: Nickless Family Charitable gave $622K across 29 grants in 2025 (avg $21K), mostly in Michigan. 45% of 2025 grantees were new. Source: 2025 IRS Form 990-PF.
- Annual giving (2025)
- $621,876
- -3.0% vs 2024
- Grants made (2025)
- 29
- -9.4% vs 2024
- Average grant
- $21,444
- +7.0% vs 2024
- Median grant
- $15,000
- Total assets
- $10,601,330
- +1.3% vs 2024
- New grantees (estimate)
- 45% first-time grantees (9 of 20, 2025; small sample)
- Primary geography
- Michigan (77% 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 Nickless Family Charitable
- How to Apply
-
The filing lists Jack Kidwell as the contact. Innovation Award applications are available online; grant requests have no prescribed format, but the filing says an application should show 501(c)(3) status.
- Review Cycle
- None listed.
- Deadline
- None listed.
- Contact
Application contact: Jack Kidwell
Mailing address: 1004 N Michigan Avenue, Saginaw, MI 48602
Phone: (989) 921-0010
Email: jack.kidwell@tristartrust.com
Application details from Grantable's research on the foundation's public materials; confirm on its website before applying.
Who Nickless Family Charitable funds
How this funder distributes its grants
Top Recipients
Top 10 recipients in 2025
The largest 2025 recipient was Can Council ($130K across 2 grants). Together the top 10 received $458K.
Organizations only. It also paid 6 grants to individuals ($84,376), which are not listed by name.
Grant Size Distribution
176 grants across all recorded years
The most common grant size was under $50K: 156 grants of 176 (89%).
Geographic Focus
Where this funder awards grants
The filing says grants are awarded primarily to charitable entities in Michigan’s Bay region and in areas where the directors reside. In 2025, 77% of grant dollars went to Michigan recipients, followed by Nevada (10%), Illinois (6%), Virginia (4%), and Arizona (2%).
The Innovation Award competition serves high school students ages 13 to 18 in Bay, Midland, Saginaw, and Tuscola counties in Michigan.
Grant Distribution by State
Share of 2025 grant dollars across all 29 itemized grants.
States
Cities
Is Nickless Family Charitable open to new grantees?
45%
first-time grantees, 2025
In 2025, 9 of 20 grantees (45%) were first-time recipients. With only 20 grantees, that is a small sample: one grantee more or less moves the share by about 5 points. First grants averaged $18K; repeat grants $35K. How we count
Medians: $15K first-time, $30K repeat.
- 30% of 2025 grantees were also funded in 2024. Method
- Giving held roughly steady from 2022 to 2025 (−11%). Method
- In 2025 it paid out 113% 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 $622K (2025) to $712K (2020). In 2025 it made 29 grants totaling $622K.
Grants by year
Grant recipients and amounts by year
| Recipient | Purpose | Amount |
|---|---|---|
| Can Council Saginaw, MI | Building Renovations in Bay City | $100,000 |
| Boys & Girls Clubs of the Great Lakes Bay Region Bay City, MI | Capital Campaign for Bay City Kitchen Upgrades | $50,000 |
| Munson Healthcare Foundation Traverse City, MI | Cardiac Ultrasound Echocardiography | $50,000 |
| Childrens Cabinet Inc Reno, NV | Food Distributions | $40,000 |
| Underground Railroad Inc Saginaw, MI | Emergency Shelter Kitchen & Playground Upgrades | $40,000 |
| YWCA Evanstonnorthshore Evanston, IL | Donor Engagement & Event Management | $40,000 |
| 6 grants to individuals Recipients not named | — | $84,376 |
| Can Council Saginaw, MI | Project of Hope School Initiative | $30,000 |
| Foster Families Navigation and Resource Center Bay City, MI | Back to School Backpack Program | $30,000 |
| Endex Forest, VA | Expansion & Advice of PTSD Research | $25,000 |
Ready to take the next step with Nickless Family Charitable?
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 | $10,601,330 | $1,053,840 | $918,795 | $621,876 | 29 | $745,312 | $918,357 | $658,967 |
| 2024 | $10,466,588 | $869,296 | $902,240 | $641,290 | 32 | $785,966 | $753,022 | $630,387 |
| 2023 | $10,502,488 | $436,912 | $841,209 | $624,350 | 29 | $723,306 | $319,009 | $601,390 |
| 2022 | $10,898,570 | $543,618 | $963,015 | $700,111 | 49 | $807,089 | $399,041 | $629,839 |
| 2021 | $11,215,195 | $1,049,771 | $924,105 | $705,036 | 37 | $733,784 | $859,450 | $708,771 |
| 2020 | $10,968,509 | $591,497 | $929,130 | $712,323 | 29 | — | $491,663 | $631,685 |
Under IRS private-foundation payout rules, Nickless Family Charitable reported a distributable amount of $659K 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
An earlier profile describes the foundation’s mission as supporting educational, vocational, and social service opportunities for families and individuals in need. Its 2025 grants included support for school programs and scholarships, food distribution, emergency shelter improvements, health care equipment, and building and kitchen projects.
Grantees describe their own work in varied ways. Underground Railroad Inc., which received $40,000, says its mission is to empower survivors and create a culture of safety and respect. The Food Bank of Northern Nevada, which received $15,000, describes its mission as feeding people facing hunger and working to solve hunger through community partnership. Bay Area Community Foundation, which received $20,000, says it fulfills donors’ charitable wishes in Bay and Arenac counties through permanent endowment funds, grantmaking, and collaboration.
Grantmaking
In 2025, the foundation reported 29 grants totaling $621,876. Grant amounts ranged from $1,000 to $100,000, with a median of $15,000. Notable awards included $100,000 to CAN Council for building renovations in an individual recipient; $50,000 to Boys & Girls Clubs of the Great Lakes Bay Region for an individual recipient kitchen upgrades; and $50,000 to Munson Healthcare Foundation for cardiac ultrasound echocardiography. Other awards included $40,000 to Children’s Cabinet Inc. for food distributions and $38,000 to an individual recipient and Sciences Academy for innovation awards and scholarships.
The foundation states that it does not restrict giving to preselected organizations. Its filing lists innovation-award applications as available online and says there is no required format for grant requests, but an application should show 501(c)(3) status. The A.H. Nickless Innovation Award competition is open to high school students ages 13 to 18 in Bay, Midland, Saginaw, and Tuscola counties, Michigan. Other grants are awarded primarily to charitable entities in the Bay region of Michigan and areas where the directors reside.
Leadership & Key People
Leadership team and compensation from IRS filings
The 2025 filing lists Janet N Royce as president; Joan N Tankersley as vice president; Stephen Tankersley as treasurer; and Judith N Graham as secretary. It also lists Tri-Star Trust Bank as trustee, and Peter Tankersley, Christine Graham, and Abbie Graham-Durkin as members.
Nickless Family Charitable is led by Janet N. Royce, President on every filing since 2020; 7 of 8 officers listed in 2025 are compensated.
Officers on the 2025 filing
Janet N. Royce
President
On filings since 2020
2 hrs/week
$2K (2020) → $2K (2025)
Tri-Star Trust Bank
Trustee
On filings since 2020
20 hrs/week
No compensation reported
Abbie Graham-Durkin
Member
On filings since 2020
0.3 hrs/week
$2K (2020) → $2K (2025)
Christine Graham
Member
On filings since 2020
0.3 hrs/week
$2K (2020) → $2K (2025)
Joan N. Tankersley
Vice President
On filings since 2020
1 hr/week
$2K (2020) → $2K (2025)
Judith N. Graham
Secretary
On filings since 2020
1 hr/week
$2K (2020) → $2K (2025)
Peter Tankersley
Member
On filings since 2020
0.3 hrs/week
$2K (2020) → $2K (2025)
Stephen Tankersley
Treasurer
On filings since 2020
0.3 hrs/week
$2K (2020) → $2K (2025)
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 $2K, to Judith N Graham (Secretary). 7 officers or directors reported compensation on that filing.
Frequently asked questions about Nickless Family Charitable
How much does Nickless Family Charitable give each year?
Nickless Family Charitable gave $622K across 29 grants in 2025, according to its 2025 IRS Form 990-PF. In 2024 it gave $641K across 32 grants.
What is Nickless Family Charitable's typical grant size?
Nickless Family Charitable's median grant in 2025 was $15,000, and its average grant was $21,444, across 29 grants on its 2025 IRS Form 990-PF. Organizations receiving their first grant from Nickless Family Charitable that year got $18K on average.
Where does Nickless Family Charitable give grants?
Nickless Family Charitable gives mostly in Michigan: 77% of the grant dollars itemized on its 2025 IRS Form 990-PF went to recipients there. The next largest states were Nevada (10%) and Illinois (6%). The most frequent recipient cities were Saginaw, MI (6 grants), Bay City, MI (4 grants), Reno, NV (2 grants) and Ann Arbor, MI (2 grants).
Does Nickless Family Charitable give general operating support?
Not in 2025: none of the 29 grants with a stated purpose on Nickless Family Charitable's 2025 IRS Form 990-PF were described as general or operating support. Recurring purposes include "Innovation Awards/Scholarships" (11 grants).
Who are Nickless Family Charitable's largest grantees?
Nickless Family Charitable's largest 2025 grantees include Can Council ($130,000 across 2 grants), Boys & Girls Clubs of the Great Lakes Bay Region ($50,000) and Munson Healthcare Foundation ($50,000), according to its 2025 IRS Form 990-PF. It also paid 6 grants to individuals ($84,376), which are not listed by name. Together they received 37% of its itemized 2025 grant dollars.
How large is Nickless Family Charitable?
Nickless Family Charitable reported $10.6M in total assets on its 2025 IRS Form 990-PF. It paid out $745K in qualifying distributions that year, against a required minimum of $659K (roughly 5% of its investment assets).
What does Nickless Family Charitable fund?
An earlier profile describes the foundation’s mission as supporting educational, vocational, and social service opportunities for families and individuals in need. See mission & focus areas ↑
How do I apply for a grant from Nickless Family Charitable?
The filing lists Jack Kidwell as the contact. Eligibility and process details are in the grantmaking section of this profile. See how to apply ↑
What is Nickless Family Charitable's EIN?
Nickless Family Charitable's EIN (Employer Identification Number) is 38-3501091. 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 November 9, 2021)
- Updated Form 990-PF for fiscal year 2021 (received by the IRS September 19, 2022)
- Updated Form 990-PF for fiscal year 2022 (received by the IRS June 21, 2023)
- Updated Form 990-PF for fiscal year 2023 (received by the IRS August 2, 2024)
- Updated Form 990-PF for fiscal year 2024 (received by the IRS November 12, 2025)
- Added Form 990-PF for fiscal year 2025 (received by the IRS June 12, 2026)
- IRS filings on file for fiscal years 2020–2024
Explore Open Grants
Browse active grant opportunities in Nickless Family Charitable's focus areas in our free grants database
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Cite this profile
Grantable. (2026). Nickless Family Charitable funder profile. GrantGraph. Retrieved October 12, 2026, from https://grantable.co/funders/nickless-family-charitable-morg_eb0e326aa19f4a099f46fe2259d678e7
BibTeX
@misc{grantable_383501091_2026,
author = {{Grantable}},
title = {{Nickless Family Charitable funder profile}},
howpublished = {GrantGraph},
year = {2026},
url = {https://grantable.co/funders/nickless-family-charitable-morg_eb0e326aa19f4a099f46fe2259d678e7},
note = {Accessed 2026-10-12. 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 Nickless Family Charitable'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.
Nickless Family Charitable down — hundreds of funders to go?