Palo Hills Foundation
Palo Hills Foundation is a private foundation based in Reno, Nevada. Its 2024 grants went to schools, churches, and other charitable organizations, including organizations working in education, religious service, hunger and poverty, homelessness, and Bible access.
Palo Hills Foundation at a glance
In short: Palo Hills Foundation gave $338K across 23 grants in 2024 (avg $15K), mostly in California. 48% of 2024 grantees were new. Source: 2024 IRS Form 990-PF.
- Annual giving (2024)
- $338,000
- -22.9% vs 2023
- Grants made (2024)
- 23
- +9.5% vs 2023
- Average grant
- $14,696
- -29.6% vs 2023
- Median grant
- $10,000
- Total assets
- $3,310,854
- +11.0% vs 2023
- New grantees (estimate)
- 48% first-time grantees (10 of 21, 2024; small sample)
- Primary geography
- California (52% 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 Palo Hills Foundation
- Accepts unsolicited proposals
- No
- How to Apply
-
The foundation makes contributions only to preselected charitable organizations and does not accept unsolicited requests for funds.
- Contact
Mailing address: 18124 Wedge Parkway 996, Reno, NV 89511
Phone: (408) 446-4451
Application details from Grantable's research on the foundation's public materials; confirm on its website before applying.
Who Palo Hills Foundation funds
How this funder distributes its grants
Top Recipients
Top 10 recipients in 2024
The largest 2024 recipient was St Nicholas School ($70K). Together the top 10 received $235K.
Organizations only. It also paid 2 individual scholarships ($40,000), which are not listed by name.
Grant Size Distribution
132 grants across all recorded years
The most common grant size was under $50K: 125 grants of 132 (95%).
Geographic Focus
Where this funder awards grants
In 2024, the largest shares of grant dollars went to recipients in California (52%), Indiana (13%), Illinois (10%), Texas (9%), and Georgia (4%). The grants listed also include recipients in North Carolina, Virginia, Arkansas, and Pennsylvania.
Grant Distribution by State
Share of 2024 grant dollars across all 23 itemized grants.
States
Cities
Is Palo Hills Foundation open to new grantees?
48%
first-time grantees, 2024
In 2024, 10 of 21 grantees (48%) were first-time recipients. With only 21 grantees, that is a small sample: one grantee more or less moves the share by about 5 points. First grants averaged $10K; repeat grants $18K. How we count
Medians: $8K first-time, $10K repeat.
- 43% of 2024 grantees were also funded in 2023. Method
- Giving fell 21% from 2021 to 2024. Method
- In 2024 it paid out 132% 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 $293K (2022) to $438K (2023). In 2024 it made 23 grants totaling $338K.
Grants by year
Grant recipients and amounts by year
| Recipient | Purpose | Amount |
|---|---|---|
| St Nicholas School Los Altos Hills, CA | Current Support | $70,000 |
| 2 individual scholarships Recipients not named | — | $40,000 |
| Life Family Church Austin, TX | Undesignated | $30,000 |
| Ascension Lutheran Christian School Gary, IN | Operations | $25,000 |
| Bridge City Church Redwood City, CA | Undesignated | $25,000 |
| Faithful Friends Preschool Champaign, IL | Undesignated | $20,000 |
| Lutheran Church of the Resurrection Granite Bay, CA | Operating Needs | $15,000 |
| CCHAT Rancho Cordova, CA | program support | $15,000 |
| Points of Life Foundation Atlanta, GA | Undesignated | $15,000 |
| University Lutheran Church West Lafayette, IN | General Fund | $10,000 |
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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 | $3,310,854 | $713,795 | $384,742 | $338,000 | 23 | $338,475 | $671,803 | $256,267 |
| 2023 | $2,981,801 | $230,264 | $477,802 | $438,119 | 21 | $438,674 | $188,555 | $235,353 |
| 2022 | $3,242,056 | $183,169 | $330,453 | $292,500 | 25 | $293,600 | $153,688 | $282,566 |
| 2021 | $3,380,982 | $800,136 | $473,039 | $428,500 | 32 | $428,985 | $756,162 | $280,074 |
| 2020 | $3,065,093 | $601,098 | $432,401 | $390,200 | 31 | — | $582,724 | $259,784 |
Under IRS private-foundation payout rules, Palo Hills Foundation reported a distributable amount of $256K 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
The available information does not state a mission for the foundation. Its grants include support for educational institutions and faith-based organizations, as well as other charitable organizations. Among its 2024 grantees, Samaritan’s Purse describes its work as providing spiritual and physical aid to people affected by war, poverty, disasters, disease, and famine. Heifer Project International describes a mission to address hunger and poverty and care for the earth; C-U at Home says it supports and empowers people experiencing homelessness; and American Bible Society describes its mission as making the Bible accessible to people.
Grantmaking
In 2024, the foundation gave $338,000 through 23 grants. Grants ranged from $4,000 to $70,000, with a median grant of $10,000.
The largest 2024 grants included $70,000 to St Nicholas School for current support, $35,000 to an individual recipient High School for scholarships, $30,000 to Life Family Church for undesignated support, and $25,000 each to Ascension Lutheran Christian School for operations and Bridge City Church for undesignated support. Other grants included $20,000 to Faithful Friends Preschool and $15,000 each to Lutheran Church of the Resurrection, CCHAT, and Points of Life Foundation. Samaritan’s Purse, Heifer Project International, C-U at Home, and American Bible Society each received $10,000 or $5,000 in 2024.
Leadership & Key People
Leadership team and compensation from IRS filings
Don R. Scifres is listed as president on the 2024 filing.
Palo Hills Foundation is led by Don R. Scifres, President on every filing since 2020 — the only officer listed, and uncompensated.
Officers on the 2024 filing
Don R. Scifres
President
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 Palo Hills Foundation
How much does Palo Hills Foundation give each year?
Palo Hills Foundation gave $338K across 23 grants in 2024, according to its 2024 IRS Form 990-PF. In 2023 it gave $438K across 21 grants.
What is Palo Hills Foundation's typical grant size?
Palo Hills Foundation's median grant in 2024 was $10,000, and its average grant was $14,696, across 23 grants on its 2024 IRS Form 990-PF. Organizations receiving their first grant from Palo Hills Foundation that year got $10K on average.
Where does Palo Hills Foundation give grants?
Palo Hills Foundation gives mostly in California: 52% of the grant dollars itemized on its 2024 IRS Form 990-PF went to recipients there. The next largest states were Indiana (13%) and Illinois (10%). The most frequent recipient cities were Champaign, IL (4 grants).
Does Palo Hills Foundation give general operating support?
Yes: 17% of Palo Hills Foundation's 2024 grants with a stated purpose (4 of 23) were for general or operating support, per its 2024 IRS Form 990-PF. Recurring purposes include "Undesignated" (11 grants).
Who are Palo Hills Foundation's largest grantees?
Palo Hills Foundation's largest 2024 grantees include St Nicholas School ($70,000), Life Family Church ($30,000) and Ascension Lutheran Christian School ($25,000), according to its 2024 IRS Form 990-PF. It also paid 2 individual scholarships ($40,000), which are not listed by name. Together they received 37% of its itemized 2024 grant dollars.
How large is Palo Hills Foundation?
Palo Hills Foundation reported $3.3M in total assets on its 2024 IRS Form 990-PF. It paid out $338K in qualifying distributions that year, against a required minimum of $256K (roughly 5% of its investment assets).
What does Palo Hills Foundation fund?
The available information does not state a mission for the foundation. Its grants include support for educational institutions and faith-based organizations, as well as other charitable organizations. See mission & focus areas ↑
How do I apply for a grant from Palo Hills Foundation?
The foundation 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 Palo Hills Foundation's EIN?
Palo Hills Foundation's EIN (Employer Identification Number) is 77-0529206. IRS Form 990 filing data is available on this page for 2020–2024.
Does Palo Hills 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). Palo Hills Foundation funder profile. GrantGraph. Retrieved October 15, 2026, from https://grantable.co/funders/palo-hills-foundation-morg_0646960ccb9246ec8794c647bee96e64
BibTeX
@misc{grantable_770529206_2026,
author = {{Grantable}},
title = {{Palo Hills Foundation funder profile}},
howpublished = {GrantGraph},
year = {2026},
url = {https://grantable.co/funders/palo-hills-foundation-morg_0646960ccb9246ec8794c647bee96e64},
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 Palo Hills 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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