Samsara Foundation
Samsara Foundation is a private foundation based in Minneapolis, Minnesota. Its 2025 grants supported organizations working in areas including domestic-violence services, legal services, peacebuilding, education, food assistance, and social justice advocacy.
Samsara Foundation at a glance
In short: Samsara Foundation gave $210K across 11 grants in 2025 (avg $19K), mostly in Minnesota. 9% of 2025 grantees were new. Source: 2025 IRS Form 990-PF.
- Annual giving (2025)
- $210,000
- +2.8% vs 2024
- Grants made (2025)
- 11
- +22.2% vs 2024
- Average grant
- $19,091
- -15.9% vs 2024
- Median grant
- $20,000
- Total assets
- $4,025,744
- +3.1% vs 2024
- New grantees (estimate)
- 9% first-time grantees (1 of 11, 2025; small sample)
- Primary geography
- Minnesota (81% of itemized 2025 grant dollars)
- Latest 990 filing
- Form 990-PF, 2025 View filing
Data from IRS Form 990-PF, 2025; updated September 2026. New grantees are estimated by matching recipient names across years (methodology).
How to apply to Samsara Foundation
- Accepts unsolicited proposals
- No
- Contact
Mailing address: 2620 Glenhurst Ave S, Minneapolis, MN 55416
Phone: (414) 244-9947
Application details from Grantable's research on the foundation's public materials; confirm on its website before applying.
Who Samsara Foundation funds
How this funder distributes its grants
Top Recipients
Top 10 recipients in 2025
The largest 2025 recipient was Missions Inc Home Free Program ($46K). Together the top 10 received $209K.
Grant Size Distribution
72 grants across all recorded years
The most common grant size was under $50K: 70 grants of 72 (97%).
Geographic Focus
Where this funder awards grants
In 2025, 81% of grant dollars went to recipients in Minnesota and 19% to recipients in Connecticut.
Grant Distribution by State
Share of 2025 grant dollars across all 11 itemized grants.
Cities
Is Samsara Foundation open to new grantees?
9%
first-time grantees, 2025
In 2025, 1 of 11 grantees (9%) were first-time recipients. With only 11 grantees, that is a small sample: one grantee more or less moves the share by about 9 points. First grants averaged $10K; repeat grants $20K. How we count
Medians: $10K first-time, $20K repeat.
- 82% of 2025 grantees were also funded in 2024. Method
- Giving held roughly steady from 2022 to 2025 (+2%). Method
- In 2025 it paid out 109% 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 $204K (2024) to $225K (2021). In 2025 it made 11 grants totaling $210K.
Grants by year
Grant recipients and amounts by year
| Recipient | Purpose | Amount |
|---|---|---|
| Missions Inc Home Free Program Plymouth, MN | Support for Victims of Domestic Violence | $46,000 |
| Domestic Abuse Legal Advocacy Cente St. Paul, MN | Legal Services | $40,000 |
| Nonviolent Peaceforce Minneapolis, MN | End World Violence | $30,000 |
| We Win Minneapolis, MN | Educational | $20,000 |
| Connecticut Food Bank New Haven, CT | Food Shelf | $20,000 |
| Hope Love Option CMMNTY Fndtn of NW Torrinton, CT | Social Justice Advocacy | $20,000 |
| Icwa Law Center Minneapolis, MN | Legal Defense | $10,000 |
| Fiercely Embraced Plymouth, MN | General Operating | $10,000 |
| Sunset Hill PTSA Wayzata, MN | General Support | $8,000 |
| Second Harvest Heartland Brooklyn Park, MN | Food Shelf | $5,000 |
Ready to take the next step with Samsara 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 | $4,025,744 | $350,723 | $229,553 | $210,000 | 11 | $212,100 | $336,669 | $194,256 |
| 2024 | $3,904,284 | $174,677 | $228,410 | $204,211 | 9 | $207,448 | $154,622 | $190,997 |
| 2023 | $3,958,017 | $96,582 | $241,937 | $220,676 | 13 | $223,904 | $78,549 | $180,606 |
| 2022 | $4,103,372 | $90,985 | $232,205 | $206,000 | 19 | $210,162 | $71,199 | $189,343 |
| 2021 | $4,263,962 | $169,172 | $250,468 | $225,000 | 20 | $229,512 | $148,969 | $223,203 |
| 2020 | $4,345,858 | $80,423 | $247,173 | $216,000 | 14 | — | $60,005 | $219,191 |
Under IRS private-foundation payout rules, Samsara Foundation reported a distributable amount of $194K 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 mission statement for the foundation is available in the supplied information. Its grants show support for organizations with varied charitable purposes. Nonviolent Peaceforce describes its mission as protecting civilians in violent conflicts through unarmed strategies, building peace with local communities, and advocating for wider adoption of those approaches. Second Harvest Heartland says its mission is to end hunger together, partnering with food shelves and hunger-relief programs in Minnesota and western Wisconsin.
Grantmaking
In 2025, the foundation made 11 grants totaling $210,000. Grants ranged from $1,000 to $46,000, with a median of $20,000. Notable grants included $46,000 to Missions Inc Home Free Program for support for victims of domestic violence, $40,000 to Domestic Abuse Legal Advocacy Center for legal services, and $30,000 to Nonviolent Peaceforce to end world violence. Other recipients included WE WIN ($20,000), Connecticut Food Bank ($20,000), Hope Love Option Community Foundation of Northwest Connecticut ($20,000), ICWA Law Center ($10,000), Fiercely Embraced ($10,000), Sunset Hill PTSA ($8,000), Second Harvest Heartland ($5,000), and Plymouth Congregational Church ($1,000).
The foundation’s 2024 filing states that it makes contributions only to preselected charitable organizations and does not accept unsolicited requests.
Leadership & Key People
Leadership team and compensation from IRS filings
The 2025 filing lists Tineka Kurth as president, William T. Messinger as treasurer, and Kera Messinger as secretary.
Samsara Foundation is led by Tineka Kurth, President on every filing since 2020; none of the 3 officers listed in 2025 report compensation.
Officers on the 2025 filing
Tineka Kurth
President
On filings since 2020
No compensation reported
Kera Messinger
Secretary
On filings since 2020
No compensation reported
William T. Messinger
Treasurer
On filings since 2020
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 Samsara Foundation
How much does Samsara Foundation give each year?
Samsara Foundation gave $210K across 11 grants in 2025, according to its 2025 IRS Form 990-PF. In 2024 it gave $204K across 9 grants.
What is Samsara Foundation's typical grant size?
Samsara Foundation's median grant in 2025 was $20,000, and its average grant was $19,091, across 11 grants on its 2025 IRS Form 990-PF. Organizations receiving their first grant from Samsara Foundation that year got $10K on average.
Where does Samsara Foundation give grants?
Samsara Foundation gives mostly in Minnesota: 81% of the grant dollars itemized on its 2025 IRS Form 990-PF went to recipients there. The next largest state was Connecticut (19%). The most frequent recipient cities were Minneapolis, MN (4 grants) and Plymouth, MN (2 grants).
Does Samsara Foundation give general operating support?
Yes: 27% of Samsara Foundation's 2025 grants with a stated purpose (3 of 11) were for general or operating support, per its 2025 IRS Form 990-PF.
Who are Samsara Foundation's largest grantees?
Samsara Foundation's largest 2025 grantees include Missions Inc Home Free Program ($46,000), Domestic Abuse Legal Advocacy Cente ($40,000) and Nonviolent Peaceforce ($30,000), according to its 2025 IRS Form 990-PF. Together they received 55% of its itemized 2025 grant dollars.
How large is Samsara Foundation?
Samsara Foundation reported $4.0M in total assets on its 2025 IRS Form 990-PF. It paid out $212K in qualifying distributions that year, against a required minimum of $194K (roughly 5% of its investment assets).
What does Samsara Foundation fund?
No mission statement for the foundation is available in the supplied information. Its grants show support for organizations with varied charitable purposes. See mission & focus areas ↑
How do I apply for a grant from Samsara Foundation?
Samsara Foundation does not accept unsolicited proposals, according to Grantable's research on its published guidelines.
What is Samsara Foundation's EIN?
Samsara Foundation's EIN (Employer Identification Number) is 41-1694707. IRS Form 990 filing data is available on this page for 2020–2025.
Does Samsara Foundation accept unsolicited proposals?
No, according to Grantable's research on the foundation's published guidelines. See how to apply ↑
Data last updated September 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 September 1, 2021)
- Updated Form 990-PF for fiscal year 2021 (received by the IRS May 12, 2022)
- Updated Form 990-PF for fiscal year 2022 (received by the IRS May 8, 2023)
- Updated Form 990-PF for fiscal year 2023 (received by the IRS March 16, 2024)
- Updated Form 990-PF for fiscal year 2024 (received by the IRS May 8, 2025)
- Updated Form 990-PF for fiscal year 2025 (received by the IRS February 25, 2026)
- IRS filings on file for fiscal years 2020–2025
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Cite this profile
Grantable. (2026). Samsara Foundation funder profile. GrantGraph. Retrieved October 16, 2026, from https://grantable.co/funders/samsara-foundation-morg_83f9269292b24ac0b056476eb9c275d7
BibTeX
@misc{grantable_411694707_2026,
author = {{Grantable}},
title = {{Samsara Foundation funder profile}},
howpublished = {GrantGraph},
year = {2026},
url = {https://grantable.co/funders/samsara-foundation-morg_83f9269292b24ac0b056476eb9c275d7},
note = {Accessed 2026-10-16. 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 Samsara 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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