Sharkey Foundation
Sharkey Foundation is a private foundation based in Ashland, Oregon. Its 2025 filing reports 16 grants totaling $160,000 to charitable organizations, including organizations working in education, health, theater, conservation, and job training.
Sharkey Foundation at a glance
In short: Sharkey Foundation gave $160K across 16 grants in 2025 (avg $10K), mostly in Oregon. 25% of 2025 grantees were new. Source: 2025 IRS Form 990-PF.
- Annual giving (2025)
- $160,000
- +6.7% vs 2024
- Grants made (2025)
- 16
- +0.0% vs 2024
- Average grant
- $10,000
- +6.7% vs 2024
- Median grant
- $10,000
- Total assets
- $3,426,296
- +7.6% vs 2024
- New grantees (estimate)
- 25% first-time grantees (4 of 16, 2025; small sample)
- Primary geography
- Oregon (70% 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 Sharkey Foundation
- Accepts unsolicited proposals
- No
- How to Apply
-
The foundation states that it makes contributions only to preselected charitable organizations and does not accept unsolicited requests for funds.
- Contact
Mailing address: 650 Forest St, Ashland, OR 97520
Phone: (541) 708-0635
Application details from Grantable's research on the foundation's public materials; confirm on its website before applying.
Who Sharkey Foundation funds
How this funder distributes its grants
Top Recipients
Top 10 recipients in 2025
The largest 2025 recipient was Ashland Schools Foundation ($20K). Together the top 10 received $125K.
Grant Size Distribution
79 grants across all recorded years
The most common grant size was under $50K: 79 grants of 79 (100%).
Geographic Focus
Where this funder awards grants
In 2025, 70% of grant dollars went to recipients in Oregon, 23% to California, and 6% to Washington.
Grant Distribution by State
Share of 2025 grant dollars across all 16 itemized grants.
Cities
Is Sharkey Foundation open to new grantees?
25%
first-time grantees, 2025
In 2025, 4 of 16 grantees (25%) were first-time recipients. With only 16 grantees, that is a small sample: one grantee more or less moves the share by about 6 points. First grants averaged $8K; repeat grants $11K. How we count
Medians: $8K first-time, $10K repeat.
- 69% of 2025 grantees were also funded in 2024. Method
- Giving grew 33% from 2022 to 2025. Method
- In 2025 it paid out 101% of its IRS minimum distribution (the 5% rule). 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 $100K (2020) to $160K (2025). In 2025 it made 16 grants totaling $160K.
Grants by year
Grant recipients and amounts by year
| Recipient | Purpose | Amount |
|---|---|---|
| Ashland Schools Foundation Ashland, OR | High School Theater | $20,000 |
| Ashland Community Health Foundation Ashland, OR | School Nurse Program | $17,500 |
| La Clinica Medford, OR | Happy Smiles Program and Acute Care Center | $12,500 |
| Planned Parenthood of Southwestern Oregon Ashland, OR | Teen Education | $12,500 |
| Surfing for Hope San Luis Obispo, CA | Surf Camps | $12,000 |
| Applause Children's Theater Paso Robles, CA | Junior Director Program | $10,000 |
| Bee Girl Ashland, OR | General Fund | $10,000 |
| Farestart Seattle, WA | Barista Program | $10,000 |
| Jefferson Public Radio Ashland, OR | General Fund | $10,000 |
| Oregon Shakespeare Festival Ashland, OR | School Visits | $10,000 |
Ready to take the next step with Sharkey 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 | $3,426,296 | $124,202 | $195,123 | $160,000 | 16 | $163,930 | $93,009 | $162,654 |
| 2024 | $3,184,930 | $107,387 | $190,299 | $150,000 | 16 | $158,289 | $75,458 | $157,478 |
| 2023 | $3,077,308 | $65,334 | $181,982 | $145,321 | 17 | $149,566 | $51,508 | $147,432 |
| 2022 | $2,951,890 | $311,625 | $159,922 | $120,000 | 15 | $122,993 | $282,310 | $150,580 |
| 2021 | $3,471,785 | $359,483 | $158,558 | $120,000 | 15 | $126,520 | $327,446 | $161,094 |
| 2020 | $3,082,733 | $22,852 | $137,983 | $100,000 | 14 | — | $36,203 | $135,144 |
| 2019 | $2,958,286 | $575,472 | $162,746 | $125,000 | 19 | — | $651,804 | $111,666 |
Under IRS private-foundation payout rules, Sharkey Foundation reported a distributable amount of $163K 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 provided. Its 2025 grants include support for school programs, health services, theater, conservation, and job training. Ashland Schools Foundation describes its mission as supporting quality education in Ashland public schools through community fundraising. Bee Regeneratives says its mission is to inspire and advance bee conservation on agricultural landscapes. FareStart says it transforms lives, disrupts poverty, and nourishes communities through food, life skills, and job training. Oregon Family Support Network says it supports families throughout Oregon who have children with mental, emotional, and behavioral disorders.
Grantmaking
In 2025, the foundation awarded 16 grants totaling $160,000. Grants ranged from $2,500 to $20,000, with a median grant of $10,000.
Among its 2025 grants, Ashland Schools Foundation received $20,000 for high school theater; Ashland Community Health Foundation received $17,500 for its school nurse program; La Clinica received $12,500 for its Happy Smiles Program and Acute Care Center; and Planned Parenthood of Southwestern Oregon received $12,500 for teen education. Other grants included $12,000 to Surfing for Hope for surf camps, $10,000 to Applause Children’s Theater for its Junior Director Program, and $10,000 to FareStart for its barista program. Oregon Family Support Network received $5,000 in 2025.
Leadership & Key People
Leadership team and compensation from IRS filings
The 2025 filing lists Carl Wolfe as president, Michael Wolfe as vice president, Laurel Kiichli as secretary/treasurer, and Patricia Wolfe as director.
Sharkey Foundation is led by Carl Wolfe, President on every filing since 2019; none of the 4 officers listed in 2025 report compensation.
Officers on the 2025 filing
Carl Wolfe
President
On filings since 2019
2 hrs/week
No compensation reported
Patricia Wolfe
Director
On filings since 2019
0.3 hrs/week
No compensation reported
Laurel Kiichli
Secretary & Treasurer
On filings since 2019
0.3 hrs/week
No compensation reported
Michael Wolfe
Vice President
On filings since 2019
0.3 hrs/week
No compensation reported
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 Sharkey Foundation
How much does Sharkey Foundation give each year?
Sharkey Foundation gave $160K across 16 grants in 2025, according to its 2025 IRS Form 990-PF. In 2024 it gave $150K across 16 grants.
What is Sharkey Foundation's typical grant size?
Sharkey Foundation's median grant in 2025 was $10,000, and its average grant was $10,000, across 16 grants on its 2025 IRS Form 990-PF. Organizations receiving their first grant from Sharkey Foundation that year got $8K on average.
Where does Sharkey Foundation give grants?
Sharkey Foundation gives mostly in Oregon: 70% of the grant dollars itemized on its 2025 IRS Form 990-PF went to recipients there. The next largest states were California (23%) and Washington (6%). The most frequent recipient cities were Ashland, OR (7 grants) and San Luis Obispo, CA (2 grants).
Does Sharkey Foundation give general operating support?
Yes: 13% of Sharkey Foundation's 2025 grants with a stated purpose (2 of 16) were for general or operating support, per its 2025 IRS Form 990-PF.
Who are Sharkey Foundation's largest grantees?
Sharkey Foundation's largest 2025 grantees include Ashland Schools Foundation ($20,000), Ashland Community Health Foundation ($17,500) and La Clinica ($12,500), according to its 2025 IRS Form 990-PF. Together they received 31% of its itemized 2025 grant dollars.
How large is Sharkey Foundation?
Sharkey Foundation reported $3.4M in total assets on its 2025 IRS Form 990-PF. It paid out $164K in qualifying distributions that year, against a required minimum of $163K (roughly 5% of its investment assets).
What does Sharkey Foundation fund?
No mission statement for the foundation is provided. Its 2025 grants include support for school programs, health services, theater, conservation, and job training. See mission & focus areas ↑
How do I apply for a grant from Sharkey Foundation?
The foundation states that it 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 Sharkey Foundation's EIN?
Sharkey Foundation's EIN (Employer Identification Number) is 47-1892164. IRS Form 990 filing data is available on this page for 2019–2025.
Does Sharkey 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
(8)
When this profile's IRS filing data changed on Grantable
- Updated Form 990-PF for fiscal year 2019 (received by the IRS June 18, 2020)
- Updated Form 990-PF for fiscal year 2020 (received by the IRS May 14, 2021)
- Updated Form 990-PF for fiscal year 2021 (received by the IRS May 6, 2022)
- Updated Form 990-PF for fiscal year 2022 (received by the IRS March 2, 2023)
- Updated Form 990-PF for fiscal year 2023 (received by the IRS February 26, 2024)
- Updated Form 990-PF for fiscal year 2024 (received by the IRS April 30, 2025)
- Updated Form 990-PF for fiscal year 2025 (received by the IRS February 23, 2026)
- IRS filings on file for fiscal years 2019–2025
Explore Open Grants
Browse active grant opportunities in Sharkey Foundation's focus areas in our free grants database
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Cite this profile
Grantable. (2026). Sharkey Foundation funder profile. GrantGraph. Retrieved October 11, 2026, from https://grantable.co/funders/sharkey-foundation-morg_c9f32a41c1254da489382ac9e1f3d62f
BibTeX
@misc{grantable_471892164_2026,
author = {{Grantable}},
title = {{Sharkey Foundation funder profile}},
howpublished = {GrantGraph},
year = {2026},
url = {https://grantable.co/funders/sharkey-foundation-morg_c9f32a41c1254da489382ac9e1f3d62f},
note = {Accessed 2026-10-11. 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 Sharkey 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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