Simple Paradox Union
Simple Paradox Union is a private foundation based in Wilmington, Delaware. In 2025, it reported 17 grants totaling $144,400 to charitable organizations and other recipients, including a charitable gift fund, arts organizations, food banks, a national parks organization, and community institutions.
Simple Paradox Union at a glance
In short: Simple Paradox Union gave $144K across 17 grants in 2025 (avg $8K), mostly in Ohio. 35% of 2025 grantees were new. Source: 2025 IRS Form 990-PF.
- Annual giving (2025)
- $144,400
- +16.9% vs 2024
- Grants made (2025)
- 17
- +0.0% vs 2024
- Average grant
- $8,494
- +16.9% vs 2024
- Median grant
- $1,000
- Total assets
- $2,802,862
- -1.7% vs 2024
- New grantees (estimate)
- 35% first-time grantees (6 of 17, 2025; small sample)
- Primary geography
- Ohio (81% 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 Simple Paradox Union
- 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: Foundation Source 501 Silverside Rd, Wilmington, DE 19809-1377
Phone: (800) 839-1754
Application details from Grantable's research on the foundation's public materials; confirm on its website before applying.
Who Simple Paradox Union funds
How this funder distributes its grants
Top Recipients
Top 10 recipients in 2025
The largest 2025 recipient was Fidelity Investments Charitable Gift Fund ($117K). Together the top 10 received $143K.
Grant Size Distribution
59 grants across all recorded years
The most common grant size was under $50K: 56 grants of 59 (95%).
Geographic Focus
Where this funder awards grants
In 2025, 81% of grant dollars went to recipients in Ohio, 13% to Pennsylvania, 3% to Washington, DC, 2% to California, and 1% to New York.
Grant Distribution by State
Share of 2025 grant dollars across all 17 itemized grants.
States
Cities
Is Simple Paradox Union open to new grantees?
35%
first-time grantees, 2025
In 2025, 6 of 17 grantees (35%) were first-time recipients. With only 17 grantees, that is a small sample: one grantee more or less moves the share by about 6 points. First grants averaged $1K; repeat grants $13K. How we count
Medians: $350 first-time, $1K repeat.
- 65% of 2025 grantees were also funded in 2024. Method
- Giving grew 970% from 2022 to 2025. Method
- In 2025 it paid out 96% of its IRS minimum distribution (the 5% rule). Foundations have until the end of the next year to meet it. Method
Estimate from itemized grant lists in IRS Form 990-PF filings (2022–2025). 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 2022 to 2025, annual grant giving ranged from $14K (2022) to $144K (2025). In 2025 it made 17 grants totaling $144K.
Grants by year
Grant recipients and amounts by year
| Recipient | Purpose | Amount |
|---|---|---|
| Fidelity Investments Charitable Gift Fund Cincinnati, OH | Frankola Family Fund | $117,000 |
| Goggle Works Reading, PA | FUNDS FOR the ceramics studio, the heavy metals (aka welding) studio, and for general purpose | $13,000 |
| National Park Foundation Washington, DC | FUNDS FOR Great Sand Dunes National Park, Black Canyon of the Gunnison National Park, Canyonlands National Park, and to Capitol Reef National Park | $4,000 |
| Helping Harvest Fresh Food Bank Sinking SPG, PA | General & Unrestricted | $3,000 |
| Consumer Reports Inc Yonkers, NY | General & Unrestricted | $1,000 |
| Montalvo Association Saratoga, CA | General & Unrestricted | $1,000 |
| Western Berks Ambulance Association West Lawn, PA | General & Unrestricted | $1,000 |
| Wikimedia Foundation Inc Washington, DC | General & Unrestricted | $1,000 |
| Wyomissing Public Library Wyomissing, PA | General & Unrestricted | $1,000 |
| Friends of the Saratoga Libraries Saratoga, CA | General & Unrestricted | $500 |
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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 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2025 | $2,802,862 | $123,508 | $172,212 | $144,400 | 17 | $162,331 | $114,808 | $169,899 |
| 2024 | $2,851,466 | $72,952 | $150,144 | $123,500 | 17 | $140,751 | $77,784 | $161,978 |
| 2023 | $2,928,658 | $41,007 | $118,577 | $95,250 | 20 | $111,695 | $75,611 | $144,078 |
| 2022 | $3,006,228 | $40,325 | $71,712 | $13,500 | 5 | $29,748 | $46,296 | $143,017 |
| 2021 | $3,037,615 | $3,044,726 | $7,111 | — | — | $7,111 | $2,717,926 | — |
Under IRS private-foundation payout rules, Simple Paradox Union reported a distributable amount of $170K 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 show support for organizations working in areas such as the arts, hunger relief, national parks, emergency medical services, consumer advocacy, and public libraries. These are grantees’ stated missions, not a stated mission or formal focus for the foundation.
For example, Goggle Works says its mission is to “transform lives through unique interactions with art,” and Montalvo Arts Center says it seeks to enhance people’s lives through the arts. Helping Harvest Fresh Food Bank says it provides nutritious food to people facing hunger in its communities, while Second Harvest of Silicon Valley says it works to provide more food, healthy food, and better access to food. The National Park Foundation describes its work as supporting the protection, preservation, and restoration of America’s national parks and their resources.
Grantmaking
In 2025, the foundation gave 17 grants totaling $144,400. Grants ranged from $100 to $117,000, with a median grant of $1,000.
The largest reported grant was $117,000 to Fidelity Investments Charitable Gift Fund for the Frankola Family Fund. Other notable grants included $13,000 to Goggle Works for its ceramics studio, welding studio, and general purposes; $4,000 to the National Park Foundation for named national parks; and $3,000 to Helping Harvest Fresh Food Bank for general and unrestricted purposes. The foundation also gave $1,000 each to Consumer Reports, Montalvo Association, Western Berks Ambulance Association, Wikimedia Foundation, and Wyomissing Public Library.
Leadership & Key People
Leadership team and compensation from IRS filings
The 2025 filing lists Jim Frankola as director and president, and Pamela D Frankola as director, secretary, and treasurer.
Simple Paradox Union is led by Jim Frankola, Director & President on every filing since 2021; none of the 2 officers listed in 2025 report compensation.
Officers on the 2025 filing
Jim Frankola
Director & President
On filings since 2021
1 hr/week
No compensation reported
Pamela D Frankola
Director, Secretary & Treasurer
On filings since 2021
1 hr/week
No compensation reported
Data from IRS Form 990 filings, 2021–2025. "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 Simple Paradox Union
How much does Simple Paradox Union give each year?
Simple Paradox Union gave $144K across 17 grants in 2025, according to its 2025 IRS Form 990-PF. In 2024 it gave $124K across 17 grants.
What is Simple Paradox Union's typical grant size?
Simple Paradox Union's median grant in 2025 was $1,000, and its average grant was $8,494, across 17 grants on its 2025 IRS Form 990-PF. Organizations receiving their first grant from Simple Paradox Union that year got $1K on average.
Where does Simple Paradox Union give grants?
Simple Paradox Union gives mostly in Ohio: 81% of the grant dollars itemized on its 2025 IRS Form 990-PF went to recipients there. The next largest state was Pennsylvania (13%). The most frequent recipient cities were Saratoga, CA (3 grants), Reading, PA (2 grants), Washington, DC (2 grants) and Concordia, KS (2 grants).
Does Simple Paradox Union give general operating support?
Yes: 88% of Simple Paradox Union's 2025 grants with a stated purpose (15 of 17) were for general or operating support, per its 2025 IRS Form 990-PF.
Who are Simple Paradox Union's largest grantees?
Simple Paradox Union's largest 2025 grantees include Fidelity Investments Charitable Gift Fund ($117,000), Goggle Works ($13,000) and National Park Foundation ($4,000), according to its 2025 IRS Form 990-PF. Together they received 93% of its itemized 2025 grant dollars.
How large is Simple Paradox Union?
Simple Paradox Union reported $2.8M in total assets on its 2025 IRS Form 990-PF. It paid out $162K in qualifying distributions that year, against a required minimum of $170K (roughly 5% of its investment assets). Falling short in one year is not a violation: foundations have until the end of the next year to meet the minimum.
What does Simple Paradox Union fund?
No mission statement for the foundation is provided. Its 2025 grants show support for organizations working in areas such as the arts, hunger relief, national parks, emergency medical services, consumer advocacy, and public libraries. See mission & focus areas ↑
How do I apply for a grant from Simple Paradox Union?
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 Simple Paradox Union's EIN?
Simple Paradox Union's EIN (Employer Identification Number) is 87-2284823. IRS Form 990 filing data is available on this page for 2021–2025.
Does Simple Paradox Union 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
(6)
When this profile's IRS filing data changed on Grantable
- 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 July 6, 2023)
- Updated Form 990-PF for fiscal year 2023 (received by the IRS April 18, 2024)
- Updated Form 990-PF for fiscal year 2024 (received by the IRS April 17, 2025)
- Added Form 990-PF for fiscal year 2025 (received by the IRS May 1, 2026)
- IRS filings on file for fiscal years 2021–2024
Explore Open Grants
Browse active grant opportunities in Simple Paradox Union's focus areas in our free grants database
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Cite this profile
Grantable. (2026). Simple Paradox Union funder profile. GrantGraph. Retrieved October 13, 2026, from https://grantable.co/funders/simple-paradox-union-morg_30fc096a4d83439e98c9645db303a4b5
BibTeX
@misc{grantable_872284823_2026,
author = {{Grantable}},
title = {{Simple Paradox Union funder profile}},
howpublished = {GrantGraph},
year = {2026},
url = {https://grantable.co/funders/simple-paradox-union-morg_30fc096a4d83439e98c9645db303a4b5},
note = {Accessed 2026-10-13. 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 Simple Paradox Union'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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