Stella and James Melillo Foundation
The Stella and James Melillo Foundation is a private foundation based in Nashville, Tennessee. Its 2025 filing reports 13 charitable grants totaling $98,000 to preselected organizations.
Stella and James Melillo Foundation at a glance
In short: Stella and James Melillo Foundation gave $98K across 13 grants in 2025 (avg $8K), mostly in California. 62% of 2025 grantees were new. Source: 2025 IRS Form 990-PF.
- Annual giving (2025)
- $98,000
- +92.7% vs 2024
- Grants made (2025)
- 13
- +116.7% vs 2024
- Average grant
- $7,538
- -11.1% vs 2024
- Median grant
- $2,500
- Total assets
- $218,318
- -24.8% vs 2024
- New grantees (estimate)
- 62% first-time grantees (8 of 13, 2025; small sample)
- Primary geography
- California (94% 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 Stella and James Melillo Foundation
- Accepts unsolicited proposals
- No
- How to Apply
-
The foundation does not accept unsolicited requests for funds and states that it makes contributions only to preselected charitable organizations.
- Contact
Mailing address: 1079 Treaty Oaks Dr, Nashville, TN 37209
Phone: (206) 406-0772
Application details from Grantable's research on the foundation's public materials; confirm on its website before applying.
Who Stella and James Melillo Foundation funds
How this funder distributes its grants
Top Recipients
Top 10 recipients in 2025
The largest 2025 recipient was DVS ($37K). Together the top 10 received $86K.
Grant Size Distribution
42 grants across all recorded years
The most common grant size was under $50K: 42 grants of 42 (100%).
Geographic Focus
Where this funder awards grants
In 2025, 94% of grant dollars went to recipients in California and 6% to recipients in Washington.
Grant Distribution by State
Share of 2025 grant dollars across all 13 itemized grants.
Cities
Is Stella and James Melillo Foundation open to new grantees?
62%
first-time grantees, 2025
In 2025, 8 of 13 grantees (62%) were first-time recipients. With only 13 grantees, that is a small sample: one grantee more or less moves the share by about 8 points. First grants averaged $7K; repeat grants $8K. How we count
Medians: $2K first-time, $5K repeat.
- 8% of 2025 grantees were also funded in 2024. Method
- Giving grew 69% from 2022 to 2025. Method
- In 2025 it paid out 164% 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 $51K (2024) to $98K (2025). In 2025 it made 13 grants totaling $98K.
Grants by year
Grant recipients and amounts by year
| Recipient | Purpose | Amount |
|---|---|---|
| DVS Santa Barbara, CA | charitable | $36,500 |
| STESA of Santa Barbara Santa Barbara, CA | charitable | $20,000 |
| Santa Barbara Museum of Art Santa Barbara, CA | charitable | $10,000 |
| Various Donee Montecito, CA | charitable | $10,000 |
| New Beginnings Seattle, WA | charitable | $5,000 |
| MOXI Museum Santa Barbara, CA | charitable | $4,500 |
| Museum of Natural History Santa Barbara, CA | charitable | $2,500 |
| Museum of Modern Art Santa Barbara, CA | charitable | $2,500 |
| Ucsb Santa Barbara, CA | charitable | $2,000 |
| Sanctuary Center Santa Barbara, CA | charitable | $2,000 |
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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 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2025 | $218,318 | $20,840 | $100,944 | $98,000 | 13 | $99,260 | $19,156 | $60,648 |
| 2024 | $290,162 | $121,198 | $52,163 | $50,860 | 6 | $52,130 | $121,165 | $49,509 |
| 2023 | $269,856 | $2,415 | $57,543 | $57,500 | 7 | $57,500 | $2,372 | $46,180 |
| 2022 | $329,984 | $3,395 | $59,561 | $58,000 | 6 | $59,260 | $3,094 | $47,505 |
| 2021 | $390,565 | $1,250 | $79,560 | $78,000 | 10 | $79,560 | $1,250 | $53,970 |
| 2020 | $413,513 | $120,513 | $59,204 | $58,000 | 11 | — | $20,436 | $35,149 |
Under IRS private-foundation payout rules, Stella and James Melillo Foundation reported a distributable amount of $61K 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
The foundation’s filings do not state a mission. Its 2025 grants included support for arts and cultural organizations, as well as organizations addressing domestic violence. The Santa Barbara Museum of Art describes its mission as integrating art into people’s lives; New Beginnings says it empowers survivors and works to end domestic violence; and Seattle Opera describes its work as thrilling, inspiring, and educating through opera.
Grantmaking
In 2025, the foundation made 13 grants totaling $98,000. Grant amounts ranged from $1,000 to $36,500, with a median of $2,500. Notable grants included $36,500 to DVS, $20,000 to STESA of Santa Barbara, $10,000 to the Santa Barbara Museum of Art, and $5,000 to New Beginnings. Seattle Opera received $1,000.
Leadership & Key People
Leadership team and compensation from IRS filings
James Melillo is listed as president on the 2025 filing.
Stella and James Melillo Foundation is led by James Melillo, President on every filing since 2020 — the only officer listed, and uncompensated.
Officers on the 2025 filing
James Melillo
President
On filings since 2020
10 hrs/week
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 Stella and James Melillo Foundation
How much does Stella and James Melillo Foundation give each year?
Stella and James Melillo Foundation gave $98K across 13 grants in 2025, according to its 2025 IRS Form 990-PF. In 2024 it gave $51K across 6 grants.
What is Stella and James Melillo Foundation's typical grant size?
Stella and James Melillo Foundation's median grant in 2025 was $2,500, and its average grant was $7,538, across 13 grants on its 2025 IRS Form 990-PF. Organizations receiving their first grant from Stella and James Melillo Foundation that year got $7K on average.
Where does Stella and James Melillo Foundation give grants?
Stella and James Melillo Foundation gives mostly in California: 94% of the grant dollars itemized on its 2025 IRS Form 990-PF went to recipients there. The next largest state was Washington (6%). The most frequent recipient cities were Santa Barbara, CA (10 grants) and Seattle, WA (2 grants).
Does Stella and James Melillo Foundation give general operating support?
Not in 2025: none of the 13 grants with a stated purpose on Stella and James Melillo Foundation's 2025 IRS Form 990-PF were described as general or operating support. Recurring purposes include "Charitable" (13 grants).
Who are Stella and James Melillo Foundation's largest grantees?
Stella and James Melillo Foundation's largest 2025 grantees include DVS ($36,500), STESA of Santa Barbara ($20,000) and Santa Barbara Museum of Art ($10,000), according to its 2025 IRS Form 990-PF. Together they received 68% of its itemized 2025 grant dollars.
How large is Stella and James Melillo Foundation?
Stella and James Melillo Foundation reported $218K in total assets on its 2025 IRS Form 990-PF. It paid out $99K in qualifying distributions that year, against a required minimum of $61K (roughly 5% of its investment assets).
What does Stella and James Melillo Foundation fund?
The foundation’s filings do not state a mission. Its 2025 grants included support for arts and cultural organizations, as well as organizations addressing domestic violence. See mission & focus areas ↑
How do I apply for a grant from Stella and James Melillo Foundation?
The foundation does not accept unsolicited requests for funds and states that it makes contributions only to preselected charitable organizations. Eligibility and process details are in the grantmaking section of this profile. See how to apply ↑
What is Stella and James Melillo Foundation's EIN?
Stella and James Melillo Foundation's EIN (Employer Identification Number) is 68-0575267. IRS Form 990 filing data is available on this page for 2020–2025.
Does Stella and James Melillo 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
(6)
When this profile's IRS filing data changed on Grantable
- Updated Form 990-PF for fiscal year 2020 (received by the IRS November 5, 2021)
- Updated Form 990-PF for fiscal year 2021 (received by the IRS November 10, 2022)
- Updated Form 990-PF for fiscal year 2022 (received by the IRS May 30, 2023)
- Updated Form 990-PF for fiscal year 2023 (received by the IRS May 15, 2024)
- Updated Form 990-PF for fiscal year 2024 (received by the IRS June 3, 2025)
- Added Form 990-PF for fiscal year 2025 (received by the IRS May 15, 2026)
Live grants for the work Stella and James Melillo Foundation funds
Education Open opportunities, soonest deadline first.
Explore Open Grants
Browse active grant opportunities in Stella and James Melillo Foundation's focus areas in our free grants database
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Cite this profile
Grantable. (2026). Stella and James Melillo Foundation funder profile. GrantGraph. Retrieved October 17, 2026, from https://grantable.co/funders/stella-and-james-melillo-foundation-morg_da5d8b50597f46229f10acf8982ad6d7
BibTeX
@misc{grantable_680575267_2026,
author = {{Grantable}},
title = {{Stella and James Melillo Foundation funder profile}},
howpublished = {GrantGraph},
year = {2026},
url = {https://grantable.co/funders/stella-and-james-melillo-foundation-morg_da5d8b50597f46229f10acf8982ad6d7},
note = {Accessed 2026-10-17. 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 Stella and James Melillo 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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