Telly Foundation Ltd
Telly Foundation Ltd is a private foundation based in Milwaukee, Wisconsin. Its 2024 filing states that it makes contributions only to preselected charitable organizations and does not accept unsolicited requests for funds.
Telly Foundation Ltd at a glance
In short: Telly Foundation Ltd gave $193K across 11 grants in 2025 (avg $18K), mostly in Kentucky. 27% of 2025 grantees were new. Source: 2025 IRS Form 990-PF.
- Annual giving (2025)
- $192,592
- +277.7% vs 2024
- Grants made (2025)
- 11
- +22.2% vs 2024
- Average grant
- $17,508
- +209.0% vs 2024
- Median grant
- $4,500
- New grantees (estimate)
- 27% first-time grantees (3 of 11, 2025; small sample)
- Primary geography
- Kentucky (53% of itemized 2025 grant dollars)
- Latest 990 filing
- Form 990-PF, 2025 View filing
Data from IRS Form 990-PF, 2025; updated November 2026. New grantees are estimated by matching recipient names across years (methodology).
How to apply to Telly Foundation Ltd
- 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: 6424 N Lake Drive, Milwaukee, WI 53217
Phone: (414) 352-8571
Application details from Grantable's research on the foundation's public materials; confirm on its website before applying.
Who Telly Foundation Ltd funds
How this funder distributes its grants
Top Recipients
Top 10 recipients in 2025
The largest 2025 recipient was Fidelity Charitable Fund - Wigdale Family Foundation ($103K). Together the top 10 received $192K.
Grant Size Distribution
127 grants across all recorded years
The most common grant size was under $50K: 122 grants of 127 (96%).
Geographic Focus
Where this funder awards grants
In 2024, 99% of grant dollars went to recipients in Wisconsin and 1% went to recipients in Minnesota.
Grant Distribution by State
Share of 2025 grant dollars across all 11 itemized grants.
States
Cities
Is Telly Foundation Ltd open to new grantees?
27%
first-time grantees, 2025
In 2025, 3 of 11 grantees (27%) 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 $40K; repeat grants $9K. How we count
Medians: $14K first-time, $4K repeat.
- 45% of 2025 grantees were also funded in 2024. Method
- Giving grew 42% from 2022 to 2025. Method
- In 2025 it paid out well above 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 $391K (2020). In 2025 it made 11 grants totaling $193K.
Grants by year
Grant recipients and amounts by year
| Recipient | Purpose | Amount |
|---|---|---|
| Fidelity Charitable Fund - Wigdale Family Foundation Covington, KY | General Funds | $102,604 |
| Medical College of Wisconsin Milwaukee, WI | General Funds | $51,988 |
| Uw Athletics Madison, WI | General Funds | $14,000 |
| Milwaukee Public Museum Milwaukee, WI | General Funds | $5,000 |
| St Augustine Preparatory Academy Milwaukee, WI | General Funds | $5,000 |
| Boys & Girls Clubs of Greater Milwaukee Milwaukee, WI | General Funds | $4,500 |
| Children's Wisconsin Foundation Milwaukee, WI | General Funds | $3,000 |
| Milwaukee Art Museum Milwaukee, WI | General Funds | $3,000 |
| St Christopher's Episcopal Church Milwaukee, WI | General Funds | $2,000 |
| United Performing Arts Fund Milwaukee, WI | General Funds | $1,000 |
Ready to take the next step with Telly Foundation Ltd?
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 | — | $6,567 | $205,626 | $192,592 | 11 | $198,862 | $257 | $544 |
| 2024 | $199,059 | $9,975 | $51,670 | $50,988 | 9 | $50,988 | $9,293 | $11,460 |
| 2023 | $240,754 | $81,407 | $384,209 | $380,210 | 14 | $380,210 | $77,481 | $26,326 |
| 2022 | $543,556 | $9,464 | $145,762 | $135,500 | 21 | $136,550 | $12,206 | $43,600 |
| 2021 | $679,854 | $173,080 | $308,017 | $295,900 | 72 | $295,900 | $167,063 | $58,794 |
| 2020 | $821,740 | $225,271 | $393,026 | $390,950 | 77 | — | $223,205 | $71,883 |
Under IRS private-foundation payout rules, Telly Foundation Ltd reported a distributable amount of $544 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 Telly Foundation Ltd is provided. Its 2024 grants included support for organizations whose missions, as described by the organizations themselves, include developing student leaders through Christian-based education (St. Augustine Preparatory Academy), collecting and presenting art and educating the public about art and art history (Milwaukee Art Museum), and supporting the performing arts in southeastern Wisconsin (United Performing Arts Fund). Camp Chippewa Foundation describes its mission as developing character through adventure, inspired by tradition.
Grantmaking
In 2024, the foundation gave $50,988 through 9 grants. Grant amounts ranged from $500 to $26,988, with a median grant of $3,000. Its 2025 filing, the latest on this page, reports 11 grants totaling $192,592.
The largest 2024 grants were $26,988 to Medical College of Wisconsin, $7,000 to Boys & Girls Glub of Greater Milwaukee, $5,000 to St Augustine Preparatory Academy, $4,500 to Children's Hospital Wisconsin Foundation, and $3,000 to Milwaukee Art Museum. Other recipients included St Christopher's Church ($2,000), Milwaukee College Preparatory School ($1,000), United Performing Arts Fund ($1,000), and Camp Chippewa Foundation ($500). The listed purposes for these grants were “General Funds.”
Leadership & Key People
Leadership team and compensation from IRS filings
The 2024 filing lists James B Wigdale Jr as President and Margaret A Hammell as Secretary.
Telly Foundation Ltd is led by James B. Wigdale Jr., President since 2022 (on filings since 2020); none of the 2 officers listed in 2025 report compensation.
Officers on the 2025 filing
James B. Wigdale Jr.
President
Vice President → President, 2022
On filings since 2020
1 hr/week
No compensation reported
Margaret A. Hammell
Secretary
Assistant Secretary → Secretary, 2022
On filings since 2020
No compensation reported
Former officers (2)
- Former: Elizabeth Wigdale (2020–2021) — President
- Former: James B Wigdale (2020–2021) — Treasurer & Secretary
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 Telly Foundation Ltd
How much does Telly Foundation Ltd give each year?
Telly Foundation Ltd gave $193K across 11 grants in 2025, according to its 2025 IRS Form 990-PF. In 2024 it gave $51K across 9 grants.
What is Telly Foundation Ltd's typical grant size?
Telly Foundation Ltd's median grant in 2025 was $4,500, and its average grant was $17,508, across 11 grants on its 2025 IRS Form 990-PF. Organizations receiving their first grant from Telly Foundation Ltd that year got $40K on average.
Where does Telly Foundation Ltd give grants?
Telly Foundation Ltd gives mostly in Kentucky: 53% of the grant dollars itemized on its 2025 IRS Form 990-PF went to recipients there. The next largest state was Wisconsin (46%). The most frequent recipient cities were Milwaukee, WI (8 grants).
Does Telly Foundation Ltd give general operating support?
Yes: 100% of Telly Foundation Ltd's 2025 grants with a stated purpose (11 of 11) were for general or operating support, per its 2025 IRS Form 990-PF.
Who are Telly Foundation Ltd's largest grantees?
Telly Foundation Ltd's largest 2025 grantees include Fidelity Charitable Fund - Wigdale Family Foundation ($102,604), Medical College of Wisconsin ($51,988) and Uw Athletics ($14,000), according to its 2025 IRS Form 990-PF. Together they received 88% of its itemized 2025 grant dollars.
What does Telly Foundation Ltd fund?
No mission statement for Telly Foundation Ltd is provided. Its 2024 grants included support for organizations whose missions, as described by the organizations themselves, include developing student leaders through Christian-based education (St. See mission & focus areas ↑
How do I apply for a grant from Telly Foundation Ltd?
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 ↑
How much is Telly Foundation Ltd required to give away each year?
Private foundations must generally distribute about 5% of their assets annually. For 2025, Telly Foundation Ltd reported a distributable amount of $544 on its IRS Form 990-PF — the minimum it must pay out in qualifying distributions.
What is Telly Foundation Ltd's EIN?
Telly Foundation Ltd's EIN (Employer Identification Number) is 39-1570459. IRS Form 990 filing data is available on this page for 2020–2025.
Does Telly Foundation Ltd accept unsolicited proposals?
No, according to Grantable's research on the foundation's published guidelines. See how to apply ↑
Data last updated November 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
- Added Form 990-PF for fiscal year 2025 (received by the IRS September 8, 2026)
- Updated Form 990-PF for fiscal year 2020 (received by the IRS November 15, 2021)
- Updated Form 990-PF for fiscal year 2021 (received by the IRS June 3, 2022)
- Updated Form 990-PF for fiscal year 2022 (received by the IRS October 4, 2023)
- Updated Form 990-PF for fiscal year 2023 (received by the IRS May 3, 2024)
- Updated Form 990-PF for fiscal year 2024 (received by the IRS May 12, 2025)
- IRS filings on file for fiscal years 2020–2024
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Cite this profile
Grantable. (2026). Telly Foundation Ltd funder profile. GrantGraph. Retrieved November 4, 2026, from https://grantable.co/funders/telly-foundation-ltd-morg_b24e44928b234f1a8abb67cd60c8dc91
BibTeX
@misc{grantable_391570459_2026,
author = {{Grantable}},
title = {{Telly Foundation Ltd funder profile}},
howpublished = {GrantGraph},
year = {2026},
url = {https://grantable.co/funders/telly-foundation-ltd-morg_b24e44928b234f1a8abb67cd60c8dc91},
note = {Accessed 2026-11-04. 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 Telly Foundation Ltd'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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