The Barden Foundation Inc

Private foundation · Grantmaker Bridgeport, CT EIN: 06-6054855
EducationHigher educationPhilanthropyNonprofitsHealth

The Barden Foundation Inc is a private foundation based in Bridgeport, Connecticut. Its 2025 filing reports 69 grants totaling $374,000, with listed purposes including educational services, community healthcare, community health and welfare, youth services, and community welfare.

The Barden Foundation Inc at a glance

In short: The Barden Foundation Inc gave $374K across 69 grants in 2025 (avg $5K), mostly in Connecticut. 10% of 2025 grantees were new. Source: 2025 IRS Form 990-PF.

Annual giving (2025)
$374,000
+7.6% vs 2024
Grants made (2025)
69
+4.5% vs 2024
Average grant
$5,420
+2.9% vs 2024
Median grant
$3,500
Total assets
$4,847,988
+0.2% vs 2024
New grantees (estimate)
10% first-time grantees (4 of 39, 2025)
Primary geography
Connecticut (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 The Barden Foundation Inc

Review Cycle
The filing lists March 31 as the scholarship application deadline. That deadline is a past cycle; the filing does not provide a current deadline.
Deadline
The filing lists March 31 as the scholarship application deadline.
Contact

Application contact: The Barden Foundation Inc - Scholar
Mailing address: 200 Park Avenue, Danbury, CT 06810
Phone: (203) 336-7532

Application details from Grantable's research on the foundation's public materials; confirm on its website before applying.

Who The Barden Foundation Inc funds

How this funder distributes its grants

Top Recipients

Top 10 recipients in 2025

United Way of Coastal & Western CT: $40K across 2 grantsUnited Way of Coastal &Western CT$40K · 2 grantsWestern CT State University: $26KWestern CT State University$26KBridgeport Hospital Foundation Inc: $24KBridgeport Hospital FoundationInc$24KUnited Way of Northwest CT: $15KUnited Way of Northwest CT$15KDanbury Hospital Development Fund: $15KDanbury Hospital DevelopmentFund$15KFish: $14KFish$14KRegional Hospice: $14KRegional Hospice$14KWinsted Area Child Care Center Inc: $12KWinsted Area Child Care CenterInc$12KALS CT Chapter: $10KALS CT Chapter$10KAmerican Cancer Society: $10KAmerican Cancer Society$10K

The largest 2025 recipient was United Way of Coastal & Western CT ($40K across 2 grants). Together the top 10 received $180K.

Organizations only. It also paid 30 grants to individuals ($91,000), which are not listed by name.

Grant Size Distribution

363 grants across all recorded years

363<$50K$50–100K$100–250K$250–500K$500K–1M$1–5M$5M+

The most common grant size was under $50K: 363 grants of 363 (100%).

Geographic Focus

Where this funder awards grants

The 2025 filing reports that grant dollars went primarily to Connecticut recipients (94%), with shares reported for New York (2%), Texas (2%), Wisconsin (2%), and Tennessee (1%).

Grant Distribution by State

10states

Share of 2025 grant dollars across all 69 itemized grants.

Cities

BridgeportDanburyWinstedTorringtonMilfordWiltonBethelBrookfieldColebrookHamdenStamfordWaterburyBrigeportMadisonSheltonWallingfordAlbanyAllentownArlingtonCambridge

Is The Barden Foundation Inc open to new grantees?

10%

first-time grantees, 2025

In 2025, 4 of 39 grantees (10%) were first-time recipients. First grants averaged $12K; repeat grants $7K. How we count

Medians: $3K first-time, $5K repeat.

  • 87% of 2025 grantees were also funded in 2024. Method
  • Giving held roughly steady from 2022 to 2025 (+4%). Method
  • In 2025 it paid out 112% 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

$0$100K$200K$300K$400K79 grants2020 83 grants2021 80 grants2022 65 grants2023 66 grants2024 69 grants2025

From 2020 to 2025, annual grant giving ranged from $296K (2023) to $374K (2025). In 2025 it made 69 grants totaling $374K.

Grants by year

Grant recipients and amounts by year

RecipientPurposeAmount
Western CT State University Danbury, CTEducational Services$26,000
United Way of Coastal & Western CT Danbury, CTCommunity Health and Welfare$25,000
Bridgeport Hospital Foundation Inc Bridgeport, CTCommunity Healthcare$24,000
United Way of Northwest CT Torrington, CTCommunity Health and Welfare$15,000
Danbury Hospital Development Fund Danbury, CTCommunity Healthcare$15,000
United Way of Coastal & Western CT Danbury, CTCommunity Health and Welfare$15,000
Fish Torrington, CTCommunity Welfare$14,000
Regional Hospice Danbury, CTCommunity Health and Welfare$14,000
Winsted Area Child Care Center Inc Winsted, CTYouth Services$12,000
ALS CT Chapter Milford, CTCommunity Healthcare$10,000
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Financial History

Multi-year comparison from IRS filings

Figures from IRS filings, by filing year
Filing yearTotal AssetsRevenueExpensesGrants paidGrantsQualifying DistributionsNet Investment IncomeDistributable Amount
2025$4,847,988$420,808$401,520$374,00069$379,020$398,308$339,280
2024$4,835,955$521,501$382,619$347,50066$352,619$491,501$320,869
2023$4,701,835$344,465$331,242$296,00065$301,242$314,465$298,333
2022$4,693,712$384,295$392,320$359,50080$364,679$356,654$317,991
2021$4,703,556$570,841$382,473$357,50083—$550,528$348,285
2020$4,532,278$333,039$358,057$340,50079—$319,141$301,667

Under IRS private-foundation payout rules, The Barden Foundation Inc reported a distributable amount of $339K 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 foundation mission statement is provided. The 2025 grant list shows support for organizations working in education, healthcare, health and welfare, youth services, and community welfare.

Among the recipients, Bridgeport Hospital Foundation Inc describes its mission as supporting Bridgeport Hospital and promoting activities of the Yale New Haven Health System. Bridgeport Rescue Mission Inc says it serves hungry, homeless, and addicted people throughout Fairfield County. Ann’s Place Inc says it provides free support, counseling, and other resources to people living with cancer and their loved ones.

Grantmaking

In 2025, the foundation made 69 grants totaling $374,000. Awards ranged from $1,000 to $26,000, with a median grant of $3,500. The largest listed grants included $26,000 to Western Connecticut State University for educational services; $25,000 to United Way of Coastal & an individual recipient for community health and welfare; and $24,000 to Bridgeport Hospital Foundation Inc for community healthcare. Other notable awards included $15,000 each to United Way of Northwest CT and Danbury Hospital Development Fund, and $14,000 each to FISH and Regional Hospice.

The foundation’s 2023 filing says it does not restrict giving to preselected organizations. For scholarships, it lists “The Barden Foundation Inc - SCHOLAR” as the contact and requires all applicants to complete a scholarship application. The filing says scholarships are generally restricted to children of employees of Barden Corporation, Winsted Precision Ball Company, Inc., Lacey Manufacturing Company LLC, Paragon Medical, and MW Industries; it also says colleges or universities occasionally receive grants to help fund their scholarship programs.

Leadership & Key People

Leadership team and compensation from IRS filings

The 2025 filing lists Jeannine Frink as president; Robin Bergman as treasurer, secretary, and trustee; and Thomas F. Loughman, Dennis Zancan, Manuela Vanasse, and Tiawonia Lakeysha Johnson as trustees.

The Barden Foundation Inc is led by Jeannine Frink, President since 2023 (on filings since 2020); none of the 6 officers listed in 2025 report compensation.

Officers on the 2025 filing

  • Jeannine Frink

    President

    Trustee → President, 2023

    On filings since 2020

    4 hrs/week

    No compensation reported

  • Dennis Zancan

    Trustee

    On filings since 2020

    1 hr/week

    No compensation reported

  • Robin Bergman

    Treasurer, Secretary & Trustee

    On filings since 2020

    4 hrs/week

    No compensation reported

  • Thomas F. Loughman

    Trustee

    President → Trustee, 2023

    On filings since 2020

    4 hrs/week

    No compensation reported

  • Manuela Vanasse

    Trustee

    On filings since 2022

    1 hr/week

    No compensation reported

  • Tiawonia Lakeysha Johnson

    Trustee

    On filings since 2023

    1 hr/week

    No compensation reported

Former officers (1)
  • Former: Juan C. Cintron (2020–2022) — Trustee

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 The Barden Foundation Inc

How much does The Barden Foundation Inc give each year?

The Barden Foundation Inc gave $374K across 69 grants in 2025, according to its 2025 IRS Form 990-PF. In 2024 it gave $348K across 66 grants.

What is The Barden Foundation Inc's typical grant size?

The Barden Foundation Inc's median grant in 2025 was $3,500, and its average grant was $5,420, across 69 grants on its 2025 IRS Form 990-PF. Organizations receiving their first grant from The Barden Foundation Inc that year got $12K on average.

Where does The Barden Foundation Inc give grants?

The Barden Foundation Inc gives mostly in Connecticut: 94% of the grant dollars itemized on its 2025 IRS Form 990-PF went to recipients there. The most frequent recipient cities were Danbury, CT (10 grants), Bridgeport, CT (9 grants), Winsted, CT (5 grants) and Torrington, CT (3 grants).

Does The Barden Foundation Inc give general operating support?

Not in 2025: none of the 69 grants with a stated purpose on The Barden Foundation Inc's 2025 IRS Form 990-PF were described as general or operating support. Recurring purposes include "Scholarship" (27 grants), "Youth Services" (16 grants) and "Community Health and Welfare" (11 grants).

Who are The Barden Foundation Inc's largest grantees?

The Barden Foundation Inc's largest 2025 grantees include United Way of Coastal & Western CT ($40,000 across 2 grants), Western CT State University ($26,000) and Bridgeport Hospital Foundation Inc ($24,000), according to its 2025 IRS Form 990-PF. It also paid 30 grants to individuals ($91,000), which are not listed by name. Together they received 24% of its itemized 2025 grant dollars.

How large is The Barden Foundation Inc?

The Barden Foundation Inc reported $4.8M in total assets on its 2025 IRS Form 990-PF. It paid out $379K in qualifying distributions that year, against a required minimum of $339K (roughly 5% of its investment assets).

What does The Barden Foundation Inc fund?

No foundation mission statement is provided. The 2025 grant list shows support for organizations working in education, healthcare, health and welfare, youth services, and community welfare. See mission & focus areas ↑

How do I apply for a grant from The Barden Foundation Inc?

The Barden Foundation Inc has no public application process in the sources Grantable reviewed. Contact the foundation directly before submitting a request.

What is The Barden Foundation Inc's EIN?

The Barden Foundation Inc's EIN (Employer Identification Number) is 06-6054855. IRS Form 990 filing data is available on this page for 2020–2025.

Data last updated October 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

  1. Updated Form 990-PF for fiscal year 2020 (received by the IRS September 16, 2021)
  2. Updated Form 990-PF for fiscal year 2021 (received by the IRS March 2, 2022)
  3. Updated Form 990-PF for fiscal year 2022 (received by the IRS March 7, 2023)
  4. Updated Form 990-PF for fiscal year 2023 (received by the IRS March 8, 2024)
  5. Updated Form 990-PF for fiscal year 2024 (received by the IRS February 6, 2025)
  6. Updated Form 990-PF for fiscal year 2025 (received by the IRS January 29, 2026)
  7. IRS filings on file for fiscal years 2020–2025

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Cite this profile

Grantable. (2026). The Barden Foundation Inc funder profile. GrantGraph. Retrieved October 17, 2026, from https://grantable.co/funders/the-barden-foundation-inc-morg_3a2a6008ba3f4abdbf86582560d031df

BibTeX
@misc{grantable_066054855_2026,
  author       = {{Grantable}},
  title        = {{The Barden Foundation Inc funder profile}},
  howpublished = {GrantGraph},
  year         = {2026},
  url          = {https://grantable.co/funders/the-barden-foundation-inc-morg_3a2a6008ba3f4abdbf86582560d031df},
  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 The Barden Foundation Inc'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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