The Bright Family Foundation
The Bright Family Foundation is a private foundation based in Modesto, California. Its 2025 filing reports grants for educational scholarships, child and family services, assistance to people in need, community programs, medical research, and local arts.
The Bright Family Foundation at a glance
In short: The Bright Family Foundation gave $1.3M across 28 grants in 2025 (avg $46K), mostly in California. 0% of 2025 grantees were new. Source: 2025 IRS Form 990-PF.
- Annual giving (2025)
- $1,280,000
- +18.8% vs 2024
- Grants made (2025)
- 28
- -9.7% vs 2024
- Average grant
- $45,714
- +31.5% vs 2024
- Median grant
- $25,000
- Total assets
- $24,405,976
- +2.6% vs 2024
- New grantees (estimate)
- 0% first-time grantees (0 of 26, 2025)
- Primary geography
- California (100% 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 Bright Family Foundation
- How to Apply
-
Contact Carol Bright Tougas. Submit a statement of charitable purpose on the organization’s letterhead, including its tax ID number, or use the Bright Family Foundation’s grant application form. The filing lists no award restrictions.
- Review Cycle
- N/A on the filing.
- Deadline
- N/A on the filing.
- Contact
Application contact: Carol Bright Tougas
Mailing address: 1620 N Carpenter Rd Bldg B, Modesto, CA 95351
Phone: (209) 526-8242
Application details from Grantable's research on the foundation's public materials; confirm on its website before applying.
Who The Bright Family Foundation funds
How this funder distributes its grants
Top Recipients
Top 10 recipients in 2025
The largest 2025 recipient was Children's Crisis Center ($200K). Together the top 10 received $700K.
Organizations only. It also paid 1 individual scholarship ($265,000), which are not listed by name.
Grant Size Distribution
149 grants across all recorded years
The most common grant size was under $50K: 124 grants of 149 (83%).
Geographic Focus
Where this funder awards grants
All reported 2025 grant dollars went to recipients in California. Listed recipients include organizations in Modesto, Turlock, Merced, and San Francisco.
Grant Distribution by State
Share of 2025 grant dollars across all 28 itemized grants.
States
Cities
Is The Bright Family Foundation open to new grantees?
0%
first-time grantees, 2025
In 2025, 0 of 26 grantees (0%) were first-time recipients. How we count
- 100% of 2025 grantees were also funded in 2024. Method
- Giving grew 30% from 2022 to 2025. Method
- In 2025 it paid out 90% 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 (2018–2025). 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 2018 to 2025, annual grant giving ranged from $595K (2019) to $1.3M (2025). In 2025 it made 28 grants totaling $1.3M.
Grants by year
Grant recipients and amounts by year
| Recipient | Purpose | Amount |
|---|---|---|
| 1 individual scholarship Recipients not named | — | $265,000 |
| Children's Crisis Center Modesto, CA | Support Prevention of Child Abuse. | $200,000 |
| Uc Merced CEB Success Center Merced, CA | Educational Scholarships. | $100,000 |
| United Samaritans Foundation Turlock, CA | Living Assistance to the Needy. | $80,000 |
| Uc Merced Engineering - Uc Merced F Merced, CA | Educational Scholarships | $75,000 |
| Center for Human Services Modesto, CA | Support Teens, Substance Abuse Treatment. | $55,000 |
| CSU Stanislaus Foundation Turlock, CA | Educational | $45,000 |
| Sierra Vista Child Family Services Modesto, CA | Community Mental Health Services. | $45,000 |
| Boys Girls Clubs of Stanislaus Coun Modesto, CA | Community Programs for Children. | $35,000 |
| UCSF School of Medicine-Dept of NEU San Francisco, CA | Medical Research. | $35,000 |
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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 | $24,405,976 | $2,098,585 | $1,508,277 | $1,280,000 | 28 | $1,280,000 | $675,054 | $1,424,095 |
| 2024 | $23,798,362 | $2,058,287 | $1,246,881 | $1,077,500 | 31 | $1,077,500 | $651,264 | $1,230,452 |
| 2023 | $22,986,562 | $1,590,619 | $1,130,905 | $1,000,000 | 31 | $1,000,000 | $467,714 | $1,045,859 |
| 2022 | $22,523,467 | $1,165,227 | $1,132,934 | $982,500 | 29 | $982,500 | $312,753 | $1,000,870 |
| 2021 | $22,493,595 | $9,080,943 | $1,213,628 | $882,500 | 30 | $882,500 | $7,466,322 | $991,256 |
| 2020 | $14,626,280 | $1,234,753 | $719,246 | $681,500 | 29 | — | $428,632 | $864,673 |
| 2019 | $14,110,773 | $2,989,590 | $602,516 | $595,250 | 29 | — | $1,865,877 | $688,692 |
| 2018 | $11,723,699 | $1,721,477 | $692,869 | $650,000 | 31 | — | $1,201,322 | $672,391 |
Under IRS private-foundation payout rules, The Bright Family Foundation reported a distributable amount of $1.4M for 2025 — the minimum it must pay out in qualifying distributions.
Research compiled by Grantable AI from public sources. Last updated October 2026.
Mission & Focus Areas
No foundation mission statement is provided. The 2025 grants show support for scholarships and education, child abuse prevention, youth services, community mental health, medical services and research, assistance to people in need, and local arts.
Among the 2025 grantees, United Samaritans Foundation describes its mission as providing food and related assistance to poor and homeless people in Stanislaus County. Center for Human Services says it supports the well-being of youth and families through prevention, education, and counseling. Sierra Vista Child & Family Services describes providing services for children, youth, adults, and families, including mental health counseling and family resource centers. These are the grantees’ stated missions, not the foundation’s.
Grantmaking
In 2025, the foundation reported 28 grants totaling $1,280,000. Grant amounts ranged from $7,500 to $265,000, with a median of $25,000. Notable grants included $265,000 to an individual recipient for educational scholarships; $200,000 to Children’s Crisis Center for child abuse prevention; $100,000 to UC Merced CEB Success Center for educational scholarships; and $80,000 to United Samaritans Foundation for living assistance to people in need. Other grants included $55,000 to Center for Human Services for teen support and substance abuse treatment, $45,000 to Sierra Vista Child & Family Services for community mental health services, and $30,000 to Opera ModestoTownsend for local arts.
Leadership & Key People
Leadership team and compensation from IRS filings
The 2025 filing lists John Dunn as director and secretary; Carol Bright Tougas as director and president; Susan Hunter and Gary Hunter as directors; Rachel Tougas as director and treasurer; and Loura Erickson as director.
The Bright Family Foundation is led by Carol Bright Tougas, Director & President since 2021 (on filings since 2018); none of the 6 officers listed in 2025 report compensation.
Officers on the 2025 filing
Carol Bright Tougas
Director & President
Vice President & Treasurer → President, 2020
President → Director & President, 2021
On filings since 2018
1 hr/week
No compensation reported
Gary Hunter
Director
On filings since 2018
No compensation reported
John Dunn
Director & Secretary
On filings since 2018
0.5 hrs/week
No compensation reported
Rachel Tougas
Director & Treasurer
Director → Director & Treasurer, 2021
On filings since 2018
No compensation reported
Susan Hunter
Director
On filings since 2018
No compensation reported
Loura Erickson
Director
On filings since 2020
No compensation reported
Former officers (2)
- Former: Cathee Vaughn (2018–2021) — Director
- Former: Calvin E. Bright (2018–2020) — Director
Data from IRS Form 990 filings, 2018–2025. "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 Bright Family Foundation
How much does The Bright Family Foundation give each year?
The Bright Family Foundation gave $1.3M across 28 grants in 2025, according to its 2025 IRS Form 990-PF. In 2024 it gave $1.1M across 31 grants.
What is The Bright Family Foundation's typical grant size?
The Bright Family Foundation's median grant in 2025 was $25,000, and its average grant was $45,714, across 28 grants on its 2025 IRS Form 990-PF.
Where does The Bright Family Foundation give grants?
The Bright Family Foundation gives mostly in California: 100% of the grant dollars itemized on its 2025 IRS Form 990-PF went to recipients there. The most frequent recipient cities were Modesto, CA (16 grants), Merced, CA (2 grants), Turlock, CA (2 grants) and San Francisco, CA (2 grants).
Does The Bright Family Foundation give general operating support?
Not in 2025: none of the 28 grants with a stated purpose on The Bright Family Foundation's 2025 IRS Form 990-PF were described as general or operating support. Recurring purposes include "Support Local Arts" (4 grants), "Animal Rescue" (3 grants) and "Educational" (3 grants).
Who are The Bright Family Foundation's largest grantees?
The Bright Family Foundation's largest 2025 grantees include Children's Crisis Center ($200,000), Uc Merced CEB Success Center ($100,000) and United Samaritans Foundation ($80,000), according to its 2025 IRS Form 990-PF. It also paid 1 individual scholarship ($265,000), which are not listed by name. Together they received 30% of its itemized 2025 grant dollars.
How large is The Bright Family Foundation?
The Bright Family Foundation reported $24.4M in total assets on its 2025 IRS Form 990-PF. It paid out $1.3M in qualifying distributions that year, against a required minimum of $1.4M (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 The Bright Family Foundation fund?
No foundation mission statement is provided. The 2025 grants show support for scholarships and education, child abuse prevention, youth services, community mental health, medical services and research, assistance to people in need, and local arts. See mission & focus areas ↑
How do I apply for a grant from The Bright Family Foundation?
Contact Carol Bright Tougas. Eligibility and process details are in the grantmaking section of this profile. See how to apply ↑
What is The Bright Family Foundation's EIN?
The Bright Family Foundation's EIN (Employer Identification Number) is 77-0126942. IRS Form 990 filing data is available on this page for 2018–2025.
Data last updated October 2026. Sourced from IRS Form 990-PF filings. Research dossier generated October 2026.
Data update history
(4)
When this profile's IRS filing data changed on Grantable
- Added Form 990-PF for fiscal year 2018 (received by the IRS August 29, 2019)
- Added Form 990-PF for fiscal year 2019 (received by the IRS July 15, 2020)
- Added Form 990-PF for fiscal year 2025 (received by the IRS May 14, 2026)
- IRS filings on file for fiscal years 2020–2024
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Cite this profile
Grantable. (2026). The Bright Family Foundation funder profile. GrantGraph. Retrieved October 18, 2026, from https://grantable.co/funders/the-bright-family-foundation-morg_79a9cb8ae83d46b9b52151ea9ab286d0
BibTeX
@misc{grantable_770126942_2026,
author = {{Grantable}},
title = {{The Bright Family Foundation funder profile}},
howpublished = {GrantGraph},
year = {2026},
url = {https://grantable.co/funders/the-bright-family-foundation-morg_79a9cb8ae83d46b9b52151ea9ab286d0},
note = {Accessed 2026-10-18. 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 Bright Family 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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