The Daba Fund
The Daba Fund is a private foundation based in Bethesda, Maryland. Its 2025 filing reports 12 grants totaling $580,000 to charitable organizations, including organizations working in food and agriculture, LGBTQIA+ community support, reproductive health, and social justice.
The Daba Fund at a glance
In short: The Daba Fund gave $580K across 12 grants in 2025 (avg $48K), top state New York. Source: 2025 IRS Form 990-PF.
- Annual giving (2025)
- $580,000
- +20.8% vs 2024
- Grants made (2025)
- 12
- +0.0% vs 2024
- Average grant
- $48,333
- +20.8% vs 2024
- Median grant
- $50,000
- Total assets
- $13,189,696
- +11.6% vs 2024
- Primary geography
- New York (34% of itemized 2025 grant dollars)
- Latest 990 filing
- Form 990-PF, 2025 View filing
Data from IRS Form 990-PF, 2025; updated October 2026.
How to apply to The Daba Fund
- Accepts unsolicited proposals
- No
- How to Apply
-
The foundation’s 2025 filing states that it makes contributions only to preselected charitable organizations and does not accept unsolicited requests for funds.
- Contact
Mailing address: 4801 Hampden Lane 106, Bethesda, MD 20814
Phone: (301) 761-4433
Application details from Grantable's research on the foundation's public materials; confirm on its website before applying.
Who The Daba Fund funds
How this funder distributes its grants
Top Recipients
Top 10 recipients in 2025
The largest 2025 recipient was Black and Pink Inc ($50K). Together the top 10 received $500K.
Organizations only. It also paid 1 grant to individuals ($50,000), which are not listed by name.
Grant Size Distribution
44 grants across all recorded years
The most common grant size was under $50K: 23 grants of 44 (52%).
Geographic Focus
Where this funder awards grants
The 2025 grants went to organizations in multiple states and locations. By recipient state, grant dollars were distributed most heavily to New York (34%), followed by Vermont (17%), Nebraska (9%), Arkansas (9%), and Tennessee (9%). Listed recipients were also located in Puerto Rico, Washington, DC, and California.
Grant Distribution by State
Share of 2025 grant dollars across all 12 itemized grants.
States
Cities
How The Daba Fund gives
- 50% of 2025 grantees were also funded in 2024. Method
- Giving grew 84% from 2022 to 2025. Method
- In 2025 it paid out 103% of its IRS minimum distribution (the 5% rule). Method
Estimate from itemized grant lists in IRS Form 990-PF filings (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 $175K (2021) to $580K (2025). In 2025 it made 12 grants totaling $580K.
Grants by year
Grant recipients and amounts by year
| Recipient | Purpose | Amount |
|---|---|---|
| Black and Pink Inc Omaha, NE | Unrestricted Grant Award | $50,000 |
| Griffin-Gracy Educational Retreat & Historical Center Little Rock, AR | House of GG/the Oasis Unrestricted Award | $50,000 |
| The Center for an Agricultural Economy Hardwick, VT | Hardwick Food Hub Unrestricted Award | $50,000 |
| Gays and Lesbians Living in a Transgender Society Inc Ozone Park, NY | Unrestricted Grant Award | $50,000 |
| Susu Community Farm Inc Newfane, VT | Unrestricted Grant Award | $50,000 |
| Sisterreach Memphis, TN | My Sistah's House Unrestricted Award | $50,000 |
| Plenitud Las Marias, PR | Unrestricted Grant for Plenitud VT | $50,000 |
| Amalgamated Charitable Foundation Inc Washington, DC | Emergent Fund Unrestricted Grant Award | $50,000 |
| 1 grant to individuals Recipients not named | — | $50,000 |
| For the Gworls Brooklyn, NY | Unrestricted Grant Award | $50,000 |
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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 | $13,189,696 | $1,847,806 | $691,324 | $580,000 | 12 | $619,666 | $1,776,148 | $599,222 |
| 2024 | $11,820,234 | $-11,392 | $597,971 | $480,000 | 12 | $526,703 | $248,848 | $582,765 |
| 2023 | $11,169,219 | $257,916 | $596,281 | $485,000 | 10 | $529,515 | $246,830 | $528,976 |
| 2022 | $10,286,772 | $269,200 | $423,945 | $315,000 | 8 | $359,818 | $205,073 | $538,245 |
| 2021 | $12,366,798 | $1,153,105 | $327,560 | $175,000 | 2 | $217,362 | $1,072,907 | $572,573 |
| 2020 | $11,095,241 | $10,152,066 | $480,688 | $400,000 | 1 | — | $120,454 | $438,078 |
Under IRS private-foundation payout rules, The Daba Fund reported a distributable amount of $599K 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 Daba Fund is provided. Its 2025 grants show support for organizations with varied missions. For example, SUSU Community Farm describes itself as an Afro-Indigenous stewarded farm offering life-affirming spaces, food donations, and educational programming for Black, Indigenous, and people of color. The Okra Project says it supports underserved members of the LGBTQIA+ community, particularly Black trans people. An individual recipient Farm Institute describes its work as furthering education and research on sustainable agriculture and food sovereignty.
Other 2025 grantees describe work in reproductive health and education (SisterReach), and building a self-determined economy for Black, Indigenous, people of color, and historically low-income communities (Possibility Labs). Amalgamated Charitable Foundation, now described as Assets Under Movement (AUM+), says it activates capital for democracy and working people.
Grantmaking
In 2025, The Daba Fund awarded 12 grants totaling $580,000. Grants ranged from $30,000 to $50,000, with a median grant of $50,000. The 2025 grants included $50,000 each to Black and Pink Inc.; Griffin-Gracy Educational Retreat & Historical Center; The Center for an Agricultural Economy; Gays and Lesbians Living in a Transgender Society Inc.; SUSU Community Farm; SisterReach; Plenitud; Amalgamated Charitable Foundation; an individual recipient Farm Institute; For the Gworls; and The Okra Project. Possibility Labs received $30,000.
Leadership & Key People
Leadership team and compensation from IRS filings
DEVORAH A ALFOND is listed on the 2025 filing as director, president, and secretary.
The Daba Fund is led by Devorah A. Alfond, Director, President & Secretary on every filing since 2020 — the only officer listed, and uncompensated.
Officers on the 2025 filing
Devorah A. Alfond
Director, President & Secretary
On filings since 2020
1 hr/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 The Daba Fund
How much does The Daba Fund give each year?
The Daba Fund gave $580K across 12 grants in 2025, according to its 2025 IRS Form 990-PF. In 2024 it gave $480K across 12 grants.
What is The Daba Fund's typical grant size?
The Daba Fund's median grant in 2025 was $50,000, and its average grant was $48,333, across 12 grants on its 2025 IRS Form 990-PF.
Where does The Daba Fund give grants?
The Daba Fund's top state is New York, with 34% of the grant dollars itemized on its 2025 IRS Form 990-PF. The next largest states were Vermont (17%) and Nebraska (9%). The most frequent recipient cities were Brooklyn, NY (2 grants).
Does The Daba Fund give general operating support?
Yes: 100% of The Daba Fund's 2025 grants with a stated purpose (12 of 12) were for general or operating support, per its 2025 IRS Form 990-PF.
Who are The Daba Fund's largest grantees?
The Daba Fund's largest 2025 grantees include Black and Pink Inc ($50,000), Griffin-Gracy Educational Retreat & Historical Center ($50,000) and The Center for an Agricultural Economy ($50,000), according to its 2025 IRS Form 990-PF. It also paid 1 grant to individuals ($50,000), which are not listed by name. Together they received 26% of its itemized 2025 grant dollars.
How large is The Daba Fund?
The Daba Fund reported $13.2M in total assets on its 2025 IRS Form 990-PF. It paid out $620K in qualifying distributions that year, against a required minimum of $599K (roughly 5% of its investment assets).
What does The Daba Fund fund?
No mission statement for The Daba Fund is provided. Its 2025 grants show support for organizations with varied missions. See mission & focus areas ↑
How do I apply for a grant from The Daba Fund?
The foundation’s 2025 filing 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 The Daba Fund's EIN?
The Daba Fund's EIN (Employer Identification Number) is 84-3215732. IRS Form 990 filing data is available on this page for 2020–2025.
Does The Daba Fund 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
(2)
When this profile's IRS filing data changed on Grantable
- Added Form 990-PF for fiscal year 2025 (received by the IRS June 24, 2026)
- IRS filings on file for fiscal years 2020–2024
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Cite this profile
Grantable. (2026). The Daba Fund funder profile. GrantGraph. Retrieved October 13, 2026, from https://grantable.co/funders/the-daba-fund-morg_a2e009f6973f49608a0d2d7c42011f3f
BibTeX
@misc{grantable_843215732_2026,
author = {{Grantable}},
title = {{The Daba Fund funder profile}},
howpublished = {GrantGraph},
year = {2026},
url = {https://grantable.co/funders/the-daba-fund-morg_a2e009f6973f49608a0d2d7c42011f3f},
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 The Daba Fund'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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