The Drum Foundation
The Drum Foundation is a private foundation based in San Francisco, California. Its 2025 grants supported schools, scholarship and tuition-assistance efforts, and religious organizations.
The Drum Foundation at a glance
In short: The Drum Foundation gave $179K across 25 grants in 2025 (avg $7K), mostly in California. 9% of 2025 grantees were new. Source: 2025 IRS Form 990-PF.
- Annual giving (2025)
- $179,000
- +15.1% vs 2024
- Grants made (2025)
- 25
- +13.6% vs 2024
- Average grant
- $7,160
- +1.3% vs 2024
- Median grant
- $5,000
- Total assets
- $3,558,560
- -3.8% vs 2024
- New grantees (estimate)
- 9% first-time grantees (2 of 22, 2025; small sample)
- Primary geography
- California (77% of itemized 2025 grant dollars)
- Latest 990 filing
- Form 990-PF, 2025 View filing
Data from IRS Form 990-PF, 2025; updated September 2026. New grantees are estimated by matching recipient names across years (methodology).
How to apply to The Drum Foundation
- Accepts unsolicited proposals
- No
- How to Apply
-
The foundation makes contributions only to preselected charitable organizations and does not accept unsolicited requests.
- Contact
Mailing address: 235 Montgomery Street 735, San Francisco, CA 94104
Phone: (415) 651-1915
Application details from Grantable's research on the foundation's public materials; confirm on its website before applying.
Who The Drum Foundation funds
How this funder distributes its grants
Top Recipients
Top 10 recipients in 2025
The largest 2025 recipient was Carmelite Monastery of St Joseph ($35K). Together the top 10 received $118K.
Organizations only. It also paid 3 individual scholarships ($27,500), which are not listed by name.
Grant Size Distribution
114 grants across all recorded years
The most common grant size was under $50K: 114 grants of 114 (100%).
Geographic Focus
Where this funder awards grants
In 2025, 77% of grant dollars went to recipients in California, 20% to Illinois, 3% to New Jersey, and 1% to Michigan. The listed grants included recipients in California and other states.
Grant Distribution by State
Share of 2025 grant dollars across all 25 itemized grants.
Cities
Is The Drum Foundation open to new grantees?
9%
first-time grantees, 2025
In 2025, 2 of 22 grantees (9%) were first-time recipients. With only 22 grantees, that is a small sample: one grantee more or less moves the share by about 5 points. First grants averaged $5K; repeat grants $7K. How we count
Medians: $5K first-time, $5K repeat.
- 86% of 2025 grantees were also funded in 2024. Method
- Giving grew 20% from 2022 to 2025. Method
- In 2025 it paid out 88% 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 (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 $149K (2022) to $179K (2025). In 2025 it made 25 grants totaling $179K.
Grants by year
Grant recipients and amounts by year
| Recipient | Purpose | Amount |
|---|---|---|
| Carmelite Monastery of St Joseph Des Plaines, IL | General Support for Monestary | $35,000 |
| Franciscan Missionary Sisters Our L Soquel, CA | Support St Clare's Retreat and Convent | $15,000 |
| Immaculate Conception Academy San Francisco, CA | Contribution to Scholarship Fund for High School | $15,000 |
| 3 individual scholarships Recipients not named | — | $27,500 |
| Saint James School San Francisco, CA | General Support for K to 8TH Grade School | $12,500 |
| St Peter's School San Francisco, CA | General Support for K to 8TH Grade School | $10,000 |
| De Marillac Academy San Francisco, CA | General Support for 4TH to 8TH Grade School | $10,000 |
| Lasallian Christian Brothers Founda Napa, CA | Support Scholarhships | $5,000 |
| Mission Dolores Academy San Francisco, CA | General Support for K-8TH Grade School | $5,000 |
| St Anthony-Immaculate Conception SC San Francisco, CA | General Support for K to 8TH Grade School | $5,000 |
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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 | $3,558,560 | $151,920 | $290,676 | $179,000 | 25 | $232,419 | $95,663 | $262,999 |
| 2024 | $3,697,316 | $391,045 | $276,551 | $155,500 | 22 | $220,994 | $335,488 | $243,474 |
| 2023 | $3,582,822 | $141,870 | $266,729 | $151,000 | 23 | $215,361 | $90,502 | $226,439 |
| 2022 | $3,707,681 | $125,233 | $263,606 | $149,000 | 21 | $210,980 | $75,703 | $231,582 |
| 2021 | $3,846,054 | $198,667 | $277,031 | $159,500 | 23 | $220,686 | $142,322 | $255,083 |
| 2020 | $3,924,418 | $142,073 | $266,068 | $159,500 | 23 | — | $91,878 | $221,246 |
Under IRS private-foundation payout rules, The Drum Foundation reported a distributable amount of $263K 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 foundation is provided. Its listed grants show support for educational and religious organizations. In 2025, grant purposes included school tuition assistance, scholarships, general support for schools, and support for a monastery and a retreat and convent.
Grantees describe their own missions in varied terms. Thomas Aquinas College says its mission is to provide a liberal education “by the light of the Catholic faith.” Keep the Faith Inc. describes itself as a Catholic lay apostolate devoted to disseminating Catholic doctrine. St Peter’s School (Philadelphia) describes itself as an independent elementary school serving preschool through eighth grade.
Grantmaking
The foundation made 25 grants totaling $179,000 in 2025. Grants ranged from $1,000 to $35,000, with a median grant of $5,000. Notable grants included $35,000 to Carmelite Monastery of St Joseph for general support; $15,000 each to Franciscan Missionary Sisters Our L for support of St Clare’s Retreat and Convent, and Immaculate Conception Academy for its high-school scholarship fund; and $12,500 to an individual recipient High School for tuition assistance.
Leadership & Key People
Leadership team and compensation from IRS filings
The 2025 filing lists Janet Abbott as director and president, and Philip Hudner as director, treasurer, and secretary.
The Drum Foundation is led by Janet Abbott, Director & President on every filing since 2020; all 2 officers listed in 2025 are compensated.
Officers on the 2025 filing
Janet Abbott
Director & President
On filings since 2020
5 hrs/week
$25K (2020) → $25K (2025)
Philip Hudner
Director, Treasurer & Secretary
On filings since 2020
5 hrs/week
$25K (2020) → $25K (2025)
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.
Compensation Overview
From 2025 IRS filing
The highest reported compensation on the 2025 filing was $25K, to Janet Abbott (Director). 2 officers or directors reported compensation on that filing.
Frequently asked questions about The Drum Foundation
How much does The Drum Foundation give each year?
The Drum Foundation gave $179K across 25 grants in 2025, according to its 2025 IRS Form 990-PF. In 2024 it gave $156K across 22 grants.
What is The Drum Foundation's typical grant size?
The Drum Foundation's median grant in 2025 was $5,000, and its average grant was $7,160, across 25 grants on its 2025 IRS Form 990-PF. Organizations receiving their first grant from The Drum Foundation that year got $5K on average.
Where does The Drum Foundation give grants?
The Drum Foundation gives mostly in California: 77% of the grant dollars itemized on its 2025 IRS Form 990-PF went to recipients there. The next largest state was Illinois (20%). The most frequent recipient cities were San Francisco, CA (9 grants) and Burlingame, CA (2 grants).
Does The Drum Foundation give general operating support?
Yes: 60% of The Drum Foundation's 2025 grants with a stated purpose (15 of 25) were for general or operating support, per its 2025 IRS Form 990-PF.
Who are The Drum Foundation's largest grantees?
The Drum Foundation's largest 2025 grantees include Carmelite Monastery of St Joseph ($35,000), Franciscan Missionary Sisters Our L ($15,000) and Immaculate Conception Academy ($15,000), according to its 2025 IRS Form 990-PF. It also paid 3 individual scholarships ($27,500), which are not listed by name. Together they received 36% of its itemized 2025 grant dollars.
How large is The Drum Foundation?
The Drum Foundation reported $3.6M in total assets on its 2025 IRS Form 990-PF. It paid out $232K in qualifying distributions that year, against a required minimum of $263K (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 Drum Foundation fund?
No mission statement for the foundation is provided. Its listed grants show support for educational and religious organizations. In 2025, grant purposes included school tuition assistance, scholarships, general support for schools, and support for a monastery and a retreat and convent. See mission & focus areas ↑
How do I apply for a grant from The Drum Foundation?
The foundation makes contributions only to preselected charitable organizations and does not accept unsolicited requests. Eligibility and process details are in the grantmaking section of this profile. See how to apply ↑
What is The Drum Foundation's EIN?
The Drum Foundation's EIN (Employer Identification Number) is 94-6067469. IRS Form 990 filing data is available on this page for 2020–2025.
Does The Drum Foundation accept unsolicited proposals?
No, according to Grantable's research on the foundation's published guidelines. See how to apply ↑
Data last updated September 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 4, 2021)
- Updated Form 990-PF for fiscal year 2021 (received by the IRS May 16, 2022)
- Updated Form 990-PF for fiscal year 2022 (received by the IRS August 29, 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 May 14, 2025)
- Added Form 990-PF for fiscal year 2025 (received by the IRS May 12, 2026)
Explore Open Grants
Browse active grant opportunities in The Drum Foundation's focus areas in our free grants database
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Cite this profile
Grantable. (2026). The Drum Foundation funder profile. GrantGraph. Retrieved October 14, 2026, from https://grantable.co/funders/the-drum-foundation-morg_2d418bf0c4f24c2384814a816a0c0b0e
BibTeX
@misc{grantable_946067469_2026,
author = {{Grantable}},
title = {{The Drum Foundation funder profile}},
howpublished = {GrantGraph},
year = {2026},
url = {https://grantable.co/funders/the-drum-foundation-morg_2d418bf0c4f24c2384814a816a0c0b0e},
note = {Accessed 2026-10-14. 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 Drum 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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