The John H & Cynthia Lee
The John H & Cynthia Lee is a private foundation based in Manhattan Beach, California. It supports selected charitable organizations and carries out educational and arts-related activities, including student scholarships, mentorship and college access, support for educators, and studio space and development opportunities for artists.
The John H & Cynthia Lee at a glance
In short: The John H & Cynthia Lee gave $1.4M across 24 grants in 2025 (avg $57K), mostly in California. 21% of 2025 grantees were new. Source: 2025 IRS Form 990-PF.
- Annual giving (2025)
- $1,358,769
- -5.5% vs 2024
- Grants made (2025)
- 24
- -14.3% vs 2024
- Average grant
- $56,615
- +10.3% vs 2024
- Median grant
- $27,500
- Total assets
- $297,990,294
- +14.1% vs 2024
- New grantees (estimate)
- 21% first-time grantees (5 of 24, 2025; small sample)
- Primary geography
- California (93% 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 John H & Cynthia Lee
- Accepts unsolicited proposals
- No
- How to Apply
-
The foundation does not accept unsolicited requests for funds and states that it makes contributions only to preselected charitable organizations.
- Contact
Mailing address: 1300 Highland Ave 213, Manhattan Beach, CA 90266
Phone: (310) 383-6201
Application details from Grantable's research on the foundation's public materials; confirm on its website before applying.
Who The John H & Cynthia Lee funds
How this funder distributes its grants
Top Recipients
Top 10 recipients in 2025
The largest 2025 recipient was Our Lady Queen of Angels Housing Alliance ($334K). Together the top 10 received $1.2M.
Grant Size Distribution
103 grants across all recorded years
The most common grant size was under $50K: 69 grants of 103 (67%).
Geographic Focus
Where this funder awards grants
The 2025 grants went primarily to organizations in California, which received 93% of grant dollars; organizations in Oregon received 7%. The filing lists 0% for New York. Named California grantees include organizations in Los Angeles, Long Beach, El Segundo, Hawthorne, and other communities. Lincoln County Foundation in Newport, Oregon, received $100,000.
Grant Distribution by State
Share of 2025 grant dollars across all 24 itemized grants.
Cities
Is The John H & Cynthia Lee open to new grantees?
21%
first-time grantees, 2025
In 2025, 5 of 24 grantees (21%) were first-time recipients. With only 24 grantees, that is a small sample: one grantee more or less moves the share by about 4 points. First grants averaged $32K; repeat grants $63K. How we count
Medians: $25K first-time, $30K repeat.
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 $438K (2022) to $1.4M (2024). In 2025 it made 24 grants totaling $1.4M.
Grants by year
Grant recipients and amounts by year
| Recipient | Purpose | Amount |
|---|---|---|
| Our Lady Queen of Angels Housing Alliance Newport Beach, CA | General Purpose | $334,000 |
| Usopf Colorado Springs, CA | General Purpose | $167,000 |
| California Science Center Los Angeles, CA | Education | $155,717 |
| Catholic Schools Collaborative Los Angeles, CA | General Purpose | $125,000 |
| Lincoln County Foundation Newport, OR | Education | $100,000 |
| The Mission Together Church Castro Valley, CA | General Purpose | $100,000 |
| St Maria Goretti Catholic School Long Beach, CA | Education | $100,000 |
| Pueblo Nuevo Education and Development Los Angeles, CA | Education | $50,000 |
| Vistamar School El Segundo, CA | Education | $40,000 |
| Reach Academy for Young Men Beverly Hills, CA | Education | $30,000 |
Ready to take the next step with The John H & Cynthia Lee?
Financial History
Multi-year comparison from IRS filings
| Filing year | Total Assets | Revenue | Expenses | Grants paid | Grants | Qualifying Distributions | Net Investment Income |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2025 | $297,990,294 | $33,746,300 | $11,121,807 | $1,358,769 | 24 | $11,378,998 | $31,395,508 |
| 2024 | $261,121,227 | $43,848,016 | $9,428,602 | $1,437,800 | 28 | $9,118,156 | $28,853,674 |
| 2023 | $193,137,525 | $14,185,856 | $7,337,615 | $856,200 | 7 | $3,734,306 | $8,486,068 |
| 2022 | $150,545,667 | $8,948,233 | $7,876,503 | $437,559 | 16 | $6,150,855 | $4,652,485 |
| 2021 | $180,146,566 | $55,938,171 | $11,327,738 | $689,550 | 28 | $8,058,734 | $5,994,907 |
| 2020 | $132,268,339 | $46,590,295 | $5,794,798 | $950,027 | 26 | — | $1,974,043 |
Research compiled by Grantable AI from public sources. Last updated September 2026.
Mission & Focus Areas
The foundation’s filing describes its Onward programs as helping selected high school students through personalized scholarship, mentorship, and college-access support, and supporting the learning of leaders and teachers through curriculum, instructional leadership, data assessment, and development grants. The filing also describes Depot Hill Creative as supporting artists with studio space, art classes, and opportunities for artistic development and practice. It reports that an individual recipient St. Matthias Academy educational expenses include tuition fees, grants, school construction, and other religious and educational expenses.
The 2025 grants show support for education and general-purpose activities. Among the grantees, Catholic Schools Collaborative says it supports multi-school efforts in academics, operations, leadership, and parent engagement at Catholic PK–8 schools in lower-income Los Angeles communities. Lincoln County Foundation says it assists people in Lincoln County, Oregon, particularly young people, through grants and scholarships. Other supported organizations describe work in student education and wellness, youth leadership and mentorship, educational access, and assistance with tuition and educational expenses.
Grantmaking
In 2025, the foundation reported 24 grants totaling $1,358,769. Grant amounts ranged from $201 to $334,000, with a median of $27,500.
The largest reported grants included $334,000 to Our Lady Queen of Angels Housing Alliance for general purposes; $167,000 to USOPF for general purposes; $155,717 to California Science Center for education; and $125,000 to Catholic Schools Collaborative for general purposes. Other notable grants included $100,000 each to Lincoln County Foundation for education, The Mission Together Church for general purposes, and St Maria Goretti Catholic School for education.
Leadership & Key People
Leadership team and compensation from IRS filings
The 2025 filing lists John H Smet as president and Cynthia Lee Smet as secretary.
The John H & Cynthia Lee is led by John H. Smet, President on every filing since 2020; none of the 2 officers listed in 2025 report compensation.
Officers on the 2025 filing
John H. Smet
President
On filings since 2020
30 hrs/week
No compensation reported
Cynthia Lee Smet
Secretary
On filings since 2020
30 hrs/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 John H & Cynthia Lee
How much does The John H & Cynthia Lee give each year?
The John H & Cynthia Lee gave $1.4M across 24 grants in 2025, according to its 2025 IRS Form 990-PF. In 2024 it gave $1.4M across 28 grants.
What is The John H & Cynthia Lee's typical grant size?
The John H & Cynthia Lee's median grant in 2025 was $27,500, and its average grant was $56,615, across 24 grants on its 2025 IRS Form 990-PF. Organizations receiving their first grant from The John H & Cynthia Lee that year got $32K on average.
Where does The John H & Cynthia Lee give grants?
The John H & Cynthia Lee gives mostly in California: 93% of the grant dollars itemized on its 2025 IRS Form 990-PF went to recipients there. The next largest state was Oregon (7%). The most frequent recipient cities were Los Angeles, CA (8 grants) and Manhattan Beach, CA (2 grants).
Does The John H & Cynthia Lee give general operating support?
Yes: 46% of The John H & Cynthia Lee's 2025 grants with a stated purpose (11 of 24) were for general or operating support, per its 2025 IRS Form 990-PF. Recurring purposes include "Education" (13 grants).
Who are The John H & Cynthia Lee's largest grantees?
The John H & Cynthia Lee's largest 2025 grantees include Our Lady Queen of Angels Housing Alliance ($334,000), Usopf ($167,000) and California Science Center ($155,717), according to its 2025 IRS Form 990-PF. Together they received 48% of its itemized 2025 grant dollars.
How large is The John H & Cynthia Lee?
The John H & Cynthia Lee reported $298.0M in total assets on its 2025 IRS Form 990-PF. Its revenue that year was $33.7M.
What does The John H & Cynthia Lee fund?
The foundation’s filing describes its Onward programs as helping selected high school students through personalized scholarship, mentorship, and college-access support, and supporting the learning of leaders and teachers through curriculum, instructional leadership, data assessment, and development grants. See mission & focus areas ↑
How do I apply for a grant from The John H & Cynthia Lee?
The foundation does not accept unsolicited requests for funds and states that it makes contributions only to preselected charitable organizations. Eligibility and process details are in the grantmaking section of this profile. See how to apply ↑
What is The John H & Cynthia Lee's EIN?
The John H & Cynthia Lee's EIN (Employer Identification Number) is 95-4399946. IRS Form 990 filing data is available on this page for 2020–2025.
Does The John H & Cynthia Lee 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 August 25, 2026)
- IRS filings on file for fiscal years 2020–2024
Live grants for the work The John H & Cynthia Lee funds
Education Open opportunities, soonest deadline first.
Explore Open Grants
Browse active grant opportunities in The John H & Cynthia Lee's focus areas in our free grants database
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Cite this profile
Grantable. (2026). The John H & Cynthia Lee funder profile. GrantGraph. Retrieved October 18, 2026, from https://grantable.co/funders/the-john-h-and-cynthia-lee-morg_8d707406a6d54240aef0ece252aa2242
BibTeX
@misc{grantable_954399946_2026,
author = {{Grantable}},
title = {{The John H \& Cynthia Lee funder profile}},
howpublished = {GrantGraph},
year = {2026},
url = {https://grantable.co/funders/the-john-h-and-cynthia-lee-morg_8d707406a6d54240aef0ece252aa2242},
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 John H & Cynthia Lee'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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