The Lou Foundation
The Lou Foundation is a private foundation based in Los Altos Hills, California. Its 2025 filing reports grants to organizations including a foundation providing benefits to California Highway Patrol employees and scholarships to their dependents, and organizations connected with higher education and youth golf.
The Lou Foundation at a glance
In short: The Lou Foundation gave $75K across 33 grants in 2025 (avg $2K), mostly in California. 44% of 2025 grantees were new. Source: 2025 IRS Form 990-PF.
- Annual giving (2025)
- $75,061
- +104.7% vs 2024
- Grants made (2025)
- 33
- +153.8% vs 2024
- Average grant
- $2,275
- -19.3% vs 2024
- Median grant
- $155
- Total assets
- $1,004,846
- -6.9% vs 2024
- New grantees (estimate)
- 44% first-time grantees (7 of 16, 2025; small sample)
- Primary geography
- California (97% 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 Lou Foundation
- Accepts unsolicited proposals
- No
- Contact
Mailing address: 14360 Debell Road, Los Altos Hills, CA 94022
Phone: (650) 996-6716
Application details from Grantable's research on the foundation's public materials; confirm on its website before applying.
Who The Lou Foundation funds
How this funder distributes its grants
Top Recipients
Top 10 recipients in 2025
The largest 2025 recipient was CHP 11-99 Foundation ($25K). Together the top 10 received $74K.
Grant Size Distribution
68 grants across all recorded years
The most common grant size was under $50K: 68 grants of 68 (100%).
Geographic Focus
Where this funder awards grants
In 2025, 97% of grant dollars went to recipients in California. The reported shares for Missouri and Indiana were 1% each; South Dakota and Kansas were each reported as 0%.
Grant Distribution by State
Share of 2025 grant dollars across all 33 itemized grants.
States
Cities
Is The Lou Foundation open to new grantees?
44%
first-time grantees, 2025
In 2025, 7 of 16 grantees (44%) were first-time recipients. With only 16 grantees, that is a small sample: one grantee more or less moves the share by about 6 points. First grants averaged $2K; repeat grants $7K. How we count
Medians: $300 first-time, $1K repeat.
- 44% of 2025 grantees were also funded in 2024. Method
- Giving grew 878% from 2022 to 2025. Method
- In 2025 it paid out 79% 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 (2021–2025). 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 2021 to 2025, annual grant giving ranged from $8K (2022) to $84K (2021). In 2025 it made 33 grants totaling $75K.
Grants by year
Grant recipients and amounts by year
| Recipient | Purpose | Amount |
|---|---|---|
| CHP 11-99 Foundation Costa Mesa, CA | General | $25,000 |
| Chinese Junior Golf Foundation San Jose, CA | General | $10,000 |
| The UC Davis Foundation Davis, CA | General | $10,000 |
| Stanford University Stanford, CA | Xie Exhibition Fund | $10,000 |
| Chinese Junior Golf Foundation San Jose, CA | General | $10,000 |
| Omniware Networks Los Altos, CA | General | $2,000 |
| Omniware Networks Los Altos, CA | General | $2,000 |
| Impulse Youth Arts Organization Buena Park, CA | General | $1,001 |
| Lapoa Los Altos, CA | General | $1,000 |
| United Service Organizations San Francisco, CA | General | $1,000 |
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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 | $1,004,846 | $1,200 | $75,707 | $75,061 | 33 | $75,707 | $1,200 | $95,801 |
| 2024 | $1,079,477 | $28,382 | $38,029 | $36,660 | 13 | $37,855 | — | $79,785 |
| 2023 | $1,080,174 | — | $48,269 | $42,809 | 7 | $48,269 | $7,489 | $70,272 |
| 2022 | $1,128,443 | — | $10,020 | $7,675 | 4 | $9,409 | $382,359 | $55,442 |
| 2021 | $762,090 | — | $84,966 | $84,210 | 11 | — | $31,084 | $85,559 |
Under IRS private-foundation payout rules, The Lou Foundation reported a distributable amount of $96K 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 reported grants include support for organizations with varied purposes. The CHP 11-99 Foundation describes its mission as providing benefits to California Highway Patrol employees and awarding scholarships to their dependents. The UC Davis Foundation says its mission is to secure, steward, and manage private gifts for UC Davis. The National Police Association says it educates supporters of law enforcement on how to help police departments accomplish their goals.
Grantmaking
In filing year 2025, the foundation made 33 grants totaling $75,061. Grant amounts ranged from $10 to $25,000, with a median of $155. Among the largest grants were $25,000 to the CHP 11-99 Foundation, $10,000 to the Chinese Junior Golf Foundation, $10,000 to the UC Davis Foundation, and $10,000 to Stanford University’s Xie Exhibition Fund.
The foundation states in its 2023 filing that it makes contributions only to preselected charitable organizations and does not accept unsolicited requests.
Leadership & Key People
Leadership team and compensation from IRS filings
The 2025 filing lists Tianchun Lou as president, and Yue Zhao and Jin Pi as directors.
The Lou Foundation is led by Tianchun Lou, President on every filing since 2021; none of the 3 officers listed in 2025 report compensation.
Officers on the 2025 filing
Tianchun Lou
President
On filings since 2021
2 hrs/week
No compensation reported
Jin Pi
Director
On filings since 2021
0.5 hrs/week
No compensation reported
Yue Zhao
Director
On filings since 2021
0.5 hrs/week
No compensation reported
Data from IRS Form 990 filings, 2021–2025. "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 Lou Foundation
How much does The Lou Foundation give each year?
The Lou Foundation gave $75K across 33 grants in 2025, according to its 2025 IRS Form 990-PF. In 2024 it gave $37K across 13 grants.
What is The Lou Foundation's typical grant size?
The Lou Foundation's median grant in 2025 was $155, and its average grant was $2,275, across 33 grants on its 2025 IRS Form 990-PF. Organizations receiving their first grant from The Lou Foundation that year got $2K on average.
Where does The Lou Foundation give grants?
The Lou Foundation gives mostly in California: 97% of the grant dollars itemized on its 2025 IRS Form 990-PF went to recipients there. The most frequent recipient cities were Kansas City, MO (7 grants), Sacramento, CA (6 grants), Los Altos, CA (3 grants) and San Francisco, CA (3 grants).
Does The Lou Foundation give general operating support?
Yes: 97% of The Lou Foundation's 2025 grants with a stated purpose (32 of 33) were for general or operating support, per its 2025 IRS Form 990-PF.
Who are The Lou Foundation's largest grantees?
The Lou Foundation's largest 2025 grantees include CHP 11-99 Foundation ($25,000), Chinese Junior Golf Foundation ($20,000 across 2 grants) and The UC Davis Foundation ($10,000), according to its 2025 IRS Form 990-PF. Together they received 73% of its itemized 2025 grant dollars.
How large is The Lou Foundation?
The Lou Foundation reported $1.0M in total assets on its 2025 IRS Form 990-PF. It paid out $76K in qualifying distributions that year, against a required minimum of $96K (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 Lou Foundation fund?
No mission statement for the foundation is provided. Its reported grants include support for organizations with varied purposes. The CHP 11-99 Foundation describes its mission as providing benefits to California Highway Patrol employees and awarding scholarships to their dependents. See mission & focus areas ↑
How do I apply for a grant from The Lou Foundation?
The Lou Foundation does not accept unsolicited proposals, according to Grantable's research on its published guidelines.
What is The Lou Foundation's EIN?
The Lou Foundation's EIN (Employer Identification Number) is 81-3676636. IRS Form 990 filing data is available on this page for 2021–2025.
Does The Lou Foundation 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
(6)
When this profile's IRS filing data changed on Grantable
- Updated Form 990-PF for fiscal year 2021 (received by the IRS November 9, 2021)
- Updated Form 990-PF for fiscal year 2022 (received by the IRS November 29, 2022)
- Updated Form 990-PF for fiscal year 2023 (received by the IRS December 17, 2023)
- Updated Form 990-PF for fiscal year 2024 (received by the IRS February 9, 2025)
- Updated Form 990-PF for fiscal year 2025 (received by the IRS February 2, 2026)
- IRS filings on file for fiscal years 2021–2025
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Cite this profile
Grantable. (2026). The Lou Foundation funder profile. GrantGraph. Retrieved October 12, 2026, from https://grantable.co/funders/the-lou-foundation-morg_b427bbcea753435bbbc07afc67845e55
BibTeX
@misc{grantable_813676636_2026,
author = {{Grantable}},
title = {{The Lou Foundation funder profile}},
howpublished = {GrantGraph},
year = {2026},
url = {https://grantable.co/funders/the-lou-foundation-morg_b427bbcea753435bbbc07afc67845e55},
note = {Accessed 2026-10-12. 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 Lou 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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