The Lucky One Foundation
The Lucky One Foundation is a private foundation based in Garden City, New York. Its 2025 filing reports grants to charitable organizations, with the largest share of grant dollars going to California recipients. The foundation states that it makes contributions only to preselected charitable organizations.
The Lucky One Foundation at a glance
In short: The Lucky One Foundation gave $753K across 47 grants in 2025 (avg $16K), mostly in California. 64% of 2025 grantees were new. Source: 2025 IRS Form 990-PF.
- Annual giving (2025)
- $752,500
- +13.2% vs 2024
- Grants made (2025)
- 47
- +46.9% vs 2024
- Average grant
- $16,011
- -23.0% vs 2024
- Median grant
- $10,000
- Total assets
- $5,677,335
- -0.6% vs 2024
- New grantees (estimate)
- 64% first-time grantees (30 of 47, 2025)
- Primary geography
- California (87% 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 Lucky One Foundation
- Accepts unsolicited proposals
- No
- How to Apply
-
The foundation does not accept unsolicited requests for funds and states that it contributes only to preselected charitable organizations.
- Contact
Mailing address: 1325 Franklin Avenue 560, Garden City, NY 11530
Phone: (516) 508-9623
Application details from Grantable's research on the foundation's public materials; confirm on its website before applying.
Who The Lucky One Foundation funds
How this funder distributes its grants
Top Recipients
Top 10 recipients in 2025
The largest 2025 recipient was Ganna Walska Lotus Land ($100K). Together the top 10 received $478K.
Grant Size Distribution
165 grants across all recorded years
The most common grant size was under $50K: 155 grants of 165 (94%).
Geographic Focus
Where this funder awards grants
In 2025, 87% of grant dollars went to California recipients, 6% to New York, 5% to Massachusetts, and 1% each to Minnesota and the District of Columbia. The listed grants include recipients in Santa Barbara and other California locations, as well as recipients in Massachusetts, New York, and Minnesota.
Grant Distribution by State
Share of 2025 grant dollars across all 47 itemized grants.
States
Cities
Is The Lucky One Foundation open to new grantees?
64%
first-time grantees, 2025
In 2025, 30 of 47 grantees (64%) were first-time recipients. First grants averaged $11K; repeat grants $25K. How we count
Medians: $5K first-time, $15K repeat.
- 34% of 2025 grantees were also funded in 2024. Method
- Giving grew 73% from 2022 to 2025. Method
- In 2025 it paid out 212% of its IRS minimum distribution (the 5% rule). Method
Estimate from itemized grant lists in IRS Form 990-PF filings (2019–2025). 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 2019 to 2025, annual grant giving ranged from $345K (2019) to $753K (2025). In 2025 it made 47 grants totaling $753K.
Grants by year
Grant recipients and amounts by year
| Recipient | Purpose | Amount |
|---|---|---|
| Ganna Walska Lotus Land Santa Barbara, CA | Operational | $100,000 |
| The Riviera Ridge School Santa Barbara, CA | Operational | $90,000 |
| Moxi the Wolf Museum Santa Barbara, CA | Operational | $70,000 |
| Music Academy of the West Santa Barbara, CA | Operational | $55,000 |
| Reboot Inc Longmeadow, MA | Operational | $35,000 |
| Bellosguardo Foundation Inc Santa Barbara, CA | Operational | $32,500 |
| The Redford Center Inc San Francisco, CA | Operational | $25,000 |
| Uc Regents Arts and Lectures Santa Barbara, CA | Operational | $25,000 |
| United Way of Santa Barbara Santa Barbara, CA | Operational | $25,000 |
| Limitless Horizons Ixil Santa Cruz, CA | Operational | $20,000 |
Ready to take the next step with The Lucky One Foundation?
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 | $5,677,335 | $746,702 | $778,471 | $752,500 | 47 | $758,391 | $740,786 | $357,331 |
| 2024 | $5,709,184 | $590,256 | $677,140 | $665,000 | 32 | $670,931 | $584,250 | $359,945 |
| 2023 | $5,796,105 | $210,868 | $501,299 | $490,000 | 27 | $495,716 | $205,285 | $338,193 |
| 2022 | $6,086,536 | $79,355 | $460,372 | $435,000 | 24 | $443,912 | $85,617 | $359,809 |
| 2021 | $6,467,565 | $644,661 | $364,905 | $355,000 | 35 | $358,212 | $638,167 | $415,879 |
| 2020 | $6,187,832 | $214,052 | $369,891 | $350,000 | 29 | — | $208,809 | $363,693 |
| 2019 | $6,343,668 | $408,831 | $362,895 | $345,000 | 21 | — | $403,951 | $347,833 |
Under IRS private-foundation payout rules, The Lucky One Foundation reported a distributable amount of $357K 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 2025 grants went to organizations whose work includes arts and culture, education, environmental learning, humanitarian relief, and Jewish cultural engagement. For example, the Riviera Ridge School describes its mission as providing individualized learning and inspiring academic excellence and social responsibility; the Music Academy of the West says it provides educational and performance experiences for classically trained musicians and diverse audiences. Explore Ecology describes its work as environmental education and nature-based learning, while Shelterbox USA says it delivers relief supplies to people made homeless by disasters. These are the grantees’ descriptions of their own work, not stated focus areas of the foundation.
Grantmaking
In filing year 2025, the foundation reported 47 grants totaling $752,500. Grants ranged from $2,500 to $100,000, with a median of $10,000.
Among its largest 2025 grants were $100,000 to Ganna Walska Lotus Land, $90,000 to the Riviera Ridge School, $70,000 to MOXI The Wolf Museum, and $55,000 to the Music Academy of the West. Other notable grants included $35,000 to Reboot Inc., $32,500 to Bellosguardo Foundation Inc., and $25,000 each to the Redford Center Inc., UC Regents Arts and Lectures, and United Way of Santa Barbara. The filing lists the purposes of these grants as operational.
Leadership & Key People
Leadership team and compensation from IRS filings
The 2025 filing lists Lillian Sara Hahn, Kenneth N. Musen, and Michael Ward Stout as trustees.
The Lucky One Foundation's 2025 filing lists 3 officers; none of the 3 officers listed in 2025 report compensation.
Officers on the 2025 filing
Kenneth N. Musen
Trustee
On filings since 2019
5 hrs/week
No compensation reported
Lillian Sara Hahn
Trustee
On filings since 2019
5 hrs/week
No compensation reported
Michael Ward Stout
Trustee
On filings since 2019
5 hrs/week
No compensation reported
Data from IRS Form 990 filings, 2019–2025. "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 Lucky One Foundation
How much does The Lucky One Foundation give each year?
The Lucky One Foundation gave $753K across 47 grants in 2025, according to its 2025 IRS Form 990-PF. In 2024 it gave $665K across 32 grants.
What is The Lucky One Foundation's typical grant size?
The Lucky One Foundation's median grant in 2025 was $10,000, and its average grant was $16,011, across 47 grants on its 2025 IRS Form 990-PF. Organizations receiving their first grant from The Lucky One Foundation that year got $11K on average.
Where does The Lucky One Foundation give grants?
The Lucky One Foundation gives mostly in California: 87% of the grant dollars itemized on its 2025 IRS Form 990-PF went to recipients there. The next largest state was New York (6%). The most frequent recipient cities were Santa Barbara, CA (25 grants), New York, NY (5 grants), Los Angeles, CA (3 grants) and Pasadena, CA (2 grants).
Does The Lucky One Foundation give general operating support?
Yes: 100% of The Lucky One Foundation's 2025 grants with a stated purpose (47 of 47) were for general or operating support, per its 2025 IRS Form 990-PF.
Who are The Lucky One Foundation's largest grantees?
The Lucky One Foundation's largest 2025 grantees include Ganna Walska Lotus Land ($100,000), The Riviera Ridge School ($90,000) and Moxi the Wolf Museum ($70,000), according to its 2025 IRS Form 990-PF. Together they received 35% of its itemized 2025 grant dollars.
How large is The Lucky One Foundation?
The Lucky One Foundation reported $5.7M in total assets on its 2025 IRS Form 990-PF. It paid out $758K in qualifying distributions that year, against a required minimum of $357K (roughly 5% of its investment assets).
What does The Lucky One Foundation fund?
No mission statement for the foundation is provided. Its 2025 grants went to organizations whose work includes arts and culture, education, environmental learning, humanitarian relief, and Jewish cultural engagement. See mission & focus areas ↑
How do I apply for a grant from The Lucky One Foundation?
The foundation does not accept unsolicited requests for funds and states that it contributes only to preselected charitable organizations. Eligibility and process details are in the grantmaking section of this profile. See how to apply ↑
What is The Lucky One Foundation's EIN?
The Lucky One Foundation's EIN (Employer Identification Number) is 45-6398630. IRS Form 990 filing data is available on this page for 2019–2025.
Does The Lucky One 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
(8)
When this profile's IRS filing data changed on Grantable
- Updated Form 990-PF for fiscal year 2019 (received by the IRS September 2, 2020)
- Updated Form 990-PF for fiscal year 2020 (received by the IRS May 3, 2021)
- Updated Form 990-PF for fiscal year 2021 (received by the IRS May 10, 2022)
- Updated Form 990-PF for fiscal year 2022 (received by the IRS May 24, 2023)
- Updated Form 990-PF for fiscal year 2023 (received by the IRS May 20, 2024)
- Updated Form 990-PF for fiscal year 2024 (received by the IRS July 1, 2025)
- Added Form 990-PF for fiscal year 2025 (received by the IRS June 29, 2026)
- IRS filings on file for fiscal years 2019–2024
Explore Open Grants
Browse active grant opportunities in The Lucky One Foundation's focus areas in our free grants database
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Cite this profile
Grantable. (2026). The Lucky One Foundation funder profile. GrantGraph. Retrieved October 12, 2026, from https://grantable.co/funders/the-lucky-one-foundation-morg_d66746492b4949f7afb401b37f022d9a
BibTeX
@misc{grantable_456398630_2026,
author = {{Grantable}},
title = {{The Lucky One Foundation funder profile}},
howpublished = {GrantGraph},
year = {2026},
url = {https://grantable.co/funders/the-lucky-one-foundation-morg_d66746492b4949f7afb401b37f022d9a},
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 Lucky One 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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