The Sugimoto Family Foundation
The Sugimoto Family Foundation is a private foundation based in Arcadia, California. Its 2025 filing reports grants to California organizations working in areas including Japanese American history and culture, arts, youth, education, and health.
The Sugimoto Family Foundation at a glance
In short: The Sugimoto Family Foundation gave $340K across 21 grants in 2025 (avg $16K), mostly in California. 38% of 2025 grantees were new. Source: 2025 IRS Form 990-PF.
- Annual giving (2025)
- $339,800
- +55.2% vs 2024
- Grants made (2025)
- 21
- +23.5% vs 2024
- Average grant
- $16,181
- +25.6% vs 2024
- Median grant
- $10,000
- Total assets
- $4,794,094
- -4.0% vs 2024
- New grantees (estimate)
- 38% first-time grantees (8 of 21, 2025; small sample)
- Primary geography
- California (100% 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 Sugimoto Family Foundation
- How to Apply
-
The foundation’s 2024 filing lists a letter to the foundation as the required material, names Lisa Sugimoto as the contact, and states there are no restrictions or limitations on awards. The filing says giving is not restricted to preselected organizations.
- Review Cycle
- No submission deadline, according to the 2024 filing.
- Deadline
- No submission deadline, according to the 2024 filing.
- Contact
Application contact: Lisa Sugimoto
Mailing address: 418 E Live Oak Avenue, Arcadia, CA 91006-5619
Phone: (626) 574-1175
Application details from Grantable's research on the foundation's public materials; confirm on its website before applying.
Who The Sugimoto Family Foundation funds
How this funder distributes its grants
Top Recipients
Top 10 recipients in 2025
The largest 2025 recipient was Go for Broke ($135K). Together the top 10 received $290K.
Grant Size Distribution
69 grants across all recorded years
The most common grant size was under $50K: 63 grants of 69 (91%).
Geographic Focus
Where this funder awards grants
All reported grant dollars in filing year 2025 went to recipients in California.
Grant Distribution by State
Share of 2025 grant dollars across all 21 itemized grants.
States
Cities
Is The Sugimoto Family Foundation open to new grantees?
38%
first-time grantees, 2025
In 2025, 8 of 21 grantees (38%) were first-time recipients. With only 21 grantees, that is a small sample: one grantee more or less moves the share by about 5 points. First grants averaged $7K; repeat grants $22K. How we count
Medians: $7K first-time, $15K repeat.
- 48% of 2025 grantees were also funded in 2024. Method
- Giving grew 41% from 2022 to 2025. Method
- In 2025 it paid out 117% of its IRS minimum distribution (the 5% rule). 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 $218K (2023) to $340K (2025). In 2025 it made 21 grants totaling $340K.
Grants by year
Grant recipients and amounts by year
| Recipient | Purpose | Amount |
|---|---|---|
| Go for Broke Torrance, CA | To educate the public about the responsibilities, challenges and rights of American citizenship by using the life stories of japanese American soldiers of world war ii. | $135,000 |
| The Rafu Shimpo Foundation Los Angeles, CA | Benefiting nisei week foundation, nikkei games, my wish list foundation, the little tokyo historical society, east west players and asians for miracle marrow matches. | $25,000 |
| Japanese American National Museum Los Angeles, CA | To promote understanding and appreciation of America's ethnic and cultural diversity by sharing the japanese American experience | $25,000 |
| Nisei Week Foundation Los Angeles, CA | Produces the annual festival celebrating japanese and japanese American culture in the historic little tokyo community of los angeles | $25,000 |
| Center Theatre Group Los Angeles, CA | To serve the diverse audiences of los angeles by producing and presenting theatre of the highest caliber, by nurturing new artists, by attracting new audiences, and by developing youth outreach and arts education programs. | $15,000 |
| UCLA Foundation Los Angeles, CA | To actively promote philanthropy and manage donated resources for the advancement of ucla. | $15,000 |
| Japanese American Cultural and CMNT Los Angeles, CA | To promote japanese and japanese American arts and culture to diverse audiences, and to provide a center to enhance community programs. | $15,000 |
| Heads up Youth Foundation Studio City, CA | Dedicated to improving the quality of life for underserved youth in southern California area. | $15,000 |
| Grateful Crane Ensemble Sierra Madre, CA | To honor pay tribute to our japanese American elders | $10,000 |
| Kizuna Little Tokyo Los Angeles, CA | Providing cultural programs to educate, empower and engage the next generation of community leaders | $10,000 |
Ready to take the next step with The Sugimoto Family 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 | $4,794,094 | $225,422 | $428,158 | $339,800 | 21 | $377,605 | $66,553 | $323,001 |
| 2024 | $4,995,856 | $448,293 | $259,721 | $219,000 | 17 | $222,752 | $205,176 | $280,329 |
| 2023 | $4,807,284 | $67,878 | $270,382 | $218,400 | 15 | $221,275 | $43,982 | $257,933 |
| 2022 | $5,012,678 | $871,006 | $285,570 | $241,100 | 8 | $241,100 | $567,626 | $284,095 |
| 2021 | $4,428,107 | $657,041 | $273,568 | $238,000 | 8 | — | $356,503 | $249,597 |
Under IRS private-foundation payout rules, The Sugimoto Family Foundation reported a distributable amount of $323K 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 foundation mission statement is provided. Its 2025 grants included support for organizations addressing Japanese American history and culture, community programs, arts, youth, education, and health.
Grantee-described missions illustrate some of the organizations supported. The Japanese American National Museum says its mission is to promote understanding and appreciation of America’s ethnic and cultural diversity by sharing the Japanese American experience. Nisei Week Foundation says it educates the public on Japanese and Japanese American history and culture. Kizuna Little Tokyo says it works to build a future for its community through educating, empowering, and engaging the next generation. USC Arcadia Hospital describes its mission as providing high-quality healing services while caring for patients’ emotional and spiritual needs.
Grantmaking
In filing year 2025, the foundation reported 21 grants totaling $339,800. Grant amounts ranged from $1,200 to $135,000, with a median of $10,000.
The largest reported grant was $135,000 to Go For Broke in Torrance, California, for public education about American citizenship through the stories of Japanese American World War II soldiers. Other notable awards were $25,000 each to the Rafu Shimpo Foundation, Japanese American National Museum, and Nisei Week Foundation; and $15,000 each to Center Theatre Group, UCLA Foundation, Japanese American Cultural and Community Center, and Heads Up Youth Foundation.
The foundation also awarded $10,000 each to Grateful Crane Ensemble, Kizuna Little Tokyo, and LASC Child Development Center, and $7,500 to USC Arcadia Hospital.
Leadership & Key People
Leadership team and compensation from IRS filings
The 2025 filing lists George Sugimoto and Nathan Sugimoto as trustees, and Lisa Sugimoto as “Executive Direc.”
The Sugimoto Family Foundation is led by Lisa Sugimoto, Executive Director on every filing since 2021; none of the 3 officers listed in 2025 report compensation.
Officers on the 2025 filing
Lisa Sugimoto
Executive Director
On filings since 2021
1 hr/week
No compensation reported
George Sugimoto
Trustee
On filings since 2021
1 hr/week
No compensation reported
Nathan Sugimoto
Trustee
On filings since 2021
1 hr/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 Sugimoto Family Foundation
How much does The Sugimoto Family Foundation give each year?
The Sugimoto Family Foundation gave $340K across 21 grants in 2025, according to its 2025 IRS Form 990-PF. In 2024 it gave $219K across 17 grants.
What is The Sugimoto Family Foundation's typical grant size?
The Sugimoto Family Foundation's median grant in 2025 was $10,000, and its average grant was $16,181, across 21 grants on its 2025 IRS Form 990-PF. Organizations receiving their first grant from The Sugimoto Family Foundation that year got $7K on average.
Where does The Sugimoto Family Foundation give grants?
The Sugimoto Family Foundation gives mostly in California: 100% of the grant dollars itemized on its 2025 IRS Form 990-PF went to recipients there. The most frequent recipient cities were Los Angeles, CA (11 grants), Torrance, CA (2 grants) and West Covina, CA (2 grants).
Does The Sugimoto Family Foundation give general operating support?
Not in 2025: none of the 21 grants with a stated purpose on The Sugimoto Family Foundation's 2025 IRS Form 990-PF were described as general or operating support.
Who are The Sugimoto Family Foundation's largest grantees?
The Sugimoto Family Foundation's largest 2025 grantees include Go for Broke ($135,000), The Rafu Shimpo Foundation ($25,000) and Japanese American National Museum ($25,000), according to its 2025 IRS Form 990-PF. Together they received 54% of its itemized 2025 grant dollars.
How large is The Sugimoto Family Foundation?
The Sugimoto Family Foundation reported $4.8M in total assets on its 2025 IRS Form 990-PF. It paid out $378K in qualifying distributions that year, against a required minimum of $323K (roughly 5% of its investment assets).
What does The Sugimoto Family Foundation fund?
No foundation mission statement is provided. Its 2025 grants included support for organizations addressing Japanese American history and culture, community programs, arts, youth, education, and health. See mission & focus areas ↑
How do I apply for a grant from The Sugimoto Family Foundation?
The foundation’s 2024 filing lists a letter to the foundation as the required material, names Lisa Sugimoto as the contact, and states there are no restrictions or limitations on awards. Eligibility and process details are in the grantmaking section of this profile. See how to apply ↑
What is The Sugimoto Family Foundation's EIN?
The Sugimoto Family Foundation's EIN (Employer Identification Number) is 26-3864130. IRS Form 990 filing data is available on this page for 2021–2025.
Data last updated October 2026. Sourced from IRS Form 990-PF filings. Research dossier generated September 2026.
Data update history
(1)
When this profile's IRS filing data changed on Grantable
- IRS filings on file for fiscal years 2021–2025
Live grants for the work The Sugimoto Family Foundation funds
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Cite this profile
Grantable. (2026). The Sugimoto Family Foundation funder profile. GrantGraph. Retrieved October 26, 2026, from https://grantable.co/funders/the-sugimoto-family-foundation-morg_e729e8dde5c74d52ae9d95347883cd36
BibTeX
@misc{grantable_263864130_2026,
author = {{Grantable}},
title = {{The Sugimoto Family Foundation funder profile}},
howpublished = {GrantGraph},
year = {2026},
url = {https://grantable.co/funders/the-sugimoto-family-foundation-morg_e729e8dde5c74d52ae9d95347883cd36},
note = {Accessed 2026-10-26. 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 Sugimoto Family 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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