The Wadhams Family Foundation

Private foundation · Grantmaker Ann Arbor, MI EIN: 47-4718116

The Wadhams Family Foundation is a private foundation based in Ann Arbor, Michigan. It makes grants to organizations that qualify as exempt under section 501(c)(3) of the Internal Revenue Code and states that it promotes community education, supports culture and the arts, advances social welfare, and supports community beautification.

The Wadhams Family Foundation at a glance

In short: The Wadhams Family Foundation gave $1.0M across 15 grants in 2024 (avg $67K), mostly in Michigan. 27% of 2024 grantees were new. Source: 2024 IRS Form 990-PF.

Annual giving (2024)
$1,010,500
+2.3% vs 2023
Grants made (2024)
15
-11.8% vs 2023
Average grant
$67,367
+15.9% vs 2023
Median grant
$17,500
Total assets
$13,661,866
-9.9% vs 2023
New grantees (estimate)
27% first-time grantees (4 of 15, 2024; small sample)
Primary geography
Michigan (97% of itemized 2024 grant dollars)
Latest 990 filing
Form 990-PF, 2024 View filing

Data from IRS Form 990-PF, 2024; updated October 2026. New grantees are estimated by matching recipient names across years (methodology).

How to apply to The Wadhams Family Foundation

Accepts unsolicited proposals
No
How to Apply

The foundation makes contributions only to preselected charitable organizations and does not accept unsolicited requests for funds.

Contact

Mailing address: 3666 River Pines, Ann Arbor, MI 48103
Phone: (734) 662-0277

Application details from Grantable's research on the foundation's public materials; confirm on its website before applying.

Who The Wadhams Family Foundation funds

How this funder distributes its grants

Top Recipients

Top 10 recipients in 2024

University of Michigan: $710KUniversity of Michigan$710KHuron Waterloo Pathways: $50KHuron Waterloo Pathways$50KAnn Arbor Art Center: $50KAnn Arbor Art Center$50KChad Tough Cornerstone Club: $50KChad Tough Cornerstone Club$50KStudent Conservation Assoc: $35KStudent Conservation Assoc$35KAnn Arbor Pioneer HS Booster Club: $20KAnn Arbor Pioneer HS BoosterClub$20KAnn Arbor A's Baseball: $20KAnn Arbor A's Baseball$20KShelter Assoc Washtenaw Cty: $18KShelter Assoc Washtenaw Cty$18KRay & Mary Knight Foundation: $15KRay & Mary Knight Foundation$15KGarrett's Space: $15KGarrett's Space$15K

The largest 2024 recipient was University of Michigan ($710K). Together the top 10 received $983K.

Grant Size Distribution

80 grants across all recorded years

57<$50K15$50–100K4$100–250K2$250–500K2$500K–1M$1–5M$5M+

The most common grant size was under $50K: 57 grants of 80 (71%).

Geographic Focus

Where this funder awards grants

In 2024, 97% of grant dollars went to recipients in Michigan and 3% to recipients in New Hampshire.

Grant Distribution by State

4states

Share of 2024 grant dollars across all 15 itemized grants.

Cities

Ann ArborCharlestonChelseaSalineBrightonYpsilantiMidlandNorthvilleRestonSouthfieldWashington

Is The Wadhams Family Foundation open to new grantees?

27%

first-time grantees, 2024

In 2024, 4 of 15 grantees (27%) were first-time recipients. With only 15 grantees, that is a small sample: one grantee more or less moves the share by about 7 points. First grants averaged $14K; repeat grants $87K. How we count

Medians: $15K first-time, $20K repeat.

  • 73% of 2024 grantees were also funded in 2023. Method
  • Giving grew 32% from 2021 to 2024. Method
  • In 2024 it paid out 116% of its IRS minimum distribution (the 5% rule). Method

Estimate from itemized grant lists in IRS Form 990-PF filings (2020–2024). 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

$0$500K$1M$1.5M15 grants2020 20 grants2021 13 grants2022 17 grants2023 15 grants2024

From 2020 to 2024, annual grant giving ranged from $567K (2022) to $1.0M (2024). In 2024 it made 15 grants totaling $1.0M.

Grants by year

Grant recipients and amounts by year

RecipientPurposeAmount
University of Michigan Ann Arbor, MICommunity Support, Medical Support$710,000
Huron Waterloo Pathways Chelsea, MIBTB Trail - Environmental Support$50,000
Ann Arbor Art Center Ann Arbor, MICapital Campaign$50,000
Chad Tough Cornerstone Club Saline, MICancer Research$50,000
Student Conservation Assoc Charleston, NHEnviromental Support$35,000
Ann Arbor Pioneer HS Booster Club Ann Arbor, MIBooster Club$20,000
Ann Arbor A's Baseball Ann Arbor, MIAthethic Team - Community Support$20,000
Shelter Assoc Washtenaw Cty Ann Arbor, MIGen Fund Support- Homelessness$17,500
Ray & Mary Knight Foundation Ann Arbor, MIMental Health Support$15,000
Garrett's Space Ann Arbor, MIMental Health Support$15,000
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Financial History

Multi-year comparison from IRS filings

Figures from IRS filings, by filing year
Filing yearTotal AssetsRevenueExpensesGrants paidGrantsQualifying DistributionsNet Investment IncomeDistributable Amount
2024$13,661,866$-120,971$1,195,019$1,010,50015$1,010,500$144,811$867,936
2023$15,160,483$986,661$1,185,563$988,00017$988,000$716,608$871,632
2022$14,573,333$541,253$861,045$567,48913$567,489$444,913$1,017,656
2021$16,365,705$1,533,082$999,660$766,00020$766,000$612,273$1,091,149
2020$15,928,527$166,430$785,998$594,50015—$992,390$956,396

Under IRS private-foundation payout rules, The Wadhams Family Foundation reported a distributable amount of $868K for 2024 — the minimum it must pay out in qualifying distributions.

Research compiled by Grantable AI from public sources. Last updated September 2026.

Mission & Focus Areas

The foundation’s stated purposes include promoting community education and supporting culture, the arts, social welfare, and community beautification. Its 2024 grants included support for environmental work, arts, cancer research, mental health, homelessness services, and community programs.

Among the grantees, Garrett’s Space describes its mission as filling gaps in support for young adults facing mental health challenges and providing support networks and resources for individuals, families, and communities. Therapeutic Riding Inc describes its mission as providing a therapeutic environment through horseback riding and other activities for people with disabilities or other challenges. The University of Michigan describes its mission as representing and advocating for its member physicians.

Grantmaking

In 2024, the foundation made 15 grants totaling $1,010,500. Grant amounts ranged from $500 to $710,000, with a median of $17,500. Notable grants included $710,000 to the University of Michigan for community and medical support; $50,000 each to Huron Waterloo Pathways for environmental support and the Ann Arbor Art Center for a capital campaign; and $50,000 to Chad Tough Cornerstone Club for cancer research. Other 2024 recipients included Garrett’s Space ($15,000), Shelter Association of Washtenaw County ($17,500), and Therapeutic Riding Inc ($2,500).

Leadership & Key People

Leadership team and compensation from IRS filings

The 2024 filing lists Timothy Wadhams as trustee and Laurie G Wadhams as secretary.

The Wadhams Family Foundation's 2024 filing lists 2 officers; none of the 2 officers listed in 2024 report compensation.

Officers on the 2024 filing

  • Timothy Wadhams

    Trustee

    On filings since 2020

    2 hrs/week

    No compensation reported

  • Laurie G. Wadhams

    Secretary

    On filings since 2020

    2 hrs/week

    No compensation reported

Former officers (1)
  • Former: Dennis R. Valenti (2020) — Trustee

Data from IRS Form 990 filings, 2020–2024. "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 Wadhams Family Foundation

How much does The Wadhams Family Foundation give each year?

The Wadhams Family Foundation gave $1.0M across 15 grants in 2024, according to its 2024 IRS Form 990-PF. In 2023 it gave $988K across 17 grants.

What is The Wadhams Family Foundation's typical grant size?

The Wadhams Family Foundation's median grant in 2024 was $17,500, and its average grant was $67,367, across 15 grants on its 2024 IRS Form 990-PF. Organizations receiving their first grant from The Wadhams Family Foundation that year got $14K on average.

Where does The Wadhams Family Foundation give grants?

The Wadhams Family Foundation gives mostly in Michigan: 97% of the grant dollars itemized on its 2024 IRS Form 990-PF went to recipients there. The most frequent recipient cities were Ann Arbor, MI (12 grants).

Does The Wadhams Family Foundation give general operating support?

Not in 2024: none of the 15 grants with a stated purpose on The Wadhams Family Foundation's 2024 IRS Form 990-PF were described as general or operating support.

Who are The Wadhams Family Foundation's largest grantees?

The Wadhams Family Foundation's largest 2024 grantees include University of Michigan ($710,000), Huron Waterloo Pathways ($50,000) and Ann Arbor Art Center ($50,000), according to its 2024 IRS Form 990-PF. Together they received 80% of its itemized 2024 grant dollars.

How large is The Wadhams Family Foundation?

The Wadhams Family Foundation reported $13.7M in total assets on its 2024 IRS Form 990-PF. It paid out $1.0M in qualifying distributions that year, against a required minimum of $868K (roughly 5% of its investment assets).

What does The Wadhams Family Foundation fund?

The foundation’s stated purposes include promoting community education and supporting culture, the arts, social welfare, and community beautification. Its 2024 grants included support for environmental work, arts, cancer research, mental health, homelessness services, and community programs. See mission & focus areas ↑

How do I apply for a grant from The Wadhams Family Foundation?

The foundation makes contributions only to preselected charitable organizations and does not accept unsolicited requests for funds. Eligibility and process details are in the grantmaking section of this profile. See how to apply ↑

What is The Wadhams Family Foundation's EIN?

The Wadhams Family Foundation's EIN (Employer Identification Number) is 47-4718116. IRS Form 990 filing data is available on this page for 2020–2024.

Does The Wadhams Family 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

(1)

When this profile's IRS filing data changed on Grantable

  1. IRS filings on file for fiscal years 2020–2024

Live grants for the work The Wadhams Family Foundation funds

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Cite this profile

Grantable. (2026). The Wadhams Family Foundation funder profile. GrantGraph. Retrieved October 22, 2026, from https://grantable.co/funders/the-wadhams-family-foundation-morg_58d67a5a784d4b26bf76ed7827fb0db2

BibTeX
@misc{grantable_474718116_2026,
  author       = {{Grantable}},
  title        = {{The Wadhams Family Foundation funder profile}},
  howpublished = {GrantGraph},
  year         = {2026},
  url          = {https://grantable.co/funders/the-wadhams-family-foundation-morg_58d67a5a784d4b26bf76ed7827fb0db2},
  note         = {Accessed 2026-10-22. 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 Wadhams 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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