The Winona Foundation
The Winona Foundation is a private foundation based in Seattle, Washington, that supports nonprofit organizations and projects in the Winona, Minnesota, area. The family and heirs of Laird Norton Co. fund and administer it; the foundation was created in 1982 to keep the family’s history connected to Winona and give back to the community.
The Winona Foundation at a glance
In short: The Winona Foundation gave $91K across 15 grants in 2025 (avg $6K), mostly in Minnesota. 20% of 2025 grantees were new. Source: 2025 IRS Form 990-PF.
- Annual giving (2025)
- $91,000
- +9.6% vs 2024
- Grants made (2025)
- 15
- +7.1% vs 2024
- Average grant
- $6,067
- +2.3% vs 2024
- Median grant
- $5,000
- Total assets
- $1,331,514
- +2.5% vs 2024
- New grantees (estimate)
- 20% first-time grantees (3 of 15, 2025; small sample)
- Primary geography
- Minnesota (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 Winona Foundation
- How to Apply
-
The website’s 2026 application materials said applicants could submit online or email an application and that the board aimed to communicate decisions by the end of May. The foundation’s 2025 filing describes the application materials as a written application, with no specific form, and says awards are restricted to contributing to Winona’s cultural, historic, and educational heritage. The filing states that giving is not restricted to preselected organizations.
- Review Cycle
- The website listed March 1, 2026, as the deadline for that year’s funding cycle; that deadline has passed. The 2025 filing listed February 22 as its application deadline.
- Deadline
- The website listed March 1, 2026, as the deadline for that year’s funding cycle; that deadline has passed.
- Contact
Application contact: Julian Maliszewski
Mailing address: C/O Norton Building 801 2Nd Avenue, Seattle, WA 98104
Phone: (818) 277-2390
Website: https://www.winonafoundation.org
Application details from Grantable's research on the foundation's public materials; confirm on its website before applying.
Open Grants
1 open opportunity from The Winona Foundation
Who The Winona Foundation funds
How this funder distributes its grants
Top Recipients
Top 10 recipients in 2025
The largest 2025 recipient was Great River Shakespeare Festival ($12K). Together the top 10 received $76K.
Grant Size Distribution
73 grants across all recorded years
The most common grant size was under $50K: 73 grants of 73 (100%).
Geographic Focus
Where this funder awards grants
The foundation’s website describes its grantmaking as serving nonprofits in the Winona, Minnesota, area. All 2025 grant dollars in the filing data went to recipients in Minnesota.
Grant Distribution by State
Share of 2025 grant dollars across all 15 itemized grants.
Cities
Is The Winona Foundation open to new grantees?
20%
first-time grantees, 2025
In 2025, 3 of 15 grantees (20%) 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 $6K; repeat grants $6K. How we count
Medians: $5K first-time, $6K repeat.
- 73% of 2025 grantees were also funded in 2024. Method
- Giving held roughly steady from 2022 to 2025 (−3%). Method
- In 2025 it paid out 92% 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 (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 $83K (2024) to $102K (2020). In 2025 it made 15 grants totaling $91K.
Grants by year
Grant recipients and amounts by year
| Recipient | Purpose | Amount |
|---|---|---|
| Great River Shakespeare Festival Winona, MN | General Use | $12,000 |
| Polish Cultural Institute Winona, MN | Operating Expenses | $10,000 |
| Foundation for Winona Area Public SC Winona, MN | General Use | $10,000 |
| Theatre Du Mississippi Winona, MN | Operating Expenses | $8,000 |
| River Arts Alliance Winona, MN | General | $7,500 |
| Minnesota Marine Art Museum Winona, MN | General Use | $7,500 |
| Winona Symphony Orchestra Winona, MN | General Use | $6,000 |
| Winona Dakota Unity Alliance Winona, MN | General Use | $5,000 |
| Project Fine Winona, MN | General Use | $5,000 |
| Winona Arts Center Winona, MN | General Use | $5,000 |
Ready to take the next step with The Winona Foundation?
Financial History
Multi-year comparison from IRS filings
Filing type: Form 990-PF (a private foundation).
| Filing year | Total Assets | Revenue | Expenses | Grants paid | Grants | Qualifying Distributions | Net Investment Income | Distributable Amount |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2025 | $1,331,514 | $147,903 | $114,126 | $91,000 | 15 | $91,401 | $75,785 | $99,321 |
| 2024 | $1,298,821 | $152,709 | $103,985 | $83,000 | 14 | $84,021 | $73,046 | $89,745 |
| 2023 | $1,251,603 | $16,940 | $101,617 | $84,000 | 13 | $84,045 | $30,454 | $81,463 |
| 2022 | $1,337,063 | $96,267 | $119,049 | $93,500 | 15 | $99,814 | $13,996 | $82,110 |
| 2021 | $1,361,285 | $124,861 | $110,948 | $91,000 | 16 | $91,138 | $46,096 | $93,704 |
| 2020 | $1,347,275 | $52,803 | $119,621 | $101,850 | 19 | — | $20,531 | $81,965 |
Under IRS private-foundation payout rules, The Winona Foundation reported a distributable amount of $99K 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
The foundation states that its purpose is to contribute to Winona’s cultural, historical, and educational heritage, conserving or expanding existing organizations and programs and fostering innovative projects with that heritage in mind. Its 2025 filing lists the same heritage as a restriction on awards.
Examples of grantees’ work include Great River Shakespeare Festival’s theater productions; the Polish Cultural Institute’s museum of Polish culture, arts, and education; and the Minnesota Marine Art Museum’s visual-art education and exhibitions about people’s relationship with water. Project FINE describes its work as serving refugees and immigrants and building connections across cultures. Frozen River Film Festival says its documentary films and programming engage, educate, and activate the community.
Grantmaking
In filing year 2025, the foundation reported 15 grants totaling $91,000. Grant amounts ranged from $2,000 to $12,000, with a median of $5,000. The foundation’s website separately reports awards to 17 organizations and projects in 2025.
Among the reported 2025 grants were $12,000 to Great River Shakespeare Festival, $10,000 each to the Polish Cultural Institute and Foundation for Winona Area Public Schools, $8,000 to Theatre du Mississippi, and $7,500 each to River Arts Alliance and Minnesota Marine Art Museum. Other reported awards included $6,000 to Winona Symphony Orchestra, $5,000 each to Winona Dakota Unity Alliance, Project FINE, and Winona Arts Center, and $2,500 to Frozen River Film Festival.
Leadership & Key People
Leadership team and compensation from IRS filings
The 2025 filing lists Julian Maliszewski as president; Haley Parks, Sarah Reed, and Tyler Williams as directors; Hayden Parks and Skyler Mashore as associate directors; Arthur Roth as treasurer; and Kayla Peacock as secretary.
The Winona Foundation is led by Julian Maliszewski, President since 2023 (on filings since 2020); none of the 8 officers listed in 2025 report compensation.
Officers on the 2025 filing
Julian Maliszewski
President
Director → Vice President, 2022
Vice President → President, 2023
On filings since 2020
1 hr/week
No compensation reported
Sarah Reed
Director
On filings since 2020
1 hr/week
No compensation reported
Haley Parks
Director
Associate Director → Director, 2025
On filings since 2024
1 hr/week
No compensation reported
Tyler Williams
Director
New on the 2025 filing
1 hr/week
No compensation reported
Kayla Peacock
Secretary
Associate Director → Director, 2024
Director → Secretary, 2025
On filings since 2020
1 hr/week
No compensation reported
Arthur Roth
Treasurer
Associate Director → Treasurer, 2024
On filings since 2023
1 hr/week
No compensation reported
Hayden Parks
Associate Director
On filings since 2024
1 hr/week
No compensation reported
Skyler Mashore
Associate Director
New on the 2025 filing
1 hr/week
No compensation reported
Former officers (10)
- Former: Juan David JD Mickle (2020–2024) — Director
- Former: Robert Mickle (2020–2024) — Secretary
- Former: Natalie Mickle (2022–2024) — Director
- Former: Callisa Mickle (2020–2023) — Treasurer
- Former: Mary Jane Parks (2020–2023) — Director
- Former: Tor Ueland (2020–2023) — Director
- Former: Andrew Parks (2020–2022) — President
- Former: Dawn Teufel Urquhart (2020–2021) — Associate Director
- Former: Marie Baez (2020) — Director
- Former: Sebastian Mickle (2020) — Director
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 Winona Foundation
How much does The Winona Foundation give each year?
The Winona Foundation gave $91K across 15 grants in 2025, according to its 2025 IRS Form 990-PF. In 2024 it gave $83K across 14 grants.
What is The Winona Foundation's typical grant size?
The Winona Foundation's median grant in 2025 was $5,000, and its average grant was $6,067, across 15 grants on its 2025 IRS Form 990-PF. Organizations receiving their first grant from The Winona Foundation that year got $6K on average.
Where does The Winona Foundation give grants?
The Winona Foundation gives mostly in Minnesota: 100% of the grant dollars itemized on its 2025 IRS Form 990-PF went to recipients there. The most frequent recipient cities were Winona, MN (15 grants).
Does The Winona Foundation give general operating support?
Yes: 100% of The Winona Foundation's 2025 grants with a stated purpose (15 of 15) were for general or operating support, per its 2025 IRS Form 990-PF.
Who are The Winona Foundation's largest grantees?
The Winona Foundation's largest 2025 grantees include Great River Shakespeare Festival ($12,000), Polish Cultural Institute ($10,000) and Foundation for Winona Area Public SC ($10,000), according to its 2025 IRS Form 990-PF. Together they received 35% of its itemized 2025 grant dollars.
How large is The Winona Foundation?
The Winona Foundation reported $1.3M in total assets on its 2025 IRS Form 990-PF. It paid out $91K in qualifying distributions that year, against a required minimum of $99K (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 Winona Foundation fund?
The foundation states that its purpose is to contribute to Winona’s cultural, historical, and educational heritage, conserving or expanding existing organizations and programs and fostering innovative projects with that heritage in mind. See mission & focus areas ↑
How do I apply for a grant from The Winona Foundation?
The website’s 2026 application materials said applicants could submit online or email an application and that the board aimed to communicate decisions by the end of May. Eligibility and process details are in the grantmaking section of this profile. See how to apply ↑
What is The Winona Foundation's EIN?
The Winona Foundation's EIN (Employer Identification Number) is 91-1184043. IRS Form 990 filing data is available on this page for 2020–2025.
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 2020 (received by the IRS May 12, 2021)
- Updated Form 990-PF for fiscal year 2021 (received by the IRS May 11, 2022)
- Updated Form 990-PF for fiscal year 2022 (received by the IRS May 12, 2023)
- Updated Form 990-PF for fiscal year 2023 (received by the IRS May 8, 2024)
- Updated Form 990-PF for fiscal year 2024 (received by the IRS May 12, 2025)
- Added Form 990-PF for fiscal year 2025 (received by the IRS May 13, 2026)
Explore Open Grants
Browse active grant opportunities in The Winona Foundation's focus areas in our free grants database
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Cite this profile
Grantable. (2026). The Winona Foundation funder profile. GrantGraph. Retrieved October 15, 2026, from https://grantable.co/funders/winona-foundation-the-morg_8015f82ae7cb47269aff7a67c2d9a9e9
BibTeX
@misc{grantable_911184043_2026,
author = {{Grantable}},
title = {{The Winona Foundation funder profile}},
howpublished = {GrantGraph},
year = {2026},
url = {https://grantable.co/funders/winona-foundation-the-morg_8015f82ae7cb47269aff7a67c2d9a9e9},
note = {Accessed 2026-10-15. 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 Winona 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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