The Zelman Family Fund
The Zelman Family Fund is a private foundation based in Los Angeles, California. Its 2026 filing lists grants to charitable organizations including Jewish Big Brothers Big Sisters of Los Angeles, The Nature Conservancy, World Wildlife Fund, and Didi Hirsch Mental Health.
The Zelman Family Fund at a glance
In short: The Zelman Family Fund gave $187K across 37 grants in 2026 (avg $5K), mostly in California. 22% of 2026 grantees were new. Source: 2026 IRS Form 990-PF.
- Annual giving (2026)
- $186,568
- -9.5% vs 2025
- Grants made (2026)
- 37
- -15.9% vs 2025
- Average grant
- $5,042
- +7.6% vs 2025
- Median grant
- $3,000
- Total assets
- $2,135,826
- -0.6% vs 2025
- New grantees (estimate)
- 22% first-time grantees (8 of 37, 2026)
- Primary geography
- California (60% of itemized 2026 grant dollars)
- Latest 990 filing
- Form 990-PF, 2026 View filing
Data from IRS Form 990-PF, 2026; updated October 2026. New grantees are estimated by matching recipient names across years (methodology).
How to apply to The Zelman Family Fund
- Accepts unsolicited proposals
- No
- How to Apply
-
The foundation states on its 2025 filing that it makes contributions only to preselected charitable organizations and does not accept unsolicited requests for funds.
- Contact
Mailing address: 10352 Glenbarr Ave, Los Angeles, CA 90064
Phone: (310) 429-3508
Application details from Grantable's research on the foundation's public materials; confirm on its website before applying.
Who The Zelman Family Fund funds
How this funder distributes its grants
Top Recipients
Top 10 recipients in 2026
The largest 2026 recipient was Jewish Big Brothers Big Sisters of ($58K). Together the top 10 received $119K.
Grant Size Distribution
206 grants across all recorded years
The most common grant size was under $50K: 201 grants of 206 (98%).
Geographic Focus
Where this funder awards grants
In 2026, grant dollars were distributed among recipients in California (60%), Washington, DC (15%), New York (9%), Virginia (6%), and Massachusetts (5%).
Grant Distribution by State
Share of 2026 grant dollars across all 37 itemized grants.
States
Cities
Is The Zelman Family Fund open to new grantees?
22%
first-time grantees, 2026
In 2026, 8 of 37 grantees (22%) were first-time recipients. First grants averaged $10K; repeat grants $4K. How we count
Medians: $3K first-time, $3K repeat.
- 76% of 2026 grantees were also funded in 2025. Method
- Giving held roughly steady from 2023 to 2026 (+3%). Method
- In 2026 it paid out 137% of its IRS minimum distribution (the 5% rule). Method
Estimate from itemized grant lists in IRS Form 990-PF filings (2019–2026). 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 2026, annual grant giving ranged from $61K (2019) to $206K (2025). In 2026 it made 37 grants totaling $187K.
Grants by year
Grant recipients and amounts by year
| Recipient | Purpose | Amount |
|---|---|---|
| Jewish Big Brothers Big Sisters of Los Angeles, CA | Annual Fund | $58,000 |
| Nature Conservancy Arlington, VA | Annual Fund | $10,300 |
| World Wildlife Fund Washington, DC | Annual Fund | $10,000 |
| Didi Hirsch Mental Health Culver City, CA | Annual Fund | $7,210 |
| Humane Society Washington, DC | Annual Fund | $7,000 |
| Los Angeles Reg Food Bank Boston, MA | Annual Fund | $6,000 |
| UCLA Foundation Pasadena, CA | Annual Fund | $5,550 |
| Direct Relief Santa Barbara, CA | Annual Fund | $5,163 |
| ASPCA Los Angeles, CA | Annual Fund | $5,050 |
| Oceana Inc Washington, DC | Annual Fund | $5,000 |
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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 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2026 | $2,135,826 | $75,869 | $191,078 | $186,568 | 37 | $186,568 | $75,869 | $136,641 |
| 2025 | $2,147,681 | $148,562 | $211,724 | $206,261 | 44 | $206,261 | $148,562 | $129,742 |
| 2024 | $2,204,313 | $108,550 | $191,310 | $186,309 | 42 | $186,309 | $108,550 | $125,533 |
| 2023 | $2,291,743 | $108,881 | $186,534 | $181,277 | 40 | $181,277 | $108,881 | $126,270 |
| 2022 | $1,824,145 | $124,667 | $170,512 | $159,456 | 43 | $159,456 | $124,667 | $146,184 |
| 2021 | $2,424,448 | $117,846 | $139,420 | $126,747 | 41 | — | $117,846 | $133,929 |
| 2019 | $2,479,596 | $117,869 | $69,276 | $60,780 | 11 | — | $110,483 | $126,970 |
Under IRS private-foundation payout rules, The Zelman Family Fund reported a distributable amount of $137K for 2026 — 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 fund itself is provided. Its grants include support for organizations working in varied areas. For example, World Wildlife Fund describes its mission as conserving nature and reducing threats to the diversity of life on Earth. Direct Relief says it works to improve the health and lives of people affected by poverty or emergencies, while World Central Kitchen describes its work as providing meals in response to humanitarian, climate, and community crises. Other 2026 recipients include UCLA Foundation, the Humane Society, and the ASPCA.
Grantmaking
In filing year 2026, the fund made 37 grants totaling $186,568. Grant amounts ranged from $1,000 to $58,000, with a median of $3,000. The largest grants included $58,000 to Jewish Big Brothers Big Sisters of Los Angeles, $10,300 to The Nature Conservancy, $10,000 to World Wildlife Fund, and $7,210 to Didi Hirsch Mental Health. The listed purposes for these grants were “annual fund.”
Leadership & Key People
Leadership team and compensation from IRS filings
The 2026 filing lists Kenneth Uslan as President and Julia Uslan as Secretary.
The Zelman Family Fund is led by Kenneth Uslan, President since 2021 (on filings since 2019); none of the 2 officers listed in 2026 report compensation.
Officers on the 2026 filing
Kenneth Uslan
President
President, Director & Treasurer → President, 2021
On filings since 2019
No compensation reported
Julia Uslan
Secretary
On filings since 2019
No compensation reported
Data from IRS Form 990 filings, 2019–2026. "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 Zelman Family Fund
How much does The Zelman Family Fund give each year?
The Zelman Family Fund gave $187K across 37 grants in 2026, according to its 2026 IRS Form 990-PF. In 2025 it gave $206K across 44 grants.
What is The Zelman Family Fund's typical grant size?
The Zelman Family Fund's median grant in 2026 was $3,000, and its average grant was $5,042, across 37 grants on its 2026 IRS Form 990-PF. Organizations receiving their first grant from The Zelman Family Fund that year got $10K on average.
Where does The Zelman Family Fund give grants?
The Zelman Family Fund gives mostly in California: 60% of the grant dollars itemized on its 2026 IRS Form 990-PF went to recipients there. The next largest states were District of Columbia (15%) and New York (9%). The most frequent recipient cities were Los Angeles, CA (11 grants), Washington, DC (5 grants), New York, NY (4 grants) and Boston, MA (2 grants).
Does The Zelman Family Fund give general operating support?
Yes: 100% of The Zelman Family Fund's 2026 grants with a stated purpose (37 of 37) were for general or operating support, per its 2026 IRS Form 990-PF.
Who are The Zelman Family Fund's largest grantees?
The Zelman Family Fund's largest 2026 grantees include Jewish Big Brothers Big Sisters of ($58,000), Nature Conservancy ($10,300) and World Wildlife Fund ($10,000), according to its 2026 IRS Form 990-PF. Together they received 42% of its itemized 2026 grant dollars.
How large is The Zelman Family Fund?
The Zelman Family Fund reported $2.1M in total assets on its 2026 IRS Form 990-PF. It paid out $187K in qualifying distributions that year, against a required minimum of $137K (roughly 5% of its investment assets).
What does The Zelman Family Fund fund?
No mission statement for the fund itself is provided. Its grants include support for organizations working in varied areas. For example, World Wildlife Fund describes its mission as conserving nature and reducing threats to the diversity of life on Earth. See mission & focus areas ↑
How do I apply for a grant from The Zelman Family Fund?
The foundation states on its 2025 filing that it 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 Zelman Family Fund's EIN?
The Zelman Family Fund's EIN (Employer Identification Number) is 02-0588453. IRS Form 990 filing data is available on this page for 2019–2026.
Does The Zelman Family Fund 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
(3)
When this profile's IRS filing data changed on Grantable
- Added Form 990-PF for fiscal year 2019 (received by the IRS January 7, 2020)
- Added Form 990-PF for fiscal year 2026 (received by the IRS July 2, 2026)
- IRS filings on file for fiscal years 2021–2025
Explore Open Grants
Browse active grant opportunities in The Zelman Family Fund's focus areas in our free grants database
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Cite this profile
Grantable. (2026). The Zelman Family Fund funder profile. GrantGraph. Retrieved October 11, 2026, from https://grantable.co/funders/the-zelman-family-fund-morg_d8d8881eeb3d4b059fcdc08575a6c92f
BibTeX
@misc{grantable_020588453_2026,
author = {{Grantable}},
title = {{The Zelman Family Fund funder profile}},
howpublished = {GrantGraph},
year = {2026},
url = {https://grantable.co/funders/the-zelman-family-fund-morg_d8d8881eeb3d4b059fcdc08575a6c92f},
note = {Accessed 2026-10-11. 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 Zelman Family Fund'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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