Townsend Foundation Inc
Townsend Foundation Inc is a private foundation based in Menomonee Falls, Wisconsin. Founded by Kenneth and Barbara Semmann and incorporated in 2000, it funds modest-sized projects and activities through not-for-profit organizations.
Townsend Foundation Inc at a glance
In short: Townsend Foundation Inc gave $77K across 38 grants in 2025 (avg $2K), mostly in Wisconsin. 39% of 2025 grantees were new. Source: 2025 IRS Form 990-PF.
- Annual giving (2025)
- $76,600
- +25.7% vs 2024
- Grants made (2025)
- 38
- +46.2% vs 2024
- Average grant
- $2,016
- -14.0% vs 2024
- Median grant
- $2,000
- Total assets
- $1,006,991
- -0.4% vs 2024
- New grantees (estimate)
- 39% first-time grantees (15 of 38, 2025)
- Primary geography
- Wisconsin (97% 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 Townsend Foundation Inc
- How to Apply
-
A grant application is required. The foundation’s website offers an electronic application and also accepts physical submissions. The 2025 filing says to contact Michael Semmenn for the application form. The foundation does not fund compensation, wages, salaries, or travel expenses for recipient officers, employees, or staff.
- Contact
Application contact: Townsend Fdn Co Michael Semmenn
Mailing address: PO Box 86, Menomonee Falls, WI 53052
Phone: (414) 379-5446
Website: https://www.townsendfoundation.org
Application details from Grantable's research on the foundation's public materials; confirm on its website before applying.
Who Townsend Foundation Inc funds
How this funder distributes its grants
Top Recipients
Top 10 recipients in 2025
The largest 2025 recipient was Vision Forward Assoc ($5K). Together the top 10 received $30K.
Grant Size Distribution
154 grants across all recorded years
The most common grant size was under $50K: 154 grants of 154 (100%).
Geographic Focus
Where this funder awards grants
In 2025, 97% of grant dollars went to recipients in Wisconsin and 3% to recipients in Arkansas.
Grant Distribution by State
Share of 2025 grant dollars across all 38 itemized grants.
Cities
Is Townsend Foundation Inc open to new grantees?
39%
first-time grantees, 2025
In 2025, 15 of 38 grantees (39%) were first-time recipients. First grants averaged $2K; repeat grants $2K. How we count
Medians: $2K first-time, $2K repeat.
- 53% of 2025 grantees were also funded in 2024. Method
- Giving held roughly steady from 2022 to 2025 (+12%). Method
- In 2025 it paid out 125% of its IRS minimum distribution (the 5% rule). 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 $61K (2024) to $78K (2021). In 2025 it made 38 grants totaling $77K.
Grants by year
Grant recipients and amounts by year
| Recipient | Purpose | Amount |
|---|---|---|
| Vision Forward Assoc Milwaukee, WI | GRANT | $5,000 |
| WI Ovarian Cancer Alliance New Berlin, WI | GRANT | $4,000 |
| Lake Area Free Clinic Oconomowoc, WI | GRANT | $3,400 |
| Menomonee Falls Scholarship and Ed Menomonee Falls, WI | GRANT | $3,000 |
| Reservation Outreach Hot Springs Village, AR | GRANT | $2,500 |
| Shepherds College Union Grove, WI | GRANT | $2,500 |
| Restoring Lands a WI Land Trust West Bend, WI | GRANT | $2,500 |
| Riveredge Nature Center Saukville, WI | GRANT | $2,500 |
| Froedtert Menomonee Falls Fndn Menomonee Falls, WI | GRANT | $2,500 |
| WI Lutheran Child and Family Serv Germantown, WI | GRANT | $2,500 |
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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 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2025 | $1,006,991 | $84,165 | $87,922 | $76,600 | 38 | $77,768 | $74,011 | $62,411 |
| 2024 | $1,010,748 | $81,748 | $71,971 | $60,940 | 26 | $61,992 | $71,741 | $59,525 |
| 2023 | $1,000,971 | $49,246 | $82,280 | $72,700 | 30 | $73,328 | $40,294 | $57,373 |
| 2022 | $1,034,005 | $17,928 | $82,230 | $68,100 | 30 | — | $11,587 | $7,967 |
| 2021 | $1,098,307 | $200,317 | $87,225 | $77,800 | 30 | — | $191,372 | $69,345 |
| 2020 | $985,215 | $56,831 | $79,322 | $70,709 | 31 | — | $47,999 | $61,937 |
Under IRS private-foundation payout rules, Townsend Foundation Inc reported a distributable amount of $62K 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 says it aims to help individuals, through their not-for-profit organizations, pursue activities that might otherwise be financially out of reach. Its past recipients include organizations working in areas such as health care, scholarships, environmental preservation, music, and the arts.
Examples of grantees’ stated missions illustrate this range: Lake Area Free Clinic says it provides comprehensive health care to people in need; Mequon Nature Preserve describes habitat restoration and environmental education as its work; and Milwaukee Symphony Orchestra says it reaches audiences through performances and education and outreach programs. These are the grantees’ missions, not statements of the foundation’s own programs.
Grantmaking
In 2025, the foundation reported 38 grants totaling $76,600. Individual grants ranged from $200 to $5,000, with a median of $2,000.
Among the largest 2025 grants were $5,000 to Vision Forward Association, $4,000 to Wisconsin Ovarian Cancer Alliance, $3,400 to Lake Area Free Clinic, and $3,000 to Menomonee Falls Scholarship and Education. Other notable awards included $2,500 each to Reservation Outreach, Shepherds College, Restoring Lands a WI Land Trust, Riveredge Nature Center, Froedtert Menomonee Falls Foundation, Wisconsin Lutheran Child and Family Services, and Mequon Nature Preserve. The foundation also gave $2,500 to Milwaukee Rep Theater.
Leadership & Key People
Leadership team and compensation from IRS filings
The 2025 filing lists Karen Deiringer as president, Mike Semmann as treasurer, Carol Renner as secretary, and Peter Mayer and Justin Lachowin as directors.
Townsend Foundation Inc is led by Karen Deiringer, President since 2025 (on filings since 2020); none of the 5 officers listed in 2025 report compensation.
Officers on the 2025 filing
Karen Deiringer
President
Treasurer → President, 2025
On filings since 2020
No compensation reported
Peter Mayer
Director
On filings since 2020
No compensation reported
Justin Lachowin
Director
On filings since 2022
No compensation reported
Carol Renner
Secretary
On filings since 2020
No compensation reported
Mike Semmann
Treasurer
New on the 2025 filing
No compensation reported
Former officers (2)
- Former: Mary Gerds (2020–2024) — President
- Former: Lana Colbo (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 Townsend Foundation Inc
How much does Townsend Foundation Inc give each year?
Townsend Foundation Inc gave $77K across 38 grants in 2025, according to its 2025 IRS Form 990-PF. In 2024 it gave $61K across 26 grants.
What is Townsend Foundation Inc's typical grant size?
Townsend Foundation Inc's median grant in 2025 was $2,000, and its average grant was $2,016, across 38 grants on its 2025 IRS Form 990-PF. Organizations receiving their first grant from Townsend Foundation Inc that year got $2K on average.
Where does Townsend Foundation Inc give grants?
Townsend Foundation Inc gives mostly in Wisconsin: 97% of the grant dollars itemized on its 2025 IRS Form 990-PF went to recipients there. The most frequent recipient cities were Milwaukee, WI (17 grants), Waukesha, WI (3 grants), Menomonee Falls, WI (2 grants) and West Bend, WI (2 grants).
Does Townsend Foundation Inc give general operating support?
Not in 2025: none of the 38 grants with a stated purpose on Townsend Foundation Inc's 2025 IRS Form 990-PF were described as general or operating support. Recurring purposes include "Grant" (38 grants).
Who are Townsend Foundation Inc's largest grantees?
Townsend Foundation Inc's largest 2025 grantees include Vision Forward Assoc ($5,000), WI Ovarian Cancer Alliance ($4,000) and Lake Area Free Clinic ($3,400), according to its 2025 IRS Form 990-PF. Together they received 16% of its itemized 2025 grant dollars.
How large is Townsend Foundation Inc?
Townsend Foundation Inc reported $1.0M in total assets on its 2025 IRS Form 990-PF. It paid out $78K in qualifying distributions that year, against a required minimum of $62K (roughly 5% of its investment assets).
What does Townsend Foundation Inc fund?
The foundation says it aims to help individuals, through their not-for-profit organizations, pursue activities that might otherwise be financially out of reach. See mission & focus areas ↑
How do I apply for a grant from Townsend Foundation Inc?
A grant application is required. Eligibility and process details are in the grantmaking section of this profile. See how to apply ↑
What is Townsend Foundation Inc's EIN?
Townsend Foundation Inc's EIN (Employer Identification Number) is 39-2000037. 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
(7)
When this profile's IRS filing data changed on Grantable
- Updated Form 990-PF for fiscal year 2020 (received by the IRS November 8, 2021)
- Updated Form 990-PF for fiscal year 2021 (received by the IRS May 15, 2022)
- Updated Form 990-PF for fiscal year 2022 (received by the IRS May 11, 2023)
- Updated Form 990-PF for fiscal year 2023 (received by the IRS May 10, 2024)
- Updated Form 990-PF for fiscal year 2024 (received by the IRS May 13, 2025)
- Added Form 990-PF for fiscal year 2025 (received by the IRS May 11, 2026)
- IRS filings on file for fiscal years 2020–2024
Live grants for the work Townsend Foundation Inc funds
Philanthropy, Voluntarism & Grantmaking Open opportunities, soonest deadline first.
Explore Open Grants
Browse active grant opportunities in Townsend Foundation Inc's focus areas in our free grants database
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Cite this profile
Grantable. (2026). Townsend Foundation Inc funder profile. GrantGraph. Retrieved October 17, 2026, from https://grantable.co/funders/townsend-foundation-inc-morg_e806a82048eb42c982796e272bea716c
BibTeX
@misc{grantable_392000037_2026,
author = {{Grantable}},
title = {{Townsend Foundation Inc funder profile}},
howpublished = {GrantGraph},
year = {2026},
url = {https://grantable.co/funders/townsend-foundation-inc-morg_e806a82048eb42c982796e272bea716c},
note = {Accessed 2026-10-17. 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 Townsend Foundation Inc'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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