William & Florence Wheeler Foundation
The William & Florence Wheeler Foundation is a private foundation based in Bakersfield, California. Its 2025 grants supported organizations working in education, youth programs, health and human services, agriculture, equine care, and community activities.
William & Florence Wheeler Foundation at a glance
In short: William & Florence Wheeler Foundation gave $328K across 22 grants in 2025 (avg $15K), mostly in California. 0% of 2025 grantees were new. Source: 2025 IRS Form 990-PF.
- Annual giving (2025)
- $327,692
- +0.9% vs 2024
- Grants made (2025)
- 22
- -15.4% vs 2024
- Average grant
- $14,895
- +19.3% vs 2024
- Median grant
- $10,000
- Total assets
- $5,228,060
- +6.0% vs 2024
- New grantees (estimate)
- 0% first-time grantees (0 of 22, 2025; small sample)
- Primary geography
- California (98% of itemized 2025 grant dollars)
- Latest 990 filing
- Form 990-PF, 2025 View filing
Data from IRS Form 990-PF, 2025; updated September 2026. New grantees are estimated by matching recipient names across years (methodology).
How to apply to William & Florence Wheeler Foundation
- How to Apply
-
The foundation does not restrict giving to preselected organizations. Its filing lists Nancy L. Wheeler as the contact and requests a letter-format submission; restrictions on awards are listed as N/A.
- Contact
Application contact: Nancy L Wheeler
Mailing address: 5060 California Ave Suite 800, Bakersfield, CA 93309
Phone: (661) 201-4119
Application details from Grantable's research on the foundation's public materials; confirm on its website before applying.
Who William & Florence Wheeler Foundation funds
How this funder distributes its grants
Top Recipients
Top 10 recipients in 2025
The largest 2025 recipient was CMSF Heritage Foundation ($55K). Together the top 10 received $218K.
Organizations only. It also paid 1 grant to individuals ($64,750), which are not listed by name.
Grant Size Distribution
106 grants across all recorded years
The most common grant size was under $50K: 99 grants of 106 (93%).
Geographic Focus
Where this funder awards grants
The foundation is based in Bakersfield, California. Its 2025 filing reports that 98% of grant dollars went to recipients in California and 2% to recipients in New York. The 2025 grants listed also include $5,000 to Wounded Warriors Family Support in Omaha, Nebraska.
Grant Distribution by State
Share of 2025 grant dollars across all 22 itemized grants.
Cities
Is William & Florence Wheeler Foundation open to new grantees?
0%
first-time grantees, 2025
In 2025, 0 of 22 grantees (0%) were first-time recipients. With only 22 grantees, that is a small sample: one grantee more or less moves the share by about 5 points. How we count
- 91% of 2025 grantees were also funded in 2024. Method
- Giving grew 33% from 2022 to 2025. Method
- In 2025 it paid out well above its IRS minimum distribution (the 5% rule). Method
Estimate from itemized grant lists in IRS Form 990-PF filings (2019–2025). 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 2019 to 2025, annual grant giving ranged from $247K (2022) to $346K (2020). In 2025 it made 22 grants totaling $328K.
Grants by year
Grant recipients and amounts by year
| Recipient | Purpose | Amount |
|---|---|---|
| 1 grant to individuals Recipients not named | — | $64,750 |
| CMSF Heritage Foundation Paso Robles, CA | To preserve and enrich the heritage of the 16th district agricultural association and showcase agricultural industries to the community; to offer support to the 4-h and ffa projects and create agricultural education opportunities; maintain a standard of excellence in the facilities and create capital improvement opportunities and to serve as an arm of the California mid-state fair that can accept charitable donations. | $55,072 |
| Hoffmann Hospice Bakersfield, CA | To celebrate the sanctity of life, provide compassionate end-of-life care, and comfort the grieving. | $31,120 |
| Bakersfield College Foundation Bakersfield, CA | To Support the Collegiate Rodeo Team. | $30,000 |
| Jack's Helping Hand San Luis Obispo, CA | To provide community programs that meet the unique challenges of children with cancer or special needs. | $25,000 |
| Junior League of Bakersfield Bakersfield, CA | To advance women's leadership for meaningful community impact through volunteer action, collaboration, and training. | $20,000 |
| Mendiburu Magic Foundation Bakersfield, CA | To provide support for the unmet needs of children and their families that may be facing cancer and/or other catastrophic or life threatening illness. | $15,000 |
| California Reining Horse Association Temecula, CA | To advance the sport of reining with dedication and passion. | $11,500 |
| Alano Pintado Equine Health Foundation Olivos, CA | To further equine veterinary medicine with new advancements and impactful therapies to improve clinical outcomes. | $10,000 |
| Boys & Girls Club of Kern County Bakersfield, CA | To help young people improve scholartically, develop socially, and prepare professionally. | $10,000 |
Ready to take the next step with William & Florence Wheeler 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 | $5,228,060 | $907,771 | $492,326 | $327,692 | 22 | $327,692 | $825,975 | $1,755 |
| 2024 | $4,932,358 | $527,284 | $497,803 | $324,641 | 26 | $324,641 | $444,635 | $310,981 |
| 2023 | $4,778,194 | $103,903 | $409,841 | $270,455 | 18 | $270,455 | $28,166 | $306,771 |
| 2022 | $5,043,288 | $929,279 | $398,436 | $246,633 | 18 | $246,633 | $845,698 | $338,847 |
| 2021 | $4,512,445 | $222,451 | $386,062 | $285,500 | 22 | — | $153,636 | $328,475 |
| 2020 | $4,676,056 | $304,589 | $457,645 | $346,200 | 28 | — | $230,062 | $308,449 |
| 2019 | $4,829,345 | $257,389 | $452,998 | $335,625 | 23 | — | $184,105 | $302,415 |
Under IRS private-foundation payout rules, William & Florence Wheeler Foundation reported a distributable amount of $2K 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 mission statement is provided. Grant records show support for schools and educational organizations, children and families facing illness or special needs, hospice care, youth development, agricultural education, equine organizations, and community leadership programs. For example, the Bakersfield College Foundation says it manages funds for scholarships and other purposes; Jacks Helping Hand says its mission is to meet the physical, mental, and medical needs of children with special needs; and the Junior League of Bakersfield says it advances women’s leadership through volunteer action, collaboration, and training.
Grantmaking
In 2025, the foundation awarded 22 grants totaling $327,692. Grants ranged from $1,000 to $64,750, with a median of $10,000. In 2024, it awarded 26 grants totaling $324,641; in 2023, it awarded 18 grants totaling $270,455.
Among the largest 2025 grants were $64,750 to an individual recipient High School, $55,072 to CMSF Heritage Foundation, $31,120 to Hoffmann Hospice, $30,000 to Bakersfield College Foundation, and $25,000 to Jack’s Helping Hand. Other 2025 recipients included Junior League of Bakersfield ($20,000), Mendiburu Magic Foundation ($15,000), and Boys & Girls Club of Kern County ($10,000).
Leadership & Key People
Leadership team and compensation from IRS filings
Nancy L. Wheeler is listed as trustee.
William & Florence Wheeler Foundation is led by Nancy L. Wheeler, Trustee on every filing since 2019 — the only officer listed, and compensated.
Officers on the 2025 filing
Nancy L. Wheeler
Trustee
On filings since 2019
8 hrs/week
$51K (2019) → $49K (2025)
Data from IRS Form 990 filings, 2019–2025. "On filings since" is the earliest filing we hold that lists the person; hours are average hours per week as reported.
Compensation Overview
From 2025 IRS filing
The highest reported compensation on the 2025 filing was $49K, to Nancy L Wheeler (Trustee).
Frequently asked questions about William & Florence Wheeler Foundation
How much does William & Florence Wheeler Foundation give each year?
William & Florence Wheeler Foundation gave $328K across 22 grants in 2025, according to its 2025 IRS Form 990-PF. In 2024 it gave $325K across 26 grants.
What is William & Florence Wheeler Foundation's typical grant size?
William & Florence Wheeler Foundation's median grant in 2025 was $10,000, and its average grant was $14,895, across 22 grants on its 2025 IRS Form 990-PF.
Where does William & Florence Wheeler Foundation give grants?
William & Florence Wheeler Foundation gives mostly in California: 98% of the grant dollars itemized on its 2025 IRS Form 990-PF went to recipients there. The most frequent recipient cities were Bakersfield, CA (9 grants), Paso Robles, CA (3 grants) and San Luis Obispo, CA (3 grants).
Does William & Florence Wheeler Foundation give general operating support?
Not in 2025: none of the 22 grants with a stated purpose on William & Florence Wheeler Foundation's 2025 IRS Form 990-PF were described as general or operating support.
Who are William & Florence Wheeler Foundation's largest grantees?
William & Florence Wheeler Foundation's largest 2025 grantees include CMSF Heritage Foundation ($55,072), Hoffmann Hospice ($31,120) and Bakersfield College Foundation ($30,000), according to its 2025 IRS Form 990-PF. It also paid 1 grant to individuals ($64,750), which are not listed by name. Together they received 35% of its itemized 2025 grant dollars.
How large is William & Florence Wheeler Foundation?
William & Florence Wheeler Foundation reported $5.2M in total assets on its 2025 IRS Form 990-PF. It paid out $328K in qualifying distributions that year, against a required minimum of $2K (roughly 5% of its investment assets).
What does William & Florence Wheeler Foundation fund?
No mission statement is provided. Grant records show support for schools and educational organizations, children and families facing illness or special needs, hospice care, youth development, agricultural education, equine organizations, and community leadership programs. See mission & focus areas ↑
How do I apply for a grant from William & Florence Wheeler Foundation?
The foundation does not restrict giving to preselected organizations. Eligibility and process details are in the grantmaking section of this profile. See how to apply ↑
What is William & Florence Wheeler Foundation's EIN?
William & Florence Wheeler Foundation's EIN (Employer Identification Number) is 88-0233486. IRS Form 990 filing data is available on this page for 2019–2025.
Data last updated September 2026. Sourced from IRS Form 990-PF filings. Research dossier generated September 2026.
Data update history
(8)
When this profile's IRS filing data changed on Grantable
- Updated Form 990-PF for fiscal year 2019 (received by the IRS May 4, 2020)
- Updated Form 990-PF for fiscal year 2020 (received by the IRS March 1, 2021)
- Updated Form 990-PF for fiscal year 2021 (received by the IRS April 8, 2022)
- Updated Form 990-PF for fiscal year 2022 (received by the IRS September 5, 2023)
- Updated Form 990-PF for fiscal year 2023 (received by the IRS April 5, 2024)
- Updated Form 990-PF for fiscal year 2024 (received by the IRS March 6, 2025)
- Updated Form 990-PF for fiscal year 2025 (received by the IRS April 15, 2026)
- IRS filings on file for fiscal years 2019–2025
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Cite this profile
Grantable. (2026). William & Florence Wheeler Foundation funder profile. GrantGraph. Retrieved October 16, 2026, from https://grantable.co/funders/william-and-florence-wheeler-foundation-morg_949106cd35834516a39c3485c684af51
BibTeX
@misc{grantable_880233486_2026,
author = {{Grantable}},
title = {{William \& Florence Wheeler Foundation funder profile}},
howpublished = {GrantGraph},
year = {2026},
url = {https://grantable.co/funders/william-and-florence-wheeler-foundation-morg_949106cd35834516a39c3485c684af51},
note = {Accessed 2026-10-16. 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 William & Florence Wheeler 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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